As part of the Fortify project (I-40/I-440 road construction), Triangle Transit will start running the "Bus on the Shoulder" service from the Wal-Mart parking lot at 40/42 to downtown Raleigh at Moore Square. The website states that the service will start on 12/16/13, but signs on I-40 seem to indicate that the service is starting on Monday 12/9/13. http://triangletransit.org/johnston-county-express-fortify-options
The new JCX route starts 12/16, but TTA route 102 currently uses I-40 between Raleigh and exit 306. Route 102 will be able to use the shoulders starting 12/9.
Service does start Monday morning, if your car breaks down do not leave it on the pavement, area will be posted "No Parking, Tow-Away Zone", get your car onto the grass or it will be gone when you get back.
You know what I just realized? Route 102 will never need to go on the shoulder unless there's a wreck in the roadway. That route goes opposite rush hour traffic (it uses I-40 East in the morning and I-40 West in the afternoon). So you may not see a bus on the shoulder until next week.
Free through February 3, then regular fares. Here's a link to their fares: http://www.triangletransit.org/buy Whether or not it's permanent will probably depend on ridership.
Looks like the bus might be a good option for downtown commuters only. All other routes having to connect through Moore square would cost more time than they are worth.
Wal-mart is not a community player. My husband has been taking the CAT bus, the” Johnston County Express” (JCX) from Wal-mart to downtown since they started offering it in December to help with traffic during the Fortify project, and he likes it very much. He rides every day. He has just learned that Wal-mart is NOT going to allow the CAT system to continue to use their site as a stop. It seems to me that if Wal-mart supported the community like the community supports Wal-mart, this would not be a problem for them. So, I am urging everyone to call or email corporate Wal-mart and let them know what you think. Or, we can send this out to everyone we know and stop shopping there.
I cut and pasted your letter and added my own thoughts and sent an email to them , might not change their minds but I do agree it is a shame they are not supporting this deb