New Britain-Hartford Busway

A concept for the New Britain Station

The Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) is proposing to construct the New Britain-Hartford Busway, a 9.4-mile exclusive bus rapid transit (BRT) system operating in an existing and abandoned railroad right-of-way on a new two-way roadway between downtown New Britain and downtown Hartford’s Union Station.  The corridor runs largely parallel to Interstate 84, the region’s most congested highway and the primary transportation link between New Britain, West Hartford, and downtown Hartford. The actual stops are: Union Place, Sigourney St. , Park St., Kane St., Flatbush Ave., Corbins Corner, Uconn Health Center, Cedar St, East St, New Britain station, Bristol Station, Southington Park and Ride, Milldale Park and Ride, Cheshire Express, Waterbury Park and Ride, and Waterbury Express  The proposed project is intended to provide improved transit travel times between activity centers along the corridor, improve mobility and accessibility for the region’s relatively large transit-dependent population, and promote redevelopment opportunities in older urban centers along the alignment.  

The project is forecast to result in 3,900 hours of weekday travel-time benefits in 2025 when compared to conventional bus service.  The majority of these benefits would result from travel between New Britain and Hartford, with in-vehicle transit travel-time savings of 11 minutes for peak period trips between the two downtowns when compared to bus service operating on local roadways.  In addition, ConnDOT’s Busway operations plan would allow buses to enter and exit the facility to reach destinations well outside of the immediate corridor.  This feature would extend the project’s transportation benefits through the region, by increasing bus speeds for the portion of trips utilizing the guideway and reducing the need for transfers.  It is anticipated that low-income residents who may not have access to an automobile and who currently have difficulty reaching jobs in the corridor and other destinations in the suburbs would realize almost 40 percent of the project’s travel-time benefits. The busway will also serve as a network for the planned New Haven-Hartford-Springfield commuter railway.