Reno's Transit Overhaul Finally Gets a Firm Timeline

Reno commuters have heard promises about a faster bus corridor along Virginia Street for nearly a decade. This month, the Regional Transportation Commission gave the project something it has lacked until now: an actual construction calendar, with dedicated lanes expected to open in phases starting next year.

The bus rapid transit line will connect the University of Nevada, Reno campus to midtown and downtown, with dedicated lanes meant to cut commute times during peak hours by nearly a third, according to agency projections. Business owners along the corridor have mixed feelings, with some worried about construction disruption and others eager for the foot traffic new stations could bring.

Transit officials point to Reno's rapid population growth, driven in part by the logistics and technology jobs clustering in the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, as the reason the corridor can no longer wait. "We built this city around cars for a long time," one agency planner said. "This is the first real test of whether we can build it around something else too."

Construction will proceed in three segments to minimize disruption to local businesses, with the full corridor expected to be operational within two years of groundbreaking.