Hampton Roads Transit updates city on faster headways, new shelters and service realignments

Hampton Roads Transit officials updated the City Council on a regional push to improve frequency, reliability and passenger amenities across the 757 express backbone. Antoinette White, HRT assistant director of service planning, said the agency now operates 15 routes in Hampton and that the Hampton Transit Center sees about 2,000 passengers on an average weekday. "In FY23 these routes carried over 1,000,000 passengers between July 2022 and June 2023," she told council members.

White said frequency changes already implemented include 15-minute peak service on Route 112 (since October 2022) and Route 114 (since May), and that Route 112 saw a 30% ridership increase after the upgrade. She described planned adjustments taking effect Nov. 12: Route 115 will be realigned to combine the strongest segments of the current Routes 115, 117 and 120 so riders will not have to transfer for key trips. White also outlined public outreach that began Oct. 17, pop-up events at the Hampton Transit Center and information distribution at Hampton University and the VA Medical Center.

HRT also reported investments in passenger amenities and fleet. Deputy CEO Brian Smith said HRT has installed more than 600 shelters systemwide and 47 new shelters in Hampton since 2021, and that the agency received an initial 24 new buses with 12 more on site and entering revenue service soon. "We're investing in new buses and passenger amenities to provide more reliable service," Smith said. He added the agency is implementing back-office technology improvements to enable mobile ticketing and real-time trip planning for riders.