On behalf of the Municipality of Princeton, consulting firm Nelson\Nygaard held a pop-up event at the Princeton “Dinky” station on Feb. 6 to kickstart the outreach stage of its Princeton Community Transit Plan. The firm was contracted by Princeton to conduct a study to “assess the mobility needs of the Princeton community.”
The study “is meant to look now and in the future at what a transit system that really serves all of Princeton” could be, according to Miranda Adams, one of three transit planners from Nelson\Nygaard at the event. The Feb. 6 event is part of a pop-up series, beginning Feb. 6 and ending Feb. 11.
While her role in the study primarily involves behind-the-scenes analysis in preparation for outreach efforts, Adams told The Daily Princetonian that engaging in these kinds of events is crucial for understanding “what is happening on the ground.”
The Princeton Community Transit Plan was first launched in Fall 2024, following the rise in affordable and market rate housing developments in Princeton in recent years. According to the study’s website, the municipality decided to re-evaluate the current transit system so it could determine whether it was successfully meeting the demand for transportation services in increasingly densely populated communities. It also comes after Princeton received a state grant to purchase two new electric school buses.
Julian Bautista Rojas and Franky Mabalatan, the other two transit planners at the event, explained to the ‘Prince’ that, while having the ability to purchase additional buses is a big win for the town, it is equally important to ensure they are being effectively used.
The event involved tabling near the entrance of the Wawa by Princeton Station from 4:30–6:30 p.m. Adams, Bautista, and Mabalatan distributed flyers and paper copies of the online survey used to collect opinions about transit from Princeton residents. The same day, the team of planners held a similar event from 2–4 p.m. outside the Princeton Public Library.
“I’d say that it’s a necessity to work at the local level, to do work such as this, speaking to people who are experiencing the transit network day to day,” Mabalatan told the ‘Prince.’ “We are transportation planners with a certain level of expertise, but a lot of it is done behind a computer. We really want to be out here to kind of see for ourselves and hear from people who live it everyday.”
“This is an ongoing conversation,” Bautista told the ‘Prince.’ “We’re not done yet, and we have many opportunities for people to participate along the way.”
“We’re going to be summarizing all this feedback, all this input, and going in front of the town council to share what we learned,” he added.
Those interested in following the progress of the project or attending the presentation can find updates on the municipality’s website.
Megan Cameron is a staff News writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com
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