October Chamber Forum recap: update on OKC’s transit initiatives

Earlier this year, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) of Central Oklahoma approved the Transit System Plan, a guiding document for the next 10 to 25 years that will eventually bring bus rapid transit and commuter rail services to the OKC metro. The RTA is the organization responsible for creating a coordinated regional transit plan for its six-member cities, one of those cities is OKC, accompanied by Del City, Edmond, Midwest City, Moore, and Norman. In addition to the member cities, four regional corridors were identified in the plan in order to quickly and efficiently connect people to various “regional activity centers” across the metro.

October’s Chamber Forum focused on the latest news surrounding regional transit for the Oklahoma City metro and the RTA. It was held at Vast on Oct. 20, and Greater Oklahoma City Chamber President & CEO Roy Williams led a panel of transit leaders in the discussion. The panel consisted of former Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry, who chairs the RTA; RTA Vice Chair Marion Hutchison; and Jason Ferbrache, director/administrator for the Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority.

During the event, attendees learned about the vision for our region's transportation policies, investments, and projects of the past and future. Watch the full recap of the event here:

“I knew that enhanced mobility was critical for our businesses and for our citizens,” said Henry. “It is so exciting to be directly involved in this process to bring commuter rail to central Oklahoma. In some ways, we’re breaking new ground.”

A lot of work was completed before the RTA began. During the process, it became clear that legislative change needed to occur in order to move forward.  Once legislation was passed, mayors from each of the six cities involved in the RTA came together to sign the trust agreement.

“We can’t do any of this until we have public funding,” said Hutchison. “That won’t happen until everybody’s ready and we have the support of the public to move forward.”

It’s important to note that even though plans are in place, community support and approval is necessary to see the projects come to fruition.

“What we’re doing complements the RTA,” said Ferbrache. “We want to have the best possible transit system we can have with the resources provided to us. We want to continue to enhance our system because it will only make the regional system better. There’s a lot of synergy and a lot of folks working together.”

It’s important that our communities continue working together as the plan for regional transit progresses.

“We are all connected through transportation. To be competitive with our peer cities, this is something that we all have to do,” said Hutchison. “The problem is you can’t just build it the day you realize you need it. It takes decades.”

“Before we can get federal funding, we have to support this with local funding,” said Henry. “We will eventually need to go to a vote of the people for some type of sales tax to support the local portion of this. What we have tried to do is to be open and transparent through every step of the process.You can participate and tell us what you think. We want the public’s input and the right alignment.”

To engage further in the regional transit plan for the future of the OKC metro and share your opinions and perspective, visit the RTA’s website. There, you are able to watch the RTA Alternatives Analysis explanation, provide feedback about your corridor, pin areas of interest on a map for consideration, and learn more about past and upcoming projects.

The future of regional transport for Oklahoma City’s metro supports the continued growth and success of our residents, businesses and general quality of life.

“It will take engagement, support and cooperation from the business community. Not just at election time, but right now,” said Henry “The economic benefits that will emanate from this effort are immeasurable.”

Special thanks to Presenting Sponsor Cox Business and Corporate Sponsor ADG.