The Connecticut Department of Transportation will hold a CTfastrak new bus unveiling ceremony and press conference followed by a transit-oriented development (TOD) tour of the CTfastrak bus rapid transit system this Monday, August 18, 2014, starting at 12:30 p.m., on the north side of the Capitol Building facing Bushnell Park in Hartford.

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Planned attendees at the press conference include Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman, Department of Transportation Commissioner James Redeker and representatives from the Department of Housing, Housing Finance Authority, Department of Economic and Community Development, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and the Office of Policy and Management.

The press conference will feature the first new 40-foot bus exclusively built for service on the CTfastrak bus rapid transit system which is scheduled to begin operations in central Connecticut in early 2015. The new fleet of hybrid diesel-electric buses will include 30-foot buses to provide neighborhood circulator service and 40-foot buses to operate connector routes. The main line service will be operated with 60-foot articulated buses that will begin to arrive in the fall. All the new buses will feature GPS tracking so riders can find out where their bus is, LED lighting and free WiFi service.

Following the CTfastrak bus unveiling ceremony and press conference, officials will take a transit-oriented development tour of the CTfastrak guideway leaving from the Capitol building at 1 p.m. The tour will begin at the CTfastrak Downtown New Britain Station and follow the guideway and its new five mile multi-use trail through Newington, West Hartford and into Hartford. News media representatives wanting to attend the transit-oriented tour must RSVP to Judd Everhart at judd.everhart@ct.gov or 860.594.3062.

CTfastrak, along with the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield Rail Program, will create opportunities for mixed-use transit-oriented development along two of the state’s most populated corridors, linking existing neighborhoods to employment centers. These transportation systems unlock the potential for TOD development that can support the creation of housing choice and vibrant commercial centers that allow residents to work, play, and shop without the need of a car. They connect multiple state and private colleges and universities, hospitals, and major employers with one another. Connecticut officials recently initiated a large scale TOD predevelopment fund in conjunction with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, the nation’s largest community development support organization to assist developers and municipalities interested in creating mixed-use commercial and residential communities near transit corridors.

CTfastrak will offer a system of routes that provide direct service to and from Waterbury, Cheshire, Southington, Bristol, Plainville, New Britain, Newington, West Hartford, Hartford and Manchester using the bus-only CTfastrak guideway. The CTfastrak system will provide a one-seat, no transfer ride to many major regional employment, shopping and healthcare destinations as well as connections to the New Haven Line-Waterbury branch rail in Waterbury and Amtrak service in Hartford. For information about CTfastrak, visit www.ctfastrak.com, connect via Facebook at www.facebook.com/ctfastrak or Twitter @ctfastrak.