Providence school afternoon bus trips could bypass Kennedy Plaza

The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) will hold four public hearings over proposed route changes that would start early next year, including making some Providence School afternoon buses bypass Kennedy Plaza.

The first set of hearings will be held Wednesday at the Community College of Rhode Island’s Knight Campus in Warwick from 12:30 to 2 p.m. and 5:30 to 7 p.m. The other will take place at the Providence Foundation located on Exchange Terrace Thursday from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. and 5:30 P.M. to 7 p.m.

Under the proposed changes, trips leaving Hope High School, Mount Pleasant High School, E-Cubed Academy, and Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School would no longer require transfers at the agency’s downtown bus hub. 

Instead, they would operate directly to neighborhood RIPTA routes.

RIPTA spokesperson Cristy Raposo Perry said the proposal came about from discussion between agency officials and the Providence Public School District

“We mutually agree that this service improvement is beneficial for students and their families as it reduces travel times,” Raposo Perry said.

The public hearings will also cover changes to routes 10X, 28, 29, 35, 72, and 78.

But the proposals would require approval from RIPTA’s board of directors at its next meeting, which is scheduled for Dec. 19. If approved, the changes go into effect on Jan. 18, 2025.

A previous version stated that bus service from Central/Classical/PCTA and the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex would be affected. That is not the case.