Celebrating BusPlus: Introducing Interactive Storymaps

CDTA is celebrating their highest annual ridership in 54 years. From April 2024 to March 2025, there were more than 18.4 million boardings throughout the CDTA system. This record high ridership is a result of many things, including innovative services, multi-modal alternatives, new partnerships, and BusPlus, CDTA's three BRT (bus rapid transit) routes. To highlight these BRT lines, CDTA is introducing interactive StoryMaps, or visual tours. These StoryMaps provide background information on how the projects started, highlight key partners, outline project timelines, and note achievements through an innovate map tour along each route.

Connecting downtown Albany and Schenectady along Route 5, the Red Line has since provided riders with reliable and convenient service to regional landmarks and areas of employment for over a decade. CDTA is currently completing the planning and design for the Red Line Update project which will make transit priority and pedestrian safety improvements to the section of the route in Schenectady. The Red Line Refresh added amenities to stations that will improve the rider experience such as heaters, snowmelt pads for heated sidewalks, USB chargers, and LED lights. Additional enhancements to the Red Line include the Gateway Mobility Hub, the Capital Region’s first multi-modal transit center, which expands the transit network and encourages ridership by providing seamless connections to several other routes. 

Since the launch of the BusPlus BRT Red Line, CDTA has expanded its BRT service by introducing two new routes, the Blue Line and the Purple Line. CDTA's Blue Line first launched in November 2020, providing service connecting downtown Albany with Troy, Cohoes, Menands, and Waterford. In addition to the BRT transit priority features, the project also includes a Park & Ride with EV charging and a new bus garage in Troy. Soon the Blue Line will also include a new stop at 80 Broadway, a major connection point for state workers who use CDTA to access jobs in Downtown Albany. The Purple Line brought notable transportation enhancements to the Capital Region, including a new roundabout at Crossgates Mall, innovative multi-modal improvements around Brevator Street, and the UAlbany Busway, a major bus only segment on the UAlbany Uptown Campus that not only offers transit priority but also created multi-use paths.

To view all of the StoryMaps and learn more about CDTA's three BRT lines, please visit our new Red Line StoryMap, Blue Line StoryMap, and Purple Line StoryMap.