Mar. 18—NEWBURYPORT — The Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority announced it is shifting into reverse and will continue bus service to Anna Jaques Hospital after reaching an agreement with officials there.
The change of heart comes after residents late last month decried a proposed route that would have dropped off passengers hundreds of yards away from the hospital.
Under the discarded changes, bus Route 19 — which connects the MBTA commuter rail station in Newburyport to the Nicholas J. Costello Transportation Building in Amesbury — would have taken passengers to the corner of Toppans Lane and Highland Avenue. Passengers would be forced to walk up the hilly road to reach the Beth Israel Lahey Health Center-affiliated hospital.
MeVa Administrator and CEO Noah Berger said the hospital's old front entrance on Highland Avenue was not large enough to accommodate MEVA buses. The route leading to the new Helen & Byron J. Matthews Main Entrance on Wallace Bashaw Junior Way also posed a challenge for his vehicles.
The city held a public meeting with MeVa officials on Feb. 29 to go over the plan, but residents were quick to blast the proposal, according to Mayoral Chief of Staff Andrew Levine.
"A lot of residents were involved and a couple of doctors came to our meetings just to say that we would want to make sure to preserve access to the hospital," he said.
Berger said MeVa worked with the hospital to address concerns on both sides and come up with the new route.
Beginning April 8, buses will travel to Anna Jaques along High Street, to Toppans Lane, up Highland Street and then reach Wallace Bashaw Junior Way and the main hospital entrance.
Paving and landscaping are expected to be added along Wallace Bashaw Junior Way to give buses easier access, according to Berger. He said new bus signs will go up a day before the route becomes active.
"I'd love to get shelters there but that's down the road," he said. "This has been a fabulous breakthrough that will create a safer walk space to get to the hospital that I think will be great for AJ employees, and patients and bus riders."
Berger said the paving project should cost about $10,000, with MeVa and Anna Jaques splitting the tab.
"We're talking to contactors right now and are still waiting on final projections," he said.
He thanked Anna Jaques President Glenn Focht, Community Benefits and Relations Manager Janel D'Agata-Lynch and Mike Tremblay, the hospital's facilities manager, for helping to make the new bus stop a reality.
"This required collaboration between multiple institutions and was something MeVa couldn't do alone without infrastructure improvements. But Anna Jaques and the city were very flexible and collaborative," Berger said. "There are always trade-offs in transit, but if you work together with partners who want to do right by citizens and employees, you can get to a better place."
Focht said in an email he is pleased an agreement has been reached that allows MeVa riders to enjoy easy access to the hospital's main entrance.
"It is of utmost importance to us that individuals have convenient, reliable access to their community hospital, and we thank MeVa for working with us and our local officials on a solution that ensures the availability of this valuable service," he said.
In regard to the public meeting Feb. 29, Levine said the city mostly heard from Oakland Street and Highland Avenue residents concerned about buses traveling up and down their small side streets.
"People were telling us that they need these buses to get around and they wanted us to please make sure that they pass by the hospital," Levine said. "So, I would say it was a productive conversation."
Staff writer Jim Sullivan covers Newburyport for The Daily News. He can be reached via email at [email protected] or by phone at 978-961-3145. Follow him on Twitter @ndnsully.
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