The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) has renewed its partnership with the Quonset Development Corporation (QDC) and will continue to pilot commuter service from the greater Providence area to the Quonset Business Park in North Kingstown. Under the agreement, the Quonset Express (QX) pilot service, which provides morning and afternoon trips, will continue to be offered for free.
The 3,000-plus acre business park is a key employment site in the state with more than 200 businesses. RIPTA announced earlier this month that it was expanding the QX route to include businesses located west of Post Road on Compass Circle.
“As our state and its businesses work together to weather the impacts of the pandemic, we know it is important that Rhode Island be positioned for success in the future,” said Scott Avedisian, RIPTA’s chief executive officer. “Continuing this pilot program is one way to do that. We plan on continuing to work with the QDC and individual employers at Quonset to maximize this key transit connection to employment opportunities.”
Steven J. King, managing director, Quonset Development Corporation, said, “It is essential that Quonset Business Park remain accessible to the over 12,000 employees who commute here every day from across Rhode Island. We look forward to more employees taking advantage of the Quonset Express through the pilot period.”
“Quonset Business Park is a vital component to Rhode Island’s economy as well as the economy here in North Kingstown,” said North Kingstown Town Manager A. Ralph Mollis. “They provide jobs to our communities, including North Kingstown, and the commuter services being proposed by RIPTA is a critical service to the thousands of employees within Quonset Business Park. My thanks to RIPTA for their vision and leadership in this program.”
Under the renewed agreement with QDC, RIPTA will continue to run the pilot service free of charge through June 2022. The pilot program is primarily funded by federal grant money augmented by a 20 percent match from the QDC. The Quonset Business Park is home to one of every six manufacturing jobs in Rhode Island, and its Port of Davisville is one of the top 10 auto importers in North America.
