Akron METRO Breaks Ground on New Maintenance and Ops Facility

Officials from METRO RTA, Akron, OH, were joined by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-OH), APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas, and local dignitaries recently to celebrate the groundbreaking of the agency’s new maintenance and operations facility.

“This new facility means METRO RTA will be able to not only fix buses faster but ensure that fewer buses break down in the first place,” said Sen. Brown. “That means better service for Akronites. Transit like METRO RTA is ultimately about the dignity of work. It creates jobs, it connects people with jobs, and it attracts jobs.”

METRO was awarded a Bus and Bus Facilities grant by FTA in June 2023 totaling $37,808,113. This investment was made possible through the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

The project will consist of a 107,138 square-feet steel-framed structure consisting of two main functional areas for operations and vehicle maintenance, a new visitor parking lot, a reconfigured employee parking lot, and a Commercial Drivers’ License training pad. It will be built on METRO-owned property adjacent to the agency’s existing facilities on Kenmore Blvd.

“METRO is beyond excited to be awarded just over 37 million from the infrastructure law to build a facility that will serve Summit County residents with sustainable transit for years to come,” said Chief Operations Officer Jarrod Hampshire. “This wouldn’t have been possible without the support from Senator Brown.”

Construction is estimated to run through 2024, with operations beginning in the new facility in 2025.