Suffolk Transit will be again offering a public survey related to their Transit Development Plan (TDP) which serves as a “road map” for possible future public transportation improvements in Suffolk. The previous TDP for Suffolk Transit was completed in January 2014. The updated TDP for the City of Suffolk will provide the opportunity to document the changes in transit services, adjust transit goals and objectives, assess current transit services, identify unmet transit needs, and determine the appropriate course of action within the six-year planning horizon. During the planning phase of a TDP, it is important to engage both existing riders and the public in conversations regarding their thoughts and experiences about the system and its service. This discussion proves especially valuable if major changes to the system are ultimately recommended.

Suffolk Transit is planning to engage the public through a survey, which opens February 4^th through February 22, 2019, and will be available on Suffolk Transit buses, at Suffolk Public Library locations, and online at https://www. surveymonkey.com/r/Y9SNNDV. The main goal of the survey is to collect opinions on recommendations. Due to limited resources, Suffolk Transit cannot promise certain improvements but wants to know which improvements would help the most Suffolk residents. Recommendations will go into the Transit Development Plan for future consideration. Suffolk Transit is not proposing changes to service at this time. If in the future Suffolk Transit wants to change service, riders will be notified ahead of time.

Suffolk Transit will also host pop-up informational sessions at the Downtown Transfer Station, located at 330 North Main Street, on February 4^th from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and February 5^th from 8:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. to talk to riders and help them complete the survey.

The TDP serves as a management and policy document for the City of Suffolk and as the basis of capital and operating grant requests in the Commonwealth’s Six Year Improvement Program (SYIP), Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), and Constrained Long-Range Plan (CLRP)

The TDP allows the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) to focus investments in transit systems that are meeting the existing demand for public transportation, and that have a desire to meet the growing demand for improved public transportation services. DRPT requires that public transit operators prepare, adopt, and submit a TDP at least every six years and update it annually each December.