Creating Stronger Communities: The Glen Park Bus Shelter Project

When the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA) Southwest Region reached out to TD's Gary Roden about the Glen Park Bus Shelter Project, Gary didn't hesitate to help. This community-driven venture is providing five modern and comfortable bus shelters along the Trinity Metro's Glen Park route, where residents will now be protected from the rain and hot sun as they wait for their buses to arrive.

The project began when John Guadian, head of the Glen Park Neighborhood Association, with cooperation from the Tarrant Transit Alliance, reached out to local residents to identify their needs and preferred stops along the route for the shelters. Once the five locations were identified, they invited students from Tarrant County College's South Campus to participate in a design competition.

Among many stellar submissions, the final selection went to the concept created by Dahlia Garcia and Jose Rodriguez. This winning design features two benches for seating, a dedicated wheelchair-accessible space, an overhead cover from the elements, an integrated trash bin and plenty of ventilation for relief from the heat.

"Jonathan Guadian's advocacy has inspired us at DBIA-SW as well as other community advocates to engage him and the city to place bus shelters citywide," said James Russell, DBIA-SW's Assistant Executive Director. "We also are greatly appreciative of TD's involvement in the project. They are a steadfast supporter of our work and one of our premier partners. TDIndustries is a shining example of how our members give back to the community."

"TDIndustries was given the opportunity to help with this project by providing a portion of the building materials needed to fabricate the shelters," said Gary Roden, VP of Design-Build Business Development. "Our participation in community outreach programs is a vital part of our company culture. We are honored to participate in activities that enrich the lives of our fellow residents whenever possible."

With the full support of Wesley Baker, TD's VP of Manufacturing, Bill Avalos, TD's Production Manager, and Abraham Garcia, Purchasing Agent at TD, went to work. Altogether, TD provided 500 linear feet of 2" x 2" x ¼" angle steel, 16 linear feet of 6" x ¼" flat bar, 10 pounds of fasteners, lock nuts, primer and spray paint for the project. "Even though the request was small, it certainly fits well within our wheelhouse," Baker says. "And it will make a huge difference in the lives of the residents of the Glen Park neighborhood. We are more than happy to help in any way we can."

The Glen Park bus route includes 36 bus stops, but only six of those had seating and only four offered shelter. Unfortunately, the Trinity Metro system is poorly funded, so providing better protection for its riders has been a significant challenge. Many of Glen Park's 50,000-plus residents rely on public transportation to get to work, school, medical appointments, church and other community resources. This project provides those riders with a pleasant place to wait during the 30- to 60-minute intervals between buses.

Today, students from Tarrant County College are hard at work prefabricating the shelters that are scheduled for site build continuing through the fall 2022 semester. You can follow their progress at https://www.tarranttransitalliance.org/glen-park-bus-shelter-project.

Finally, another exciting element of this project is the creation of a "DIY Transit Ridership Toolkit" created by the Glen Park Neighborhood Association and Tarrant Transit Authority. This package includes everything other communities need to know to execute a project like this of their own.

Every organization and individual involved in this project exemplified the words of Coretta Scott King when she said, "The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." We want to thank DBIA for engaging TD, and everyone else who is helping every day to improve our neighbors' lives and build stronger communities.