Oakland Transit: A historic expansion held back by historic suburban practices
It’s a celebration. But unfortunately, not everyone is invited.
Last November, Oakland County voters passed a historic countywide transit millage. This week, the first SMART fixed-route expansion finally entered service. But Novi and Wixom are still not open to all due to longstanding exclusionary practices perpetuated by suburban city leadership and private property owners alike.
I traveled back to Metro Detroit from Flint to take a ride on the newly-extended 740. Come along and see what needs to happen to ensure inclusivity.
Since I recorded that video I’ve spoken with SMART staff, who’ve told me they’re aware of these issues and have plans to ensure future rollouts are handled better. That said, fellow riders would appreciate public and candid communication about what happened, why, and what will change moving forward. And just to have it on record: I know SMART does care about getting this right. General Manager Dwight Ferrell has said so himself. Things just didn’t happen how they were supposed to, and it’s only fair for SMART to issue an explanation.
There are people who would be able to use a fixed-route bus, and would prefer to use a fixed-route bus than use paratransit, but they can’t get there because the infrastructure either where they live, or where they’re trying to go, prevents them from doing that.
— SMART General Manager Dwight Ferrell, addressing the Oakland County Board of Commissioners Finance Committee following a presentation from the Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee in February 2023.
The full meeting minutes are available here.
Some other issues are on SMART to fix, most notably a lack of proper communication and outreach to riders. My previous post announcing the service change was the only information available online outside SMART’s official website until this past Tuesday, when a press release authored two weeks ago finally reached major media outlets. Additionally, schedules were not available within Transit, Google Maps, and other third-party apps until after the start of service. Future service changes should be communicated with more sufficient advance notice.
That said: The more egregious issues are on Oakland County to resolve. Cities including but certainly not limited to Novi, Wixom, and Bloomfield Hills either have not or are outright refusing to build essential infrastructure for SMART riders.
MDOT refuses to restripe a state road if sidewalks are not already in place. Bloomfield Hills refuses to build them. This means Woodward and Long Lake is left without critical safety infrastructure at this intersection, which likely won’t change until a SMART rider is killed.
Other private businesses, including the shopping center outside the Troy Transit Center and most recently the Auburn Mile shopping center just north of Great Lakes Crossing have been openly hostile to SMART and forced the removal of existing accessible infrastructure.
This isn’t SMART’s problem. It’s the ghost of L. Brooks Patterson’s segregated, insulated vision for Oakland County and the racist, classist ideals of our wealthiest suburban leaders who, even after their own residents voted in support of the countywide millage, refuse to work with SMART.
Meanwhile, Royal Oak is in the process of installing dozens of new concrete pads for existing stops, entirely on their own through the use of federal dollars, because their values are in the right place.
We need to see a display of leadership like this come from the top as well. Oakland County needs to call the actions of its cities and businesses out for what they are — racist, classist, ableist — and condemn them. This isn’t Patterson’s Oakland County anymore: We are inclusive now, and the residents said as much at the ballot box last year. It’s time to start acting like it, and do what needs to be done to ensure that our historic expansion of fixed-route service is accessible to everyone.