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SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 | MassTransitmag.com | Mass Transit | 13 Ion Celebrates Historic Groundbreaking ▶ The region of Waterloo celebrated a his- toric moment Aug. 21 as ofcials took part in a groundbreaking ceremony for the start of Ion Stage 1 light rail transit construction. The event took place at the future home of Ion's Operations, Maintenance and Storage Facility on Dutton Drive in Waterloo. On hand for the ceremony was Peter Braid, member of Parliament for Kitchen- er-Waterloo and Parliamentary secretary for Infrastructure and Communities, on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Afairs; the Honour- able Steven Del Duca, Ontario minister of Transportation; Ken Seiling, regional chair; members of Regional Council; and ofcials from GrandLinq. "Our government is proud to invest in this transit project as we focus on creat- ing jobs, promoting growth and building strong, prosperous communities across Canada," said MP Braid. "Investments in public transit will keep residents and visitors moving, contribute to productivity, and reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions across the region." The groundbreaking is a signifcant milestone in the implementation of Ion, the region's rapid transit service, set to begin operation in 2017. All three levels of gov- ernment are funding Stage 1 Ion, including $300 million from the province of Ontario, one-third of eligible costs up to $265 million from the government of Canada, through the Building Canada Fund, and $253 million from the region of Waterloo. Ion will be implemented in two stages. Stage 1 is a 36-kilometre corridor that includes 19 kilometres of LRT from the Conestoga Mall transit terminal in Waterloo to the Fairview Park Mall transit terminal in Kitchener as well as 17 kilometres of adapted bus rapid transit (aBRT) from the Ainslie Street transit terminal in Cambridge to the Fairview Park Mall transit terminal in Kitchener. Waterloo Region Council has committed to Stage 2, which will see the aBRT route converted to LRT, creating a 37-kilometre route of LRT across the region's three urban centres. GrandLinq, the region of Waterloo's public-private partner on Stage 1 LRT, will design, build, fnance, operate and maintain ION over the next 30 years. GrandLinq ofcials and Region of Waterloo staf are currently fnalizing the detailed construc- tion plan for Ion, which will be released this summer. Construction on Ion aBRT will also get underway this summer, with the service set to begin operating in early 2015. www.MassTransitmag.com/11658904 Omaha Adds Four Hybrids to Paratransit Fleet ▶ The Nebraska Environmental Trust (NET) awarded Metro Transit $52,000 for the "Enhanced Paratransit (Moby) Service Using Hybrid Sedans" project. Metro's NET award served as the local match to a Federal Transit Administration grant in the competitive procurement of the four hybrid cars. An ever-increasing demand for Moby's ADA complementary paratransit service had Metro organizing and paying for cab rides to handle the excess demand. The review of alternatives to meet the increasing demand found research show- ing the use of smaller vehicles improves the quality of service as many ambulatory disabled passengers prefer the ease and comfort of sedan/car transportation. www.MassTransitmag.com/11666117 www.CleanEnergyFuels.com Discover how easy it is to transition your fleet to natural gas with America's most experienced fueling provider. For more information, visit www.MassTransitmag.com/10065896