07/06/2026

Outstanding Graduate Student Planning Project

Grand Rapids Bus Stop Inventory and Improvement Project

Michigan State University

This project was conducted in partnership with the Office of Sustainability at the City of Grand Rapids to address the condition of bus stops in priority locations referred to as Neighborhoods of Focus. The goal of this project was to improve accessibility and comfort in the public transit system and to develop planning recommendations to support future decision making. The Infrastructure Priority Index (IPI) was created by the project team to function as an analytical model and planning tool to support ongoing decision-making. Jurors said, "The students showed foresight by adapting the model to serve the priorities of different user groups and/or funding sources."

Congratulations to students Olivia Nedd, Ashton Gaishin, John Quinlan,Zachary Stinchcomb, Sean Monroe, Brody Keeley, Evan Tietema,Neha Sutar, Corey Fein, Sam Durgy, Austin Harrison and instructors Jesus J. Lara and Andrea Polverento