Title: Rapid Laker Line Operations Center
Location of Proejct: Grand Rapids, MI
Project Completion Date: August 2020
Firm Name: Progressive AE

Short Description: The new Rapid Laker Line route improves accessibility and equity by opening community resources to approximately 10,000 individuals who ride each weekday. Renewable natural gas (RNG) supplied by the City of Grand Rapids Biodigester allows the Rapid to operate the fleet with a carbon negative impact. The form of the facility reflects the motion of a bus as it enters and exits the building. The interplay of solid materials with translucency and transparency gives glimpses of the activity within while providing views out reminiscent of riders on the 60’ articulating busses maintained here.

Architect's Statement: The Rapid provides mass transportation to the greater Grand Rapids area. As part of that service, they expanded to add a second bus rapid transit route (BRT). The newest BRT route, known as the Laker Line, supplies quick and efficient rides from downtown Grand Rapids to Grand Valley State University’s Allendale campus. This new route improves accessibility and equity by opening community resources to the approximately 10,000 individuals who ride each weekday.

The Laker Line utilizes 60-feet long articulated buses powered by compressed natural gas (CNG). With this added service, The Rapid needed a facility to store and maintain these 60-feet long vehicles as their primary operations center was already at capacity. Considering the vehicles would be CNG powered, a site was selected directly adjacent to their existing CNG fueling station on the west side of Grand Rapids.
The selected site’s unique shape and relatively small size presented the first design challenge of how to fit maintenance, support and storage for 22 60-feet articulating busses. The design team focused on vehicle turning radius, operational process flow and activity orientation on the site. This exploration led them to the unique footprint. The form of the facility reflects the motion of a bus as it enters and exits the building. The interplay of solid materials with translucency and transparency gives glimpses of the activity within while providing views out reminiscent of riders on a bus.

The building is capable of storing and maintaining 22 60-feet long buses. There are three maintenance bays that include both in ground and above ground vehicle lifts. The administration wing of the building houses dispatch, office space, employee lounge area, and back of house services.

One of the ways The Rapid manages energy usage is by utilizing high-speed overhead doors at the entry and exit points of the vehicle storage area. These doors operate nine times faster than the speed of a conventional overhead door. With the frequency of door use, the high-speed doors minimize the time that cold air is allowed to enter the building during the fall and winter. In addition, the space is operated at approximately 60 degrees during the cold months of the year.

Natural light plays a key role in both the administration wing as well as the vehicle storage area in order to reduce the amount of artificial light needed in each of these spaces. The vehicle storage area uses a mix of translucent wall panel and clear vision glass to minimize the operating time of the LED lights.
The building takes advantage of over 8,000 square feet of green roof over the administration portion of the building. Given the site constraints, underground water storage was needed, which works in conjunction with the green roof, to handle stormwater runoff.

With the close proximity of the CNG fueling station to the City of Grand Rapid’s Biodigester, The Rapid is able to take advantage of biogas produced by the city and compress it at their fueling station. In lieu of purchasing natural gas from the utility supplier, they will be purchasing renewable natural gas (RNG) supplied by the City of Grand Rapids to operate their fleet for a carbon negative impact.