This begins an occasional series of blog posts where I give suggested alternative commuting options to the downtown from a particular location. My hope is that if you live near the intersection I mention these options could work for you.
Please feel free to email me (getdowntown@annarborchamber.org) with suggested locations.
We’ll first start with one I know well since I live close to it
If you live by Liberty and Stadium on the West Side of Ann Arbor
Walk: It’s about 1.5 miles from Liberty and Stadium to Main Street. So, depending on how far away you are from this intersection and where you office is, it could take between 25-45 minutes to walk to work. If you combine your walk with a ride on the Link it could take less time to get to the other side of downtown.
Bike: The nice thing about Liberty is that there is a bike lane from Stadium to First street (There are also Bike Lanes on Stadium itself from Pauline to Maple). So if you rode your bike on Liberty, you’d be using a bike lane. It will take you about 10-20 minutes to bike to work depending on where in town you work.
There are lots of Bike Hoops downtown and also covered bike parking at many parking structures. If you have an extra nice bike, you can also consider a Bike Locker, which you can get through getDowntown. You can also put your bike on AATA buses so you can bike to one location and take the bus for the rest of your commute.
Bus: and speaking of buses, there are a couple of buses that go downtown Liberty into town:
12A (click here for more info): This bus goes from the Blake Transit Center, up Miller, and then down Liberty. You would take this to get to the downtown. The bus runs every 30 min from 6:48am until 5:48pm and then runs every hour from 5:48pm until 9:48pm. The schedule varies on the weekend, so refer to a Ride Guide or the online schedule. This bus will drop you off at the Blake Transit Center.
12B (click here for more info): This bus goes from the Blake Transit Center, up Liberty and then down to Miller. You would take this to get home from the downtown. It runs a similar schedule to the 12A. Check your Ride Guide for more details or the online schedule.
12UL (click here for more info): This is a peak hour bus that goes down Liberty to the UM Campus by way of Huron Street. It does not go to the Blake Transit Center. This bus runs every half hour from 6:31am-9:26am and the from 4:23pm-6:08pm. There is no weekend service.
Other buses to consider that also run in the area are the 8, the 9, the 9U and the 12UM
Carpooling: Chances are, another downtown worker lives in the area that you could carpool with. For more info on finding a carpool partner, check out the getDowntown Share a Ride page. Also, if you are on Facebook, you can see who else is in your neighborhood and works in the downtown and email them personally to see if they’d like to carpool sometime.
Who’s commuting: I’ve seen Homeless Dave riding his bike on Liberty. I also bike on this street. I’ve seen folks from Suwanee Springs, Bennett Optometry, and Ten Thousand Villages on the bus. Joe Morehouse of the Ann Arbor DDA walks to work on Liberty.
