Partners Transformed MetroBus Stop in East St. Louis’ Retail Corridor
Transit Stop Transformation Project partners—St. Clair County Transit District, Citizens for Modern Transit, AARP in St. Louis and Metro Transit—officially unveiled a newly transformed MetroBus stop in East St. Louis’ retail corridor on April 9. The public opening marked the culmination of an 11-month process of site selection, conceptual design surveying and construction, resulting in a safer, more welcoming space for transit riders and the surrounding community.
Located at 2510 State Street in front of Walgreens, the MetroBus stop serves as a critical connection point linking nearly half of all transit riders in St. Clair County to shopping destinations, employment centers, four Metro Transit Centers and other key destinations. The $90,000 investment transformed a once rundown site into a modern transit amenity featuring a new bus shelter, enhanced seating, improved lighting, wayfinding and added green space. Trivers Architects led the planning and design, with contractor and vendor support from Hank’s Excavating and BLA Studios. The project was funded in part by the St. Clair County Transit District and Citizens for Modern Transit. Construction began in January and was completed in April 2026.
“Upon arrival at this site in 2025, project partners knew we had an opportunity to create meaningful change that would resonate deeply with transit riders and the community at large,” said Ken Sharkey, managing director of St. Clair County Transit District. “I believe this was accomplished.”
This project marks the fifth Transit Stop Transformation Project completed in St. Clair County and the eighth regionwide. To-date $750,000-plus has been invested to transform the Emerson Park, Belleville, North Hanley, 5th & Missouri and Fairview Heights Transit Centers and Maplewood and Soulard MetroBus stops. Partners work with stakeholders to build consensus and policies to move permanent development forward—and ultimately establish lasting developments at transit stops that are helping to improve safety and security, build ridership and increase activity around transit.
These projects also inspire civic pride, further investment in public transit infrastructure, serve as a catalyst for additional investment around Metro Transit Centers and sparked the launch of the “Story of a Bench.” The bus bench program is a smaller-scale intervention that provides a simple amenity at stops lacking seating created by Citizens for Modern Transit in partnership with AARP in St. Louis.
“Partners have been able to install nine bus benches at MetroBus stops across the bi-state area between our Transit Stop Transformation project in Soulard and the one here in East St. Louis,” said Kimberly Cella, CEO of Citizens for Modern Transit. “Rider feedback indicates that the benches are helping to ease physical and mental stress after a long day at work or school, when carrying groceries or dealing with mobility challenges or health conditions.”
Overall, these programs exemplify a strategic, scalable model for upgrading public transit infrastructure, illustrating how modest investments can generate substantial benefits in community advancement, passenger satisfaction and regional equity.
Learn more at www.cmt-stl.org/transit-stop-transformation-projects/.