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Triad transportation leaders took another step Wednesday in building a bus network for long-distance commuters along all the region’s major travel routes.

Would you ride the bus from Greensboro to Archdale? Join the discussion at the Debatables blog.

They approved spending $307,000 for a 60-space "park ’n ride" lot in Archdale for both commuter buses and car pools.

It’s the third in a series of such lots planned by the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation to provide commuter service along Interstate 85 and U.S. 220 South. Bus service is expected to debut in June on the two major highways through Davidson and Randolph counties.

The new I-85 leg will run from Lexington into Guilford and Forsyth counties. Lots already have been built in Lexington and Thomasville.

Along U.S. 220 South, the new service will link Asheboro and Randleman to Guilford, using lots yet to be built.

Bus service will give thousands of commuters a less expensive alternative to driving their personal cars, said Brent McKinney, PART executive director.

"These are folks who travel to go to work, but at great expense," McKinney said.

Legions of single-occupant cars make the trip to Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem, aggravating traffic congestion and air pollution, McKinney said.

The new lot is one piece of a larger plan to have similar types of bus service on U.S. 421, U.S. 29, U.S. 52 South and U.S. 220 North, McKinney said. Service already exists on stretches of Interstate 40 and U.S. 52 North. The new lot in Archdale will be at I-85 and U.S. 311.

PART has had great success attracting riders to its "Surry Express," offering daily commuter service along U.S. 52 North from Mount Airy to Winston-Salem."It’s been a success from Day One," PART program manager Scott Rhine said. At their meeting Wednesday, PART board members approved hiring a contractor to build the Archdale lot, including landscaping, lighting and a shelter.

Lots also are planned along U.S. 220 South near McDowell Street in Asheboro and at the highway’s Randleman exit. PART board members also approved six buses for the new routes in a five-year, lease-purchase arrangement costing $100,000 a year. The new routes’ stops in Guilford County are still being determined, Rhine said.

PART is surveying major employers to determine what would be most helpful to their commuting employees.

Contact Taft Wireback at 373-7100 or taft.wireback@news-record.com