Syracuse (WSYR-TV) - An old building began making way for a new Centro downtown bus hub on Tuesday.
Demolition on the Red Cross building began Tuesday around noon. The hub will span sections of East Adams, South Warren, and South Salina Streets. The current hub is located nearby at Fayette and Salina Streets.
Centro Executive Director Frank Kobliski noted that the old hub was too old and too dated to service modern transportation.
"That hub dates back to the horse car and the trolley car days," Kobliski said. "Those horse cars and trolley cars were a lot smaller than all the 40 foot buses that Centro uses now."
Kobliski said that Centro outgrew the site years ago, adding that the old site was at times an inconvenience or, in some cases, a hazard.
The project is being financed 80 percent by Federal funds, 10 percent from state funds, and 10 percent Centro funds.
Kobliski projected that the project could be completed by December 2011. The new facility will provide shelter during waits in between transfers, but it will also be heated.
