Kennedy Plaza (RIPTA)

This one was inevitable. You know it. And today, we’re going to be looking at Kennedy Plaza.

So, what does this spot have to offer? Well, for one, it’s RIPTA’s central hub. There’s also some things around it as well. On the north side, you have the old Union Station and Providence Station, along with Burnside Park. This is also where bus stops X, Y, and Z are, all long-distance routes. If you’re trying to catch the bus and you’re in the plaza itself, good luck. Getting here consists crossing the street twice and a park. Burnside Park is also over here, along with the ice rink. During the summer, it’s a roller skating rink. No speed skating! Then, there’s the plaza itself. East Approach, while technically still part of Burnside Park, has bus stops V and W, where Broadway-bound routes board, along with North Providence-bound routes. On the north side of Kennedy Plaza, you have bus stops G, H, I, and J. It’s here that many of the East Side routes board, along with the northbound DTC routes. The R Line’s northbound stop can also be found here. On the southern side, you have bus stops B, C, and D. Southbound DTC routes board here, along with the CCRI-bound routes. Above each of the stops are countdown signs, but half the time they don’t even work.

Inside the building itself, you can find a couple of countdown signs for a few bus routes, but they don’t show all of them. Bathrooms can also be found here, however I wouldn’t recommend using them. Normally, there would be a ticket and photo ID office here, but they’re closed for now.

The least they could do with this building, is to have a Wave vending machine where you can load Wave cards. Kinda like how the MBTA has CharlieCard machines at the various subway stations.

The good: It’s centrally-located in Providence! It’s also largely walkable and big. However…..

The bad: The size can be detrimental, especially if you have to run from bus stops B/C/D to stop X. Also, why isn’t stop Z consolidated with stop X? Hell, why does the 49 board over here?! Thank god they’re axing that route. Also, this might not be the best place to hang, given that sometimes interesting figures will hang around. If you know, you know.

Nearby points of interest: There’s a 7/11 nearby! Also, Burnside Park! Providence Station is a quarter-mile away, as is Providence Place Mall.

Rating: 7.5/10

EDIT: It’s come to my attention that as of 6/20/22 (a Monday), the ticket office (and hopefully also the photo ID office) at Kennedy Plaza will be reopening, with Wave sales happening here. With this in mind, I can up the rating to a 7.5.
ORIGINAL RATING: 6/10