Apex Planning Board Backs Transportation Plan Changes to Support Mobility Hub Vision
Transit center will bring passenger rail service back to town and link trains, buses, bikes, and pedestrians in one central location.
Apex, NC, Aug. 13, 2025 — A project years in the making took a step forward Monday night as the Apex Planning Board endorsed transportation map changes designed to help clear the way for a future Mobility Hub. This multimodal transit center will bring passenger rail service back to town. The proposed updates would reorient Apex’s long-term transportation planning around the hub, which is intended to link trains, buses, bikes, and pedestrians in one central location.
The Apex Mobility Hub (document) is part of a broader state and regional effort to prepare for future passenger rail service along the S-Line (link), a rail corridor stretching from Richmond, Virginia, to Raleigh, North Carolina. The North Carolina Department of Transportation envisions “mobility hubs” as multimodal centers where passenger rail, buses, bicycles, and pedestrians converge in one location, making it easier for people to travel without relying solely on cars. In Apex, the hub would not only serve as a train station, but also as a central connection point for bus routes, bike trails, and walking paths. The concept comes out of a feasibility study and public engagement process that examined potential sites, connections to existing infrastructure, and ways to stimulate transit-oriented development while preserving Apex’s small-town character.
During the Monday meeting, the Apex Planning Board considered a package of Transportation Plan Map and Bicycle and Pedestrian System Plan Map amendments that would bring the town’s long-range planning documents in line with the Mobility Hub Plan accepted by the Town Council earlier this year.
The most visible change is the relocation of the planned Rail and Bus Transit Center from Center Street near the S-Line to a site at East Moore Street and the S-Line Railroad. This location emerged from the hub feasibility study as the most practical option, offering better integration with planned pedestrian and cycling facilities. “The mobility hub was determined feasible for East Moore Street,” Shannon Cox, Long Range Planning Manager, told board members.
The proposed amendments (document) also include two grade-separated bicycle and pedestrian crossings. One would span the S-Line at East Moore Street to directly connect the hub to a future passenger boarding platform. The other, at NC 55, would allow people to cross over a major traffic artery without interacting with vehicles. These structures will improve bicycle and pedestrian access to the proposed mobility hub while eliminating safety conflicts.
To strengthen these connections, the plan adds a side path from the hub to the Downtown Strollway and a future crossing at Tingen Road, linking to the South Walk Greenway and a future James Street path. Another side path is proposed along East Moore Street itself, designed to match the upcoming Salem Street streetscape improvements.
The Planning Department reported that the amendments had been reviewed by Transportation and Infrastructure Development, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources, Police, and Fire, with all departments supportive or without concerns. The Planning Board voted to recommend approval, sending the proposal to the Town Council for final consideration.
If adopted, these updates will not immediately trigger construction. Still, they will serve as the official roadmap guiding Apex’s pursuit of funding and partnerships to make the Mobility Hub, and the multimodal future it represents, a reality.