While the city of Ann Arbor awaits approval of a four-party agreement for a proposed county-wide transit authority by Washtenaw County and Ypsilanti, students and University employees are also eagerly anticipating the arrival of an array of mass transit improvements.

The four-party agreement, approved by the city of Ann Arbor March 5, would provide additional transit services across the county, including expansion of routes and increased transportation access. Jim Kosteva, the University’s director of community relations, said the agreement changes many elements of the current transit system that will directly impact University students and employees.

“If this plan and its funding is approved, the intension is to expand along existing routes, services to other counties and provide additional transportation,” Kosteva said. “The goal is to expand everyone’s transportation options (including) patients, visitors, students.”

Ann Arbor Transportation Association spokeswoman Mary Stasiak wrote in an e-mail interview that a majority of riders use the buses for trips to work or school, with 35 percent of riders using TheRide for work, and 40.3 percent using it for school.

Stasiak was unable to provide statistics specifically for University-affiliated riders.

Ypsilanti resident Joseph Ansong, a research fellow at the University, said he takes the bus every day to and from his home in Ypsilanti. Ansong said he is content with the current service of the buses, but wishes they would come more regularly.

“I am doing research here, so sometimes I need to come up to do work on the weekend, which is really hard because there is no transportation on Sundays,” Ansong said. “I am hoping (the agreement) will make it so that I can commute more often and to more areas near here.”

Additionally, the agreement would provide increased bus services to Ypsilanti and other Washtenaw County destinations outside the city of Ann Arbor.

Ypsilanti resident Erin Karr also uses AATA to commute to her job as an entrance services associate at the University Hospital, and said she would like to see expanded hours of bus services in the future.

“I have been riding city buses since I was a child,” Karr said. “I like to ride the bus, and I use it to travel to other places too.”

Since her work schedule often varies, Karr said she sometimes finishes work late and has trouble finding a bus. She said a recent expansion of the city’s NightRide program — a $5 shared taxi service within the city of Ann Arbor and a portion of Ypsilanti — has ensured that she has reliable transportation.

“I am so thankful they have just recently extended the hours of the NightRide program,” Karr said. “Now if I work later, I have a way to get home.

The pending agreement would also extend the breadth of AATA’s services throughout the county. In addition to the NightRide program, current AATA riders have access to low-cost airport transportation and a shuttle to Michigan football games in the fall.