Joe Murray Rivers
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Joe Murray Rivers | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 3, 1939 Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | April 5, 2017 (aged 78) Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Resting place | Oak Grove Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
Joseph Murray Rivers (February 3, 1939 – April 5, 2017)[1] was an American businessman and public-transit advocate. He served on the Chatham County Commission beginning in 1985, and served as its commissioner between 1985 and 2004.[2]
The Intermodal Transit Center in Savannah, Georgia, is now named for him.
Rivers was born in Savannah, Georgia, in 1939,[3] to Joe Murray Rivers Sr. and Sarah Frazier.[4] Growing up in Savannah's Old Fort neighborhood,[2] near Emmet Park, he attended Savannah's Beach High School,[4] and graduated from the U.S. Air Force Institute (University of Maryland), City College of New York and Savannah State University.[3]
He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and the Merchant Marines.[4]
In business, he co-owned, with his friend James Holmes, the Olympic Sports shop in downtown Savannah, originally located on Drayton Street but later moved to Broughton Street.[5]
Rivers is noted for transforming Savannah's transit system from one of the worst in Georgia to one of America's best, a transformation which resulted in his winning an American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Award in 1989.[4] He served as chairman of the Countywide Transit Taskforce between 1985 and 1991, served on the Metropolitan Planning Organization, and served as Region III president from 1991 to 1992. He received a Special Achievement Award from the Coastal Area District Development Authority (CADDA), and served on CADDA's board of directors.[4]
He served on the board of directors for Chatham Area Transit, whose Intermodal Transit Center is now named for Rivers.[5] It opened in 2013.[6]
He wanted to make sure transportation could be provided to all people. He and I used to go to Washington all the time to try to get funding from our legislators — anybody who would listen to us. Joe Murray Rivers was a person who did not give up. For people who did not have means to have a car, he really believed in public transportation. — James Holmes[5]