A county-wide transportation agency is just weeks away from road testing a new service that promises to provide a more “Uber-like” experience for patrons of its iconic van shuttles.
The Alamance County Transportation Authority (ACTA) is currently on course to debut this new “micro-transit” initiative in early October thanks to an $800,000 grant from the N.C. Transportation Department.
Peter Murphy, the executive director of ACTA, hailed this forthcoming venture as a real-game changer when he appeared before Alamance County’s commissioners on Tuesday to share some of his agency’s latest developments.
“Microtransit is basically a more Uber-like service than one having people wait at bus stops for a long time,” Murphy added as he addressed the commissioners during a designated public comment period that morning. “The difference is that, right now, if you have to a book a ride through our service, you have to book at least a day in advance. What microtransit will allow is that you can do same-day service.”
For some time now, the county’s transportation authority has offered a taxi-esque service called “Dial-a-Ride,” which requires prospective passengers to schedule their pickups with a least a day’s lead time. Murphy told the commissioners that the NCDOT’s grant has allowed ACTA to install new computer software that will facilitate real-time scheduling at a cost of $2 a pop. Murphy added that this new service will initially hit the road within a limited area in and around Alamance County’s seat.
“On October 1,” the authority’s director added, “we’re going to be starting our first microtransit zones, and they will be in Graham and Haw River,” he explained. “We’ll also be introducing new services in Mebane come January 1.”
According to the county, the new microtransit service will be available Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
In the end, ACTA’s plans for this service got a “full speed ahead” from commissioner Pam Thompson, who informed the rest of the board that she had personally requested Tuesday’s briefing on the microtransit initiative. Thompson went on to suggest that this program will put Murphy’s agency miles ahead of other mass transit providers.
“I still don’t understand why ACTA isn’t the bus service for Alamance County,” the commissioner went on to opine, “because it goes right to the door instead of the bus stop.”
