Asheville Redefines Transit

Asheville Redefines Transit
Slogan RIDE.RELAX.CONNECT
Headquarters 360 West Haywood Street, Asheville, North Carolina[1]
Locale Asheville, North Carolina
Service area Buncombe County, North Carolina
Service type Bus service, paratransit
Routes 17[2]
Destinations
Stations 49 Coxe Avenue, Asheville, North Carolina[4]
Lounge 1
Fleet 21[5]
Daily ridership 3,895/day approx[6]
Annual ridership 1,421,693/year approx[6]
Fuel type Diesel, Hybrid
Operator Asheville Redefines Transit
Chief executive Brad Thomas
Website ridetheart.com

Asheville Redefines Transit (art) is the municipally-owned operator of public transportation in Asheville, North Carolina. The agency provides service from 5:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. on Monday through Saturday; and from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Sundays and Holidays. The standard fare is $1.[7] The main and only station is located at 49 Coxe Avenue, Asheville, NC 28801.

The management company for Asheville Redefines Transit is First Transit.

Route list

# Route Name Major destinations
N North Klondyke, Montford, Downtown, MLK, Charlotte, Grove Park
N1 North 1 ART Station, Merrimon, UNCA, Lakeshore
N2 North 2 ART Station, Merrimon, UNCA, Beaverdam
N3 North 3 ART Station, Chamber, Hillcrest
S1 South 1 ART Station, Biltmore, Hospital, Biltmore Village, London, Shiloh, Caribou, Rock Hill, Sweeten Creek
S2 South 2 ART Station, Biltmore, Hospital, Forest Hill, Kenilworth, Chunns Cove, Social Security
S3 South 3 ART Station, Asheland, McDowell, Biltmore Village, Hendersonville Road, Airport
S4 South 4 ART Station, S. French Broad, Depot, Livingston Heights, AB Tech
S5 South 5 Biltmore Avenue, Biltmore Village, Fairview Road Kohls/Walmart, Wood Ave
E1 East 1 ART Station, Tunnel, Asheville Mall, South Tunnel, Wal-Mart, Swannanoa River, VA
E2 East 2 ART Station, Asheville Mall, Haw Creek, Tunnel
W1 West 1 ART Station, Hilliard, Clingman, Haywood, PVA, Deaverview Area
W2 West 2 ART Station, Hilliard, Clingman, Haywood, PVA, Brevard, Biltmore Square Mall
W3 West 3 ART Station, Patton, Goodwill
W4 West 4 ART Station, Patton, New Leicester, Land of Sky
W5 West 5 Patton, North Louisiana, Emma
170 170 ART Station, Tunnel Rd, Warren Wilson, Swannanoa, Black Mountain

Schedule and route changes were made in January 2015.[2]

Holidays

Asheville bus

ART has no service on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Service is suspended after 6:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve, 2014. Limited service is provided on New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day.[8]

Transit Master Plan

In 2009, the City of Asheville commissioned a plan for an overhaul of the transit system. The consulting team, HDR Engineering of the Carolinas (HDR), conducted rider surveys and held several public input events. The final report recommended many changes, including adding Sunday service on the most popular routes, removing Saturday service on some routes, and ending the practice of renumbering evening routes.[3]

Route changes began to occur in conjunction with the annual "Strive Not to Drive" week, in late May 2012.[9]

The plan also recommended purchasing a few new buses at a time so as to stagger the retirement dates of older buses.[3] In early 2011, several new hybrid buses entered the fleet as the first implementation of this recommendation.[10]

Funding

For FY 2012-2013, ART's operating budget was $5 million.[11] The entire Transit Fund revenue is derived from three primary sources: federal and state grant funding ($2.8 million), local tax support ($1.2 million), and passenger charges.[12]

Paratransit Service

Asheville contracts with Mountain Mobility to provide paratransit service. This service is provided within 34 mile (1.2 km) of fixed ART routes and within the City of Asheville. This service is mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act.[13]

Strive Not To Drive

Strive Not To Drive is a week-long long program in the City of Asheville that promotes multimodal transit and the environment. This year, it is planned from May 16–23, 2014, includes such events as a Ride of Silence, a Leadership Ride and a reduced fare promotion.

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.