US HOW THIS SIX MONTH TRIAL FITS INTO TALKS. LONG TERME PLANS. THE TARC ON DEMAND PILOT PROGRAM IS DESIGNED TO HELP THEM FIGURE OUT HOW RIDERS LIKE TO GET AROUND THE CITY, SO IT’S NOT REALLY COMPETING WITH ANY OTHER RIDE SHARE PLATFORM YOU’VE HEARD OF. MAYBE WE NEED TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS, OR WE LEARN HOW PEOPLE USE THE SYSTEM SO THAT WE’RE WE’RE EFFECTIVE AND MORE EFFICIENT WITH THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE. TARC CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER ROB STEPHENS SAYS THE ON DEMAND SERVICE WILL GIVE NEW ALBANY RESIDENTS AN ADDITIONAL OPTION FOR SHORT TRIPS AROUND TOWN. THAT INCLUDES GOING TO THE CITY’S LONE BUS LINE TO GET DOWNTOWN. OR GO TO I.U. S GRANT LINE INDUSTRIAL PARK OR LOUISVILLE. SO THE PRICE MODEL, UM, IS AN AFFORDABLE WAY FOR TARC TO SUBSIDIZE THESE RIDERS TRYING TO GET ONTO THE ON THE FIXED ROUTE IN A FIRST MILE, LAST MILE CONNECTIONS. THE KENTUCKIANA REGIONAL PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AGENCY HELPED TARC STUDY THIS MICRO TRANSIT MODEL, LEADING TO THIS SIX MONTH TRIAL. IT WILL BE A CHEAPER OPTION FOR FOLKS AND GIVE THEM ANOTHER OPTION AND MAYBE TAKING A BUS VERSUS HAVING TO JUST DRIVE YOUR CAR EVERY DAY. LAKISHA DOUGLAS IS AN ON DEMAND DRIVER. SHE SAYS SHE HAS A FEW REGULARS ALREADY, AND THIS VAN IS AN OPTION FOR FAMILIES, RIDERS WITH DISABILITIES. AND IT ALSO HAS A BIKE RACK. EVERYTHING IS ON MY TABLET. I ALREADY KNOW WHERE THEY’RE GOING, WHERE TO TAKE THEM, WHERE TO DROP THEM OFF. SO IT’S BEEN WONDERFUL SO FAR. AS FOR THE COST, THE FIRST MONTH IS FREE. AFTER THAT, YOU’LL PAY $2 FOR RIDES THAT END AT A BUS STOP OR $5 TO GO ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE CITY. WE TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT THE METRICS AND SEE IF THAT’LL WORK OR NOT GOING FORWARD. SO, UM, ALL THINGS WILL BE UNDER CONSIDERATION, BUT WE’RE GOING TO FOCUS ON THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE. RIGHT NOW. NEW ALBANY IS THE FIRST PHASE OF THIS ROLLOUT. THE SECOND PHASE COMES LATER THIS SPRING
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TARC debuts experimental on-demand car service in New Albany
Six-month pilot provides short local rides without adding new bus stops
Updated: 6:52 PM EDT Apr 9, 2024
Transit Authority of River City is testing a ride-share service as it gets a better sense of public transit users’ needs.TARC On-Demand is rolling out in New Albany, Indiana, enabling riders in the city to take short trips anywhere within the city — and to the city’s lone bus route that goes downtown, to Indiana University Southeast, to Grant Line Industrial Park, and to Louisville.”Maybe we need to make adjustments when we learn how people use the system so we’re effective and more efficient with the resources that we have,” said Rob Stephens, TARC’s Chief Operating Officer.The service is not designed to be a direct competitor to existing ride-share services like Uber or Lyft, but to explore supplementing TARC’s presence without investing in building new routes or stops, yet.”The price model is an affordable way for TARC to subsidize riders trying to get onto the fixed route in our first-mile, last-mile connections,” Stephens said.A result of a micro-transit study conducted in conjunction with the Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development Agency, the six-month pilot program will also be deployed in Jeffersontown.”It will be a cheaper option for folks,” said KIPDA Community Outreach Specialist Greg Burress. “It will give them another option, maybe taking a bus versus just having to drive your car every day.”For the pilot’s first 30 days, every trip that ends at a TARC stop will be free. After that, all such rides will cost riders $2. Rides anywhere else within the New Albany pilot zone will cost $5.
Transit Authority of River City is testing a ride-share service as it gets a better sense of public transit users’ needs.
TARC On-Demand is rolling out in New Albany, Indiana, enabling riders in the city to take short trips anywhere within the city — and to the city’s lone bus route that goes downtown, to Indiana University Southeast, to Grant Line Industrial Park, and to Louisville.
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“Maybe we need to make adjustments when we learn how people use the system so we’re effective and more efficient with the resources that we have,” said Rob Stephens, TARC’s Chief Operating Officer.
The service is not designed to be a direct competitor to existing ride-share services like Uber or Lyft, but to explore supplementing TARC’s presence without investing in building new routes or stops, yet.
“The price model is an affordable way for TARC to subsidize riders trying to get onto the fixed route in our first-mile, last-mile connections,” Stephens said.
A result of a micro-transit study conducted in conjunction with the Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development Agency, the six-month pilot program will also be deployed in Jeffersontown.
“It will be a cheaper option for folks,” said KIPDA Community Outreach Specialist Greg Burress. “It will give them another option, maybe taking a bus versus just having to drive your car every day.”
For the pilot’s first 30 days, every trip that ends at a TARC stop will be free. After that, all such rides will cost riders $2. Rides anywhere else within the New Albany pilot zone will cost $5.