NEWS

Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) wants the Davidson community to know about “Microtransit.”

Wait, what? What is microtransit, and why should I care?

Microtransit is intended to be first mile and last mile transportation if you are traveling to Charlotte. The first and last mile are those distances in between your location and where you would transfer to something like the 77X Express Bus to Charlotte.

If you are just traveling in Davidson or the surrounding North Mecklenburg area, you might use microtransit as the sole means of getting from point A to B.

CATS representatives recently provided a presentation about the new program.

Community members, Town staff, as well as staff members from Davidson College and The Pines were on hand to hear the presentation. You can see video clips from the presentation at this link. You will hear from the CATS representatives as well as questions from those in attendance and the responses.

Here’s one way to think of this new program – what if you want to go out to dinner in Davidson, but didn’t want to drive, find a parking place, and then drive home if you have had a drink with dinner? The answer – microtransit.

Or what if you have a doctor’s appointment and you know that you might not be able to drive home? Or you might not even feel well enough to drive there in the first place.

Similarly – what if you want to go to the grocery store – Harris-Teeter, Food Lion, Publix, Aldi, or another store in the area?

Again, microtransit is the answer.

Now, some of you might say, call Lyft or Uber in response to all of these. That could be an option, but it could come at a price that some find out of reach – especially if this support is needed on a regular basis.

Long term, the program is designed to replace the Village Rider. All too often the Village Rider makes its rounds empty or with one or two passengers at the most. In the near term, the program will operate in addition to the Village Rider.

The reality is that it will be so much more than the Village Rider. It will come to your door; it will take you where you want to go. If the destination is in the local area, it will take you directly there. If you are headed to Charlotte – it will take you to where you can pick up the 77X.

The microtransit pilot program is slated to roll out in the coming months and is scheduled to run for an estimated six months. While the long-term program will be with a contracted vendor, the pilot will be with Lyft.

In the mean time, feel free to participate in the CATS microtransit survey. You can access at this link, or scan the QR code below.