WEST POINT — A new Uber-style, microtransit service is set to pull into West Point this year following the success of a pilot program in Gloucester.
Ken Pollock, the transit director of Bay Transit, outlined the proposal to members of the West Point Town Council on Aug. 27. The new service is likely to start operating by the end of the year.
Bay Transit set up fixed routes Monday to Friday in West Point in early 2000. The following year, King William County, West Point, and King and Queen County formed a partnership that provided a two-vehicle “rural door-to-door transit service” in both counties.
“We kind of think it’s time to look at what we might be able to do a little differently,” Pollock said.
The service would operate similarly to how Uber works, in which users download an app and hail a ride to an address of their choice, with a driver typically arriving within 10 to 15 minutes, Pollock said.
Bay Transit piloted microtransit in Gloucester three years ago with the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. The Gloucester service became so popular, Bay Transit expanded it from one to three buses and increased the size of the ridership zone.
“It was the first of its kind in Virginia for rural public transportation to try this microtransit type of service,” Pollock said. “We have since won state, regional and national recognition for the success that it has had.”
Bay Transit is creating an app called Bay Transit 4U for West Point that will allow riders to contact a vehicle and schedule a ride. A phone option will also be available.
“Typically it’s about 8-10 minutes’ wait time. That’s what we’ve been doing in Gloucester. It’s gotten so popular it’s now up to 12 or 15 minutes,” Pollock said.
He said it compares favorably to the rural routes that must be booked two days in advance or the fixed route that means waiting at a bus stop between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., sometimes for over an hour.
Pollock stressed that the new service will not be a taxi service, but a “ride-share” application in which multiple passengers can ride each minibus.
“This is an on-demand service … we try to aggregate rides whenever possible,” Pollock said.
The demand in Gloucester has continued to rise, Pollock said.
“From 8 to 5 Monday to Friday, we have three vehicles in the Gloucester area … It has grown dramatically. We are up to over 1,500 rides a month when our fixed route was doing 300-400 rides a month.”
Pollock says Bay Transit has bought a new, more fuel-efficient bus for the West Point service.
“One of the things that comes up a lot is that a lot of our users may not be smartphone-friendly. We also will have a phone number that people can call in and schedule the rides themselves if they can’t use or don’t have a smartphone,” Pollock said.
Bay Transit has developed a “tentative zone” of eight square miles for its West Point services extending into King and Queen County.
Pollock hopes the new service will be up and running by Nov. 1. It would cost $1 a ride.
Bay Transit is the public transportation authority of Bay Aging, a nonprofit organization serving seniors and people with disabilities. Bay Transit serves “all people, of all ages, for all reasons,” according to its website.
Michael Norvell, the marketing and public relations manager for Bay Transit, appealed for input from town council members in drawing up routes. He suggested the buses could pick up “transportation disadvantaged kids” allowing them to enlist in after-school activities at West Point High School.
“We think it’s going to be a huge success,” Norvell said. “We learned a lot marketing the program and growing the program in Gloucester.”
David Macaulay, Davidmacaulayva@gmail.com
