The start of Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s monthly board of directors meeting yesterday had a different feel than usual. Typically, a few speakers may approach the podium to speak in support of or against an item on the agenda. Yesterday, however, advocates and members of Austin’s unhoused community packed the Rosa Parks Boardroom to implore Capital Metro to […]
Capital Metro
The city’s urban transportation system.
Posted inTransit
Cap Metro expands free rides to cooling centers. Advocates for homeless Austinites push for more.
Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority said Tuesday it will give free rides to cooling centers on days when a heat advisory is in effect – that is usually when the temperature hits 103 degrees or higher. Previously, the transit agency offered free rides on days when the temperature was expected to be 105. Advocates for people […]
Posted inTransit
Advocates call for free Cap Metro fares for Austin’s unhoused
On Monday, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors unanimously approved the implementation of a new system that caps the amount riders pay for fares. Another part of the system provides reduced fares for people with lower incomes, called Equifare. But before they voted, some Austinites voiced their concerns saying the reduced fares do not go far […]
Posted inTransit
Capital Metro hosts groundbreaking ceremony for its new station outside of Austin FC stadium
On Monday evening, following a compelling rendition by the Austin FC marching band of Camila Cabello’s “Havana” (singing “McKalla, ah la-la” instead of “Havana, ooh na-na”) state and local officials and Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority staff participated in a groundbreaking ceremony in front of what will be the new McKalla Station, located on the east […]
Posted inTransit
Capital Metro budget talk raises concerns of a looming recession
A potential recession has many industries feeling wary going into the 2023 financial year, which begins on Oct. 1. At its finance committee meeting Wednesday, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority executives discussed the agency’s budget for the upcoming financial year and concerns they have about a recession affecting sales tax revenue, which funds 69 percent of […]
Posted inAustin
Capital Metro partners with HEB for back-to-school campaign
Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority will be partnering with HEB and its beneficiary, For the Children, to host school supply drives ahead of the upcoming school year at various HEB stores. Capital Metro will park buses in two HEB parking lots from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 23 (2508 E. Riverside Drive and 14208 […]
Posted inTransit
Capital Metro announces leader of transit police force
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors has approved Eric Robins, the former chief of police of Sugar Land, Texas, to become the new chief administrator of the Capital Metro transit police. Robins will serve as chief administrator starting Aug. 1, until the nascent transit police department is certified by the Texas Commission on […]
Posted inTransportation
Cap Metro deploys ‘tricked-out’ electric vehicle to help drum up community enthusiasm
MEEP isn’t just the sound made by a popular Muppet; it’s also Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s new portable community engagement vehicle created to involve Austinites in programs like Project Connect, the expansion of Austin’s municipal transit system. The Austin Transit Partnership, the entity overseeing Project Connect, relies a great deal on community engagement, such as […]
Posted inTransit
Why high gas prices aren’t hitting Capital Metro … yet
As gas prices hover near record highs, taking a big chomp out of many household budgets, the region’s public transit agency is sending hundreds of buses into the streets every day topped off with diesel costing less than $2 a gallon. Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority burns through some 4.5 million gallons of diesel per year […]
Posted inTransit
Cap Metro courtesy-stop pilot program likely to be codified
After a successful trial run, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority hopes to extend the expanded version of its courtesy stop pilot program, which was started earlier this year. Capital Metro first implemented the initiative to help riders with mobility impairments deboard between stops to make their commutes a little smoother. But earlier this year, the transit […]
Posted inPlanning
Cap Metro makes progress with equitable transit-oriented development project
Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority updated the Urban Transportation Commission last Wednesday on the progress it has made on the equitable transit-oriented development project. The eTOD project uses $1.65 million in federally awarded grant money to study ways to reduce gentrification and encourage new economic opportunities for traditionally underserved communities along the new Project Connect transit corridors. […]
Posted inTransit
Why your bus may be delayed and what Cap Metro is doing about it
As Covid-19 cases wane and people return to the office, bus ridership is back up to 65 percent of its pre-lockdown levels, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority said. But many folks who rely on the bus say delays and cancellations make their commute difficult. At its board of directors meeting Monday, Capital Metro execs admitted that […]