Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County Creates Efficiencies with FlexRIDE Microtransit

To solve for its ridership concerns in Sparks, RTC turned to a growing trend in transit: microtransit, a form of demand-response transportation that uses minibus vehicles. In November 2019, RTC partnered with MTM Transit to enhance its public transit system with the addition of its FlexRIDE microtransit service. As RTC’s existing partner for ACCESS Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) paratransit services, our staff were already familiar with the service area and minibus vehicles, making us the ideal collaborative partner for this innovative new initiative.

FlexRIDE replaced two traditional fixed routes with a microtransit service area leveraging smaller, more efficient, and more flexible vehicles instead of traditional public transit buses. With FlexRIDE, passengers have a convenient, cost-effective ridesharing option that offers them greater flexibility while traveling and commuting. Because FlexRIDE has an on-demand option, passengers can request pick-up at any time, from anywhere, instead of having to be at a bus stop at a set time.

Rather than connecting to multiple buses, passengers are now able to request curbside pick-up from wherever they like, and are dropped off at the curbside location closest to their destination within the microtransit service area. Passengers can request rides using a mobile app, by calling RTC directly, or by walking up to a vehicle on the street. Once an on-demand trip is scheduled, a passenger’s ride arrives within 15 minutes. The passenger can track their ride’s arrival in real-time using the app. Service is available seven days a week, and fares are the same as standard RTC RIDE fixed route fares.