Via Transportation Inc is picking up where Bridj left off—offering on demand ride sharing in cities in California and Texas.
Ride-share business Via has announced a partnership with the cities of West Sacramento, California and Arlington, Texas to provide on-demand ride sharing.
"Customers will set pick-up and drop-off locations on the Via app just like other ride-shares, and then a van will pick up several riders headed in the same direction and make multiple stops along a route devised in real time," explains Katie Pyzyk for Smart Cities Dive.
Service is expected to launch in Arlington in December 2017. The Via service will "replace the city's one existing bus line, 'the Max,' which runs one route connecting the University of Texas at Arlington and with transit center south of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport," according to Pyzyk. Via will also offer service in areas not covered by the Max, which is also a pilot program that will expire at the end of the year.
Local coverage is also available for each partnership, by Alice Barr in Arlington and Ellen Garrison in West Sacramento. A press release by Via Transportation Inc. also provides additional details on the new partnerships.
For a history of a high-profile precedent in on demand ride hailing, see Planetizen's coverage of the Bridj system, which launched in Boston in 2014 and ended operations three years later.
FULL STORY: 2 cities partner with ride-share service Via for public transit alternatives
The Slow Death of Ride Sharing
From the beginning, TNCs like Lyft and Uber touted shared rides as their key product. Now, Lyft is ending the practice.
Ride-Hailing Prices Skyrocket as the U.S. Emerges From the Pandemic
A shortage of drivers and spiking demand are driving Uber and Lyft prices higher than ever as the companies struggle to achieve profitability.
Poor Returns for L.A.'s Transit on Demand Pilot
Similar to microtransit on demand programs in other cities, Los Angeles' ongoing experiment is proving to be very expensive (for the public) for the benefit of very few riders.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
USGS Water Science Centers Targeted for Closure
If their work is suspended, states could lose a valuable resource for monitoring, understanding, and managing water resources.
Congress Moves to End Reconnecting Communities and Related Grants
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee moved to rescind funding for the Neighborhood Equity and Access program, which funds highway removals, freeway caps, transit projects, pedestrian infrastructure, and more.
Integrating Human Rights Into Energy and Extractive Sector Transitions
Why just transition efforts must move beyond economic considerations by embedding human rights principles into business practices to ensure equitable, transparent, and accountable outcomes for affected communities and workers.
Blocked, Restored, Blocked Again — Housing Funds in Legal Limbo
Since Trump took office, the administration has blocked multiple affordable housing funding streams. Here's a look at which funds have been frozen, which have been reinstated, and which are in the courts.
Mapping Groundwater Risks from Orphan Wells Across U.S. Aquifers
A new USGS study reveals that more than half of the nation’s documented orphan wells lie within aquifers supplying the vast majority of U.S. groundwater, posing widespread risks of contamination from aging, unplugged infrastructure.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Moorpark
City of Tustin
Tyler Technologies
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions