Public rideshare services are expanding again in the Birmingham area — this time to the west after the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority rolled out a similar pilot program to eastern parts of the city in May.

The western microtransit zone is slated to launch next month, providing van rides on call much like rideshare services offered by Uber and Lyft but at a cost of $1.50 for one rider and 75 cents for each additional passenger in a group.

“We’re seeing that responding to transportation barriers like this increases people’s ability to find gainful employment,” said Britnee Thomas, planning manager for the BJCTA. “The microtransit operators have really been seeing high reviews because residents see the benefits of the service.”

The BJCTA, which operates under the branding MAX, or Metro Area Express, began offering microtransit services in 2019 with a pilot program in central Birmingham. The MAX On-Demand service gives riders the ability to use an app to arrange rides. People also can book rides by calling 205-236-0768. The system’s vans are wheelchair accessible.

Microtransit services are part of MAX’s 70/30 plan, under which BJCTA is adjusting its fixed-route coverage from 100% to 70% of services and implementing microtransit for the remaining 30%.

BJCTA’s western microtransit zone encompasses the cities of Fairfield and Midfield as well as the Roosevelt, Wenonah and Powderly neighborhoods, Thomas said.

“The Powderly area is a real big food desert,” Thomas said. “They may have some Family Dollars or Dollar General, things like that. But as far as a grocery store, it’s very limited.”

The western microtransit zone also gives residents access to higher education, with Miles College and Lawson State Community College located within the zone, and to health care through the Western Health Center.

Riders also can use microtransit to access bus lines that can take them to downtown Birmingham and other parts of the metro area.

Microtransit can connect passengers to different bus lines within the western zone, too. Currently, transit-system users have two inconvenient options: long walks between bus routes or taking one bus from the western area to downtown just to take another bus to a different part of the western area.

“With incorporating the microtransit zone, now you can just have a van that can connect you,” Thomas said.

Transit Offerings Expanded

The eastern microtransit zone launched in May and includes the Kingston, Eastwood, Inglenook, Woodlawn, Roebuck, Huffman and Eastlake neighborhoods, the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, and the Woodlawn Transit Center, where riders can connect to bus routes including the Birmingham Xpress Bus Rapid Transit service (aka “the orange bus”), a popular 10-mile, east-west corridor launched in late summer.

This microtransit zone includes UAB St. Vincent’s East, several libraries and many areas not served by bus lines. Microtransit can take riders from their homes and workplaces to bus lines that provide access to UAB, Jefferson State Community College and the wider metro area.

“It’s almost like the sky’s the limit,” Thomas said.

Thomas said recent public housing displacement in the city caused many residents without personal transportation to relocate in eastern areas, creating a strong need for the eastern microtransit zone.

In addition, the Zion City area, which used to be served by a bus line that was cut due to budget constraints, is now part of the eastern microtransit zone.

Some students of Woodlawn High School, across the street from the Woodlawn Transit Center, have been taking microtransit and the orange bus to and from school, Thomas said. A shortage of school bus drivers means many students have to catch early buses in the morning or late buses in the afternoon, making public transit a welcome alternative.

The eastern microtransit zone is an ongoing pilot program, with no end date set, Thomas said.

“We’re still collecting data and information about how microtransit works, and we’ve been getting a lot of feedback and assistance from our partner Via because it’s their software that we’re using to power our microtransit service,” Thomas said.

Data the BJCTA is collecting includes destinations, peak ride times and rider demographics.

“Another good thing about microtransit is you’re able to modify it very quickly, as compared to fixed route,” Thomas said. “The zone may start out a nice size, but if we see that the demand is just not there, you can shorten the zone.”

Thomas said the Bus Rapid Transit service, which is currently free for riders, has been a popular addition to the routes. Thomas said it is a very frequent, reliable service that moves a lot of people and is often referred to as “a train on wheels.” It runs every 15 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes during non-peak hours.

The orange bus goes from the Woodlawn Transit Center to UAB, Children’s Hospital, Baptist Health Princeton Hospital and the Birmingham Crossplex.

“It has been extremely helpful in getting people to work, school and health care,” Thomas said.

City Lines Create Barriers

At a December Birmingham City Council meeting, Councilor Hunter Williams said that, while he was happy with the microtransit services Birmingham provides, he was frustrated to learn the BJCTA had not let microtransit riders cross municipalities.

“It’s infuriating to hear those people who are utilizing that service could be going directly from wherever the pickup spot is to their place of employment and back, but instead of being able to do that with these, we’re causing another barrier to their employment by making them jump on and off different routes so what could be a 10-minute commute — and is being paid for by other municipalities —  all the sudden is a 1½-hour commute,” he said. “I am … passionate about how nonsensical that is for those people who are depending on this.”

Thomas said microtransit riders have to choose pickup and dropoff points within the same zone, and BJCTA does not have the power to change that. Via, the BJCTA’s partner that provides app software and some vehicles and drivers, would have to partner with other municipalities and set up zones overlapping with the BJCTA’s in order for riders to cross from one zone to another, Thomas said.

“The algorithm only allows you to go within the zone,” Thomas said.

A microtransit route between the BJCTA’s Central Station in the downtown zone and the airport in the eastern zone is the only exception, Thomas said, because it’s considered a point-to-point route rather than a zone.

Northern and Pratt-Ensley Expansions Planned

Last month, the City Council approved an agreement that will use $1 million in federal grant money to further expand microtransit services into north Birmingham and Pratt-Ensley and to combine two bus routes.

The $20 million grant was awarded as part of the Economic Development Administration’s Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program, which invests in communities where employment among those aged 25 to 54 significantly trails the national average.

The BJCTA depends on federal and municipal grants for funding because Alabama is the only state in the nation that does not fund public transportation.

On-Demand Quick Facts:

Service Hours

City Center
Monday-Friday, 6 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Saturday, 10 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Nighttime zone, 7 p.m. – 11 p.m.

East Side and Airport
Monday-Saturday, 5 a.m. – 9 p.m.

Airport Service

Riders can take microtransit to the airport from Central Station downtown, where complimentary, 24/7 monitored parking is available. Those in the eastern zone can take microtransit to the airport from the corner nearest their location.

 Arrange Rides

Birmingham On-Demand app; (205) 521-0101