King County Metro, the transportation agency serving Seattle and surrounding communities, this week launched a new app-based on-demand ride service for public transit users that costs the same as a bus fare.
Metro Flex is providing mini-van rides in areas lacking sufficient routes on buses, light rail and other routine transit options. The goal is to get people to and from existing mass transit services, providing first- and last-mile solutions. It’s being offered in seven underserved zones in King County, targeting riders in lower-income, racially diverse neighborhoods.
The county, which includes Seattle, Redmond and Bellevue, is partnering with transit tech company Via to manage and provide the rides. The New York-based company in February announced a $110 million investment round. Via launched in 2012 and is valued at $3.5 billion.
Via partners with municipalities, universities, corporations and others in more than 35 countries to provide transportation options. It serves 600 communities. Fast Company recently named it one of the 10 most innovative companies working on social good.
Transit agency and tech partnerships are part of a growing trend as transportation departments recover from ridership declines due to COVID and seek ways to cut carbon emissions.
“Transit tech startups using ride-hailing technology and optimization algorithms, while offering new and unique business models, have the potential to transform mass transit,” states research out this week from Seattle-based analytics company PitchBook.
Via participated in a multi-year pilot program in King County and was chosen over two other contenders to be the sole Metro Flex service provider. The program will cost the county $7 million annually and Via has a three-year contract that can be extended.
Transit riders will use a new Metro Flex app akin to Lyft and Uber to plan their trips. The platform generates a route using conventional transit options and Via vans. It’s designed to favor mass transit and Metro Flex ride-sharing when possible to reduce the county’s costs and carbon emissions created by the travel.
Via is operating 31 minivans, most of which are hybrids. The seven zones being served include areas of south Seattle, Kent, Renton, Tukwila, and two more suburban areas, one north and one east of Seattle. When requesting a pick up, riders can indicate if they have a disability, including vision or hearing, and they can ask for features such as bike racks and wheelchair accommodations.
“Metro is so focused on rider experience and equity,” said Krista Glotzbach, Via’s head of western U.S. partnerships.
The pilot project was providing 6,200 rides a week before launching the Metro Flex service. About one third of the passengers were enrolled in reduced-fare programs.
“As a public agency, when we look at performance metrics, cost is one. But we also look at who we’re serving,” said Christina O’Claire, Metro’s division director of mobility.
The cost per rider will be less expensive for this service than for riders on underutilized bus routes, but more than for passengers on popular routes, O’Claire said.
Because the service is split into zones and given the algorithm’s parameters, riders won’t be able to circumvent traditional transit options and simply book lengthy rides across town. During the pilot phase, rides lasted 7.5 minutes on average.
The zone systems does make it more complicated to plan trips covering longer distances. The app doesn’t allow users to pick destinations outside of their zone, requiring riders to switch between trip planning tools.
Riders can pay with a credit card or Metro’s ORCA card, which allows users to transfer on the same fare to a bus, light rail or Sounder train. A full-fare adult ride is $2.75. People 18 and younger are free. Seniors, low-income and disabled riders receive discounts. Kids 13 and over will be able to use Metro Flex on their own, while younger kids will need to ride with a parent or guardian.
Via is the latest transit tech company to land a deal in the Seattle area. Last summer Seattle Public Schools, the state’s largest school district, contracted with California tech startup Zum to provide half of its bus service.
On Wednesday evening, Spokane Public Schools in Eastern Washington awarded Zum a five-year, $71.8 million contract for student transportation, according to the Spokesman-Review.
The Routing Company — one of the companies that participated in the King County pilot — is still providing an on-demand bus service in Kitsap County, west of Seattle. Kitsap launched the Ride Pingo pilot project in 2021 and found it attracted new users to public transit.
Other tech companies in the on-demand transit space include Spare, another participant in the King County pilot, and Moovit.
Editor’s note: Story was updated March 9 to add information about the Spokane Public Schools contract with Zum.
