Transit service alerts

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Effective Friday, January 28, ART will begin selling the February and March 2022 monthly bus passes at the Transit Station. Please be advised that we are still waiting on the delivery of the 2022 Annual passes and the remaining monthly passes for 2022. We apologize for the inconvenience and will continue to provide updates on the delivery status of the passes.

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ART fares free for all riders in January due to delay in annual bus passes and monthly ticket books.

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Due to staff shortages, customer service hours of operation at the Transit Station at 49 Coxe Ave. may differ from regular hours. Until further notice, expect the following changes:

• On Tuesdays after 5:00 PM, customer service may be unavailable. 
• On Saturdays after 5:00 PM, customer service may be unavailable.
• On Sundays & Holidays, customer service may be unavailable. 

To avoid coming to the transit station for customer service-related activities when staff is unavailable, please plan your trip outside the hours listed above and within the regularly scheduled hours of operation. Customer service being unavailable means that riders are unable to purchase tickets, submit and process discounted pass applications, reach the help number at 828.253.5691, and receive information on routes and schedules, among other services.

We apologize for the inconvenience and hope to return to regular hours as soon as possible. Information about routes and schedules is also available by emailing iride@ashevillenc.gov, or checking out the maps and schedules webpage.

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Beginning September 19th, 2021, the WE2 will no longer service the Social Security bus stops after 4:30 pm outbound, 5:00 pm inbound, and on weekends. This applies to the following stops: Stop ID #256 Centre Park Drive at Social Security Administration, Stop ID #670 Centre Park Drive at Exit, Stop ID #671 Piney Mountain Drive at Chunns Cove Road, and Stop ID #669 Piney Mountain Drive at Chunns Cove Road. 

Additionally, changes to the schedule are being made. Furthermore, the times for stops after Tunnel Rd at Ingles (going Outbound from the ART Station), and for stops after Tunnel Rd at Chunns Cove (going Inbound to the ART Station) will be on an alternate schedule after 5:00 pm and on weekends. See the full schedule here.

Staff proposes making these changes in order to address issues with the WE2 continually running late after 5:00 pm and to improve reliability for riders. The Social Security Administration, along with the majority of businesses on Centre Park Drive, does not serve the public after 4:00 pm on weekdays, or on weekends. 

City staff is accepting public comments on the proposed changes until Friday, September 17, 2021. Any questions or comments can be directed to hburton@ashevillenc.gov

Effective Thursday, May 20, 2021, the ART will restore full seating capacity on all ART buses. The City is increasing seating capacity on ART buses per Governor Cooper’s Executive Order 215, which relaxes social distancing requirements, capacity limits and mask mandates. Face coverings will still be required on all ART buses and at the Transit Center. Please plan for a possible delay as buses may reach max capacity and may be full upon arrival.

Please be aware that Young’s bus service ended on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

Effective Tuesday, June 1, 2021, the Asheville Rides Transit (ART) will reinstate transit fares on all ART buses. In preparation for reinstating fares June 1st, transit passes are now being sold at the ART Transit Center.

Effective the week of November 9, 2020, late night service on Route N1 provided on Fridays and Saturdays will be discontinued due to low ridership.  This notice will impact service provided beginning on Friday, November 13th and Saturday, November 14th.  

Trip times affected are from 9:00 pm through 12:53 am and will continue until the beginning of the next UNCA academic year in FY2020-2021.