For the first time in history, Mansfield has public transportation, but on a personalized basis.
Trinity Metro On Demand began rolling in Mansfield on July 15, offering free rides inside the city limits through Sept. 13.
The ride-share program has gotten off to a fast start, says Ralph Zaragoza, emerging mobility manager for Trinity Metro. Trinity Metro has been offering the service in Arlington, Grand Prairie, and Fort Worth, while similar services are offered in neighboring counties, Zaragoza said.
“We were trying to hit certain goals and we have already exceeded those goals in one month,” Zaragoza said. “We have 400 rides a week. It’s outperforming some of our zones in Fort Worth that we have that have been running three to four years.
“People are excited for it,” he said. “Now that it’s here, people are taking advantage of it. It’s cheaper than an Uber or Lyft.”
Mansfield has made Trinity Metro feel welcome, Zaragoza said, especially when the mayor invited them.
“This came from the residents of Mansfield,” he said. “There have been news stories about two brothers who worked in a grocery store for 19 years. A classmate has been organizing rides to get them to work every day.
“Eventually, that fizzled out,” Zaragoza said. “It got to a point that they weren’t getting that much response. The person that organized the rides reached out to the mayor and the mayor reached out to us about the service we offer.”
While the free trial period ends this month, the cost won’t likely cause most riders to hit the brakes. A one-way trip will be a $2 flat fee, while a day pass will be $5 for unlimited trips. The one-year pilot program costs $855,000 but is being paid for by a Transit Strategic Partnership Program grant funded through the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
The city will review the cost and use of the program at six months to see if it would like to continue it. If so, the city will pay for 20 percent of the cost and 80 percent will be federally funded.
Between 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Friday, riders can book a ride on the Go Pass app or call 817-215-8600 and put in their location and where they need to go. Within 20-25 minutes a black Trinity Metro on Demand Toyota Sienna or Chrysler Pacifica will roll up. People can book up to five passengers at one time and may be sharing a ride with someone heading the same way. Service animals or pets in crates can also ride.
While the service is limited to the city limits, Trinity Metro On Demand does travel to Tarrant County College Southeast because it’s a destination point, Zaragoza said.
“The average wait time is higher than normal,” Zaragoza admits. “Normal is 12 minutes. Right now, we only have three vehicles in service. I think if we add a fourth or fifth vehicle out there, we could have an even bigger number of riders.”
So who is riding? Zaragoza said that Trinity Metro doesn’t keep demographics on its riders, but it definitely sees trends.
“There’s a lot of students that use the
service,” he said. “During our outreach working with the city, I know they focused a lot of their efforts on seniors. I think we’re getting all the demographics.”
