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Trolley, Flexi-B fares higher
I f you're used to riding around Port Aransas on the trolley for free, better
reach for a roll of
quarters. Effective last summer, the Regional Transportation Authority in Corpus Christi - which operates the trolley as well as the Flexi-B route from Port Aransas to Corpus Christi - imposed a fare on the trolley for the first time.
A ride on the bus will cost you a quarter. Fares on the Flexi-B went from 50 cents to $1.25 per ride.
For the fare, a rider may ride the Flexi-B from Port Aransas into Corpus Christi and mainstream onto any of the RTA's fixed routes. The idea was conceived from the RTA's B-Line Paratransit Service.
A reservation must be made prior to travel on the Flexi-B. Normally, 24-hour notice is required for a trip, but many requests for travel are filled on a short notice, hence the name Flexi-B. Pat Garrett, the city's executive secretary said, "We try to be obliging with trips and to accommodate as many people as we can." The key word for the Port Aransas Flexi-B is flexibility.
The Flexi-B makes a special on-demand trip called the "Medical Run". This run takes people to any medical appointments they may have.
Due to the success of the Flexi-B, in 1997 the RTA established a new route in Port Aransas, called the Port A Shuttle. The Port A Shuttle (the trolley route) makes a 60-minute round trip serving the entire city. This service runs Monday through Sunday, from just before 10 a.m. until just before 6 p.m.
Colorful signs mark the trolley route, and riders may flag down the trolley at any location along the route.
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