The Capital Area Transit System this weekend will formally remove its downtown hub and cease operation of the Red Stick Trolley through the Garden District.
The CATS Board of Commissioners voted in September to remove the low-performing Red Stick Trolley, also known as Route 15. The Metro Council rubber-stamped the change in October.
Resources dedicated for the Garden District trolley route—which cost CATS about $600,000 per year—will be reallocated toward more heavily used routes to increase the frequency of service for customers, CATS has said.
In a news release issued today, CATS CEO Bill Deville says the transit agency decided to combine the removal of Route 15 and the downtown hub for efficiency and for concerns about buses being located near the Old State Capitol. CATS had set up a temporary hub near the Old State Capitol and Town Square on North Boulevard.
“While this will alter some downtown routes in a minor way, it will not change the frequency of most service,” Deville says. “In fact, on one route, we expect to see an improvement in the frequency of service.”
After the downtown hub is removed, some routes will pass through the CATS terminal on Florida Boulevard and North 22nd Street, the release says. Other routes using the old downtown hub will have their starting and ending points altered.
CATS will maintain the Capitol Park Shuttle route, which will now begin and end at the Raising Cane’s River Center, the agency says.
CATS also will continue to review its ridership and routes, and Deville says the agency expects to enact additional route changes next year.
Complete route change information will be available online and will be placed on the buses on affected routes.
