MATBUS (Fargo-Moorhead)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
MATBUS
MATBUS (Fargo-Moorhead) Logo.png
Founded1870s
Headquarters502 NP Avenue, Fargo, North Dakota
Service areaFargo–Moorhead
Service typeBus service, paratransit
Routes23
Fleet42[1]
Fuel typeDiesel, biodiesel[2]
Websitematbus.com

MATBUS (Fargo Moorhead Metro Area Transit) is a public transport bus system serving the Fargo, North Dakota and Moorhead, Minnesota Metropolitan Area.[3]

History[]

Public transport in Fargo–Moorhead began in the 1870s, with horse-drawn coaches. In the twentieth century, trolleys and buses were introduced. Trolley tracks can still be seen in some alley ways in Fargo. Increased automobile use and growing urban sprawl caused public transport to decline in the area. Beginning in 1971, transit was subsidized.[4]

In 1974, the Fargo-Moorhead Council of Governments began management of the area's public transit, which was subsequently named MAT. Fargo and Moorhead later took control of their portions of the transit system, but continued cooperation and coordination under the MAT brand.[4]

Ridership[]

MATBUS ridership totaled 1,867,498 system-wide in 2017, down from 1,931,970 in 2016 (a 3.34% decrease). Ridership on MATBUS has seen significant gains since 1998 when fixed route ridership was 793,228. MATBUS experienced its highest use in 2014 when the total fixed route ridership reached 2,223,701.[5]

Significant ridership on MATBUS comes from area colleges due in part to the system's U-Pass program. Through the program, students at NDSU, MSUM, Concordia, M State, and NDSCS can ride any fixed route in the system for free by using their student ID.[6] In 2017, college ridership accounted for 407,485 rides on MATBUS. Of those 407,485 rides, the majority (346,258) were taken by riders from NDSU.[5] Fixed routes near the NDSU campus are some of the most-used routes in the MATBUS system.[7]

Ridership on MATBUS paratransit routes in 2017 was 10,907, up from 10,765 in 2016.[5]

Transit Routes[]

A MATBUS vehicle waits in the snow while a rider boards the bus.
A MATBUS vehicle operating Route 33 at the NDSU downtown campus.

MATBUS operates 23 fixed routes and two on-demand routes throughout the Fargo-Moorhead metro area. Routes 1 through 9 primarily run in Moorhead and Dilworth while routes 11 through 34 primarily run in Fargo and West Fargo.[8] During special events, MATBUS also operates a free shuttle between the Fargo and Moorhead downtown areas called LinkFM.[9]

Seven MATBUS fixed routes serve the North Dakota State University campus during the academic year through an agreement between the university and the City of Fargo.[10] In January 2018, MATBUS replaced its late-night route on NDSU's campus with an on-demand route called TapRide. The system allows students at the university to request a ride via a smartphone app to and from any location on campus or nearby neighborhoods.[11] In August 2019, a second TapRide route was launched to serve Fargo's industrial park area.[12]


References[]

  1. ^ "2016-2020 Transit Development Plan" (PDF). Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments. December 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-06-23. Retrieved 2018-06-23.
  2. ^ "Biodiesel Use in Fargo-Moorhead MAT Buses". Small Urban & Rural Transit Center. August 29, 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
  3. ^ "MATBUS - About Us". matbus.com. Retrieved 2018-06-02.
  4. ^ a b "About MAT". Archived from the original on 2008-05-10.
  5. ^ a b c "MAT Coordinating Board Agenda and Correspondence" (PDF). January 15, 2018. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  6. ^ "MATBUS - U-Pass Program". matbus.com. Retrieved 2019-08-27.
  7. ^ "Evaluation Study of the Bike Share Program in Fargo, North Dakota" (PDF). June 2017.
  8. ^ "MATBUS - Routes". matbus.com. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  9. ^ Dec 3rd 2019 - 2pm, Barry Amundson |. "Fargo commissioners vote to only run LinkFM for special events". INFORUM. Retrieved 2020-01-22.
  10. ^ "MATBUS Transit | Parking and Transportation Services | NDSU". www.ndsu.edu. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  11. ^ "City of Fargo to start Uber-like service at NDSU". Retrieved 2018-05-01.
  12. ^ "United Way Helps Expand MATBUS Service to Industrial Park". KVRR Local News. 2019-06-04. Retrieved 2019-08-06.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""