The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (AAATA), branded as TheRide, is the public transit system serving the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti area in the U.S. state of Michigan. In fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 – October 2024), the system had a ridership of 5,170,030.

History

Predecessors Bus service in Ann Arbor began in 1925, when streetcars of the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti Street Railway were replaced by buses. Multiple privately owned bus companies in Ann Arbor faced financial difficulties beginning in the late 1940s. Great Lakes Greyhound ended its Ann Arbor services in 1957, and its successors faced financial ruin. St. John Transportation Company of Dayton, Ohio began service in 1968, with a guaranteed subsidy from the city. Even with its subsidy, St. John's costs proved higher than expected, and it ceased operations in January 1969.

In 1969, the city of Ann Arbor directed the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority to purchase and run its own buses. AATA FAQ page This included $200,000 for their first fiscal year.

First AATA-run buses

The city-wide buses began operation on 1 April 1969. In January 1970, the AATA was granted a $429,275 federal grant for the purchase of buses. By July, the system was predicted to carry 600,000 passengers in the next year, which chairperson George Bacalis called "exceptional." By October, the AATA was requesting to provide input on all work on major roads in the city due to the impact road works had on bus service.

Expansion

In late 1973, Washtenaw Community College provided funds to run a bus service from Arborland Center to their campus in Ann Arbor Charter Township. The township government refused to provide its own funds towards the bus service. That same year, the AATA offered their first paratransit line with a wheelchair-accessible van service within city limits.

On 18 February 1974, the first AATA bus between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti ran, going from downtown Ann Arbor along Washtenaw Avenue to downtown Ypsilanti and into Ypsilanti Charter Township. On-demand bus service branded as Teltran started later that year within the city limits of Ann Arbor. By mid 1974, the AATA's bus system had over a million annual riders.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the AATA under director Michael Bolton worked with the city and the University of Michigan to create a 20-year transportation plan. The American Public Transit Association gave the AATA its annual bus safety award in June 1991. Bolton left the AATA for Capital Metro in 1994.

The AATA was the first transit authority in the United States to operate low-floor buses when, in early 1993, they took delivery of ten New Flyer D40LF buses. In terms of operation, only two Canadian authorities and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey operated such buses prior to the AATA.

In November 2012, the AATA broke ground on the new Blake Transit Center, at a cost of $8.1 million. The new 2-story, 12,019-square-foot downtown transit hub replaced a one-story structure built at the site at 328 South Fifth Avenue in the 1980s. The new Blake Transit Center was officially opened for use on July 7, 2014. The D2A2 bus provides service from the Blake Transit Center to downtown Detroit.

Rebranding and expansion

In August 2013, the agency's board voted to change its name from the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA) to the Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority (AAATA). The name change reflects the addition of neighboring Ypsilanti to the agency board and the growing focus on regional services within Washtenaw County's urban core. In December 2013, the Ann Arbor City Council approved adding Ypsilanti Township as a charter member of the AAATA. Despite reduced bus ridership in other areas of Michigan, AAATA continued expanding its ridership throughout the 2010s through expanded bus service.

Services

Fixed routes Routes that travel east–west between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti are numbered in the single digits. Routes that begin at the Blake Transit Center and serve Ann Arbor neighborhoods are numbered 22–34. Local services in Ypsilanti, originating from the Ypsilanti Transit Center, are numbered 42–47, and crosstown routes that do not serve either transit center are numbered 62–68.

Current routes Effective August 25, 2024. #NameTerminiFrequency (min)NotesMon-FriSatSun3Huron RiverBlake TCYpsilanti TC3030304Washtenaw LocalBlake TCYpsilanti TC15-3030305APackardBlake TCYpsilanti TC3030 -5BMeijer, Ypsilanti30 -306AEllsworthBlake TCYpsilanti TC3030306BBriarwood Mall30 - -Through service to route 6722Pontiac-Dhu VarrenBlake TCUM North Campus (Pierpont Commons)30606023PlymouthBlake TCPlymouth Road Park & Ride15 (daytime) - -Green Road Park & Ride30 (evenings)303025Ann Arbor-SalineBlake TCMeijer, Ann Arbor-Saline Rd30303026Scio ChurchClockwise loop through Blake TC, Scio Ridge30606029 follows route counter-clockwise27W. Stadium-Oak ValleyBlake TCMeijer, Ann Arbor-Saline Rd30303028PaulineBlake TCMaple + Pennsylvania15-30303029LibertyCounter-clockwise loop through Blake TC, Scio Ridge3060 -26 follows route clockwise30JacksonBlake TCMeijer, Jackson Rd30303031DexterBlake TCJackson + Wagner30303032Miller-MapleBlake TCMaple + Pennsylvania303030Select trips serve Skyline High School33NewportBlake TCWarrington + Newport30 - -Select trips serve Rudolf Steiner School of Ann Arbor34Maple-DexterBlake TCMiller Road Park & Ride30 - -11 trips daily; weekday peak only42Forest-MacArthurYpsilanti TCMacArthur + Harris30303043E. MichiganYpsilanti TCHolmes + Ridge303030Through service with route 6844Ecorse-TylerYpsilanti TCWest Willow Community Center30303045GroveYpsilanti TCGrove + Harry30303046Huron-Paint CreekYpsilanti TCHuron River Dr + Textile303030Select trips serve Arbor Preparatory High School47Harriet-W. MichiganYpsilanti TCHewitt + Ellsworth30303061U-M MillerCentral Campus TCMiller Road Park & Ride30 - -Through service with route 6562U-M StateCentral Campus TCWolverine Tower12-15 - -Reduced service outside UM Fall and Winter semesters63U-M PontiacCentral Campus TCFood Gatherers30 - -8 trips daily, weekday peak only. Through service with route 6464Geddes-E. StadiumCentral Campus TCPioneer High School30 - -11 trips daily, weekday peak only. Through service with route 6365U-M Plymouth-GreenhillsCentral Campus TCGreenhills School30 - -Through service with route 6166Carpenter-HuronMeijer, YpsilantiGreen Road Park & Ride3060 -Select trips deviate to Golfside Rd or Greenhills School to serve Huron High School students67Eisenhower-GolfsideBriarwood MallTrinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital / Washtenaw Community College30 (daytime) - -Daytime 67 trips provide through service to route 6BWashtenaw Community College60 (evenings)303068Harris-FordGault VillageHolmes + Ridge30 - -Through service with route 43104Washtenaw ExpressBlake TCYpsilanti TC30 - -Limited-stop service

Major transfer stops

The main hubs of the AAATA system are the Blake Transit Center in downtown Ann Arbor and the Ypsilanti Transit Center in downtown Ypsilanti. Both transit centers have an indoor waiting room with a staffed ticket window.

AAATA buses serve multiple locations on the campus of the University of Michigan. On the university's Central Campus, the main transfer point is the Central Campus Transit Center on Geddes Avenue. All services to the university's North Campus stop at Pierpont Commons, and all services to the University of Michigan Health campus stop on Observatory Street. Connecting service is available to University of Michigan Transit services at these locations, and other locations across the University of Michigan campus.

Additional transfer points in Ann Arbor include Arborland Center, Briarwood Mall, the Ann Arbor VA Hospital, and Traver Village Shopping Center. The Carpenter Road Meijer store, located in northeast Pittsfield Township, is a connection point for multiple bus lines in the Ypsilanti area.

Special services TheRide provides paratransit services, branded as ARide, for individuals with disabilities. Since 2021, these services have been operated by MV Transportation. Microtransit services in Ypsilanti Township and Pittsfield Township, branded as FlexRide, are operated by Via Transportation. TheRide operates shuttle services for special events, including the Ann Arbor Art Fairs and Michigan Wolverines football home games. TheRide also coordinates carpools and vanpools in partnership with major area employers.

Connections

AAATA service connects with University of Michigan Transit services at multiple points on the university's campus. These services are free to the public.

Connections to western Washtenaw County are available via the Western Washtenaw Area Value Express from the western terminus of route 30. Service to northeast Washtenaw County and Livingston County is provided by People's Express, connecting at the University of Michigan Hospital.

The Wolverine train service, operated by Amtrak, stops at the Ann Arbor station, which is served by lines 22, 33 and 65. The Amtrak station is also the Ann Arbor stop for multiple intercity bus services, including Greyhound and FlixBus.

The Michigan Flyer, which runs 12 daily trips from East Lansing via Brighton to Detroit Metropolitan Airport, stops at the Blake Transit Center.

D2A2 is an hourly express service between Ann Arbor and Downtown Detroit. In 2023 it added late-night summer buses from June to September, allowing Ann Arbor residents to leave Detroit near midnight.

Park and Ride The AAATA provides ten free Park and Ride locations, mostly around the outskirts of Ann Arbor. All park-and-ride lots receive frequent bus service at weekday rush hours, and some locations feature all-day and weekend service. AAATA's "TheRide 2045" plan includes creating a second ring of park-and-ride lots for commuters further outside the city.

Fleet

TheRide currently operates a mix of Gillig Low Floor and Nova Bus LFS buses on its fixed routes. The system's buses run on B12 biodiesel, and many are diesel-electric hybrid units. The AAATA has 55 hybrid electric buses in its fleet and, in 2007, became the first public transit operator in the Midwest to state its intention to convert to all hybrid electric buses, though these plans never came to fruition.

In 2022, the AAATA began exploring a series of plans to replace its entire diesel-powered fleet with battery-electric or hydrogen fuel cell-powered buses by 2035.

Fares

AAATA uses a fixed-fare system. Full fare on fixed-route buses is $1.50, payable by cash or tokens. Day passes are available for $3.00, and 31-day passes are $45.00. Mobile ticketing is available for IPhone and Android smartphone users through the EZfare app. Transfers are free, and are valid for unlimited connections to fixed-route buses for 90 minutes.

Free fares are available for University of Michigan students, faculty, and staff; children under 6; registered seniors 65 years of age and over; customers with disabilities who are eligible for paratransit; and TheRide employees.

Reduced fares are available for customers including Medicaid recipients, K–12 school students, and seniors ages 60–64. All reduced fares are half the standard fare.

Projects

Throughout its existence, the AAATA has worked on projects with other government agencies within Washtenaw county in order to improve transit service.

TheRide 2045