Sunday, November 10, 2024

WATA brings on new buses as 6 others approach 650K miles

Public transportation in the Williamsburg area is about to get an upgrade.

The Williamsburg Area Transportation Authority has bought six brand new, custom-built New Flyer buses to replace six older buses that have topped 500,000 to 600,000 miles, WATA Deputy Executive Director Josh Moore said. 

Some have close to 650,000 miles, and are between 11 and 13 years old.

WATA hopes to have the buses in service by the end of August, after the agency transfers fare boxes, GPS units, cameras and other equipment from old buses into the new ones. This summer will also be used to fully inspect the buses and resolve any issues.

“We’re excited about public response to new buses,” WATA spokeswoman Michele Canty said. “From feedback we’ve seen on social media, people seem to be really excited about having new buses on the routes they use regularly.”

The six new buses mean only one older white-and-burgundy bus remains on the fleet for regular use.

In 2018, WATA buses traveled more than 1 million miles and gave customers more than 770,000 rides.

The Federal Transit Administration has created service life guidelines for how long public transportation buses should run. Heavy-duty large buses should operate about 12 years or 500,000 before replacement or a rebuild is considered.

The buses are mostly the same as the previous buses, but greatly reduce the chance of breakdowns or mechanical failures.

“The old buses, they’ve been pretty decent,” Moore said. “When they get older they just need more care.”

There are some differences, including electric fans inside instead of hydraulic ones, as well as new systems for securing passengers in wheelchairs. Differently-shaped stairs near the back half of the bus also allow two more seats.

The six new buses cost about $467,000 each, but prices vary slightly because two buses are 40 feet long, and four are 35 feet.

WATA is funded by public dollars. About 66 percent of the price tag for the new buses was covered by state funding from the Flexible Surface Transportation Program, 30 percent from the Federal Transit Administration and 4 percent from localities that WATA covers.

The new buses are the most recent in a series of annual bus purchases by WATA. These purchases will likely be the newest buses for “a while,” Moore said, because the fleet of 42 buses has mostly been updated.

In the future, when WATA buys more buses, the authority will consider digital upgrades like screens for advertising and bus announcements, Canty said.

“Every time we look at getting a new bus, we look at features riders are going to enjoy,” Canty said. “We’re sitting and talking about the color of the seats, flooring, better displays and more.”

Sarah Fearing
Sarah Fearing
Sarah Fearing is the Assistant Editor at WYDaily. Sarah was born in the state of Maine, grew up along the coast, and attended college at the University of Maine at Orono. Sarah left Maine in October 2015 when she was offered a job at a newspaper in West Point, Va. Courts, crime, public safety and civil rights are among Sarah’s favorite topics to cover. She currently covers those topics in Williamsburg, James City County and York County. Sarah has been recognized by other news organizations, state agencies and civic groups for her coverage of a failing fire-rescue system, an aging agriculture industry and lack of oversight in horse rescue groups. In her free time, Sarah enjoys lazing around with her two cats, Salazar and Ruth, drinking copious amounts of coffee and driving places in her white truck.

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