Public transportation users in parts of the Kalamazoo area can now use a ridesharing app called Metro Link to connect to nearby bus routes. Metro Link is an on-demand ride service that works kind of like Uber or Lyft. It’s an example of “microtransit”, a growing trend in public transportation.
Riders use the app to connect with a Metro Link van which will take them to a Metro transit bus stop or, in some cases, directly to their destination.
The service costs $1.50, the same as riding the bus. Discounts are available for seniors, and the fare does include one bus transfer. Users can also schedule a ride by calling (269) 388-6373.
Sean McBride is the Executive Director of Kalamazoo Metro. He said the goal is to connect with riders who live on the periphery of Kalamazoo.
“We were very deliberate in choosing the Metro Link name. It combines and connects with our other public transit services,” he said. “We just want to give a very robust and responsive public transit system to the public here.”
Kalamazoo Metro’s Sarah Joshi helped launch the program. She says the service is an affordable alternative to popular ride-sharing apps. However, she said users should know that they might have to walk a short distance to a “virtual bus stop” to catch a ride.
“The intention is not so much to be door-to-door,” she said. “There are a quite a number of virtual bus stops, as we call them, throughout each of the zones. There’s an east zone, and a west zone, and a south zone. It’s corner to corner, we call it, more so than door-to-door.”
The east zone includes the Comstock Township. The south zone includes Portage, and the west zone includes Oshtemo Township and parts of Texas Township.
Joshi said that unlike Uber or Lyft, the service uses trained drivers and professionally maintained vehicles. The drivers are also paid hourly instead of by the ride.
Metro Link is a pilot project that will run through the end of 2025. More information can be found at kmetro.com.
