Trinity Metro is expanding its ZipZone rideshare service to Mansfield this summer as part of a year-long pilot program.
The program, approved by the Regional Transportation Council on Thursday, will provide what’s known as micro-transit — or on-demand rides similar to DART's GoLink service.
"Over the past 11 years, the City of Mansfield has experienced a tremendous amount of growth in the overall population," Ralph Zaragoza, Emerging Mobility Manager for Trinity Metro, told KERA in an email.
Zaragoza said there's been a 244% increase of residents 65 and over and a 58% increase in disabled residents during that time frame.
"These are populations most likely to depend on public transit for crucial medical and grocery trips," said Zaragoza.
Before the RTC voted on the program, Mansfield Mayor Michael Evans thanked the staff at the North Central Texas Council of Governments for planning micro-transit in Tarrant County's third largest city.
“We have a great need for this," Evans said. "We believe that this helps to also jumpstart our economy as we continue to grow with our neighbors."
The service will operate weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and will include a connection to Tarrant County College’s Southeast Campus.
“This will be a great help to our city and we believe also to the region as we work to eventually provide connectivity to Arlington and Grand Prairie as well,” Evans said.
Trinity Metro hasn't announced a specific launch date yet but the service is set to begin this summer.
Pablo Arauz Peña is KERA’s growth and infrastructure reporter. Got a tip? Email Pablo at parauzpena@kera.org. You can follow him on Twitter @pabloaarauz.
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