The future of public transportation in Hoover

Unlike other over-the-mountain cities, the city of Hoover is on pace to see more people utilize Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority buses in 2022 than in 2021.

In 2021, 17,791 people used the bus system, while 8,914 have used it through the first six months of 2022, putting the city on pace for a slight increase in ridership.

Proposed changes to the route system made last year — including increasing the frequency of trips and installing a microtransit zone in the Lorna Road area and parts of John Hawkins Parkway, U.S. 31 and Riverchase — never took place. City leaders in the over-the-mountain area noted that those changes have to include cooperation from several municipalities and would have to come with increased funding for the transit authority. The BJCTA is reliant on local and federal funds because the state of Alabama is one of just a few states that does not provide state funding for transportation. The authority does receive $2 million each year from a county sales tax, which was issued several years ago to pay back the selling of bonds, along with other sources of revenue such as funding from local municipalities.

Hoover City Administrator Allan Rice said the city spends $140,000 to $145,000 each year supporting the BJCTA and the two routes that travel through Hoover: one that runs along U.S. 31 and another that runs down U.S. 280. Those routes cross multiple municipalities, with Hoover responsible for paying for their portion, Rice said.

Rice said there is not a lot of ridership out of the city.

Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato said the city has to rethink how to handle public transportation because the region is relying on an old model used by multiple generations.

Buses have their role, Rice said. The city has been thinking about what microtransit may look like in the suburbs and scheduling meetings with BJCTA leadership. Any method of transportation must be both effective and efficient, he said. People are now accustomed to getting to the front door of wherever they need to go instead of getting off at a bus stop, he said.

“That will drive some change,” Rice said.

BJCTA Executive Director Charlotte Shaw said she plans on providing “Transit 101” when she makes her rounds to various municipalities as they prepare for fiscal year 2023, with hopes to teach them to look at transportation not just from their perspective as a city, but for the region as a whole. Not doing so creates disconnected routes that don’t end up serving the entire area.

“That’s not how we’re going to grow transit,” Shaw said.

The transit authority is preparing a proposal to expand options in the over-the-mountain area and plans to present those options to the BJCTA board for approval before presenting the plan to the various cities involved, Shaw said. She also has reached out to contractors to inquire about providing an on-demand service, and she hopes to provide greater connectivity throughout the Birmingham region, she said.

“We have a lot of room for growth,” Shaw said.

Any changes made to zones and routes throughout cities must be approved by each municipality. Shaw said the authority will not recommend eliminating routes, but rather providing more options.

With so many options for transit, from personal vehicles to on-demand services like Uber and Lyft, Shaw said the BJCTA must be more competitive. While buses will always see riders who use them out of necessity due to lack of transportation, the authority is now competing for “discretionary” riders, Shaw said.

“We have to get the rider to choose us,” Shaw said. “It’s about reliability and predictability.”

Expansion in the over-the-mountain area is a goal for Shaw, she said, including possibly expanding to areas like Trussville and growing in existing cities that receive service.

The transit authority is also looking to add more complementary services and more targeted areas of service. For example, downtown ridership decreases after 7 p.m. So instead of running large buses that don’t get filled, there could be a service that allows the few people who aren’t home yet to catch a van that seats 20 people, increasing efficiency, Shaw said.

Public transportation helps keep “synergy” between communities, allowing people to access different communities instead of each city existing as a silo, she said.

“It’s vital because we have to be able to connect people all over Birmingham,” Shaw said.

Increasing opportunities and services offers a chance to make public transportation strong again, the way it used to be “before freeways and cars,” Shaw said.

Ridership increased a bit over the summer due to high gas costs, which were slowly coming down as of press time. Not only that, but The World Games, held throughout the Birmingham area in July, showed that people will get on the bus. The red line from 20th Street to Protective Stadium downtown saw 11,000 people ride for the closing ceremonies alone, Shaw said.

“People are willing; they’re waiting on a larger event,” Shaw said.

Benefiting the environment is another key factor to public transportation, Shaw said. The transit authority is making an effort to move more and more to electric buses, lowering emissions.

“Our environment is really important,” Shaw said. “And we are our biggest enemies.”

Shaw lived in Atlanta for 38 years, and asked if Birmingham wanted to become like the city, infamous for its traffic congestion, in the next five years.

“We have to stay ahead of the curve,” Shaw said.

But if residents are going to rely on public transportation and lower traffic congestion, the service must be convenient and reliable, Shaw said. Expansion isn’t possible until options become convenient, such as getting down U.S. 280 faster.

More federal money is available now due to the recently passed infrastructure bill.

“For the next three years, money will come quickly,” Shaw said. “We’ve got our catcher’s mitt on.”