Chapel Hill Transit will begin running routes paused during COVID-19 pandemic on Aug. 1. Some routes will have reduced service and some routes will be operated by a third-party contractor.

Chapel Hill Transit will bring back all of its routes, with schedule adjustments, starting Aug. 1.

Chapel Hill Transit has been running reduced service since last year. Routes including the B, CCX, F, G, JFX, T, and Safe Rides have not been running; starting in August, those routes will return. This return has been approved by local public health and emergency management officials.

COVID safety protocols will continue to impact how Chapel Hill Transit provides service. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chapel Hill Transit leaders made service adjustments in real time, focusing on:

• Operator and customer safety
• Facilitating social distancing on vehicles
• Providing transit access to community members with the fewest mobility options, and
• Restoring transit service that supports access to jobs, healthcare, education and other essential services.

Moving into August, and the beginning of a new academic year for UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill Transit will continue to balance the safety of transit operators and customers, and providing options for community who rely on transit services, with staffing challenges and increased customer needs.

SAFETY FIRST

Chapel Hill Transit has taken a number of steps to ensure our customers’ safety while on the bus.

• All customers and team members are required to wear masks while on transit vehicles
• Chapel Hill Transit vehicles are cleaned multiple times a day
• New ultra-violet technology, which kills the coronavirus that causes COVID on surfaces, has been installed on all vehicles
• Special HEPA filtration units, proven effective against the virus, have been installed on all vehicles
• Barriers have been installed between seating benches to provide physical separation between people

CRITICAL OPERATOR SHORTAGE LEADS TO SERVICE CHANGES

Chapel Hill Transit is experiencing a critical shortage of operators. “We are working hard to develop schedules that provide a high level of service and can be maintained throughout the fall,” says Brian Litchfield, director of Chapel Hill Transit.

“We have more than 30 full-time operation positions available,” says Litchfield. “We’ve had to look at a number of ways to provide the service we will need this fall, with a focus on balancing the needs of customers with our staffing levels. As a Chapel Hill Transit customer, I understand what this means to our customers and community, and I am committed to returning to standard service levels as our staffing allows.”

Chapel Hill Transit is actively recruiting bus operators for full and part-time positions, paid-training, and excellent benefits. Anyone interested can apply at: townofchapelhill.org/jobs.

Chapel Hill Transit is finalizing a contract with Carolina Livery to provide service for the B route, CCX route and JFX route. Carolina Livery will provide all the trips for those routes until further notice.

“We’re working with their team to ensure those buses have good signage and reliable service,” says Nick Pittman, Chapel Hill Transit’s planning manager. “There are some drawbacks like not being able to use NextBus to track the vehicles and operators who are as knowledgeable about the Chapel Hill and Carrboro area. This is meant to be temporary until we can hire enough operators to resume providing the service for these routes.”

In addition to Carolina Livery taking over these three services, Chapel Hill Transit is reducing service on some of our most frequent routes including the: J route, NS route, NU route, RU route and S route.

BE PATIENT WHILE WE ADJUST

“With our operator shortage, the team members we do have are working extra hard to provide quality service. But operators still get sick, need to take care of family members, and make mistakes,” said Brian Litchfield. “Please be patient with our team members as we adjust to providing more service to more people.”

To have the best experience riding Chapel Hill Transit, please:

• Get to your stop early
  Mistakes happen, and fewer operators mean fewer team members who can make up for late buses. Customers should leave room in their schedules in case there is a traffic delay or missed trip that affects the trip they planned to take.
• Have questions? Ask your operator respectfully and from a safe distance
  While many team members are vaccinated, some have not been able to be vaccinated. Operators interact with hundreds of people daily, please respect their personal space and interact with them kindly and respectfully.
• Have patience
  Fall is always a difficult time, with many additional cars filling Chapel Hill and Carrboro streets, and pedestrians and cyclists commuting throughout the community. Safety is Chapel Hill Transit’s operators’ top priority, please be patient with transit operators and give yourself more time than normal to get to your destination.
• Tell us if you have issues
  The Chapel Hill Transit administrative team is available to help with any issues. Please share any concerns with them via email: chtransit@townofchapelhill.org or phone: (919) 969-4900

DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ROUTES AND SCHEDULES & OTHER CHANGES

Chapel Hill Transit implemented service changes on Aug. 3, 2020. Many routes and schedules changed. For customers who have not been using transit, review the new route brochures online: All Routes & Schedules.

Go Rayna!  Go Chapel Hill!

The 2021 Olympic Games are only weeks away and You Can Be a Go Chapel Hill Torch-Carrying Team Member!  Olympic athletes use alternative transportation to get around. Team USA Athletes telework, ride bicycles, take the bus, carpool, roll, and walk. Town employee, Rayna Tyson, uses the torch for inspiring her as she teleworks during the day and rides her bicycle later for groceries!  Send goch@townofchapelhill.org images of you using alternate transportation with your home-designed torch so we can add it to GoChapelHill.org supporting Team USA. Commute options are good for your health and the earth, too. Register for gift card drawings for using alternative modes of transportation.

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BikeCarrboro (CBC) and the Bike Alliance of Chapel Hill (BACH) Monthly Meeting on Monday, July 19

There will be both an in-person option as well as zoom meeting options. If you are comfortable with in person meetings, join us at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Park The park is located at 1120 Hillsborough Road in Carrboro. 

The meeting will be in the pavilion. We will have the zoom session active as well.  Gather at 7:00PM and the meeting will start the meeting no later than 7:30 PM

Meet by zoom using the link below.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8687233034

 

Este mes, nos reuniremos en persona y también en zoom.Si se siente cómodo con las reuniones en persona, únase a nosotros en el Parque Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.El parque está ubicado en 1120 Hillsborough Road en Carrboro.

Estaremos en el pabellón.También tendremos activa la sesión de zoom.

Nos reuniremos a las 7:00 p.m. y comenzaremos la reunión a más tardar a las 7:30 p.m.¡Ven a conocernos!

 

Are you a fan of going places by foot or bike? Your opinion is important. Friday is the last day to complete a survey on this round of planning for the Triangle Bikeway Project.

Triangle area agencies are working together to plan a regional 17-mile, shared-use path linking Raleigh, Cary, Morrisville, Research Triangle Park, Durham and Chapel Hill that follows along the I-40 and NC54 corridors. The path will connect Triangle residents and visitors to jobs, popular destinations, trail networks and more across the region. It will include important connections to current and future transit stops to expand access to those who are traveling longer distances but don’t have the pedal, roll or stroll power for a lengthy trip or who need to reach a destination that isn’t along the bikeway.

Although it is called a bikeway, it isn’t just for bicyclists – it will be a shared-use path suitable for users of all ages and abilities both on foot and by bike. Shared-use paths are paved trails that are separated from vehicular traffic and used by both pedestrians and cyclists.

If you’re interested in helping to shape the plan, please visit the  Triangle Bikeway website to watch a quick video and take the survey to share your priorities. If you’re going to be making a trip through Go Triangle’s Regional Transit Center on Thursday, July 15, you can find out more in-person by visiting GoTriangle and Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Association staff who will be on the platform between 6:45 and 9:15 a.m.

The 2020 Olympic Games—postponed due to the pandemic—are only weeks away, and you can be a Go Chapel Hill torch-carrying team member! Olympic athletes use alternative transportation to get around. They ride bicycles, take the bus, join a carpool, roll, and walk.  Here’s Town employee, Josh Mayo, as he carries the torch for walking to work or combining walking and bus to get there!  Send goch@townofchapelhill.org images of you taking alternate transportation with your home-designed torch so we can add it to the Go Chapel Hill (.org)  website supporting Team USA.  And, there’s even more in it for you than commute options that are good for you and the earth. Register for gift card drawings  for using alternative modes of transporation.

Go Josh Mayo!  GO CHAPEL HILL!

Go Bergen Watterson!  Go Chapel Hill!

The 2020 Olympic Games—postponed due to the pandemic—are only weeks away, and you can be a Go Chapel Hill torch-carrying team member. Olympic athletes use alternative transportation to get around. They ride bicycles, take the bus, join a carpool, roll, and walk. Send goch@townofchapelhill.org images of you taking alternate transportation with your home-designed torch so we can add it to the Go Chapel Hill (.org) website supporting Team USA. Here’s an example from Town employee, Bergen Watterson, as she’s dropping her daughter off at school before biking to work. And, there’s even more in it for you than commute options that are good for you and the earth. Register here for prizes! for gift card drawings  for using alternative modes of transportation. Go Chapel Hill!