MetroAccess drivers ready to show their skills

Good morning! I'm on site at the Leander Park & Ride for the 2009 Capital Metro Bus & Paratransit Roadeo.

First up this morning is the MetroAccess van competition. Six drivers will be competing, beginning at 8 a.m.
MetroAccess Van Operator George Guerra, with his game face on.


This is George's second year to compete in the roadeo. Last year, he won the Customer Service Challenge. He's hoping to win the overall competition this year so he can advance to the next level. He's been a MetroAccess van operator for the past four years. Good luck, George! Read more

Cold Weather Buses

Brrr. It's getting cold outside. A winter storm warning will be in effect this evening. Right now Capital Metro has no plans to alter its bus schedules or MetroAccess services because of the weather. People depend on us rain or shine (or snow or ice), and it's a rare event when we reduce services because of the weather.

Whenever freezing temperatures threaten, we actually increase one service, what we call our "cold weather buses." It's one part of a citywide effort to help Austin's homeless stay warm on a cold night. Working with the Office of Emergency Management, the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless, and several other local organizations, Capital Metro provides special transportation from ARCH to area shelters for the night, and then returns people in the morning.

Capital Metro's cold weather buses have already been called into service for this evening. Stay warm! Read more

MetroAccess makes a special holiday delivery in one of its shiny new "sleighs"

One of Capital MetroAccess' brand new paratransit vehicles left the Capital Metro parking lot this morning for its first public outing and a very special holiday delivery to 49 Central Texans.


It's not pulled by reindeer, but it was laden with gifts, and even Santa would be impressed by the roomy interior of the new MetroAccess vehicle.

The bus was loaded with care packages for clients of a local nonprofit, H.A.N.D (Helping the Aging, Needy and Disabled) of Austin. Capital MetroAccess staff adopted ten of H.A.N.D.'s clients, and gathered up gift baskets of personal care items, household goods, food, etc. Some talented MetroAccess staff members even crocheted scarves for the recipients. In addition to the ten we adopted, the MetroAccess "elves" helped H.A.N.D. by delivering baskets for another 38 of H.A.N.D.'s clients.

MetroAccess "elves" show off the gift baskets and the roomy interior of the new MetroAccess vehicle.

Earlier this year, Capital Metro purchased 47 new paratransit vehicles to replace older models that have outlived their useful lives. A handful of the new vehicles will go into service the first week of January, and all of the vehicles will be on the streets by February.

Some of the amenities of the new bus include a slew of safety features, more passenger comforts like a smooth ride suspension and a quieter engine, a larger seating capacity, and room for service animals underneath each seat. Read more