To meet ridership demand, METRO announced the Aug. 20 series of routes and schedule modifications.
“Changes affected various METRO local bus, Park & Ride and curb2curb routes,” reads the METRO’s official page on service changes.
For example, commuters may now ride midday trips on five of the local METRO Park & Ride routes including: 209 Spring / Kuykendahl; 219 Cypress / Northwest Station / West Little York; 229 Grand Parkway / Kingsland / Addicks; 249 Bay Area / El Dorado / Fuqua / Monroe; and 259 Kingwood / Townsen / Eastex.
For UHD finance student Hayleen Arauz, the midday service, which runs hourly between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., is convenient since she attends one class in person on Tuesdays at 1 p.m.
“My schedule is very different this semester, as I’m sure is the case for many students,” Arauz said.
“It’s very helpful to catch the bus at different times, so you’re not stuck all day at school or coming in super early.”
Arauz has commuted by METRO Park & Rides since the fall 2022 semester, her first year taking in-person classes at the UHD campus.
As a RideSponsor student, she encourages other Gators who ride METRO to register for the UHD’s RideSponsor program which subsidizes 25% of the monthly METRO fare costs.