# Tuscaloosa Transit Authority

The Tuscaloosa Transit Authority, or TTA, is a local, government-owned bus system based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama that commenced operation in 1971. The Tuscaloosa Transit Authority serves the city of Tuscaloosa and also operates the trolleys between the student entertainment districts downtown and The Strip and game day shuttle buses for Alabama football games. The Tuscaloosa Transit Authority is governed by a seven member board, and employs a staff of 27 full-time employees as of February 2008. Beginning in 1999, the TTA's fleet consists of El Dorado Transmark RE buses that are designed to resemble historic trolleys that have been absent from Tuscaloosa since 1941.
Ridership for the system averages approximately 16,000 per month, and the system as a whole has seen a 9 percent increase in ridership numbers for 2008 as compared to 2007.

## History

Public transit in Tuscaloosa began in 1883 with horsecars operated by the Tuskaloosa Street Railway. By December 1887, the company had 38 horses and mules pulling the cars. A year later, the Tuskaloosa Belt Railway began service of a seven mile steam dummy line. The first electric streetcars operated on June 30, 1915 leading to the closure of the steam dummy. Over the course of 1941-1942, the streetcars were discontinued in favor of buses, which would run under private ownership until August 1964. At that time, all public transit in the city ceased, until it was revived in April 1965 under the Tuscaloosa Transit Company. This company of six buses and seven routes would finally be replaced by the current Tuscaloosa Transit Authority in 1971.

### Transit Center

In February 2008, the city broke ground on a new transit center at 6th St. and 23rd Ave. The project consists of retail space, transit offices, and a 449 space parking ramp. The $12.5 million project was opened on September 23, 2009. Prior to this project being finalized, the city had been interested in converting the former train depot on Greensboro Ave. into a transit center.

## Routes

The TTA operates seven fixed routes serving the city of Tuscaloosa with each originating and terminating at the downtown Mund Terminal. Service for these seven routes is Monday through Friday between the hours of 5:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. at one-hour intervals. The seven fixed routes are listed below:
* VA Hospital-University Mall - Serves the eastern portions of Tuscaloosa terminating at the VA Hospital
* Stillman College-McKenzie Court - Serves the western portions of Tuscaloosa terminating at the McKenzie Court public housing project.
* Crescent Ridge-Holt - Serves the northeastern portions of Tuscaloosa terminating at Holt High School in Holt.
* Greensboro-McFarland Mall - Serves the southern portions of Tuscaloosa terminating at McFarland Mall.
* Shelton State - Serves the southwestern portions of Tuscaloosa, including Shelton State Community College
* University Shuttle-Serves the University and student apartments
The TTA also operates demand response vans to transport citizens without transportation directly to their destination when regular bus service is unavailable.

### Former routes

* Northport Route - In December 2001, the Northport City Council approved an expansion of TTA bus service into Northport. The route served the areas between Druid City Hospital Northport and downtown. With service commencing in January 2002, the route was discontinued by the mid 2000s.
* Blue & Yellow Routes - The TTA operated a two line shuttle service on the University of Alabama campus beginning in the early 2000s. The service was never fully utilized by the student body due to limited service and a lack of promotion. The service was discontinued by 2007 with the opening of the University operated campus shuttle, the CrimsonRide.

## Fixed route ridership

The ridership statistics shown here are of fixed route services only and do not include demand response services.