The evening fare for the City of Gainesville's WeGo rideshare service is set to increase starting on September 1.
According to a press release from the city, the cost of WeGo rides taken after 6:30 p.m. will increase from $2 to $4 for the first five miles.
The decision by the city through Hall Area Transit to increase the fare comes after a series of public hearings, a month-long advertising push, posted notices, social media posts and more.
The city said it initially also proposed increasing the cost of each additional mile traveled beyond the first five miles from 50 cents to $1. However, after receiving client feedback during the public hearing process, the city decided against this change.
WeGo provides on-demand vanpool service to residents and visitors seeking rides to and from destinations in Gainesville-Hall County. After expanding the service in July 2021 from operating only within city limits to all of Hall County, data shows 90% of passengers pay the minimal fee of $2 for rides five miles and under.
“As a public transit agency, we want to offset our cost with farebox revenue, but we don’t want to do so at the risk of harming transit-dependent individuals,” said Community Service Center Director Phillippa Lewis Moss, who oversees HAT.
About 5.1% of households in Hall County don't have a vehicle and depend on public transit services like WeGo.
"HAT hopes that upping the base evening fare will help reserve more rides for customers who don’t have access to other means of transportation," the press release said.
Learn more about WeGo by clicking here.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2023/8/1197065/gainesville-to-increase-wego-evening-fare-starting-in-september