Memphis Area Transit Authority

The Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA) is the public transportation provider for Memphis, Tennessee. It is one of the largest transit providers in the state of Tennessee; MATA transports customers in the City of Memphis and parts of Shelby County on fixed route buses, paratransit vehicles, and the MATA Trolley system. The system is managed by a seven-member policy board appointed by the mayor and approved by the Memphis City Council.[1]

For other uses, see MATA.

Memphis Area Transit Authority
Founded1975
HeadquartersMemphis, Tennessee
Service area280 square miles - 706,976 population [1]
Service typePublic transit:
bus
trolley
Routes24 bus, 3 trolley
DestinationsMemphis, Germantown, Bartlett, and Lakeland, Tennessee
Fuel typeDiesel (for buses) Electric (for trolleys)
Chief executiveGary Rosenfeld
Websitewww.matatransit.com

History

The system was formed in 1975 to service the greater Memphis and Shelby County, Tennessee area. MATA is run by a general manager and a nine-member board of commissioners, appointed by the Mayor of Memphis and approved by the Memphis City Council.[2] The transit agency operates 240 buses, mostly Gillig Advantage low-floors (both diesel and diesel/electric hybrids) on 35 routes. In the past, its roster included GM TDH-5300 and TDH-4500 "New Looks" and Flxible 40-102 New Look series (carryovers from its predecessor prior to MATA's formation), AM General 40 ft., MAN articulateds, the RTS series from GM, TMC and NovaBus, Neoplan artics, and NovaBus LFS low floors buses. The RTS series were MATA's preferred fleet of choice, having been used in its lineup from February 1980 until its retirement in April 2010, when the six remaining 1994 NovaBus versions were replaced with the Gillig Advantage Hybrids. MATA hopes to shift to a hybrid fleet in the future.[2]

In June 2021, MATA passed a resolution to cancel a contract with First Transit for transport management services and replace it with a contract with RATP Dev. USA. Under the contract with First Transit, all MATA employees were employed by Midsouth Transportation Management, a subsidiary of First Transit. MATA's operational environment won't be majorly changed by contract change.[3]

Service

Rail
Main article: MATA Trolley

Initially opened in 1993, the Main Street Trolley Line uses classic streetcars on a system that has grown to three routes: one along the riverfront, another serving Main Street in the heart of downtown Memphis, and an extension on Madison Avenue. The Madison Avenue line opened in 2004,[4] as the initial stage of a light rail system that would connect downtown Memphis with the Memphis International Airport and eventually to regional transit service beyond the MATA service boundaries.

Service was replaced by buses after two trolleys caught fire in late 2013 and early 2014. After nearly four years, the Main Street Trolley Line was reinstated in 2018.[5][6]

Currently, MATA offers trolley line services seven days a week. The Main Street Line operates trolleys with 12-minute headways throughout the day. The Riverfront Line and Madison Line operate buses with 40-minute and 30-minute headways respectively.[7]

Line Opened Stations Length Termini
█ Main Street Line 1993 13 2.0 mi (3.2 km) Butler Avenue - North End Terminal
█ Riverfront Loop 1997 19 4.1 mi (6.6 km) none
█ Madison Avenue Line 2004 6 2.2 mi (3.5 km) Third Street - Cleveland Station

Bus
See also: List of MATA Bus Routes

MATA operates 24 fixed-route bus routes.

The MATA fixed-route fleet consists entirely of Gillig Advantage Low Floor buses. All of the buses have bike racks on the front of the vehicle.[8]

MATAplus

MATAplus is a shared ride paratransit service designed to meet the transportation needs of persons with disabilities in the Memphis service area. The service covers the same area as the MATA bus system and operate during the same days and hours as the fixed-route bus system in the same area. The service area extends three-fourths (3/4) of a mile beyond the fixed-routes, which means that anywhere beyond the area mentioned can not qualify for MATAplus services.[9] Two types of services are offered through MATAplus: Advance/Demand Response, which allows riders to book reservations in advance, and a subscription service that allows riders to use the service to take them to their destination and back.

On-Demand

Ready! by MATA is an on-demand service launched in August 2021. It is a one-year pilot program that was implemented as a part of Transit Vision. Ready! serves three zones. Zone 1 covers the neighborhoods of Boxtown, Westwood, and Whitehaven. Zone 2 consists of Northaven and Frayser. Zone 3 in mostly in Cordova. Reservations works similarly to ride hailing services, but payments can be made through the GO901 app or in-person with cash. Fares are the same as fixed route buses. Ready! operates Monday-Saturday, 6am-7pm.[10][11][12]

Groove On-Demand is an on-demand service launched in February 2021. It is the successor to MATA and the Memphis Medical District Collaborative (MMDC)'s Route 500 commuter bus. The current service also includes the Downtown Memphis Commission as a major supporter. Groove serves Downtown, the Medical District, New Chicago, and President's Island. Groove operates using software from Via Transportation.[13][14][15]

Ridership

In 2020, MATA served a total of approximately 3.4 million passengers. Of those passengers, approximately 100,000 were from the trolley system and 120,000 were from MATAplus. [16]

Transit hubs
Name Parking Location Coordinates Notes
William Hudson Transit Center 0 444 North Main Street 35°09′23.5″N 90°02′52″W Serves as the chief hub of the system and main transfer point for all downtown routes. Formerly known as the North End Terminal.
Central Station 0 545 South Main Street 35.132451017421246°N 90.0594047224094°W / 35.132451017421246; -90.0594047224094 Serves as a southern transfer point for routes 12, Riverfront Loop Trolley, and the Main Street Trolley as well as the connection point for Amtrak in Memphis.
American Way Transit Center ~35[17] 3921 American Way 35°04′33.7″N 89°55′58.7″W Serves as a suburban transfer location for routes: 7,8,16,30,36,37, and 69.
Airways Transit Center ~92[18] 3033 Airways Boulevard 35.061772650673234°N 89.99269438088662°W / 35.061772650673234; -89.99269438088662 Serves a southern transfer point for routes: 4,12,16,28,30,32, as well as Greyhound and Megabus.
Madison Park-and-Ride Lot ? Madison Avenue at Claybrook Street 35.139384172073186°N 90.01761374936835°W / 35.139384172073186; -90.01761374936835 Serves the nearby routes 2 and 42, and the Madison Avenue Line.[19]

Maintenance facilities

MATA owns two facilities at which it maintains its buses, trolleys, and other road vehicles. The trolley depot is located at 547 North Main Street. The road vehicle maintenance facility is located at 1370 Levee Road.

References
  1. "Inside MATA - About Us | MATATransit.com". www.matatransit.com. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
  2. MATA website.
  3. "Memphis Area Transit Authority Board of Commissioners - Regular Meeting June 22, 2021" (PDF). matatransit.com. June 22, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  4. "Madison rail line to open March 15". Memphis Business Journal. March 11, 2004. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
  5. "Trolleys Return to Main Street at End of April". Memphis Daily News. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  6. "MATA trolleys off the tracks for expensive safety overhaul". WREG.com. June 13, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  7. "Trolley Routes - Trolley | MATATransit.com". www.matatransit.com. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  8. "Bike and Ride - Riders Information | MATATransit.com". www.matatransit.com. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  9. "Service Area - MATAplus | MATATransit.com". www.matatransit.com. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  10. "Ready - Ready! | MATATransit.com". www.matatransit.com. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  11. "MATA to Launch Curb-to-Curb Transit Service, Ready! by MATA". localmemphis.com. July 30, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  12. "MATA rolling out Ready! transportation service to Memphis neighborhoods Monday". WREG.com. August 2, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  13. "Groove On-Demand". Downtown Memphis. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  14. "New on-demand public transit service Groove On-Demand launches in Memphis". Via Transportation. February 3, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  15. Staff, Action News 5. "Groove On-demand rideshare service launching in Downtown Memphis". actionnews5.com. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  16. "Monthly Module Raw Data Release". www.transit.dot.gov. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  17. "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  18. "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  19. "MATA System Map-November 2020" (PDF). matatransit.com.
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