How Kyle’s public transportation system likely will work

Beginning Monday, March 14, Kyle residents will have access to a public transportation system of sorts, although they won’t be able to actually catch rides on it until the next day. The system will be operational on Tuesdays and Thursdays only, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., but requests for the service will need to be made the day prior to when the trip is desired/required.

All the exact details are still to be worked out, but Kyle Chief of Staff Jerry Hendrix has outlined how the service will most likely work. Potential riders can call Kyle/Buda Taxi at 512-253-4834 no later than the Monday or the Wednesday before they want the transportation and request to be picked up at any Kyle location during that 8-5 window. They can request to be driven to any location within the city limits of Kyle for a cost of $3. (Although it would certainly not be required, it would be courteous to offer the driver a tip of say, another buck.)

Riders can also request a trip to either San Marcos or Austin, but there are significant differences with those trips. First, riders must depart no later than 8:30 a.m. and, if they want same-day return service, they must return to their drop-off points in those respective cities in time for a 4:30 p.m. pickup. The drop-off points are the transit station at Southpark Meadows at the southwest corner of Slaughter Lane and I-35 in South Austin and, most likely, a location in downtown San Marcos near the convergence of at least two bus routes. A trip to San Marcos is $5 each way, $6 each way to and from Austin..

Hendrix cautions that none of this is carved in stone and could be adjusted at any time depending on the levels and/or patterns of ridership. He also adds "Kyle/Buda taxi may schedule routes to pick up and drop off other riders along similar routes. This means that one shouldn’t assume they won’t be sharing a ride with others and also they should schedule abundant time if they are trying to make an appointment."

Of course, Kyle residents can also call Buda Taxi for transportation to any other location, such as Austin Bergstrom International Airport, but those trips won’t be subsidized by the city and riders will have to pay Buda Taxi’s full rates.

Those individuals living in rural areas outside the city limits of Kyle still have access to CARTS’ curb-to-curb service that operates 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. That service requires a request at least 24 hours prior to when service is desired and that request can be made by calling 1-800-456-7433. CARTS also operates a limited fixed-route service from and to the Seton Medical Center in Kyle. CARTS Country Bus route 403 leaves Seton three times daily on Tuesdays and Thursdays — 9:25 a.m. and 1:05 and 3:25 p.m. — taking riders to the CARTS station in San Marcos and then, if desired, to the Wal-Mart at 1904 S. Colorado St. in Lockhart for $4 each way.