Equality State News

Arlington RAPID, the City’s on-demand, self-driving public transportation service, announced that it is beginning to roll out a fleet of more spacious, accessible vehicles to take passengers around Downtown and The University of Texas at Arlington.

Over the next several months, RAPID will upgrade its fleet to use May Mobility’s Toyota Sienna Autono-MaaS vans. The first vehicle, which is available now, is wheelchair accessible and can carry up to four ambulatory riders or two ambulatory riders and one wheelchair user. The vehicle enables passengers of differing abilities to utilize shared, autonomous transit together.

Arlington RAPID, now in its second year of service, has provided more than 31,000 on-demand rides since its launch in March 2021.

Arlington RAPID’s fleet of autonomous vehicles (AVs) is available to riders through the Via app or by calling Via’s customer service line at 817-784-7382. The service is currently available from noon to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The City is operating Arlington RAPID (Rideshare, Automation, and Payment Integration Demonstration) in partnership with Via, May Mobility, and UT Arlington. The introduction of the new wheelchair accessible autonomous vehicles into the RAPID fleet signifies another step forward in the partnership’s vision to use AVs to create accessible, flexible and efficient public transportation.

RAPID is expected to receive grant support from the North Central Texas Council of Governments, allowing the convenient, dependable public transportation to continue operating in the heart of The American Dream City through at least 2024.

 The RAPID service area is currently bounded by Division Street to the north, Mary Street to the east, Mitchell Street to the south, and Davis Drive to the west. In all, more than 18 miles of Downtown streets have been mapped for the vehicles to take the most efficient path to pick up and drop off riders.

 Via’s standard fares, typically $3 but up to $5 depending on distance, apply to rides taken on Arlington RAPID by the general public. The discounted rate for UTA students is $1 off the standard fare per trip.

 The Sienna Autono-MaaS is Toyota’s autonomous-mobility as a service (Autono-MaaS) vehicle based on the Sienna. It features Toyota’s highly adaptable Vehicle Control Interface (VCI), which enables seamless technology integration with May Mobility’s autonomous driving kit (ADK) for robust operation of key vehicle control systems, such as steering, braking and acceleration.

Original source can be found here.