Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit

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Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit, usually referred to as TCAT, is a network of bus routes serving Tompkins County, New York and the Towns of Richford, Berkshire & Newark Valley in Tioga County. The vast majority of TCAT bus routes are based in the City of Ithaca, New York and the Ithaca urban area including routes serving Ithaca College, Cornell University, and Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3).

1 Routes
2 Fleet
3 Fares
4 History
5 Sources
6 External links

[edit] Routes

As of 2007, thirty-eight bus routes comprise the TCAT system. Routes are identified by number and are usually indicated on a marquee at the front of the bus, and sometimes on the side as well. Some notable routes are as follows:

Route 10 is a loop shuttle service between the Cornell University Campus and downtown Ithaca (The Commons.) Service is every ten minutes, the most frequent of any route on the system, and runs Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Route 11 connects the Ithaca College Campus with downtown Ithaca. It runs every half hour Monday through Saturday until 7:00 p.m. and hourly on Sunday until around 5:00 p.m.. It also serves the Longview Retirement Home. Monday through Saturday, every other 11 bus becomes a route 15 bus after passing the commons (see below.) On Sundays, every 11 bus becomes a 15.
Route 12 is a night service that connects that Cornell and Ithaca College campuses, stopping at the Commons in between. It runs hourly from 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday.
Route 13 connects the Commons with the Ithaca High School, P&C, Aldi, Stewart Park, with Pyramid Mall. Route 13 runs hourly Monday through Friday from 6:14 am to 7:25 pm, and on Saturday from 7:30 am to 8:25 pm.
Route 14 runs between the West Hill Neighborhood of Ithaca with the commons. It also stops at the Ithaca Bus Terminal for connections to Greyhound and Coach USA Inter-city bus service.
Route 15 connects the Ithaca Commons with Wegmans and Tops Supermarkets, also stopping at Walmart, Kmart, Lowes Home Improvement and other shops along the way. Feeds from the 11 route.
Route 16 connects the Fall Creek area of Ithaca with the Commons and also stops at Ithaca High School and the TCAT Facility.
Route 17 connects the Commons with the TCAT facility and offices.
Route 19 connects the Commons with the hospital (Cayuga Medical Center.)
Route 30 links the Commons with the Pyramid Mall, running through the Cornell Campus along the way. Service is every half hour, during peak periods every fifteen minutes. Runs seven days a week. Route 30 also serves as the main service for Cornell students going to the Commons when the 10 bus isn't running.
Route 31 connects the Commons with Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport
Route 35 connects North Campus to Cayuga Heights and Pyramid Mall on Saturdays & Sundays.
Routes 41 and 43 connect the commons with Tompkins Courtland Community College (TC3), passing through Cornell University. Please note that the trip from the Commons to TC3 is a multi zone fare.
Routes 80, 81, 82, 83, and 85 are Cornell campus services that connect the various parking lots and academic centers of Cornell University.
Routes 92 and 93 are Cornell Blue-Light night services that run until 2 a.m. and are composites of some of the daytime routes. Blue Light services are free for Cornell students and faculty with a valid Cornell ID.

Other routes link the rural parts of Tompkins County with Ithaca. These services are comparably infrequent, usually running only every few hours (generally coinciding with typical commuter schedules) on weekdays only. There is no TCAT service on New Years Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving or Christmas. Service is sometimes reduced on other holidays, such as Labor Day and Christmas Eve, and service to and from the college campuses is reduced and/or suspended outright during semester and summer breaks.

For complete list of routes and schedules, see here.

[edit] Fleet

TCAT operates a mix of 42 low and high floor buses. 90% of TCAT's fleet is ADA compliant. The fleet consists mainly of the following models:

Orion 01.501 (some from predecessor providers, some ex-Utica Transit Authority
NovaBus RTS-06 WFD
NovaBus LFS
New Flyer D40LF
Gillig Low Floor

In 2007, TCAT will receive its first three hybrid electric buses as part of a statewide order with Gillig.

[edit] Fares

As of August 20, 2006, TCAT has eliminated the zone fare structure and now charges a flat fare, regardless of point of origin or destination. Cash fares are $1.50 for adults 18-59, $1.25 for children 6-17 and $0.75 for seniors 60 and older; children 5 and younger ride free with a fare paying adult, and transfers are free.

TCAT also sells cards ten-ride cards at the same price as ten fares, as well as yearly, monthly, daily, and 2-, 5-, and 8-day passes. Other specialized passes are available for specifically for K-12 and college students in Ithaca and Tompkins County, and for the summer months. For example, Ithaca College students can obtain the "IC Student Pass" and Cornell University community members can purchase an "Omni-Ride Pass" good for unlimited bus travel.

Daily, weekly, monthly, and annual passes, the Ithaca College semester pass, and ten ride cards are magnetic tickets inserted into a reader near the farebox on boarding. The Cornell Omni Ride Card is an endorsement on the student or faculty member's ID card. The passes for K-12 students are on lanyards, which are harder to misplace and can be worn around the neck for fast verification.

The majority of pass types, including all short term passes (1-8 days), passes for K-12 students, and the annual pass can only be purchased directly from the TCAT office or website. Ten ride cards and the monthly pass are sold at various outlets throughout the city of Ithaca and Tompkins County. The IC Student Pass must be purchased at the Ithaca College Book Store, and the Cornell Omni-Ride Pass can be obtained from Cornell Parking and Transportation Services.

[edit] History

TCAT was formed from three formerly independent services. Ithaca Transit sponsored by the City of Ithaca, was founded in 1962, Cornell University Transit (CU Transit) began service in 1966, and TomTran sponsored by Tompkins County, was established in 1981.^[1] In 1990 a study sponsored by the three services and local paratransit provider Gadabout endorsed merging their four separate maintenance facilities and increasing their already close cooperation.

The joint Ithaca-Tompkins Transit Center on Willow Avenue opened in 1991. On July 1, 1996 the three services rebranded their services under the common TCAT name, which had been suggested by Mark Jutton, a technician in the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, in a countywide competition.^[2] In 1998 the services were formally merged, and in 2004 TCAT was reorganized as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation.