Athens Transit is inviting area residents to help mark a milestone. The agency is celebrating 50 years of providing public transportation service to the community. Rachel Hopkins is Marketing Coordinator with ACC Transit.
“We actually started in 1885 with mule-drawn trolleys in Athens, but when the automobile came into popularity that went away," Hopkins said. "1976 was our first public transportation system and we’ve been running ever since.”
The “Driven Toward the Future,” event will feature a range of activities, including a kids’ zone, bike, bus, and pedestrian safety demonstrations, a DJ, photo booth, free food and giveaways, and more.
"I think I’d like the people of Athens to understand that we’re here for everybody. It’s about connecting people to jobs, education, healthcare, shopping, and it helps keep the community vibrant,” according to Hopkins. “It can be a convenience for some people, maybe a way to save some money, or reduce their carbon footprint. For others it’s a lifeline, it’s a way to be independent. Even if you don’t use the transportation system, having more people in the bus and off the road helps everybody. It helps the air quality, the amount of traffic."
She says this is one of the highest years of transit ridership. It is currently free to ride Athens Transit, thanks to a Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (TSPLOST) which ends in 2028.
The celebration takes place on Thursday, from 3 pm to 6 pm at the Multimodal Transportation Center located at 775 East Broad Street.
A formal presentation recognizing the department for the anniversary is set for 4 pm.
