Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority
The Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority, also called MAX (Metro Area eXpress) or BJCTA is the public transit authority of the Birmingham District. The authority provides bus service throughout Jefferson County including the municipalities of Birmingham, Bessemer, Brighton, Fairfield, Homewood, Hoover, Lipscomb, Midfield, Mountain Brook, Tarrant and Vestavia Hills. Currently, the authority operates 109 buses and has 37 routes to serve the county's citizens. Its headquarters is located in the Birmingham Central Station in downtown Birmingham.
History
The BJCTA has its origins in Birmingham's earliest mass transit operator, the Birmingham Street Railway Company established in 1884. By 1890 multiple private transport carriers had emerged in the rapidly expanding city resulting in the consolidation as the Birmingham Railway & Electric Company. They would operate Birmingham's first electric streetcar in 1891 and put into operation Birmingham's first motor buses in 1921. In 1948 transit ridership reached an all time peak at 93 million passengers.
In 1951 the company would change its name to the Birmingham Transit Company and during this period dismantle the remnants of the once expansive streetcar network. By 1973, enabling legislation at the state level resulted in the establishment of the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority that is still in use today.
Fleet
The BJCTA currently operates 109 vehicles:
- 10 "DART" trolleys, burning compressed natural gas
- 21 Optima Opus buses (purchased in 2004)
- 43 Orion VII low-floor CNG buses (purchased in 2000)
- 20 Blue Bird (14 from 1995)
- 18 Goshen vans (17 from 2001 and 7 from 2002)
- 7 shuttles
- 2 Gillig buses
- 5 TMC buses (purchased in 1993)
Using federal grants along with matching funds from the Birmingham Economic and Community Revitalization Ordinance, which became effective in January 2008, the authority plans to replace the 75 buses in the fleet with 100 new CNG buses. They hope to launch the new fleet by October 2009.
Hydrogen bus
In October 2006 the BJCTA, UAB and Innovation Drive, an Alexandria, Virginia company, received a $5.6 million federal grant to develop a 37-seat hybrid hydrogen-powered bus. The project is set to last for three years, during which time the team will construct and demonstrate the vehicle. (Bryant - 2006)
See also
References
- "Chronology of Birmingham's Public Transit System". (September 27, 2006) [1].
- Bryant, Joseph D. (October 13, 2006) "Hybrid hydrogen bus plan wins $5.6 million." Birmingham News.
- Hansen, Jeff (January 16, 2008) "Metro Birmingham's transit system needs newer, more efficient buses." Birmingham News
External link
- Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority official website