ATTENTION ALL PASSENGERS:
Beginning Monday, February 1, 2016, KVRTA will no longer be using Summers Street downtown as the main boarding area. Today, working with the City of Charleston, officials have agreed to utilize the 100 Block of Laidley Street and Quarrier Street between Laidley & Court Streets (in front of the Federal Building) as the new boarding areas for all KVRTA routes. This change will remain in effect until the repairs to the Laidley Street Transit Mall are completed, estimated to be in 2 -3 weeks.
We apologize for any inconvenience to our passengers and others during this emergency period. KRT serves the community through many other functions. The American Public Transit Association (APTA) has a formula which shows that for every dollar spent on transit, three dollars in business revenue are generated. Based on this formula, KRT’s financial impact on the community over the last thirty years is over $250 million dollars. Additionally, one of the essentials for many new businesses often is dependability of public transportation. KRT attracts new business by providing transportation to business districts and manufacturing facilities.
KRT helps provide the community with emergency preparedness by making available buses and operators for evacuation purposes by transporting supplies and volunteers to distressed areas. Also, the KRT Evacuation Team, a group of volunteers trained to evacuate citizens to a safe location in the event of an emergency. Their response procedure has been tried, tested, and has proven invaluable in a crisis.
In addition, the Kanawha Alternative Transit (KAT) provides service to individuals who have special transportation needs and require assistance. The curb-to-curb van service is available to disabled riders who are not able to drive and do not have access to other transportation.
The Authority also provides gasoline distribution to other county agencies, including emergency vehicles and the ambulance service, saving local taxpayers approximately $100,000 per year.
The ticket office at the Transit Mall will reopen next week during its regular hours.