Lake Tahoe Leans on Microtransit to Address Traffic

Two free, on-demand microtransit services in Lake Tahoe are becoming a big hit with locals and visitors, reports Julie Brown Davis in SF Gate.

Local officials hope the services will help reduce traffic congestion in the increasingly popular mountain town and improve the lake’s water clarity. TART Connect, the service in Tahoe’s north shore and Truckee, hit one million rides this spring.

However, Davis points out that “Right now, there’s no public transportation between Lake Tahoe’s north shore and its south shore — not even on the microtransit shuttles, which are confined to their respective zones on either side of the lake.”

Without a more robust fixed-route bus system, Tahoe will likely continue to suffer traffic woes. “Microtransit is best designed for short trips, buzzing people around to the ski resorts, the casinos, the beach or the trailhead. It’s meant to get people to and from the last mile of their journey, syncing with a larger transit system that includes fixed bus routes.”