Via

Overview

Via builds innovative software to enable our customers — cities, transit agencies, transport operators, school districts, universities, and corporations — to transform their legacy transportation systems into advanced digital networks. As pioneers of the TransitTech category, Via's mission is to expand access to efficient, affordable, and sustainable transportation. Via's software enables organizations to digitize their existing transportation networks and launch new and innovative services, simultaneously lowering operating costs and increasing quality of service. Our software is used in over 600 communities in more than 35 countries around the world.

Via works closely with partners to offer conventional, hybrid, and electric vehicles according to their needs, and are actively working with many partners to transition conventional-van services to hybrid and electric.

Where does Via operate?

http://ridewithvia.com

How does Via provide accessible adaptive equipment for persons with disabilities?

As the global leader in TransitTech, Via works with our partners across the world to design microtransit services that expand access to flexible mobility for all riders — including those with disabilities, those without smartphones, and the unbanked. This includes features like in-app WAV requests, intuitive and simple rider-facing app interfaces, phone booking and cashless payment options.

How does Via make its products or services equitable?

Our services extend the reach of existing public transit and demographic information shows most of our riders come from marginalized groups, such as low-income individuals and people of color. In fact, most of the trips we power across all of our services connect people to essential services like healthcare facilities, schools, and affordable housing. Rarely do trips cost more than a trip on existing public transit and recent data has proven that most trips on our Jersey City, New Jersey service, for example, are considered "essential." Sixty-one percent of riders report they primarily use the service to get to work, school or healthcare and, with Via, low-to-moderate income residents have access to 35% more jobs, schools, and hospitals within 30 minutes' travel than they previously did. And with Remix, partners can analyze data across all of their transit services -- quantifying impact on sustainability (GHG emissions, vehicle miles traveled) and equity (expansion of transit to lower-income areas, increased access to essential services).

Media and Case Studies

Via Arlington

"In September 2017, the Arlington City Council opted to replace a low-volume fixed route bus, the Metro Arlington Xpress (“MAX”), with Via’s comprehensive microtransit solution. Before MAX, Arlington was the largest U.S. city without public transportation. Arlington’s story was a familiar one: The city government recognized a need for alternatives to driving alone in personal vehicles, yet the residents voted down measures supporting transit investment time and again, rejecting three transit ballot measures since 1979.

In December 2017, Via launched Via Arlington with 18 vehicles in a reduced zone within the city of Arlington. The service now features a fleet of 53 — soon scaling to 68 — custom-branded Mercedes Metris and Sienna vans that cover the entire city. In addition to providing point-to-point transportation the service provides first-and-last-mile connections for riders traveling to the Dallas-Fort Worth area via the Trinity Railway Express.

From its transit-averse roots, Arlington has emerged as the first city to run solely on microtransit. As a testament to the project’s success, Via Arlington has expanded every year since launch and grown to serve the entire population."

https://ridewithvia.com/case-study/via-arlington