{{Short description|Public transit operator in Washington}} {{Infobox bus company | name = Mason Transit Authority | logo = | logo_size = | image = Mason Transit Authority 306 in Olympia.jpg | image_size = | image_caption = MTA bus on route 6 in Olympia | commenced = {{start date|1992|12|01}} | headquarters = 790 E Johns Prairie Road<br />Shelton, WA 98584 | locale = Mason County, Washington | service_type = Bus service | routes = 9 | stops = | fleet = 18 buses, 23 minibuses and 40 vans<ref name="TDP2014">{{cite web |date=October 21, 2014 |title=Mason Transit Authority Transit Development Plan 2014-2019 and 2013 Annual Report |url=http://www.masontransit.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/2013-annual-report-and-6-year-transit-plan-tdp.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=June 16, 2015}}</ref>{{rp|29}} | ridership = <!-- Daily ridership --> | annual_ridership = 585,534 (2014)<ref name="TDP2014"/>{{rp|9}} | fuel_type = Diesel and Gasoline | leader_type = General Manager | leader = Danette Brannin (Interim)<ref>{{cite news |last=Shephard Bull |first=Arla |date=February 18, 2016 |title=Mason Transit GM resigns under pressure |url=http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/local/mason-transit-gm-resigns-under-pressure-2c0f3fd0-acbd-0637-e053-0100007fde49-369315371.html |newspaper=Kitsap Sun |accessdate=February 25, 2016}}</ref> | website = {{Official URL|https://www.masontransit.org/}} }}
The '''Mason Transit Authority''' (MTA), formerly the '''Mason County Transportation Authority''', is the public transit authority of Mason County, Washington, United States. It operates free bus service within the county, connecting the city of Shelton, Hoodsport, Grapeview, Allyn, Belfair, the native tribal reservations of the Skokomish and Squaxin people, and paid commuter service to Olympia in Thurston County, Brinnon in Jefferson County, and Bremerton in Kitsap County. The agency also provides general public dial-a-ride service, operates a vanpool fleet, a worker/driver program that provides commuter service to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility, volunteer driver program for senior transportation, a supplemental service that is an after school activity bus and a community van program.
==History==
Public transit in Mason County was conceived with the establishment of a public transportation benefit area (PTBA) on September 22, 1987.<ref name="R2013-01">{{cite web |date=November 19, 2013 |title=Mason Transit Authority Resolution No. 2013-01 |url=http://www.masontransit.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Resolution-No.-2013-01.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=June 16, 2015}}</ref> After two unsuccessful attempts at approving the PTBA in 1985 and 1988, a countywide vote on November 15, 1991, approved the '''Mason County Public Transportation Benefit Area''' and a sales tax of 0.2% to fund public transportation. Buses began operating on December 1, 1992.<ref name="History">{{cite web |title=History of MTA |url=http://www.masontransit.org/about-us-2/history/ |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=June 16, 2015}}</ref>
The Mason County Transit Authority officially changed its name to Mason Transit Authority in 2013.<ref name="History"/>
In 2015, the agency was named the Rural Transit System of the Year by the Community Transit Association of America, citing the completion of the county's transit-community center.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lucero |first=Jef |date=June 16, 2015 |title=Mason Transit Authority honored as 2015's best rural transportation system in America |url=http://wsdotblog.blogspot.com/2015/06/mason-transit-authority-honored-as.html |work=WSDOT Blog |accessdate=July 15, 2016}}</ref>
==Facilities== ===Transit-Community Center=== thumb|right|The Transit-Community Center in Shelton
The Transit-Community Center is a combined community center and transit center located in Shelton that opened on April 1, 2015. It was originally a Washington National Guard armory built in the 1950s that was purchased by the MTA in 2006 and renovated at a cost of $9.9 million, funded by local sales tax and funding from the Federal Transit Administration.<ref>{{cite web |title=About the Transit-Community Center |url=http://www.masontransit.org/the-project-2/ |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=June 16, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150617041013/http://www.masontransit.org/the-project-2/ |archive-date=June 17, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |date=April 3, 2015 |title=Mason Transit Authority Opens Nation's First Transit-Community Center |url=http://www.masontransit.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/MTA-PRESS-RELEASE_T-CC-OPENS_02APR15.pdf |format=PDF |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=June 16, 2015}}</ref>
==Services==
===Fares===
Since its founding, MTA provided fare-free service for trips within Mason County; until 2023, it charged $1.50 for trips that traveled into neighboring counties.<ref name="History"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Fare Information |url=http://www.masontransit.org/fareinformation/ |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108190449/http://www.masontransit.org/fareinformation/ |archive-date=November 8, 2021 |accessdate=April 19, 2023}}</ref> Youth fares were removed in September 2022 as part of a statewide transit initiative.<ref>{{cite news |last=Baide |first=Matt |date=September 15, 2022 |title=County Briefs: Youth ride free on Mason Transit |url=https://www.masoncounty.com/story/2022/09/15/news/county-briefs/1696.html |work=Shelton-Mason County Journal |url-access=subscription |accessdate=April 19, 2023}}</ref> On January 1, 2023, MTA removed all fares for fixed route and dial-a-ride services as part of a three-year pilot; the $2.50 fare for worker/driver routes to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard remained in place.<ref>{{cite web |date=December 20, 2022 |title=2023 Annual Budget & Compensation Plan |page=7 |url=https://www.masontransit.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/7A-2023-MTA-2023-Budget.pdf |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=April 19, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Worker/Driver |url=https://www.masontransit.org/workerdriver/ |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=April 19, 2023}}</ref>
===Routes=== <ref>{{cite web |title=Bus Schedules |url=https://www.masontransit.org/busschedules/ |website=Mason Transit Authority |access-date=3 October 2024}}</ref> {| class="wikitable sortable" ! Route ! class="unsortable" | Inbound terminus ! class="unsortable" | Outbound terminus ! class="unsortable" | Destinations served ! Saturday service ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 1 | Shelton Transit-Community Center | Belfair | Allyn | {{yes}} | |- | 3 | Belfair | Bremerton | Gorst | {{yes}} | |- | 4 | colspan=3 align=center | Loop around Belfair | {{yes}} | |- | 5 | colspan=2 align=center | Loop around southern Shelton | Shelton Transit-Community Center | {{yes}} | |- | 6 | Shelton Transit-Community Center | Olympia Transit Center | Kamilche | {{yes}} | |- | 7 | colspan=2 align=center | Loop around northern Shelton | Shelton Transit-Community Center | {{yes}} | |- | 8 | Shelton | Brinnon | Hoodsport | {{yes}} | |- | 11 | Shelton Transit-Community Center | Lake Cushman Maintenance Office | Shelton Transit-Community Center, Walmart, Hoodsport, Lake Cushman Maintenance Office | {{yes}} | |- | 21 | Shelton Matlock Park P&R | Belfair | Allyn | {{no}} | One inbound trip only. |- | 23 | Belfair | Bremerton | Belfair Park and Ride | {{no}} | One round trip only. |- | Zipper | colspan=2 align=center|Loop around northern Shelton. | Shelton Transit Community Center | {{no}} | |- |Pilot |Shelton Transit Community Center |McCleary |Kamilche |{{No}} |Pilot |}
===Connecting services=== [[File:SquaxinTransit.jpg|thumb|right|A Squaxin Transit bus, one of the services that connects to MTA]] *Kitsap Transit and Washington State Ferries in Bremerton (via route 3) *Intercity Transit and Grays Harbor Transit in Olympia (via route 6) *Squaxin Transit in Kamilche (via route 6) *Jefferson Transit in Brinnon (via route 8) *Grays Harbor Transit in McCleary (via Route P)<ref>{{cite web |title=Regional Transit Connections |url=http://www.masontransit.org/ride-all-service-information/regional-transit-conections/ |publisher=Mason Transit Authority |accessdate=October 3, 2024}}</ref>
==Fleet==
===Current Bus Fleet=== :''{{As of|2014|10|20|df=US}}''<ref name="TDP2014"/>{{rp|28–29}} {|class="wikitable sortable" !Year !Manufacturer !Model !Fleet numbers !Fuel type !class="unsortable"|Notes |- |1980 |MCI |MC-5C |904 |Diesel | |- |1999 |Gillig |Phantom 40' |805–806 |Diesel | |- |2002 |Gillig |Phantom 35' |807 |Diesel | |- |2003 |Gillig |Phantom 30' |808 |Diesel | |- |2005 |Gillig |Phantom 35' |809–810 |Diesel | |- |2005 |Gillig |Phantom 40' |811–812 |Diesel | |- |2007 |Gillig |Advantage 35' |300–302 |Diesel | |- |2010 |Gillig |Advantage 35' |303–305 |Diesel | |- |2013 |Gillig |Advantage 35' |306 |Diesel | |}
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
==External links== *{{official website|https://www.masontransit.org/}}
Category:Bus transportation in Washington (state) Category:Transit agencies in Washington (state) Category:Transportation in Mason County, Washington Category:Free public transport