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Ride CapMetro to the 2012 VIVA STREETS! Festival

May 16, 2012 by Melissa

VIVA STREETS!VIVA STREETS! is coming to Austin on Sunday, May 20,  from 10AM  - 3PM where you can enjoy 2 miles of car-free Austin streets that become your playground to bike, play, walk & roll as you please!

So join us there! We will have some of Capital Metro’s healthiest minds out there, ready to give you some great healthy tips about transit, wellness and how to safety mount your bike onto our buses while staying active in Austin.

It will be a fun Sunday for the whole family to enjoy at this FREE festival. So come out, meet us on 6th Street and spend the day playing in the street at VIVA STREET! as we celebrate Austin together.

Ride Capital Metro there on the #4 Bus Route that runs parallel to 6th Street. Or, you can also plan out your best route through our Capital Metro Trip Planner. See you there!

Posted in bikes, community, events, Uncategorized, wellness | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Arthur Murillo is “best bus operator in North America”

May 10, 2012 by Melissa

Arthur Murillo is ready to compete

Four-time international champion Arthur Murillo has driven buses for Capital Metro customers for 28 years.

Capital Metro Bus Operator Arthur Murillo has been named the best bus operator in North America. He competed in the 2012 International Bus Roadeo in California this weekend and won 1st Place in the 35-foot bus competition. Congratulations Arthur!

This makes Arthur a four-time winner of the International title, we are very proud to have a representative of Capital Metro accomplish such success.

The Roadeo is a bus operator and mechanic competition held at the local, state and international level every year. Along with Arthur, our mechanic team placed at both the local and state level earlier this year.

The American Public Transportation Association International Competition Bus Roadeo is designed to put bus operators and mechanics in their element as they are judged against their peers in a series of challenges. 

Dottie, Arthur and his trophy

VP of Bus & Paratransit Services Dottie Watkins and Bus Operator Arthur Murillo in Long Beach.

Bus operators must steer their way along an obstacle course  as they are timed and judged for accuracy and safety. In the Mechanic competition, participants are judged on their ability to resolve bus maintenance and diagnostic issues while also being timed and compared on accuracy.

The Capital Metro team received an overall ranking of #7 among the 28 other teams in the competition. Arthur completed his obstacle course in an astounding 7 minutes and 3 seconds, beating out 19 other bus operators from across the country.

Posted in bus roadeo, Capital Metro news, events, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Ride MetroRail to Pecan Street Festival May 5

April 26, 2012 by Melissa

Pecan Street Festival
Why is the festival called Pecan Street Festival?

Did you know 6th Street didn’t always have the same name?

6th Street used to be named Pecan Street! Whoa!

I sure didn’t until know that until I checked out their page. But, now that I have your attention let’s blow your mind some more…

MetroRail STARTING @ 10AM SATURDAY, May 5!

So, as you plan your trip out to this year’s Pecan Street Festival, check out our website for a special MetroRail schedule made just for you, to make your life just a little bit easier!

The festival will take over 6th Street for two days (May 5 & 6)  of food, music and art. Check out the multiple bus stops around the 6th Street area and consider riding the rail there as it conveniently stops along 4th and Trinity.

- Bus stops:

 

So many routes that can take you downtown!

- North/South: 1L/1M, 3, 5, 7, 10, 17, 30, 101, 127, 142

- East/West: 4, 21, 122

 

- MetroRail: On Saturdays, MetroRail runs from Lakeline to Downtown (with six stops in between)

- Starts running at 10 AM on Saturday, May 5

- $2.75 per one-way ticket (buy a round-trip ticket to save time–$5.50)

- After you get off at Downtown Station, you only need to walk two blocks north to find all the Pecan Street Festival action on 6th Street

Pecan Street Festival website says it best:

Local musicians provide entertainment on three stages. The festival is the largest art festival in Central Texas, attracting over 300,000 people per event and generating $43 million in economic impact.  Like Austin itself, Pecan Street Festival attendees are diverse. Festival admission is free, so people from all walks of life flock to the streets. Some come to buy art. Some come for food, others for the music, but they all come to take part in a tradition that is 100% Austin and has been known for the last 33 years as a great way to spend a weekend.

While you’re out on the Rail, Bus or at the Festival, Tweet at us at @CapMetroNews!

Posted in community, events, Holiday events, MetroRail, Uncategorized, Web | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Downtown Austin Alliance: PlazaLife event April 27-28

April 19, 2012 by Melissa

The Downtown Austin Alliance and Thomas Properties Group are hosting a family-friendly, two-day event in the heart of downtown April 27-28.

PlazaLife is meant to inspire the community about what a downtown plaza can be. It’s about nurturing a pedestrian-focused, livable, vibrant downtown.  

Take a mosey over to the Frost Bank Tower Plaza at 4th and Congress on April 27-28 for a two-day celebration of music, games, and tons of events.

The announcement from DAA said it best, “Come and enjoy one of the free scheduled events or stop by the plaza any time to meet up with a friend, eat lunch, view the art and landscape installations, or just relax and watch the world go by on the Main Street of Texas.” 

When/Where is it?

April 27-28, Frost Bank Tower Plaza

401 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701

How do I get there?

- Bus routes: all downtown routes will get you close!

- MetroRail: 3 blocks west of MetroRail Downtown station

- Unsure? Check out the Capital Metro Trip Planner where you can plug-in your exact starting and ending (401 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701) location to find the best route for you.

Day 1: Friday, April 27

8:00 AM: Catch DAA educational event about the growing movement towards re-thinking public spaces.

9:30-11:00 AM: Enjoy the plaza on your own with Rebar Bubbleware furniture public event, free WIFI

Rebar Bubbleware Furniture

Rebar Bubbleware Furniture
(Photo Courtesy Austin Art Alliance website)

11:00-2:00 PM: Live music, Downtown retail showcase, O. Henry story reading

2:00-5:00 PM: Rebar furniture, Free WIFI

5:00-6:30 PM: Music by the White Ghost Shivers

6:30-7:30 PM: Free sneak preview of Moontower Comedy & Oddity Festival

 Day 2: Saturday, April 28

9:00 AM: Free yoga classes on the plaza with Wanderlust LIVE

10:00 AM-2:00 PM: Giant chess with the kids, Playground in a Box
 
11:00 AM: Yoga on the Plaza, Chess Meet-up
 
Noon-2:00 PM: Music by The Invincible Czars
 
 
 

Posted in community, events, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

2012 Earth Day Is Coming: How Are You Involved?

April 18, 2012 by Melissa

Earth DayEach year, we get one special day to celebrate Mother Earth and get involved in how we can help take care of our planet and be more eco-friendly.

This year, that special day falls on April 22.

So how will you be involved?

If you still don’t have plans, we’ve got you covered. So, keep reading…

At Capital Metro, being earth-friendly and staying “green” is important to us. And, we take pride in the fact that as a public transportation agency, we help reduce harmful air emissions and carbon-footprints by facilitating people riding together each day–not alone in their cars. Continue Reading »

Posted in environment, events, sustainability, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a Comment »

Major MetroRapid Announcement Today

April 10, 2012 by Melissa

Capital Metro is one step closer to putting faster, sleeker MetroRapid buses on the streets of Austin after Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff and Capital Metro CEO Linda Watson finalized a $38 million grant agreement today.

This funding comes from the FTA Very Small Starts program, which will help contribute 80 percent of the total $47.6 million MetroRapid project — coming in 2014.

“With the signed funding agreement, Capital Metro is able to proceed full-steam ahead to build this incredible new rapid transit service that will directly benefit almost 25 percent of the entire service area,” said Watson. “MetroRapid will connect neighborhoods, workers and students to universities, state offices, high-tech companies and regional retail and medical centers.” Continue Reading »

Posted in Uncategorized | 18 Comments »

Ozone Season: What You Can Do

April 2, 2012 by Melissa

Clean Air Force

Spring in Texas is in full bloom and although you might want to jump in the car and take some pictures with Bluebonnets on the side of the road, you should know Ozone Season has officially started and will stick around with us until late October.

But, don’t let that get you down because there are things you can do to stay safe and help out the environment during this year’s Ozone season.

Yesterday, Mayor Lee Leffingwell joined the CLEAN AIR Force of Central Texas at Austin City Hall to mark the beginning of the Ozone Season and speak with the public about reducing air emissions starting now and continuing throughout the summer.

 ”We are urging Central Texans to pay extra attention to ozone alerts and air quality levels this Ozone Season. Basically anything that limits your driving or electricity use will help make a positive difference in the quality of air we are breathing,” said Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell.

Just as Mayor Leffingwell said it, it’s our #1 recommendation this Ozone Season too — limit your driving and help out the environment. By using Capital Metro, one of the best things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint is to ride public transit instead of taking a personal car. Continue Reading »

Posted in community, environment, sustainability, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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