City of Huntsville to celebrate new Transit Center opening with free Orbit rides

After years of community input and public sessions, the city of Huntsville’s work on the new downtown transit center is coming to a close.

Located at 521 Pratt Avenue NW next to Pinhook Creek, the new station will officially open on September 03, offering free rides throughout the month to celebrate the grand opening.

In addition to the new center, the city has added a brand new route south of the city, bringing the current total to 11 available routes. 

“This is an excellent opportunity for passengers to familiarize themselves with the new facility, the significant changes planned for routes 2, 5, and 6 and new route 56 to Bailey Cove, serving locations in South Huntsville,” Director of Parking and Public Transit Quisha Bryant said.

Huntsville transit enhancement came from a notable increase in ridership, surging since 2023. 

Fixed route ridership reached 94% of pre-pandemic levels, while paratransit routes saw an impressive 97% return.

The Orbit fixed-route buses carried 630,569 passengers in 2023, the highest figure since the pre-pandemic peak of 671,459 riders in 2019. This represents a remarkable 29% increase from the lowest traffic year of 2021 and a notable 13% rise compared to 2022.

Similarly, Access paratransit served 100,832 riders in 2023, the most since 2019, indicating a robust 38% surge from the pandemic’s onset in 2020 and a significant 20% rise from 2022.