Chapel Hill transit real-time bus infoPublic transportation options are improving in the Triangle, and bus ridership is growing steadily.

Triangle Transit, a public agency operated by local governments in the three counties, offers intercity bus service and serves as an umbrella for a low-key effort to build seamless connections between local transit lines in Raleigh (CAT and NCSU's Wolfline), Cary (C-Tran), Durham (DATA), Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill Transit) and TTA's own bus service.

Call (919) 485-RIDE (485-7433) or check GoTriangle.org for routes, schedules and fares for all the region's transit agencies.

Here are individual transit system resources:

CAPITAL AREA TRANSIT (CAT) - Raleigh

• Riders' guide | routes & schedules | fares & passes | park & ride lots | Accessible Raleigh Transportation (paratransit for disabled riders) | Raleigh Transit Authority

DURHAM AREA TRANSIT AUTHORITY (DATA) - Durham

• Riders' guide (PDF) | system map (PDF) | routes & schedules | fares & passes | ACCESS (paratransit for disabled riders) | DATA transit terminal | contacts | DATA < a href="http://data.durhamnc.gov/board.cfm">trustees

CHAPEL HILL TRANSIT - Chapel Hill, Carrboro and UNC-CH fare-free

• General information | routes & schedules | park & ride lots | real-time bus locator | EZ Rider (paratransit for disabled riders) | contacts

TRIANGLE TRANSIT AUTHORITY (TTA) - Raleigh, Durham, Cary, Chapel Hill, Research Triangle Park, RDU Airport, Garner, Apex, Hillsborough

• Riders' guide | routes & schedules | fares & passes | park & ride lots | accessible services & paratransit for disabled riders | contacts | TTA trustees

CARY TRANSIT SERVICE (C-Tran) - limited Cary service on three fixed routes

• Rider's guide | fixed route service | fares | door-to-door service for elderly and disabled riders | contacts

NC STATE UNIVERSITY WOLFLINE - free NCSU campus service

• Fall & spring routes & schedules | summer routes & schedules | park & ride lots | real-time bus locator

DUKE UNIVERSITY TRANSIT SERVICE - free campus bus

• Transit schedule (PDF) | campus routes<'a> | parking shuttles | Medical Center routes | Robertson Scholars bus (free service between Duke and UNC-CH)

ALSO AT Go Triangle, YOU CAN:

• Use a nifty trip planner to chart a bus trip across town or across county lines. Plot your Point A and Point B and set your departure or arrival time. The website will tell you where the bus stops are, when the buses arrive and depart, and how much time you'll spend riding, waiting and walking to reach your destination.
• Join a vanpool, or start a new one
• Find a carpool partner
• Learn about telecommuting options
• Get help biking or walking to work

For a glimpse of GPS technology that eventually will make bus travel more convenient and reliable across the region, check out Next Bus information, a service other transit agencies are expected to adopt in the next few years. Whether you're standing at one of the main sheltered bus stops or checking the website from your apartment, you'll be able to see where your bus is and how many minutes will pass before it reaches your stop. (NCSU's Wolfline has a nifty version of similar GPS technology too.)

What are the Triangle's prospects for better transit service in the future — including commuter trains or light rail, bus rapid transit and other improvements? As of late 2007, local leaders in the three counties are waiting for the recommendations of a 29-member Special Transit Advisory Commission. You can follow this group's work online.

Looking for the next train out of here? Amtrak and the state Department of Transportation work together to provide passenger train service to a number of North Carolina cities.