BOONE, N.C. — AppalCart buses can be seen all over Watauga County. They start early in the morning and run all day carrying hundreds of passengers around every hour.
Many routes are surrounding Appalachian State University.
What You Need To Know
- AppalCart has unveiled an all-electric bus
- They are working with the state to create a model for other departments
- They expect more electric buses in the future
AppalCart Director Craig Hughes says they run on a fixed route, but people pull the cord and hear the ding when they want to get off.
"This is how much each bus carried. You have a total of 9,224," Hughes said.
Hughes started working at AppalCart in 2015 because it was an interesting transit system. He says prior to COVID, they were doing 2 million trips per year. Now, they are still doing between 9,000 and 10,000 trips a day, fare free.
"That's 4,600 cars that the average citizen doesn't have to avoid when they are going across town or to somewhere on King Street," Hughes said.
The company is trying something new now by unveiling its first electric bus.
"That seems to be where the industry is going these days," Hughes said.
The 45-foot bus is one of the first in the state, he says. It is set up a lot like their other buses but with more room.
"I think we will see more electric in the future. We are currently working with the state of North Carolina," Hughes said.
Hughes said they are working to do a study to create a model for other rural transit systems to follow.
While they don't know how much money this bus will save just yet, Hughes said, "The price of electricity doesn't fluctuate like diesel does."