Keeping Public Transit Public in Austin.
Bridj is the nations’ leading urban technology company, using artificial intelligence to build the future of cities. Our first product that’s been revealed to the public is a dynamic shuttle system, that creates express routes in real time to match user demand. Today, Bridj is announcing that Austin will be the fourth domestic deployment site of Bridj, joining Boston, Washington DC and Kansas City.
In Austin, transportation isn’t about a car, or a bus, or a train. Rather, it’s about connecting Austinites to jobs, education, and the community at large. In that context, a few big businesses in Austin reached out to Bridj (in the form of an RFP) to deploy our intelligent urban shuttle system to help better connect Austin, using our machine learning shuttle system.
The group wanted to leverage Bridj’s smart urban shuttles to move people around Austin even more efficiently, and we of course enthusiastically agreed to submit a proposal. Everything was going well, until we heard what they actually meant. Rather than a system that was open to everyone, the big businesses only wanted the transportation system open to themselves, keeping the average Austinites out.
“The average Austinite can only access 39% of the jobs she’s qualified for via public transportation in 90 minutes, whereas someone with a car can access over 95% in the same time period.”
The average Austinite can only access 39% of the jobs she’s qualified for via public transportation in 90 minutes, whereas someone with a car can access over 95% in the same time period. This means that someone without a car in Austin is at a 61% disadvantage as compared with someone who can afford, or chooses to have, a car.
Bridj’s core mission is centered around solving for this disparity, and thus fundamentally creating the future of cities. The proposed closed shuttle system for big business, that served just a small number of people, would have created a separate bus system for those who work at the big firms, leaving the average Austinite out.
“Today, we’re happy to say that we’ve heard you, and we’re choosing to launch the Bridj platform in Austin in defiance of the cash from the big companies.”
Since the RFP from the big businesses came out, we’ve heard from thousands of you asking us to come to Austin anyways. Today, we’re happy to say that we’ve heard you, and we’re choosing to launch the Bridj platform in Austin in defiance of the cash from the big companies. Instead of transportation for a select few, Bridj will be providing direct shuttles throughout Austin, open to all, and available to all.
Beta service will start within the next few weeks, and cover many residential areas in the city, as well as providing a circulator in the downtown core (Red River Street over to Lamar Boulevard). Additionally, Bridj believes wholeheartedly in common sense municipal regulation, thus will embrace fingerprinting for all drivers on the system. Once we make our final selection for our Austin based operating partner, we’re looking forward to working with Mayor Adler, Capital Metro, and people like Councilwoman Kitchen to continue Austin’s legacy of being one of the most innovative cities in the world.
But we need your help. Now that you know we’re coming to Austin, we need to know where you’d like to see us. Visit our website by clicking here, and you’ll get heaps of free Bridj trips after you vote for your neighborhood.
