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Improved Bus Stop at Wando High School in Mount Pleasant, SC has slab, bench.

After a year of long effort by Linda Page, the Town of Mt. Pleasant and Wando High School, our community’s most important institution has an improved bus stop.  It’s getting plenty of use.  As the Eastern most stop on the CARTA system, it serves both students and people in the area who are often dropped off by family to catch the bus to downtown.  The improved stop has a comfortable bench and  slab to keep everyone out of the dirt, mud weeds and ants.  Seven riders boarded during a stop there yesterday.  The students said the school is actively promoting the use of CARTA.  These students had been able to stay after school for sports, tutoring and club activities instead of immediately boarding the school bus after the last bell for a ride home.

Full information about the #40 Trans Mount Pleasant route, running between Wando HS and the Mary Street Transit Center in Downtown Charleston.  This route connects to the #401 East Cooper Connector for trips to other parts of Mt. Pleasant and the #402 Island Flex for trips to the Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island..

Online Trip Planning Now Functional

Transit trip planning can now be done online, automatically on Google Transit.   This can be accessed through the mapping functions of most Android Phones, I phones, the Ipad mapping and navigation ap, the www.ridecarta.com website and through Google Transit.  Note that the #402 Island Flex bus has not yet been included into the system but that service is still running.  We’ve contacted both CARTA and our board members about that issue.

The system has huge advantages even for experienced riders.  If you have a smart phone or internet access, you really don’t need paper maps and schedules any longer.  they system provides walking directions to the nearest stop and multiple options for your trip.  In areas like North Charleston and Downtown where there are several routes, much faster trips may be possible than someone would plan using paper maps utilizing transfers and connections the rider might not be aware exist.  Even if you have been riding the system for years, you should check out some possible trips.  If you don’t ride the bus, this system can be of great use when friends or family need a ride since you can find a bus trip for them which brings them close to your location, then go pick them up.  In areas where this system has been deployed, ridership has increased by as much as 20%.  In addition to being a sought product online, Google offers transit directions to anywhere located in Google Places as an option.

Middle Schools in Mount Pleasant, SC can compete in January 2012 to see which can put the most riders on the 401 East Cooper Connector CARTA Bus in a promotion called Bus Bowl being presented by East Cooper CARTA Riders (www.eastccrider.com).

Starting On January 7^th and ending February 2^nd , Students and supporters of each Middle School choosing to participate will be able to tell the bus driver which school they’re riding for.  The #401 East Cooper Connector Route stops near five East Cooper public and private Middle Schools Moultrie, the University School of the Lowcountry, Laing, Palmetto Christian Academy and Blessed Sacrament.

Scores and Rankings will be posted here as they become available.

Rides taken in the first week of the competition (January 7 – 14) will receive double points.  There will be an announcement of the weekly winner each Tuesday and a trophy will be awarded to the winning Middle School in February.  Outreach programs to help build Middle School CARTA ridership are planned throughout the month.

Schools can also book group field trips and after school outings for their students on the #401 and other routes on the CARTA system for discounted group rate by calling (843) 724-7420.  The University School of the Lowcountry has been using the #401 for this purpose with great success and even created a YouTube video of one of their trips.

A promotional flyer for the Bus Bowl competition can be downloaded in PDF format

Updates on the competition will be posted on this website as well at the Route’s #CARTA401 Twitter Feed and East Cooper CARTA Rider’s Facebook Page.

The CARTA #401 East Cooper Connector is a wonderful resource for Middle School aged students in the East Cooper Area.  It serves both movie theaters, seven shopping centers, the Coleman Blvd. business district and Old Village, Waterfront Park, and the new Shem Creek park.  It serves over 500 business locations and five major community recreation facilities.  The #401 connects with CARTA services running to the Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island, downtown Charleston and Tri County Link services to Awendaw, McClellenville and Moncks Corner.

Started April 17, 2011, the #401 carried 1301 riders in November.  The new East Cooper route system has attracted over 3000 more riders per month in the past year.  It’s a safe transportation resource for young people and students.  The #401 is perfect for younger riders, running on a circular route once an hour with over 25 stops along the route.  Combined with the new #40 Trans Mount Pleasant  service now running to Wando High School, where a bus stop shelter will soon be constructed, East Cooper students now have safe, reliable public transit access to their entire community.

Efforts to raise community awareness of the #401 will continue in February with a Black History on the #401 Bus event highlighting the historical locations found along the route.

For more information contact William Hamilton through www.eastccrider.com, at wjhamilton29464@gmail.com or by calling (843) 870-5299.

Ridership East of the Cooper Continues to climb thanks to the efforts of volunteers in our schools, churches, and other community organizations as well as support of local Government.  People are ready to ride East of the Cooper, which surprises even those of us committed to the project after decades of people assuming there was no interest.  Hanging a bag full of bus schedules on a doorknob really works.  Here is what we working on for the next six months.  More details will be posted on our calender.

Outreach at Blessing of the Fleet Festival

December- We’ll support CARTA’s Presence in the Mount Pleasant Christmas Parade, getting people to ride to Second Sunday on King and promoting Dinner and a Show with Pure Theater’s Sunday Matinee downtown.

January- Help develop improved plan for under performing #402 Island Flex bus, CARTA’s only service to any beach, which currently connects the area around Town Center to the Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island.

Outreach focused on Public and Private Middle Schools along 401 Route, including Laing, Moultrie, Palmetto Christian, Stella Marris and continued work with the University School of the Lowcountry.  Outreach efforts to CARTA Riders and business owners/employers regarding Tri County Link.

February- Black History on the #401 East Cooper Connector  Bus, Saturday event highlighting black history sites and activities along East Cooper Connector Route.  Events at stops at Sweet Grass Pavilion, Charleston Pinckney History Site, Snowden Community Center and Coleman Blvd. location TBD.  GPS beacon and interpreters on the bus.  Site events coordinated with bus arrival and departure times. Need to avoid SEWE weekend for this event.

Start on the Stops effort to promote bus stop improvements in East Cooper area including ADA compliance.

March- Renew Door to Door effort along 401 East Cooper Connector  route emphasizing route section between Sea Island Shopping Center and Long Point Road.

Outreach to East Cooper Hotels promoting guests using CARTA services in anticipation of Spring and Summer tourism season.

April- Blessing of the Fleet Information Booth

May- Promote CARTA services to the Beach.

Spoleto Sans Auto- Work with Spoleto and City to encourage using tranist to enjoy the festival, emphasizing connection to downtown DASH services.

For two days following Thanksgiving the Town of Mount Pleasant and East Cooper CARTA Riders will cooperate to bring prosperity to businesses along the new CARTA 401 East Cooper Connector Bus route and to push the route over its 10 rider an hour goal.

Linda Page, Mt. Pleasant Town Council, stands next to the door of a CARTA bus.

On Friday, Nov. 25, there will be an informal breakfast at Page’s Okra Grill 794 Coleman Boulevard, in Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 at 8 am, followed by four hours of volunteers maintaining a rider assistance presence on the #401 bus route from 9 am to 1 pm, tweeting out location and arrival time information to potential riders as @eastccrider with hashtag #CARTA401.  A facebook page and web page on the event will also be updated from the bus.  Friday will be a great time to try out our new community bus route while keeping tabs on the bus online. If all that internet technology isn’t comfortable just call (843) 870-5299 that day from 9 to 1 and East Cooper CARTA bus Riders will tell you where the #401 Bus is.

Businesses along the route can participate Saturday and Sunday by tweeting out specials and announcements with the #CARTA401 hashtag or by posting updates on the Facebook event page, both of which will be linked the www.eastccrider.com website.  Members of East Cooper CARTA Riders will be getting off the bus from time to time, to visit participating business to collect and transmit internet content.  Businesses can start helping out today by tweeting out location reports when they see the #CARTA401 bus in their area and are always welcome to promote their business using the hashtag.

• Location Beacon for #CARTA401 East Cooper Connector Bus, Updated during operation every 10 seconds.  If the marker on the map isn’t moving, it may not be working.
• Detailed Web page with schedules and maps for the #CARTA401 East Cooper Connector
• East Cooper Bus Stop Map Showing most of the known stops for the #CARTA401 and other routes
• Facebook event page for Black Friday on the Bus / Small Business Saturday #CARTA401
• Twitter feed for #CARTA401 (Includes third party tweets with #CARTA401 hashtag.)
• Town of Mt.  Pleasant Press Release on the Event,  Nov. 14
•  CARTA, Twitter and Volunteers Team to Promote Black Friday Bus-Riding on Mount Pleasant Patch

The effort will continue through Small Business Saturday, a global event sponsored by American Express which is bringing together over two million people to promote shopping at small, local businesses Saturday, Nov. 26.  Merchants and shoppers will continue to have access  to the effort’s online resources and our wonderful new community bus route until Saturday evening at 7 pm.

The East Cooper Connector began running on April 17, 2011 with the goal of reaching a ridership standard of 10 passengers per hour by September 30, 2011.  Road construction in Mount Pleasant and uneven on time performance have hampered the community route development effort.  The Connector reached nine riders per hour in October 2011.  November’s effort, supported by schools, churches, businesses, government and volunteers from throughout the Town of Mount Pleasant is expected to bring that final rider per hour on board so the town can move forward with plans for bus stop and route improvements to make riding more comfortable and efficient.  The #40 and Express Routes in Mount Pleasant have had huge ridership increases this year despite the road construction.  Over 2000 more riders a month are on CARTA and Tri County Links Buses East of the Cooper than were a year ago.

Anyone with experience and the proper equipment necessary to do real time GPS beaconing of the #401 bus for those two days is asked to contact East Cooper CARTA riders.

Full information on all of these routes can be found at www.eastccrider.com and official CARTA information can be found at www.ridercarta.com

Route Status

November is an important month for the East Cooper CARTA effort.  Both local routes, the #401 East Cooper Connector and the #402 Island Flex have not met ridership standards.  Everyone seems to recognize that more time is needed for the #401 to reach its goals considering the negative impact of road construction in Mount Pleasant on operations.  The bus simply can’t keep a reliable schedule with the roads its operating on being snarled in traffic and construction barriers.  Lots of improvements and effort is needed on the 401 but its utility and ultimate success seems to have everyone’s confidence.  It also has the backing of a community wide effort supported by neighborhoods, schools, churches and business.

The #402 Island Flex is a much different story.  It has continued to struggle with the issues which have plagued it since June.  It never really performed like most people thought it would.  There are some great new drivers on the route and major improvements in the operation of CARTA’s telephone reservation and dispatch system, but they’ve come after the busy summer season is over.  Something different is going to need to be tried, possibly a bus connecting the front beach with a limited stop route connecting N. Charleston and Mt. Pleasant to the beach.

The CARTA board voted to put both routes before the Route Review Committee, the committee which adjusts, cancels and approves routes as their own rules require them to.  There will be a hearing.  We’re going to need to be ready.

Later, Lets Have Some Fun

Nov 13- Park Pleasantly, Play Downtown with the CARTA #40

CARTA #40 stopped at Mount Pleasant Hospital

East Cooper CARTA Riders will provide a guided tour to Second Sunday Festival on King Street on Sunday, November 13.  Those interested can board the CARTA #40 bus anywhere along its route on the run beginning at Wando High School at 11:38 and arriving downtown at 12:38 or later runs.  Riders can return home on either the 2:38, 4:38 or 6:38 runs from the Visitor’s Center Downtown to any point along the #40 route.  Full information on the #40 CARTA Trans Mt. Pleasant bus route can be found at www.eastccrider.com.

In order to assist riders that day, updates from the #40 CARTA bus will be tweeted by @wjhamilton29464 or they can call 843 870-5299 for a telephone report on where the bus is between 11 am and 12:38.  Activities the entire afternoon will be tweeted with hash code #CARTA40.

Second Sunday on King transforms King Street into a walkable, car free environment from Queen Street to Calhoun with outdoor dining, shopping specials and street entertainment.  Since the event burdens the surrounding streets and parking facilities, the bus is an excellent way to access it from Mt. Pleasant.  Those who made the trip in October said it was a delightful way to go downtown, parking pleasantly in lots along the route in Mt. Pleasant and playing downtown.

Then, Let’s Make some Money and have More Fun

Nov. 25- Black Friday on the Bus CARTA #401

If everyone in Mount Pleasant has so much money, why is this store so busy. Where else can you find BMWs parked at Goodwill?

Mount Pleasant’s East Cooper Connector #401 bus is a fun way to enjoy the busy Black Friday shopping day after Thanksgiving while sampling the Town’s surprising array of local and second hand shopping, as well as it’s major shopping areas.  Members of East Cooper CARTA Riders will be on Board from 9 to 1 pm, sending out updates on Twitter and Facebook.  Merchants can facebook and tweet specials and sales that day using hash code #CARTA401.

The East Cooper Connector links shoppers to five major shopping centers including Belle Hall, Town Centre, Sea Island Shopping Center, Patriot’s Plaza and all of Coleman Blvd.  Over 25 antique and second hand shops can be found along the route from two Goodwills to high end purveyors of treasures from centuries ago.  You’ll find plenty of your neighbors at both.

You’ll also find ECCO on the route serving the needy of our community and many small, local shops with unique gifts grown and made right here in the lowcountry.  The Sweetgrass basket pavillion at Waterfront Park offers Mount Pleasant’s signature craft, our world famous baskets made by your neighbors, an heirloom gift that returns every penny spent on it back to your community.

To shop on Black Friday or any day, get full route information at www.eastccrider.com.  The East Cooper Connector is an easy bus to use 12 hours a day, Monday through Saturday, following a lollypop shaped route around Mt. Pleasant.  Merchants can post specials on the East Cooper CARTA Riders Facebook Event Page or tweet with hashcode #CARTA401

If you want your business to be involved email wjhamilton29464@gmail.com with details on any special offers or sales your business located along the #401 route might like to offer that day and we’ll put them online here, tweet them out and let people know.  A downloadable PDF guide will be available.  Deadline for to submit offers will be Nov. 18.

12 volunteers made a great effort Saturday, Sept. 24th. to get the word out to help save the East Cooper Connector #401 Bus Route.  Over 300 residences got transit information in the Old Village.  Thanks to the faculty and students from the University School of the Lowcountry for the muscle they brought to this effort, including stuffing hundreds of bags. Many people were delighted to learn about the new route and we now know there are a lot of people, living quite near the route who still don’t know about it.  Linda Page and Ann Owens also operated an information table at nearby Royall Hardware where they talked to many other people.

Bus is Up to us

This Picassa photo album (0n right) has a few images from the effort.  If there are any other images available please email them to wjhamilton29464@gmail.com to be included here.

The Transit outreach effort continued Sunday when an additional 4oo people recieved transit information from CARTA staff and volunteers at the Green Fair.  Meaning at least 900 housholds and groups of people got information about transit this weekend.

Discount Bus Passes Now Available at Kmart

We also learned this weekend that the Kmart at Bowman Road and Highway 17, where the Express Bus to Charleston. Tri County Links bus C203 to Awendaw & McClellenville and 401 East Cooper Connector have stops is now selling discount CARTA Bus Passes, joining the Sea Island Shopping Center Piggly Wiggly and Visitors Center at Waterfront Park in that important effort.  Kmart reports good sales.  They’re also passing out bus information.