BATA had a survey recently, the results indicated people wanted fixed routes, and BATA responded.
See:
IPR: BATA Adds New Routes
MyNorth: Riding the BATA Bus In Traverse City Just Got Easier
GV: Bold Visions: Public Transportation in Northwest Michigan
The point I made in the comments section of the BATA survey was that young adults who leave for college or move back with budding families are usually exposed to busing systems on college campuses and these tend to be well-marked, easy to understand fixed routes. And if BATA wanted more riders then it needed something like color-coded fixed routes.
BATA has a PDF of their routes available for download: Cherriot / Traverse Express System Map
This is great news and I commend BATA for these changes. Being able to get to the airport from downtown is the best news of all.
In the future I would like to see BATA consider a fixed route between downtown Traverse City and Interlochen Arts Academy. This route could be used by Traverse City residents who work at IAA or want to attend a cultural event there; students at IAA could get into town on a regular business and spend their money there; and families with students at IAA would have another option for transport to and from school.
And it is worth mentioning that my second city of Steamboat Springs has a color-coded transit system that is free to the user.
Speaking of Steamboat, they're installing some great looking bus shelters.
See the SB Pilot:New bus shelters planned for downtown Steamboat
