CATA, Centre County partner on new service for those with government or court appointments

While CATA services in Bellefonte ended in July, there’s now a new way for riders in the State College area to get to and from government and court appointments there.

CATA and the county’s transportation office have officially entered a one-year partnership that sees CATA subsidize rider fees for people looking to travel to county-owned locations in the borough. The transportation services cover rides from College, Harris, Ferguson and Patton townships, along with State College Borough.

Locations that are part of the service are the courthouse, the Willowbank Building and the new Community Services Building, and the ride must be for a government or court appointment, such as jury duty. Any riders between the ages of 19-59 that don’t already qualify for free or reduced-cost rides will pay a flat $5 fare both ways, with the leftover cost being covered by CATA.

Since Bellefonte is no longer a CATA member municipality, none of the authority’s services can pick up or drop off riders there — that’s where the county’s shared-ride, on-demand transportation service comes in.

According to county Transportation Director Dave Lomison, because so many people once used CATA to travel to Bellefonte for county-related appointments, the authority reached out to the county with the idea of subsidizing rides, as long as the county used its vehicles to pick up and drop off the riders.

The Centre County Commissioners approved a memorandum of understanding for the services during their Tuesday meeting.

“I’m really glad to see this (partnership), because this was one of my major concerns when some of the local townships and the Borough of Bellefonte discontinued their membership with CATA,” Commissioner Amber Concepcion said. “I think this really helps meet some of those needs that we were worried about with making sure that people throughout the county have access to transportation to our facilities.”

The new service will operate similarly to how the county’s recently-implemented Bellefonte Borough service runs. People must schedule a ride by calling the transportation office at 814-355-6807. From there, they’ll select the date of their trips to and from the borough, the time of their trips and their pickup and drop-off points.

Because the county operates a shared-ride service that Lomison said “fills up fast,” he recommended that riders schedule their trips at least two days in advance. Rides can be scheduled up to two months in advance.

CATA will subsidize all extra costs aside from the $5 fee, meaning that for a ride of up to 5.9 miles, CATA is paying for $16.50 of the original $21.50 fare. The authority will also cover all but $5 for rides longer than 5.9 miles too, up to 44.9-mile-long rides.

“I think that $5 for a ride is pretty reasonable, especially if you consider what it actually costs an individual with a car — that’s a good deal,” Commissioner Steve Dershem said.

Moving forward, while the initial partnership ends on June 30, 2026, Lomison said that the partnership could be renewed an indefinite amount of times, given that it runs smoothly. He also said that no other partnerships between CATA and the county were on the horizon for the foreseeable future.

To schedule a ride, contact the Centre County Office of Transportation at 814-355-6807.