Middlesex County Area Transit (MCAT) was named the 2007 Urban Community Transpor-tation System of the Year by the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA).
Past winners of the award include the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority, Orange County (California) Transportation Authority and the City of Flagstaff, Ariz.
“This is an incredible accomplishment for the county of Middlesex, especially when you factor in that we established the Department of Transportation just two-and-a-half years ago,” said Freeholder H. James Polos, chairman of the county’s Public Works and Transportation Committee. “This is a dynamic system that is meeting the needs of our residents who need medical transportation, commuter shuttle service and fixed-route service to reach shopping destinations.”
Polos thanked the CTAA for the award and applauded MCAT Director Steven Fittante and his staff for their work to provide safe, efficient and cost-effective transit services to the county residents.
CTAA board member Robert Koska said the Middlesex County service began as a mobility service for people with disabilities and older Americans in the mid-1970s and “has grown into a full-fledged urban operation connecting local residents with existing fixed-route bus and commuter rail operations, working with local taxi operations and the county Medicaid program, while still maintaining its top-notch specialized, community-based operations.”
The county Board of Chosen Freeholders established the Department of Transportation in November 2004 by combining the Central Vehicle Maintenance division with AWTS, the county’s paratransit services. The name AWTS was changed in January to Middlesex County Area Transit to better describe the service and a new blue-and-yellow color scheme was introduced for the fleet, officials said.
Three fixed-route shuttles have been added since 2005 to serve commuters, seniors and other residents in the southern part of the county, connecting them with workplaces, stores, senior centers, doctors’ offices and other forms of mass transit.
MCAT received the Outstanding System of the Year Award from the New Jersey Council on Special Transportation (COST) in September 2006.