TCAT to launch IETA mobility access project

Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (TCAT) is launching Ithaca Electric Transportation Access (IETA), a project aimed at building a network of clean, electric transportation options for Tompkin’s disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Unbroken Promise Initiative (UPI), Ithaca Carshare, Ithaca Bikeshare, 211 Tompkins, the city of Ithaca, GgIthaca, downtown Ithaca Alliance and Golden Aspen Consulting of Ithaca are partnering with TCAT on the project.

The IETA plan includes the deployment of on-demand transit services provided by TCAT and UPI in the city’s west end, West Hill and the Ithaca Flats. The project also includes electric carsharing and electric bike sharing, along with sidewalk repairs and the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the prioritized areas.

“Our goal is to level the playing field, to provide opportunities and improve the quality of life for those who are underserved – and that includes folks within the community who do not have vehicles – folks who live in places that a 40-foot bus can’t get to, folks that do not have the same access as other community members,” said IETA Project Manager Stephanie Freese of TCAT. “We want to make this happen with a fleet of smaller electric vehicles for on-demand – and a shared fleet of electric carshare vehicles and electric bicycles distributed throughout the community.”

The project is supported by a $7 million award from the New York Clean Transportation Prizes program, administered by the New York State (NYS) Energy Research and Development Authority in partnership with the NYS Department of Public Service and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation. The prize was awarded in November 2022 under the program’s Electric Mobility Challenge, to provide funding to projects that demonstrate electric mobility options that solve underserved community needs.