StarMetro Timeline

1973

Fixed-Route Service Began
City of Tallahassee purchases the public transit system from Cities Transit Company and renamed it “Taltran.” The cost of a bus ticket- $.30 cents. Taltran begin with a fleet of 21 buses.


Seminole Express Starts
Taltran and Florida State University started the Seminole Express. The Seminole Express Bus Service provides transportation to, around, and from campus to the surrounding Tallahassee areas for faculty, staff, students and visitors.

1984

Dial-A-Ride Service Began
Taltran began operating its paratransit service. StarMetro's paratransit service, Dial-A-Ride, provides transit service for senior and disabled customers.

1986

C.K.Steele Plaza Bus Plaza Built
C.K. Steele Plaza is a Central Hub Station for StarMetro. The plaza is named in honor of Reverend Charles Kenzie Steele (1914-1980), who led the Tallahassee Bus Boycott in 1965, around the same time as the more well-known Montgomery Bus Boycott.

1990

Anniversary
StarMetro celebrates 25 years in service.

1993

Fare-Free Passes
Taltran offers fare free pass programs to Florida A &M University, Tallahassee Junior College and state agencies.

1996

Rate Increases
Taltran fare increases from $.75 to $1

2002

CTC
Taltran becomes the Community Transportation Coordinator (CTC). The CTC program is a curb-to-curb, advanced reservation, program for residents who are transportation disadvantaged, which is defined as unable to transport themselves or purchase needed transportation because of physical or mental disability, income status or age.

2005

StarMetro
Taltran changes its name to StarMetro and launched a new era called the Renaissance Project. This project included new buses, new bus stop signs and new routes.

2008

Wi-Fi
StarMetro offers free Wi-Fi on its fixed route buses and at C.K. Steele Plaza.

2011

Decentralization
StarMetro restructured its network from one focused on the downtown, a classical radial pattern, to one that was decentralized, a gird-like pattern to serve a wider array of travel destinations.

2012

Electric Buses
The Federal Transit Administration awarded StarMetro over $5 million dollars in monies from the Transit Investments for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) II grant to pursue electric buses. StarMetro purchases five electric buses.

2014

FLEX Service
StarMetro adopts the new FLEX routes. The FLEX service is a "call ahead" curb-to-curb, flexible transportation service, which serves a dedicated area in the Lake Jackson area.  Riders can be picked up and dropped off at any location within the FLEX area. The FLEX also has time points to connect with the main fixed route buses.  In 2016 a FLEX route was added to the Southside of Tallahassee.

2015

Find My Bus App
StarMetro launched the Find My Bus app. This feature allows particpants to track their bus in real-time. The Find My Bus feature is available in the existing City of Tallahassee app, DigiTally, and can be downloaded for FREE via iPhone or Android.

2016

Token Transit App
StarMetro rolls out a new transit system that returns to the hub- and spoke system. Token Transit was introduced to StarMetro system. This mobile app allows riders the option to pay for a bus pass with credit or debit card and the pass is on the mobile device.

2017

More Electric Buses
StarMetro received a $1 million-dollar federal grant from the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration to purchase 15 new electric buses.

2018

Braille
StarMetro currently has a fleet of 76 buses and 900 stops and shelters. It is one of the only systems in the State to have 100% Braille on its bus stops. The current price of a bus fare is $1.25.

2020

Future Upgrades
New innovations for the future include a super stop, upgrades to technology, more benches and shelters and improved routes are in the horizon.