Launching a new paratransit service is never simple. This is especially true for smaller agencies handling high daily trip volumes with limited resources. For the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA), early performance challenges made one thing clear: technology alone isn’t enough. How you use it matters.

Since launching its paratransit service powered by Spare, CARTA has seen a major turnaround.  By trusting automation and reducing manual intervention, the agency dramatically improved on-time performance (OTP) and rider satisfaction. Successfully creating a more reliable service for the paratransit riders in the Charleston metro area.
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A busy service with early growing pains

CARTA’s paratransit service handles roughly 200 trips per day across the Charleston metro area,a high volume for a small paratransit operation. The service officially launched in July 2025 through the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments (BCDCOG), with Spare providing the technology that powers their routing, scheduling, and trip management.

In the early days, the service struggled with performance. OTP hovered in the low 80% range, creating stress for staff and frustration for riders. Vehicle capacity constraints and operational complexity played a role, but the core issue was less obvious.
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The hidden problem was too much manual control

As CARTA and Spare reviewed service data together, a clear pattern emerged. Dispatchers were frequently using tools like force matching, lock-to-duty, and overrides to manually adjust trips. These actions were well-intentioned, but they disrupted the platform’s optimization logic.

The result? Inefficient routing, delayed pickups, and missed time windows.

We also saw driver behavior impacting OTP.  Drivers weren’t always following the directions in the Driver App. 

Spare’s recommendation was straightforward:

• Reduce force matching and lock-to-duty actions
• Use overrides only when absolutely necessary
• Let the platform handle automatic matching and routing

In short: trust the system to do what it’s designed to do.
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Letting automation do the work

About six weeks after shifting to a lighter-touch approach, CARTA saw immediate results.

Once manual interventions were reduced, Spare’s automated matching and routing capabilities were able to fully optimize the service in real time. Trips were assigned more efficiently, schedules stabilized, and dispatchers spent less time reacting to issues throughout the day.

The impact was clear and fast.
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Higher OTP and happier riders

Today, CARTA’s paratransit service is delivering consistent, measurable improvements:

• On-time performance above 90%, with recent days reaching 98% and 96%
• 97% rider satisfaction rating
• 94% overall OTP
• 1.4 passengers per vehicle hour (PPVH)

Occasional dips still occur, typically due to unavoidable factors like driver callouts or severe weather, but overall performance has stabilized at a level that would have seemed out of reach just months earlier.

Most importantly, riders are noticing the difference. More reliable pickups and drop-offs have translated directly into higher satisfaction and greater trust in the service.
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A lesson for paratransit operations

CARTA’s experience highlights an important lesson for transit agencies adopting new technology. Automation delivers the most value when it’s allowed to work as intended.

By shifting away from constant manual adjustments and leaning into Spare’s optimization capabilities, CARTA was able to:

• Improve reliability without adding staff or vehicles
• Reduce dispatcher workload and operational stress
• Deliver a better rider experience at scale

For agencies facing similar challenges (tight resources, high demand, and pressure to improve performance), CARTA’s success shows what’s possible when smart automation is paired with operational trust and collaboration.

CARTA’s milestones represent meaningful progress, not a conclusion. As OTP performance continues to improve, the next focus centers on improving PPVH outcomes. Greater adoption of pooling strategies will play a critical role in driving efficiency and delivering measurable cost savings for the agency.