Central Texans living in the surrounding counties outside of Austin still have options in transportation besides personal vehicles. Bus, train, and even ride share services like Uber and Lyft are making travel easier in smaller cities and rural areas.

THE HOP

  • The Hill Country Transit District, or The HOP, has been providing rural transit by bus or shuttle to the following counties since the 1960s:  Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, Milam, Mills, Mason, Llano, Rural Bell County, and San Saba. Out-of-town trips may be booked as space allows to cities and towns like Austin, Brownwood, Round Rock, Temple, Killeen, and Waco. Visit http://www.takethehop.com/rural.html for more information or to book a trip.
  • The HOP Fixed Route Service offers shuttle service inside the cities of Killeen, Harker Heights, Copperas Cove, Temple, and Belton. Reduced fares at half price are available for students, seniors, and persons with disabilities. Special Transit Service (STS) is also available for individuals with disabilities who are unable to use the fixed route system.

CARTS

  • The Capital Area Rural Transportation System, better known as CARTS, serves the Texas counties of Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, and non-urbanized areas of Travis and Williamson. The Country BUS is a curb-to-curb service for customers in the rural service area. The BUS can be reserved by phone at 512-478-RIDE. Complimentary paratransit service is provided to eligible persons with disabilities traveling in San Marcos.
  • The Interurban Coach is a regional intercity route providing connections between Austin and surrounding cities including Giddings, Georgetown, Liberty Hill, Lockhart, Marble Falls, Round Rock, San Marcos, Taylor, Texas State University, and La Grange, with stops in towns along the way. This service also makes connections to Greyhound and Capital Metro.
  • Metro Connector provides bus service from downtown Elgin to downtown Austin with stops at Memorial Park, Manor, Koenig and Guadalupe, Guadalupe at 23rd and 6th, and Lavaca and 3rd. The connector route extends service from Elgin Park & Ride lot to Capital Metro buses and Metro Rail.
  • CARTS connects with national transit bus and train services in Central Texas including Greyhound, Trailways, and Amtrak. http://www.ridecarts.com/services/national

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