Image courtesy of Department of For-Hire Vehicles.

Meet the Neighborhood Ride Service—a new transportation option for folks in Wards 4, 7, and 8.

Thanks to a new pilot program funded by the D.C. Department of For-Hire Vehicles (formerly known as the D.C. Taxicab Commission), a fixed route taxi service will operate in neighborhoods that haven’t always been served well by cabs.

For $5 or less paid either with cash or card—DFHV says the current cost is $3.25 per ride—residents hop in an eight-passenger shuttle that will travel predetermined routes in each ward. The shuttles will come approximately every 40 minutes to an hour.

Depending on the color of your skin and your clothes, hailing a cab can be difficult. (The D.C. Taxicab Commission and Office of Human Rights started a complaint system to report discrimination in 2014.)

Ridesharing services say that they’re eliminating this tension. In November 2015, Uber released data showing that rides starting in Wards 7 and 8 were up seven fold from the previous year, growing at a higher rate than the District at large.

In response, Department of For-Hire Vehicles Chairman Ernest Chrappah told WAMU that “What we’ve seen from the analysis we’ve done so far is the idea of an underserved area goes beyond a geographic construct. It’s not just Ward 7 or Ward 8. We are seeing what some people call transportation deserts in Ward 4.”

The Ward 7 route begins at Minnesota Ave SE at Good Hope Road SE, and takes Minnesota northeast until making a turn onto Benning Road NE, followed by Southern Road SE and looping around Ridge Road SE before reconnecting with Minnesota Ave. at East Capitol. It will be in operation Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Image courtesy of Department of For-Hire Vehicles.

In Ward 8, the route takes the form of a loop. It starts at Good Hope Road SE at the intersection with Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., then turns onto Naylor Ave., followed by Southern Ave. on the border of Maryland, before turning onto South Capitol Street and then Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. to begin again. Like the Ward 7 shuttle, it will also operate during the work week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Image courtesy of Department of For-Hire Vehicles.

In Ward 4, the lateral route traverses Georgia Avenue from Kenyon Street NW up to the border of Maryland (this path is also served by the 70 bus). It will be in operation Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Image courtesy of Department of For-Hire Vehicles.

The program, first reported by WAMU, is seeking feedback. To find out when the next shuttle is coming, DFHV advises that riders call the Washington Cab Company at 202-398-0500.

Updated with information from Department of For-Hire Vehicles about hours of operation and cost.