Omaha launches Metro Flex on-demand service
16 August 2025
by William Thorpe
Nebraska’s largest city has introduced its first app-based, on-demand public transport service, aiming to close gaps in its bus network.
Metro Flex, operated by the Regional Metropolitan Transit Authority of Omaha, will act as a flexible “first and last mile” link to the city’s buses, rapid bus transit and paratransit services.
“There’s a lot to love about Metro Flex, starting with real-time, on-demand service,” said John Ewing, Mayor of Omaha. “This is an innovative and important response to getting around Omaha. Transportation should not be a barrier to our residents, and I’m grateful to Metro Transit for seeing a need and responding.”
The two-year pilot–supported by philanthropic funding–began on 13 August and covers three service zones in North, South and West Omaha. Passengers can request rides through the Metro Flex OMA mobile app or by phone.
Once booked, journeys are grouped with others heading in the same direction to create faster, more efficient trips. The US$3 flat fare, which begins on 15 October after a two-month free period, includes transfers to fixed bus services.
“Metro Flex takes the best of the tech world and melds it with the promises public transit provides to deliver a flexible service that will help Omaha and the overall metro region grow into the future,” said Curt Simon, Board Chair for the Regional Metropolitan Transit Authority of Omaha. “It fills important gaps, making it easier for people to reach jobs, school, healthcare, and more.”
The service operates Monday to Friday from 06:00 to 21:00, Saturdays from 07:00 to 20:00 and Sundays from 08:00 to 18:00. Vehicles are wheelchair accessible and fitted with bike racks. Journeys must begin and end in the same zone, with bus connections available for onward travel.
Metro Flex is the first integrated microtransit-style service in Omaha and represents a new approach to public transport funding, combining municipal oversight with philanthropic backing.
Cities begin applying AI to public transport planning
Via, Omaha’s partner (through a subsidiary) in operating Metro Flex, has launched Via Intelligence–a set of planning and operational tools developed for public transport agencies. The system uses large transit data sets to produce recommendations that can be applied to scheduling, network planning and service optimisation.
The tools are already in use in several cities. Trinity Metro in Fort Worth, Texas, used the scheduling engine to serve more ADA paratransit rides per service hour and to reduce long journey times. BC Transit in British Columbia applied predictive travel-time modelling to improve the accuracy of its timetables and budget forecasts. One of the country’s “largest transit agencies” used ridership modelling to test a post-pandemic network redesign in line with how people travel, with the aim of reducing long waits and increasing ridership in targeted areas.
Via said the aim was to give agencies the ability to understand the impact of operational decisions before making them. And the tools were built using a wide range of transit-specific data from different modes, locations and service types to help cities plan networks that better reflect how people travel.
Image: Metro Transit Omaha/Facebook
