VIA Primo

Primo fares are the same as on VIA's regular, non-express service. As of October 2017, the regular one-way fare is $1.30. Discounted fares are available to students, children 5–11, seniors, active-duty military, and people with disabilities. As of October 2017, this discounted fare is 65 cents. All VIA daily and monthly passes are accepted on Primo buses.[11][8]

Route 100 is the original Primo line. The route begins at the Ellis Alley Park & Ride on the eastern fringe of downtown San Antonio. It then travels through the central part of the city before reaching Centro Plaza. After leaving the plaza, Route 100 uses Interstate 10 (I‑10) to reach Fredericksburg Road. Route 100 has six stations along Fredericksburg Road, including a stop at Wonderland of the Americas in Balcones Heights. The route then turns onto Medical Drive, where two more stations serve the South Texas Medical Center. Route 100 ends at the Medical Center Transit Center, on the corner of Medical Drive and Babcock Road.[5]

Route 102 runs along Military Drive from the Kel-Lac Transit Center, near Lackland Air Force Base, to the Brooks Transit Center at Brooks City-Base.[8]

Route 103 runs along Zarzamora Street from the Crossroads Park & Ride, near Wonderland of the Americas, to the Madla Transit Center, near Interstate 35.[8]

Route 101 (now Route 501) started at the UTSA Main Campus along Loop 1604. It served the University Park & Ride at the I‑10/Loop 1604 interchange before continuing on I‑10. The route joined Fredericksburg Road near the headquarters of USAA, following it until turning onto Medical Drive. It stopped at the Medical Center Transit Center, allowing transfers to Route 100. Route 101 then traveled on Babcock Road, Eckhert Road, and Huebner Road before arriving in Leon Valley, where the route ended.

At the same start to service with Route 103 on Jan 7th, 2019, Route 101 then became downgraded by VIA to a normal Metro route, who changed its number to Route 501.[3] Route 501 now features a much less frequent 30 min schedule and has had more stops added, but still retains its original Primo service route.[12]

The planning process for bus rapid transit service in San Antonio began in September 2002. Fredericksburg Road was chosen by VIA as the preferred corridor in September 2006, as a result of studies by VIA and the San Antonio–Bexar County Metropolitan Planning Organization (now the Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, or AAMPO).[13] While Primo was originally set to include dedicated lanes for buses, VIA settled on mixed traffic operation before submitting the required environmental studies.[9] A draft environmental impact assessment was released for public review on May 10, 2010, and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced a finding of no significant impact on August 30.[14]

Station construction began on February 7, 2012.[15]

VIA staged a free preview of Primo on December 15, 2012, and launched regular service two days later.[7]

Primo service was extended to the enclave suburb of Leon Valley on November 4, 2013.[16] The extension was funded in part by an FTA grant of $3 million,[17] and it ran on a half-hourly schedule similar to that of the UTSA extension.[16]

On January 9, 2017, VIA separated the then-existing Primo service into two lines. Service to UTSA and Leon Valley, formerly provided as separate half-hourly extensions from the Medical Center Transit Center, was split into a new Route 101 that ran between UTSA and Leon Valley with a stop at the Medical Center Transit Center. The segment between the Medical Center Transit Center and downtown San Antonio retained the Route 100 numbering.[18]

In September 2015, VIA announced plans to expand Primo service to the Military Drive and Zarzamora Street corridors.[1][2] Construction began in September 2017, and the new routes were scheduled to be operational by the end of 2018.[19] Route 103, serving the Zarzamora Street corridor, opened on January 7, 2019, and Route 101 was then downgraded out of Primo service on the same day.[3] Route 102, along Military Drive, began operation on August 26, 2019.[4]

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, VIA suspended fares on all routes on March 21, 2020.[20] On April 6, VIA shifted weekday service to Saturday schedules, reducing frequency on all Primo routes to 15-minute headways.[21] Fare collection for all VIA routes, including Primo, resumed on June 1.[22] On July 27, the weekday frequency of Route 103 was increased to 10-minute headways, while Routes 100 and 102 were increased to 12-minute headways.[23]