
OATS Transit is in the process of rolling out new procedures designed to make scheduling trips and dispatching buses more efficient. For the last 49 years, local residents and drivers have dedicated hundreds of hours answering phones and taking reservations for trips.
Beginning March 2, 2020, residents of Camden, Laclede, Miller, Morgan & Pulaski Counties will need to call 833-582-4960 to schedule a ride. Residents of Audrain, Boone, Callaway, Cole, Cooper, Gasconade, Howard, Maries, Moniteau & Osage Counties will need to call 800-269-6287 to schedule a ride.
All rides must be scheduled in advance, including en-route stops. An en-route stop means if you need to go more than one place (example: doctor & grocery store), please inform the Call Center in advance for all stops you need to make.
In rural Missouri, OATS Transit serves anyone of any age, and also contracts with a number of agencies and individuals to provide their transportation. Schedules vary in each county depending on available funding sources to cover the service.
The goal is to increase productivity, improve efficiencies in service, handle more riders with better routing of buses, and provide better reporting mechanisms.
“We will forever be grateful to all of our Volunteers who took the time to ensure local residents had a ride and our buses were full,” said Dorothy Yeager, OATS Transit Executive Director.
“As we move forward with our new dispatching and scheduling procedure, the need for Volunteers will continue, just in a different capacity. They have been an integral part of our history and ensuring their local community knows about our services.”
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