On April 18, the GoApex Route 1 will receive some long-awaited and much needed changes that will improve the route greatly to provide faster and more reliable service to riders. The route's frequency will be increased to every 30 minutes Monday-Saturday from 6am to 7pm, and hourly from 7pm to 10pm. For the first time, the route will also recieve Sunday service, running hourly from 7am to 9pm. The route will also reduce its annual holiday closures from eight to two, now only halting on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Route 1, GoApex's only route, was first introduced in summer of 2022, and has become very popular among Apex residents since its inception. The service has filled a common gap for individuals who do not have any other means of transportation, from young students to disadvantaged citizens alike. Many people who even do have a car or some other mode of transportation still choose to use the GA1 when they can, as it can be a refreshing change of scenery for lots of individuals. As such, ridership is high, and these changes will be pivotal for existing and new riders. 

The route currently uses one bus at all times, and in order to increase frequency, another will need to be added to the roster. Since the service is operated by GoCary, GoApex does not have its own fleet, and instead its only bus is just a part of GoCary's roster. This means that they do not need to worry about GoApex-specific spares, as if one is needed they can just use a standard GoCary unit. This helps keep costs down, as for any circumstance, GoApex can just borrow from the GoCary fleet if any bus besides the pre-existing one is needed, which plays a big part in the frequency increase being a possibility in the first place. The most likely scenario regarding the extra bus needed is that GoCary will wrap one of its existing buses into the GoApex livery to be used alongside the current unit, #1522, a 2025 Ford E-450 with a body manufactured by Arboc. Personally, I am not a fan of these buses in any capacity, as they are unreliable, stunt growth, limit ridership, and provide overall lackluster service. However, for a service like GoApex, using a smaller cutaway bus such as 1522 is a smarter choice than a full-size transit bus. 

GoCary currently owns and operates 12 of these newer Ford Arbocs for regular fixed-route service, including 1522. While one of these will probably get the GoApex treatment, I can't help but speculate otherwise. I've noticed that bus #1501, a regular Gillig low floor transit bus, (the same type used by neighboring agencies) has been inactive for some time. 1501 is one of two Gilligs in the fleet, coming in at 29 feet long and having the capacity for 28 passengers. This is 9 more than an Arboc, which is significant because the Arbocs and the Gilligs are the same length. What exactly does that mean for GoApex? It means that the Gilligs are just as capable of maneuvering around the tight turns of downtown Apex, yet they can fit more passengers, and they have a much larger fuel capacity, which seems like a win-win situation to me. 1501's inactivity could lineup perfectly with the time it takes to undergo the wrapping process, but take this all with a grain of salt as it's probably just getting serviced. Nonetheless, it is a possibility, because the ridership on the 1 could call for a bigger bus.

  Another possibility is one of the even larger ElDorado buses, which GoCary has 4 of. These are 35 feet long and can fit up to 41 passengers. While it is highly unlikely that one of these could ever be used on the 1, it is GoCary, so you never know. There is also one final option, this being putting one of the older Ford minibuses (which the Arbocs mostly replaced) on the route.This is highly unlikely though, considering they have much better buses at hand, and the older units are heading towards retirement as some are more than 10 years old. However, 1516, one of the older Fords, was the original GoApex bus and still dons the GoApex branding so it would be easy for it to return to service. As I previously stated though, it will most likely just be another Arboc. 

On top of the changes coming to the GoApex Route 1, changes will come for paratransit customers as well. GoApex Door-to-Door will be phased out and the service area will instead be absorbed into GoCary Door-to-Door's Tier 1 zone, meaning Apex paratransit residents will be able to travel within a 3/4 mile radius of any GoCary or GoApex route. Tier 2, which provides trips anywhere within the Cary town limits, as well as Tier 3, which provides out of town trips throughout the Triangle will remain reserved for Cary residents only.

These service changes will take effect on Saturday, April 18, 2026, beginning with the first GoApex run of the day, which will depart the Mason Street Municipal building at 6am. The Salem Streetscape construction detour will remain until October.