Seminole County residents have a new public transportation service available at the touch of their fingertips.
The county’s microtransit system, known as “Scout,” or “Seminole County Out,” fully launches Wednesday. Earlier this year, Seminole awarded a contract to the Miami-based company Freebee, a microtransit company. The county did so to replace most of its “pricey” Lynx bus system, said Andria Herr, the District 5 commissioner.
“There's no more figuring out how you're going to get to a bus stop, which is often walking or riding a bike, which takes a significant amount of time. You're not dealing with weather, and you're no longer standing at a bus stop, which, for the most part, are unprotected areas on the side of a major road,” she said.
Scout had a soft launch with a portion of its fleet earlier this month- and quickly experienced “high demand” issues. Herr said those issues will be mitigated with the official launch and the release of its full fleet, which is over 30 Scout vehicles.
As demand increases, the county could increase the inventory to 55 and stay within budget, Herr said.
Seminole County Chair Jay Zembower said that, even with the full fleet, there may be some temporary growing pains.
“We urge our citizens to be patient, because we know that in these first several months, there's going to be some hiccups and speed bumps along the way, and our staff is monitoring that to make changes as need be,” he said.
Pivoting from Lynx
Most Lynx bus services will remain active until the end of the year. In 2026, three major routes will remain, including those running into Orange County.
Zembower said the goal was to reduce the high expense that Lynx buses cost the county. The public service’s 11 fixed routes are set to cost the county at least $14 million this year.
The pivot to Scout is estimated to save $10 million, Zembower said.
“Secondly, it gives door-to-door service that otherwise they would not get on our Lynx program.”
How it works
All residents have to do is download the free “ride Freebee” app onto their smartphone, create a profile, and then schedule a pickup and a drop-off point at the resident’s desired locations.
Scout covers five neighborhood-based zones: Monroe, Lake Mary, Howell, Econ, and Brantley. Travel rates depend on how many zones a trip will go into, from $4 for trips within a single zone and up to $14 for trips crossing three zones.
There are discounts for students, residents 65 and older, and people with disabilities. Those discounts can bring the fare all the way do to $2.
Residents don’t have to use the app. They can schedule a ride by calling (407) 665-7433. However, residents booking through the app will receive a 50-cent discount on every trip, according to the county..
Scout’s hours of operation are 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on Saturday, and 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday.
All requests must be made at least 30 minutes prior to closing time.
