Asheville’s downtown sights cluster around Pack Square and Grove Arcade, but the River Arts District, West Asheville and Biltmore require more thought about the journey. A car-free visit is workable if you plan outlying trips and late returns separately. Asheville Rides Transit (ART), arranged taxis and app-requested rides connect the centre with destinations beyond the downtown walks.
Walking, buses or a ride?
| Criterion | Walking | ART buses | Arranged taxi | Ride-hailing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Useful journeys | Short downtown visits | Airport and outlying districts | Luggage and late returns | Luggage and late returns |
| Cost | FreeBest | $1.00 single fare | Quoted or metered fare | Demand-based app quote |
| Luggage suitability | Carry it throughout | Handle it at stops | Choose a suitable vehicleBest | Choose a suitable vehicleBest |
| Departure constraint | Set off when readyBest | Wait for scheduled departure | Arrange pickup and wait | Request and wait for driver |
Walking is the default for short central visits. Pack Square gives you a public-space starting point, while Grove Arcade brings shops and dining together in a historic building. The ART Transit Station is the onward boarding point for the bus journeys below.
DiscoA340 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Edited
| Walk | Distance | Walking time |
|---|---|---|
| Pack Square → Grove Arcade | about 0.3 miles | about 7 minutes |
| Grove Arcade → ART Transit Station | about 0.3 miles | about 6 minutes |
| ART Transit Station → Depot Street | about 1.3 miles | about 28 minutes |
Depot Street is a starting point for the River Arts District’s studios, rather than another stop within the compact downtown shopping area. The outward walk from the station heads downhill, so consider the uphill return as well. A ride removes that longer stretch of walking when you have had enough on your feet.
Biltmore Village and the Biltmore estate are different destinations. The village is the shopping and dining area outside the estate, and reaching it does not deliver you to Biltmore House. Sightseeing trolley tours are another distinct service: they organise sightseeing, whereas ART is the local bus network for ordinary point-to-point journeys.
ART routes and visitor stops
| Line | Place served | Destination boarding stop | Outbound headsign | Bus-and-walk time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S3 | Asheville Regional Airport | Wright Brothers Way, stop 790 | — | about 36 minutes |
| S4 | River Arts District, Depot Street | — | — | about 7 minutes |
| W1 | West Asheville Library, Haywood Road | — | — | about 16 minutes |
| N5 | Grove Park Inn | — | — | about 17 minutes |
From the downtown ART Transit Station, Asheville Rides Transit connects several useful visitor destinations without a bus change. S3 travels through Biltmore Village towards Asheville Regional Airport. At the airport, use the passenger boarding point in the table.
S4 serves the Depot Street area of the River Arts District. W1 reaches West Asheville Library on Haywood Road, a useful landmark for exploring that neighbourhood’s shops and restaurants. N5 reaches Grove Park Inn, the historic resort north of downtown.
These journey estimates include the final walks to the named destinations. Allow separately for waiting for your bus. ART’s usefulness rests on whether its destinations match your plans, and a short journey after boarding does not mean you can leave the station immediately.
Bus fares and passes
| Product | Price | Journey entitlement |
|---|---|---|
| Standard single fare | $1.00 | One-way ART ride, including S3 |
| Standard monthly pass | $20 | Unlimited ART rides for one month |
For the ART journeys above, the airport route uses the standard fare without an airport supplement. Count your expected paid rides before choosing a monthly pass. The number of days you stay matters less than how often you actually board and pay.
- Fewer than 20 paid rides: individual $1.00 fares cost less than the $20 monthly pass.
- 20 paid rides: individual fares total $20, tying the pass price.
- 21 or more paid rides within the pass month: individual fares cost at least $21, so the $20 pass saves money.
For a short visit centred on downtown, think through the outlying journeys you intend to make, including their returns. A day exploring Haywood Road is not the same as several separate trips back and forth. Where a journey requires another bus, obtaining a transfer slip also matters to what you pay.
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Buying tickets and boarding
Pay onboard with exact cash, or use a debit or credit card at the ART Transit Station for an advance purchase. The bus does not make change, and cards are not accepted onboard. If you need another bus, keep your transfer slip accessible. Without it, you must pay another fare to board the second bus.
- Name
- ART Transit Station
- Location
- 49 Coxe Avenue, downtown Asheville Maps
- Essential fact
- The downtown hub for Asheville Rides Transit buses, on Coxe Avenue.
Do
- Wait visibly at a signed stop and match the route and direction before boarding.
- Have exact cash ready if paying on the bus.
- Request a transfer slip from the driver when boarding your first bus, and keep it for the second bus.
Don’t
- Rely on receiving change from the driver.
- Expect to pay onboard by debit or credit card.
- Discard your transfer slip before completing the connection.
Taxis and ride-hailing
- Taxi requests
- Checker Cab: 828-692-2424 • I&M Taxi: 828-753-9920
- Uber
- Requests 24/7 • pickups may take longer than in larger cities
- Lyft
- Standard and XL • driver availability varies
- Asheville Taxi payment
- In-app credit card
- Roll with Joel payment
- Cash, Venmo, Zelle or credit card
- Asheville Hopper requests
- Credit card required in its app
- City meter
- $2.50 starting charge + $0.25 per 0.1 mile
- Outlying-trip surcharge
- Possible $3 beyond a 3-mile radius of downtown • higher distance-band surcharges also apply
Asheville has licensed taxis as well as Uber and Lyft. Call a provider to arrange collection, or request a vehicle through an app. Payment methods belong to the individual taxi service, not to taxis as a whole, so agree how you will pay when arranging the ride.
At Asheville Regional Airport, both taxis and app rides collect passengers at the Ride App and Taxi Pick-up lot south of baggage claim and the rental car centre. Reaching it takes about four to six minutes on foot from the terminal, or you can take an AVL parking shuttle.
Allow roughly $40–$60 for an airport-to-downtown taxi, depending on your destination and traffic. Compare the taxi quote with the app’s price for the same journey, because demand-based app pricing means neither is always cheaper. There is no official fixed airport-to-downtown taxi fare.
The road journey from the airport to the downtown ART station is about 15 miles and about 21 minutes of driving. Collection and waiting come before that drive, so leave room for them when arranging your departure.
Arrange transport within Biltmore as well as your ride to the estate. Reaching the outside-ride drop-off does not complete the journey to its house, gardens or village, and you also need a way back to the same pickup point.
Sources & fact-checking
Checks against the sources below cover: fares and charges, services, and closures.
- How to Ride
- Anaheim Transportation Network — service
- Anaheim Transportation Network — fares and charges
- Arlington Transit — fares and charges
- Asheville Rides Transit (ART) — fares and charges
- ANM — service
- North 5 | Asheville Rides Transit
- City of Asheville — closures
- South 3 | Asheville Rides Transit
- Ground Transportation Providers
- Individual licensed taxi operators — service
- Uber — service
- Lyft — service
- AVL Announces New Ride App and Taxi Pick-up Location Starting September 1
- City of Asheville — fares and charges
- The Biltmore Company — service
