Starting in March, Vineyard Transit Authority route 1 buses traveling in Edgartown will stop only at designated bus stops. Riders on that route will no longer be encouraged to flag down the bus between stops, which has been the practice on routes Island-wide.

“It’s an attempt to keep the bus on a schedule, and not obliterate the side of the road,” said transit authority administrator Angela Grant, who added that the town had petitioned the agency to make the change two years ago.

The town paved four new pull-out areas to help fill the gaps between stops, which now occur no more than three-tenths of a mile apart on the outbound side of Edgartown-Vineyard Haven road. On the way into Edgartown, the bus will pick up passengers across the street from the marked outbound stops. Due to the bike path that runs along the inbound side, pull-out areas could not be created on that side of the road.

“There are so many stops that people are standing relatively close to each other,” Ms. Grant said.

The authority is also working to install more benches and schedule holders. Shelters, ideally, are next, she said.