A $4.5 million solar energy project at the Vineyard Transit Authority officially went online Friday, with a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the latest milestone.

Ridership has declined sharply on Vineyard Transit Authority (VTA) buses this year, as the pandemic’s impact on public transit authorities nationwide trickles down to the Island.

After months of review, Edgartown’s VTA Church street committee gave a strong endorsement to a controversial plan to install three electric bus induction chargers at the downtown bus terminal.

Concerned about crowding on buses, Vineyard Transit Authority drivers presented the VTA advisory board with a petition last week asking for better safety protocols.

A traffic study on the Vineyard Transit Authority’s plan to use the Church Street transit hub in Edgartown as a charging station for electric buses found that the new station would not increase congestion at the site.

The Vineyard Transit Authority will maintain reduced service through the summer, VTA administrator Angie told the advisory board late last week.

Both riders and drivers aboard Vineyard Transit Authority buses in Tisbury will be required to wear face coverings, following a vote by the town board of health Tuesday.

Six regularly scheduled ferry runs have been cut effective Sunday, as traffic to the Island begins to decline. Other transit agencies are taking steps to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Edgartown selectmen voted Tuesday to refer the Vineyard Transit Authority’s redesigned bus terminal at Church street to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission.