Latest news with #transitservice
CBC
03-08-2025
- General
- CBC
Feedback to Winnipeg Transit network changes mostly negative, but tweaks will be slow to come
It's been just over a month since Winnipeg Transit switched over its entire network in a single day and city staff have already received a flood of feedback from members of the public, mostly negative. The transit service has received about 10 times the number of comments compared to what it normally gets, said Bjorn Radstrom, Winnipeg Transit's manager of service development. "Which is exactly what we expected … because it's such a big change," Radstrom said Friday. "The interesting thing is that the ratio of commendations to complaints is about the same as it always was — basically one commendation for every 100 complaints." On June 29, Winnipeg Transit switched its network from the decades-old "hub-and-spoke" model, which had buses meandering through outlying neighbourhoods before heading downtown, with a new "spine-and-feeder" system, featuring straighter routes along major streets, and smaller routes connecting to residential areas. "We know that we didn't get it right, straight out of the gate, with a change this big," said Radstrom. "We made mistakes. And there's also things that can just be improved slightly as people get used to the system and their travel patterns change … Basically give it a shot, but provide us with that feedback." The changes removed approximately 1,200 bus stops, with the goal of making trips faster and schedules more reliable. Transit said the changes would also make buses more frequent. What officials are seeing The early feedback and data has shown mixed results. Around 10-15 per cent of buses are running behind schedule, on average, which is an improvement, Radstrom said. A problem the transit system is now facing, however, is too many of its buses are arriving early. The agency plans to rewrite some schedules, adding more time in between stops on some routes, like the D12 Ellice and D13 Sargent, while shortening times on others. Those changes won't be made until December, Radstrom said, because it is too late to change the fall schedule set to go into effect in September. Congestion in places like the Redonda bus loop in Transcona or the Unicity Shopping Centre in St. James will require infrastructure changes to fix, Radstrom said. Bus pass-ups, where buses drive past passengers waiting at stops because they are too full, have decreased, although people in some areas of the city may experience pass-ups where they didn't before, for example on the F8 along Henderson Highway, Radstrom said. Transit plans to increase service along that route once the fall schedule begins, as well as add articulated buses to increase capacity. For some Winnipeggers, bus routes ending earlier in the evening around 10:30 p.m. local time have become a problem, particularly for those living in the suburbs or working late-evening shifts. A problem with the GPS tracking system, affecting about 10 per cent of the fleet of buses, has led to inaccurate information being fed into the service's real-time updates to trip and wait times. It has also made it impossible to get accurate information about ridership during the first month of the new network, because it uses the same technology, Radstrom said. Members of Winnipeg Transit's technical team are working with the vendor and supplier of the GPS units to find a fix, which Radstrom hopes will come within the next couple of months, because that data is needed to track performance once the fall schedule starts. Mayor, councillors want changes Mayor Scott Gillingham, speaking to reporters on Wednesday at an unrelated event, said it's unlikely major changes can be made to the network before September, adding that the increased ridership from students going back to school will provide important information that will help with making adjustments. "We're going to have to see how this new network system does under that pressure as well, before we make any substantial changes, but some small tweaks, if possible, that our staff can make, then I would like to see them make that," he said. Longer term, Gillingham would like to see Winnipeg Transit address the concerns about buses ending early. Winnipeg councillors say the feedback they have received from constituents has been largely negative. Coun. Sherri Rollins (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry) says she has heard from riders complaining about overcrowded or missed buses, trips taking longer, and bus stops located too far for some people, particularly seniors, to walk to. "I'm hearing … lobbying for continued investment into transit, and that is really important," Rollins said. "But in that context … I'm hearing concern that perhaps there was insufficient investment and more was needed in advance of a changeover in the middle of summer." Coun. Ross Eadie (Mynarski) said the early end to some bus routes, like those along Mountain and Selkirk avenues, poses safety risks for some people. "You don't want to be walking around those areas that time of night," he said.
CBS News
22-07-2025
- Business
- CBS News
SMART expanding as North Bay transit agency sees ridership increase
As Bay Area public transit struggles to deal with shrinking commuter demand, one agency is about to expand its service. It's the result of a study showing that people prefer to take a train rather than a bus, and it's creating an opportunity to reorganize how people use transit up and down the Highway 101 corridor. All roads in the North Bay lead to San Rafael, at least for most of the public transit providers. The San Rafael Transit Center is one of the busiest in the Bay Area, second only to the Salesforce Center in San Francisco. The hub is the meeting point for Marin Transit, Golden Gate Transit and the SMART commuter train line. "It's already very important and will continue to be important," said Paulo Cosulich Schwartz, spokesperson for Golden Gate Transit. "And we're actually undertaking a project to redesign and relocate the San Rafael Transit Center to accommodate a growth in transit service." That growth may be a case of addition by subtraction. A recent study shows that transit in the North Bay has a lot of duplication of service. For example, Golden Gate Transit has buses going clear up to Santa Rosa, the same service area as SMART. It also has stops in the same urban areas as Marin Transit. So, a new plan has been developed called "MASCOTS," short for Marin-Sonoma Coordinated Transit Service, that will, hopefully, cut out the redundancy. "MASCOTS really refocuses Golden Gate on the regional trips," said Marin Transit Planning Director, Cathleen Sullivan. "So, Golden Gate will have fewer stops and really focus on express service and getting people between major transit hubs in Marin County, into San Francisco and into the East Bay. And Marin Transit will really refocus OUR resources on making sure the local stops are covered." "One of the most interesting findings of the study," said Cosulich Schwartz. "Is that 70 percent of Marin/Sonoma travel to San Francisco originates from San Rafael or south." So, Golden Gate will focus on that area, limiting its service only up to Novato, requiring travelers to use SMART from any place farther north. It's only happening because SMART, after some initial bumps along the way, has proven itself to be a fairly popular transit option. "We're seeing that in our ridership numbers right now. SMART is experiencing record ridership. People have embraced that this as a very reliable way to get around. It's economical, it's a green alternative. It's just an easy service to use," said communications manager Julia Gonzalez. "We too, here at SMART, have tried to stay agile in response to changed commute patterns, where people are maybe commuting to work part of the week. Maybe doing a two-three split, three days at home and two days in the office. We've tried to stay agile by creating monthly passes that take into account that you're not traveling, necessarily, five days a week." Because of MASCOTS, SMART will see an increase in service of nearly 20 percent and will begin hiring new people to begin training almost immediately. The hope is that the coordinated effort will not only provide a less confusing system for riders but also save some much-needed money for the operators. "It's not just happening here in the Bay Area," said Metropolitan Transportation Commission spokesperson John Goodwin. "This is happening in metro areas all over the country, that the old model for operating transit, the different business models, are under a great deal of pressure. Transit agencies all over the region are re-examining decades-long service plans because the travel patterns have changed in a big way all over the Bay Area. And at the same time, transit agencies are strapped for operating cash, so they need to operate more efficiently." Except for the planning process, the new program shouldn't cost anything. In fact, it should save money. And the cost of expanding SMART is expected to be covered by the increase in ridership, after the MASCOTS plan goes into effect, sometime in April. In the meantime, a series of community meetings are being planned with the first on Tuesday, July 22, at 5:00 pm at the Marin City Library.
CTV News
16-06-2025
- CTV News
Edmonton Transit Service summer routes begin June 29
Several bus routes will be altered to reflect summer ridership starting June 29. School service will be suspended on June 29 and will resume in the fall. Route 508 will be split into two routes (route 508 and route 527), with the 508 running from Mill Woods Transit Centre to Meadows Transit Centre. The 527 will replace service in the Millbourne neighbourhood. Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) will replace conventional transit with On Demand Transit in Riverdale, Lendrum, Malmo, Belgravia and Windsor Park. Route 111 will no longer run through Riverdale and will run to Stadium Transit Centre through McCauley, Alberta Avenue and Parkdale. Due to low ridership, routes 131, 725 and 726 will be cancelled. Seniors in Riverdale will be able to access On Demand Transit Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. as well as on weekends and holidays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Demand Transit from Riverdale will connect to City Centre Mall and Churchill Square transit hubs. Lendrum and Malmo will have regular hours of service and will connect to Southgate Transit Centre. Belgravia and Windsor Park will also have regular service hours and will connect to the University Transit Centre. Other service changes Route 109A/B will be rerouted onto Juchli Avenue in the Griesbach neighbourhood. It will then be rerouted onto 167 Avenue, bringing it closer to commercial areas. Some bus stops on this route will be moved. Due to a full traffic signal being installed at 40 Avenue and 50 Street, the 507 will run more directly between the Tamarack neighbourhood and Southgate Transit Centre. A number of bus stops will be moved. Some bus bays at Southgate, South Campus/Fort Edmonton Park and Mill Woods Transit Centres will be reassigned. To see the full list of changes, you can view them here. Upcoming holidays and special events Buses and LRT will run at Sunday service levels on July 1. There will also be extra late evening and OWL service. There will be extra service on routes 8, 53 and the Capital LRT line from July 18 to 27 for K-Days. Buses and LRT will run on Sunday schedules for Heritage Day on Aug. 4.
