This article was originally posted on Guelph Today on October 2, 2021.
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Five months into the city’s experiment with microtransit, the option is proving popular with riders and is pegged to save taxpayers $162,000 by the end of the year, while reducing the city’s environmental footprint.
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Those are the findings of a project update report released on Friday, citing figures from a month ago.
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“Customer feedback has been positive with an average ride rating of 4.5 stars out of five,” states the staff-prepared report. “Most of the feedback heard is to extend the hours of service and the overall service coverage area.”
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The on-demand services, which launched May 2 as a replacement for two community bus routes, were set in motion in an effort to reduce operating costs and fuel consumption, compared to traditional bussing along low-volume routes and new service areas.
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They run in the same areas of the city that community buses did, but allow people to book the nearest pick-up and drop-off spots, with no fixed route or schedule.
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The community on-demand program covers a 30-square-kilometre area of the city, offering rides between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday. During its first four months, the service provided about 1,200 rides, the staff report notes.
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Along the way on-demand vehicles travelled about 25 per cent of the kilometres typically driven by the previous community bus, resulting in fuel and maintenance savings of $18,673 and is expected to divert about 24,000 kg of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the air by the end of the year.
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The second new service covers an eight-square-kilometre area of the city including both industrial business parks and some south-end residential areas. It runs from 5:45 a.m. to 12:15 a.m. Monday to Saturday and 9:15 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. on Sunday.
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That service was called upon more than 13,000 times since May 2, with an estimated reduction of 69,771 km in distance travelled, along with $62,664 in fuel and maintenance savings. In addition, 208,000 kg of GHGs are expected to be prevented from being released into the air by the end of the year.
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City council is expected to see a transit route review report with recommendations later this year, which will include a set of proposed service standards for implementing on-demand options as well as provide guidelines for converting microtransit to conventional routes.