By Staff
March 5th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
If you do not use public transit in Burlington – the city wants to hear from you.
Burlington and transit have not always had a smooth relationship.
The city has in the recent past not put much money into transit use. They did put in $1.55 million in the 2018 budget and say they plan to put in much more.
In a perfect world this bus would be at least 3/4 full and maybe two bikes in the front end rack. Not there yet and the city wants to find out why.
Given that the city touts transit as the way of the future, that and bicycles – major dollars are going to be needed to create a transit system that people will want to use.
The voice from city hall:
Calling all Burlington Transit riders and non-riders: Help build a better Burlington Transit
The City of Burlington wants to hear from Burlington Transit riders and individuals who currently do not use Burlington Transit about their thoughts and experiences with public transit in the city.
The information gathered from the public will be used to help shape a Transit Plan for Burlington that will guide the development of a new transit network that meets the needs of the city’s growing population over the next 25 years.
Feedback can be shared by completing an online survey available until March 26.
Sue Connor, Director of Burlington Transit
Sue Connor, Director of Burlington Transit, has settled into the job quite well apparently. A report that was put in the hands of the city manager a number of months ago stunned many – the city was offside on a number of levels.
That report got the $1.55 million into the 2018 budget.
The city now appears to want to find out what it is going to take to get people out of their cars and onto transit.
Connor, in a prepared statement said: “Improving Burlington’s transit service is a priority for the City of Burlington. As our population grows, providing a variety of convenient, reliable options to help people get around the city is essential. The Transit Plan, along with other city plans like the Transportation Plan and the Cycling Plan, will help to bring this vision to life. To help develop the Transit Plan, we want to hear from Burlington Transit riders to learn more about how they currently use public transit and equally as important, we want to hear from people who do not ride the bus to find out what might encourage them to consider transit. This information will help Burlington Transit start to improve its level of service.”
Senior staff applaud the roll out of a new bus.
Some background:
The Transit Plan will be a multi-year plan that will guide new investment in a new transit network for the city that aims to:
Increase frequency and reliability of bus service
Focus service on the city’s most heavily travelled streets
Create better connections with other major transportation systems like GO rail who will increase the frequency of their service to two-way, all-day service every 15 minutes by 2025.
Improve the comfort and convenience of taking transit.
A report about Burlington’s Transit Plan is expected to be presented to Burlington City Council in May 2018.
On Jan. 29, 2018, Burlington City Council approved an investment of $1.55 million in transit as part of the city’s 2018 operating budget to provide stability to Burlington Transit’s operations and improve the reliability of the public transit service. Funding of $500,000 was also approved in the city’s 2018 capital budget for the installation of video cameras on buses.
Burlington is growing. The 2016 Census data shows Burlington grew by 7,535 people between 2011 and 2016 – a 4.3 per cent overall growth rate. Ontario’s Places to Grow Act mandates that Burlington plan for a population of 193,000 by 2031, however, the city will reach this population number within the next few years.
There are likely five key target markets and customers for Burlington Transit: 1) seniors; 2) those who don’t drive; 3) GO Train commuters; 4) students; 5) persons on fixed income or social assistance who can’t afford a car. Start by identifying the commuting habits, preferred destinations, schedules and preferences of these people, and actively seek their input on scheduling. Certain commonalities and trends will emerge.
Second, investigate communities in which public transit is working well to identify what they are doing that we aren’t. Case in point: St. Catharines Transit. They have 44 bus schedules compared to 26 I counted on Burlington Transit’s website. A friend of mine who lives in central St. Catharines tells me she can get anywhere in the city within an hour needing only one transfer. She comes to Burlington occasionally and bemoans the time lags and multiple transfers it takes for her to get anywhere here. St. Catharines has 60,000 fewer residents than Burlington. Why is their system so much better than ours?
Third, let’s focus on doing a few things really, really well rather than spreading our resources too thinly. If it is problematic to design a public transit loop that integrates certain outlying neighbourhoods into the transit grid then fill in the gaps with dial-a-ride services or contracts with Uber. And let’s stop trying to persuade certain population groups to ride transit when, quite realistically, there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell they will ever do so. A family of four on Saturday morning going to kids hockey practice, then McDonalds’s, then Rona, aren’t going to be riding Burlington Transit anytime soon.
Finally, if it requires us to cut prospective clients a deal to get them on the buses, increase ridership and improve mobility then let’s do it. In 2010 Carol D’Amelio floated the idea of free public transit for seniors when she ran for Mayor. In Oakville a program lets seniors ride on certain routes on certain days. As a taxpayer I’d sooner pay for those in need to use the transit system for free on certain days or times rather than having the things travel empty.
To Steve
You’re talking about a car you own Steve – not a bus.
When you’re 85 and told that you can’t drive you will figure out what a bus does for you.
What will make me want to use transit? How about a bus sitting outside my house so that when I’m ready to go somewhere it’s available to take me anywhere I want to go, and then return me home, when I’m ready. Otherwise, why would I use it?
Good news Steve. It may not be a bus but what you are describing is something that Burlington Transit is looking into to get more people out of their cars.
Here we go again with the ‘chicken and the egg’ argument on transit in our city. No one uses transit in Burlington. Our ridership statistics are incredibly low by EVERY standard. City Hall will NOT be making an “investment” in transit, they will be “SUBSIDIZING” transit. If our citizens truly want an improved transit system (which is arguable), we should devise a revenue neutral plan that won’t increase our taxes. This means higher fares, likely around $8-$10. If seniors and students want a free ride, that may mean everyone else is paying $12 to get on. If ridership increases, lower the price accordingly. Otherwise the vast, vast, overwhelming majority of the city will just be getting fleeced. Again.
I wish the City well with its Transit Plan; it offers some hope for transportation within the City but it faces two major challenges (at least). The first is geography–Burlington has large distances between where people shop, live, work, and play. Can the Transit Plan connect these areas in an efficient way? Second (and related to the first)is a cultural dynamic; Burlington is a commuter town and people jealously guard their time. As a result they want to use the most time-efficient method of travel, currently the automobile. Can Transit be made so efficient that it can cut into car dependency?
How much of the 1.55 million dollars in the budget actually provide more buses, more handy-vans,more drivers, less waiting times? I think this is a drop in the bucket. How much money is budgeted in Burlington for transit vs Oakville?
The problem with transit has been ongoing for years. With the large demographic of seniors in Burlington this should have been addressed years ago. Did they not see us coming? Public Transit will be more essential as seniors have to give up their driving licenses, not everyone can afford to take a taxi or Uber to get around.
For the last 7 years the Mayor has made reference “that it would be great to have a bus that would go up and down Brant Street, where people could hop on and hop off to do their errands.” We all agreed. WHERE’S THE BUS!!
Is this new request from City Hall the beginning of the long awaited Transit Study that needs to be part of the proposed new official plan?