Public transit in Durango and regionally are seeing lower ridership this year.
In Durango, a new $1 fare for the trolley is playing a big role in lower numbers overall, said Amber Blake, the sustainability and transportation director.
The city started charging for the trolley in January, and so far a 35 percent decline in ridership has been recorded so far this year compared with 2014.
“I think we’re as well or better than expected with our ridership on the trolley,” Blake said.
They had planned for a drop of about 45 to 50 percent in trolley ridership because many people were riding multiple times for free, and that artificially boosted the numbers.
Compared with 2008, the last time the city charged for the trolley, ridership is up about 28 percent overall, she said.
The fare was re-introduced because the trolley was running an annual deficit, and the city hoped to make about $259,000 this year from the new fare.
The loop buses and the Opportunity Bus have seen a decline of about 3 percent so far this year.
However, declining use in Opportunity Bus ridership, a door-to-door service for those with disabilities and the elderly, can be positive for the city’s bottom line.
A single Opportunity Bus ride can be about $40, and so the Transit Department has been encouraging some clients to use the loop buses when possible, Blake said.
Some lost rides also are a function of gas prices, Blake said.
“That’s at play, and you see it across the nation,” she said.
Despite declines, she doesn’t expect ridership numbers to have much of an impact on the Transit Department’s grant applications for the coming cycle, because although the state hopes to see ridership increase every year, officials also want to see transit agencies increasing revenues.
“You need to make sure you are doing everything you can as an agency to have a cost recovery,” she said.
The commuter Road Runner Buses between Durango and Bayfield and Durango and Ignacio also saw monthly ridership decline between 20 and 30 percent in the winter compared with last year, said Peter Tregillus, a program manager for Southern Ute Community Action Programs.
“We always see things go up and down with gas prices,” he said.
Ridership numbers are improving now after some changes in customer service, he said.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
