Metrobus Transit Study.pdf - City of St. John's

St. John’s Transportation Commission (Metrobus) 2011
Market Assessment and Strategic Directions Study – Reference List
PART E: SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS AND NEXT
STEPS
19.0 RECOMMENDATIONS
The report outlines a number of conclusions regarding the delivery of transit services in St. John’s
and Mount Pearl and recommended strategies that should be considered over the short to mediumterm.
A number of recommendations will need to be further reviewed and modified as part of a
comprehensive operational review that should coincide with the successful implementation of a U-
Pass at Memorial University or within the 2 to 5 year time frame.
The following presents a summary of key recommendations and implementation strategies. Each
strategy makes reference to the section of the report that provides supporting rationale for the
recommendation. A time period is also assigned for each recommendation which recognizes both
priority and ease of implementation. These are:
IT - Immediate term (within 1 year)
ST – Short term (1 to 3 years)
MT – Medium term (3 to 5 years)
19.1 Transit Operations
While this study did not involve a detailed assessment of transit operations, a number of
improvements to transit routes and services were recommended. Most of these involve improving
service levels to meet the changing market realities.
The most significant conclusion is the need to continuously increase service levels to reflect the
changing market reality. With a more prosperous St. John’s area, travelling on Metrobus must be
more competitive with the private automobile by providing a level of service that is flexible and
convenient. Sixty minute service headways, long or circuitous routes and multiple transfers will not
attract ridership. Achieving this objective involves greater investment in the transit system.
To mitigate this investment, exploration of opportunities to make better use of existing resources
were also identified. Strategies to service low demand areas and periods were recommended as a
way to reallocate less productive service hours to areas that require additional service.
While there are a number of changes that Metrobus can address immediately, most should be tied to
a 5-year operational study update. Since the system underwent major changes in 2007, this should
occur in the 2 to 5 year time-frame.
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