Transportation 2035 - State of Rhode Island: Division of Planning

TRANSITSTRATEGIES(continued)T.3.gT.3.hT.3.iT.3.jT.3.kT.3.lT.3.mT.3.nT.3.oT.3.pTarget specific travel markets for RIPTA’s array of services.• Continue and expand U Pass Program to colleges and universities.• Provide reverse-commuting options, utilizing various methodologies and models to enable urban low-income workers to accessemployment in the suburbs, including Massachusetts and Connecticut residents who work in Rhode Island.• Integrate RIPTA and human service agencies efforts with an enhanced and expanded ITS Senior Mobility Program, while ensuringsensitivity to clients’ specialized needs.• Integrate transportation of students with public transit to avoid duplication of service. Establish contracts between RIPTA and schooldistricts to provide transit services to students, particularly at the high school level (similar to the arrangement in the City ofProvidence).Continue to purchase buses that provide a balance between the need for efficient boardings, low cost of operation, and seatingcapacity to meet transit demand.Install new on-board vehicle communications technologies in Rhode Island for visually impaired passengers.Improve public transportation to and between suburban communities. Circumferential transit routes and routes facilitating reversecommuting are essential to serve employers who are located in the suburbs and inner-city, lower-income people who need jobs.Provide alternative modes of transportation for short-distance, high- traffic situations, perhaps including water taxi, light rail, streetcars,tramways, and bus rapid transit. Private operators are encouraged to provide such service. Design alternative transportation optionsfor short-distance, high-volume traffic areas, especially when congestion, cost, and other obstacles constrain movement. Examplesinclude links for major passenger terminals to destinations/attractions (e.g., Newport, downtown Providence, tourist areas).Continually seek to improve the “on-time” performance of the transit system. Require drivers to check-in at stops. Revise schedules iftimes between stops are impractical or unattainable as a result of traffic or increased use.Work with towns in suburban and rural areas to expand demand response and flex route systems to improve access by poor, elderly,and mobility-impaired residents to jobs, medical facilities, and social services.Expand mid-day, evening, and weekend hours of all regular RIPTA routes. Use of vans or trolleys may help offset costs of operatinglarge buses during off-peak times.Expand RIPTA’s trolley service into additional Providence neighborhoods as funding permits.Coordinate transit hours of service with social service agencies, medical facilities, major employers, and supermarkets/shoppingcenters. Consider offering flexible alternatives for residents using transit for activities such as grocery shopping. Similar to flexservice in other communities, provide a van to pick up passengers after they have completed grocery shopping.Transportation 2035 (2012 Update)State Guide Plan Element 611RI Statewide Planning ProgramPage 5-47December 2012BICYCLEDESIGNECONOMICDEVELOPMENTEMERGENCYRESPONSEENVIRONMENTEQUITYFINANCEHIGHWAYINTERMODALLAND USE ANDCORRIDORSPEDESTRIANPLANNINGSAFETYTRANSIT