ROUTE 90C CUMBERLAND EXPRESS - ripta

Comprehensive Route EvaluationROUTE 90C CUMBERLAND EXPRESSROUTE OVERVIEWRoute 90C is one of four 90-series expressroutes that all operate as “Route 90 Park-n-Ride Commuter Service.” Route 90Coperates between the Blackstone RiverVisitor Center on I-295 in Cumberland anddowntown Providence, largely along Route146 (see Figure 1). In addition to theBlackstone River Visitor Center Park andRide Lot, it also serves the Chimney HillApartments Park and Ride Lot inCumberland and the Lincoln Mall Park andRide Lot in Lincoln.FIGURE 1: ROUTE MAPALIGNMENT ANDSERVICE PATTERNSService (one trip in each direction) operateswith a single set of inbound and outboundalignments as shown in Figure 1. Inboundservice begins at the Blackstone RiverVisitor Center, which is located on thenorthbound side of I-295 between Exits 9and 10. It then travels north to Exit 10 andthen north on Mendon Road to theChimney Hill Apartments Park and RideLot. Service then backtracks south onMendon Road to I-295 south to Route 146and George Washington Highway to theLincoln Mall Park and Ride Lot. It thenexpresses to Providence along Route 146.Outbound service operates in the reverse,except that it serves the Blackstone RiverVisitor Center Park and Ride Lot before theChimney Hill Apartments Park and RideNelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 1

Lot. Inbound service operates to Kennedy Plaza, and outbound service operates from the intersection ofWeybosset and Eddy Streets.TABLE 1| SERVICE VARIANTSTRIPS PER DAYVARIANT ORIGIN DESTINATION UNIQUE FEATURE WEEKDAY SAT SUNINBOUND 1 – –D4V10P1 Chopmist Hill Kennedy PlazaVia Rte 6 & Rockland,Hartford & Reservoir1 – –OUTBOUND 1 – –D5V11P1 Eddy & Weybosset Chopmist HillVia Hartford &Reservoir, Rte 6 &Rockland1 – –SCHEDULERoute 90S operates only on weekdays and provides a single AM inbound and PM outbound trip. Serviceis scheduled to arrive in downtown Providence at 8:09 AM, and to depart Providence at 5:04 PM.TABLE 2 | SCHEDULE SUMMARYSERVICE DAY SPAN OF SERVICE ONE-WAY TRIPS HEADWAYIB OB (MIN)WEEKDAYAM 7:30 AM 1 –PM 5:04 PM – 1SATURDAYSUNDAYNo serviceNo serviceData is based on RIPTA schedules current to May 2012. Span of service indicates the span from thedeparture time of the first scheduled trip to the departure time of the last scheduled trip.SIMILAR ROUTES AND TRANSFER OPPORTUNITIESRoute 54 Woonsocket/Lincoln provides express service between the Lincoln Mall and downtownProvidence in a similar manner as Route 90C but with much more service (five AM inbound trips andthree PM outbound trips). One of the AM inbound trips departs from Lincoln Mall as the same time (7:47AM) as Route 90C. The only unique service that Route 90C provides is single trip service to and from theBlackstone River Visitor Center and Chimney Hill Apartments Park and Ride Lot.Most transfers are available in downtown Providence at Kennedy Plaza, where connections can be madeto all other Providence Routes. Transfers can also be made to Routes 54 Woonsocket/Lincoln and 75Dexter Street/Lincoln Mall at and in the vicinity of the Lincoln Mall.RIDERSHIPRoute 90C carries only 28 passengers per weekday, or 14 passengers per trip (see Table 3).Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 2

Ons and Offs by StopBlackstone River Visitors Ctr P&RChimney Hill Apts P&RRt 116 at Lincoln MallRt 116 @ TargetExchange Terrace Far SideExchange StLoad: Passengers On-Board Between StopsTABLE 3 | RIDERSHIP BY TIME PERIODSERVICE DAY RIDERSHIP RIDERSHIP PER TRIPIB OB* TOTAL IB OB* TOTALWEEKDAY 15 13 25 15 13 14.0AM Peak 15 – 15 15 – 15.0PM Peak – 13 13 – 13 13.0SATURDAYSUNDAYPerformance information is based on data from RIPTA.No serviceNo serviceWEEKDAY RIDERSHIP BY STOPOnly one of Route 90C’s 15 inbound riders board at the Blackstone River Visitor Center Park and RideLot, six board at the Chimney Hills Apartments Park and Ride Lot, and seven board at Lincoln Mall (seeFigure 2). Considering that, as described above, Route 54 express service is also available from LincolnMall, Route 90C serve only six people per day who would not otherwise be served. All passengers ride todowntown Providence.FIGURE 2 | WEEKDAY RIDERSHIP BY STOP403530Weekday InboundBlackstone River to Kennedy PlazaOnsOffsLoads16141225201510501086420RIDERSHIP BY TRIPWeekday Ridership by TripRoute 90C carries 15 passengers on the AM inbound trip and 13 on the PM outbound trip (see Figure 3).All passengers travel to and from downtown Providence, and as a result, maximum loads are the same astotal ridership per trip and all trips operate below seated capacity.Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 3

Riders per Trip7:3017:04FIGURE 3 | WEEKDAY RIDERSHIP PER TRIP6050WeekdayInboundOutbound403020100PERFORMANCERoute 90C’s cost per passenger, at $10.35, is among the highest in the RIPTA system. This high cost isdue to two factors. First, ridership is low, at only 14 passengers per trip. Second, because it provides peakdirection only service, buses run empty from RIPTA’s garage to begin AM service and again when thenfinish PM service. This is an unavoidable characteristic of limited service express services thatsignificantly increases costs.Route 90C also carries only 25.1 passengers per revenue vehicle hour, which is 24% below the systemaverage of 33.2. This is also a typical characteristic of express services that transport passengers over longdistances with little ridership between intermediate stops.TABLE 4| PERFORMANCE MEASURESPERFORMANCE MEASURE ROUTE 90W SYSTEMAVERAGEOperating Cost per Passenger $10.35 $3.12Passengers per Revenue Vehicle Hour 25.1 33.2Passengers per Revenue Vehicle Mile 0.8 2.5Total Vehicle Hours per Revenue Vehicle Hour 1.9 1.1Average Speed (mph) 33.0 13.4Performance data is from RIPTA.OVERALL ASSESSMENTRoute 90C provides a single AM inbound and PM outbound trip that largely duplicates express serviceprovide on Route 54, and serves only six people who would not be equally well served by Route 54Woonsocket/Lincoln. Furthermore, since the route is a park and ride route, many or all of those six coulddrive to Route 54. The one bus that is deployed to provide Route 90C service could be more effectivelyutilized to improve service on Route 54.Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 4

SERVICE OPTIONSGiven that Route 90C largely duplicates Route 54, and attracts very few riders to its unique service:• Consolidate with Route 54: Route 90C largely operates as a variant of Route 54, and shouldbe consolidated with Route 54, with its resources used to implement the improvements describedin the Route 54 evaluation.However, if Route 54 is maintained as a separate route:• Adjust Schedule: As described above, Route 90C’s AM inbound trip leaves from Lincoln Mallat the same time as Route 54 express service (7:47 AM). This trip should be shifted later to avoidthis duplication.• Rebrand 90-Series Express Routes as Unique Routes: The current branding of fourPark-n-Ride services with the single Route 90 number is very confusing and likely depressesridership. Route 90S, and other 90-series routes, should be rebranded with unique numbers andnames in the same manner as all other RIPTA routes.• Improve Public Information: In conjunction with rebranding, RIPTA should presentinformation on 90-series routes in the same manner as all other routes; for example, these routesshould be shown on the route map, and individual schedule information should be produced.Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 5