Milton only moved to Town-owned transit fleet in 2008. The council adopted a Strategic Plan Study in 2009 and a Service Design Standard in 2010. New routes designed adopted in September 2010 is really the beginning of Milton Transit providing the service according to its Service Design Standard. It has usage goals with deadlines and tracks performance very closely.
Here are responses to some comments I have heard over the years :-
“We have too much transit service”
We have 5.5 regular routes and no weekend or post-PM service. 5.5 bus routes for 90,000 people isn’t too much.
“But other communities our size are all car communities”
We have by far one of the smallest transit systems. Sarnia is smaller than Milton and provides more than three times the service. Peterborough is Milton’s size and provides five times the service. Oakville is only twice as big but provides 10 times as much transit service as we do. Compared to other communities, we actually provide very little.
“Only GO commuters take transit”
In reality, only a third of Milton Transit users take transit for GO. Other 2/3rd (or 65%) of transit users use it to travel internally.
“In the long run Milton will be fine without Transit”
Region of Halton expects 12% of internal Milton trips to be taken by Transit. IF we don’t provide a transit service then we’ll have to spend money building more roads to pick move those 12% of people around that Region won’t build roads for. Either way, the money needs to be spent.
“I will never take the bus, nor will most people I know”
Agreed, most people in Milton will drive. Longterm plan is to service 12% of trips, 88% will still be by car. Most 14-19 year olds and many seniors rely on transit and these population segments are increasing rapidly in Milton. Many newcomers moving from Mississauga and Brampton are used to transit and stick with a single car. This is mostly why new neighbourhoods are biggest transit users in Milton.
“Large buses cost too much to operate”
First, we have no choice because we have to provide accessible service (low-floor, wheel chair accessible). Second, cost comes from drivers, maintenance etc. Size of bus has a small role in cost. Third, these buses are environmentally friendly, it’s not like running an SUV around town.
“No one takes Transit in Milton”
Milton Transit expects to provide over 200,000 rides this year from a very small Transit system.
“Okay, so people only take transit in rush hour, then buses run empty”
There is only a 20% difference in ridership between rush hour and non-peak hours. Most routes see no difference in ridership during peak and off-peak hours.
“Can’t we just run a small bus for seniors and students because only they take transit”
Incorrect. Newer the neighbourhood, higher the transit use. Route 4 that runs through Thompson / Clark is very well used, as is Route 5 that runs through Yates. Scott Express, that runs through the newest neighbourhood is used even more. Old sprawled neighbourhood that weren’t designed to be transit-friendly are least used.
“So a few people take the bus. But the usage isn’t increasing”
Not including transfers, there were around 100,000 (revenue-paying) trips in 2009, around 138,000 in 2010 and we will hit 180,000 in 2011.
“We increased the transit budget too much in 2011”
Net Transit Budget in 2011 is same as it was in 2010. The census will increase the gas tax money we get for transit in 2012 and increasing ridership will bring in more fare revenue. Increased population will bring in more advertising revenue. There is no reason to believe that the net cost will increase in 2012.
“Aren’t roads used more evenly?”
No, roads are only used to the maximum during the AM rush hour. Otherwise they spend most day “sitting empty”. A single lane Derry Road (or Thompson or Ontario) would work just fine if it wasn’t for peak hour traffic. So in essence we are going to spend over a billion dollars over the next decade or two building roads only for peak rush hour.
Final word:
At the end, it’s not about buses or cars. It’s about moving people around effectively and efficiently. For a community like Milton, it means 9 out of 10 people will still drive but that other 1 person will take the bus. That 10% adds up to a significant percentage. The gut feeling of “tell them to drive like the rest of us” doesn’t work because it can require more lanes (costing money), unsafe roads (by forcing 17 year olds to drive) and higher pollution. If Milton’s population wasn’t growing it may have been different, but you can’t have a growing and dynamic community, especially one with a lot of teens and seniors, a university and a community college, without an effective transit system.
