Public transit in Greater Sudbury hit a new milestone this year, with a record-setting ridership of 540,000 recorded in September, making it the busiest month on record.
This was followed by a ridership of 521,000 in October.
With 4.2 million passenger trips recorded so far this year, city transit services director Brendan Adair said they’re on track to log more than five million rides by the end of the year.
This obliterates last year’s 3.4 million rides, and surpasses the pre-pandemic total of 4.6 million recorded in 2019.
“Whether it’s a return to in-person work or in-person schooling, post-pandemic, they’re finding a way to exist outside of the home and feel safe,” Adair told Sudbury.com of riders.
“There’s a slow-return of in-person attendance at work, and that’s likely the case across many industries, and we’re seeing an increase in the use of transit as a result.”
Of particular note is the increase in student ridership, with 186,000 student rides recorded in January and 285,000 recorded in September.
“That’s a really big increase,” Adair said, crediting a recent influx of international students with contributing to the jump in public transit use. “They’re comfortable with the use of transit, and for the most part use it.”
This year, Laurentian University reported having 777 more full-time equivalent international students than last year, while Cambrian College saw 900 more international students join their ranks.
The boost in ridership follows three pandemic-era years in which passenger numbers dropped, from 4.6 million rides in 2019 to 2.8 million in 2020, followed by 2.3 million in 2021. Things started to pick up last year, when 3.4 million rides were recorded.
Pandemic-era funding from senior levels of government joined gas tax contributions in keeping GOVA Transit’s municipal subsidies down during this slump in ridership, Adair said.
GOVA operates at a 30 per cent recovery ratio (7.1 per cent for GOVA Plus specialized transit), with a net municipal budget of approximately $20.4 million in 2023.
To keep the forward momentum going when it comes to ridership, Adair pointed out a couple of notable business cases the city’s elected officials will consider during 2024-25 budget deliberations.
One business case, which carries a projected 2024 levy impact of $397,000 (a cost jump of $1.3 million against a revenue increase of $910,000), proposes adding 11,000 conventional transit hours in 2024.
This jump in transit hours “responds to ridership increases which are placing significant pressure on main transit routes, thus negatively impacting the efficient operation of the entire transit system,” according to the business case.
This year, GOVA Transit is forecasted to host approximately 178,000 hours of service, which is down from the 2019 total of 182,256.
The service was reduced during the pandemic. It dropped to 167,969 hours in 2020 and increased in subsequent years to its present 178,000. The proposed 11,000 additional hours would bring the service up to what it would have been if not for the pandemic, Adair said.
“Divided across all route classes, this business case will respond to ridership increases, which, if left without corresponding service increases, will negatively impact the customer and system efficiency,” according to the business case.
Another business case aims to make a municipal law enforcement officer pilot program permanent at the downtown transit hub, at a 2024 levy impact of $153,599.
Customer feedback on the pilot program has been promising, Adair said, reporting that people have expressed feeling safer downtown as a result of the officers’ presence.
Next year will also see a report go to city council relating to a transit hub review, and Adair said the city is currently looking into a fare system wherein passengers can tap their pre-paid cards.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.