An unexpected increase in Transit ridership sets a record in 2018

By Keerthana Veerapandian

Transit Windsor saw a 22 per cent increase in ridership as an unexpected amount of students started using the bus on a regular basis.

The reason for this increase is due to the nearly 5,000 new international students attending St. Clair College, according to a recent report.

The report says that while Transit Windsor is pleased with the rise in ridership numbers, it was not operationally prepared for the significant increase.

Pat Delmore, Executive Director of Windsor Transit feels its a positive increase

“More riders means more revenues, so we can re-invest the benefits back into additional service which we have done this year,” said Delmore.

Student ridership rose by 54 per cent compared to the previous year, from 3.1 million to 4.8 million rides annually.

As a result of drastic increase in ridership, Transit Windsor has increased the frequency of three South Windsor bus routes as well as the Transway 1C to every 10 minutes.

The Transway 1C now runs every 10 minutes during the day on weekdays during the peak hours.

Delmore feels the increased ridership is a benefit for the entire community but the only challenge is to meet the ridership needs. He says transit authorities are doing their best to improve the service.