Guelph Transit moving to on-demand service on statutory holidays

Changes to Guelph’s transit system The city is rolling out on-demand service on statutory holidays. Stephanie Villella reports.

Changes will soon be made to Guelph’s transit system. The city is rolling out on-demand service on statutory holidays, beginning Good Friday.

On-demand buses have no fixed route or schedule. Instead, riders will have to book a trip through an app, on the city’s website, or by telephone.

“We don’t want to be driving buses that are empty,” said Courtney McDonald, with Guelph Transit. “On stat. holidays, we do have significantly lower ridership.”

The on-demand service will begin April 15, alongside Guelph’s usual holiday service. The plan is to then replace the holiday schedule with on-demand only by Victoria Day.

“We were offering one-hour service, which isn’t necessarily a great service for the customers,” McDonald said. “Customers will take less time to travel to and from their destination when using on-demand service on statutory holidays.”

McDonald said the change is part of Guelph Transit’s Future Ready Plan, which was approved by council last November.

RIDER REACTION

Some transit riders think the on-demand service is a great idea.

“People will get to their destination whenever they need to,” said John Capili.

Others are expressing concern.

“Having to book your bus ride is going to affect people who can’t afford cell phones or have access to a computer,” said Ethan George. “Personally, myself, I don’t have data on my phone, so I think it’s going to cause trouble for me.”

“I think it’s a terrible idea,” said Joy, a frequent transit user. “The thing is not everybody has these phones. We need a bus system that we can stand at and get on, that’s very important.”

McDonald said she is aware the change may be difficult for some. She said members will be on site at the central terminal and other busy locations throughout the city to help customers book a trip.

The 99 Mainline route will not be impacted by the on-demand service. It will continue to run every 30 minutes on holidays.