Agency officials say the most immediate impact of the changes will be increased service frequency on most current routes, and service frequency should increase even more if and when a labor shortage subsides.
“As RTA is able to hire new drivers, we will implement improvements to our services over the next 18 months,” said Bob Ruzinsky, Greater Dayton RTA CEO. “Our initial focus will be on better serving employment centers and medical facilities.”
The Greater RTA Board of Trustees this week approved some short-term and long-term service changes that will be implemented in phases, beginning on Sunday, June 19.
The agency is permanently abolishing some bus routes that were temporarily eliminated during the pandemic nearly a year ago. This includes routes 3, 5, 23, 24, 64, 65, 66, X1A, X1B and X5.
RTA also will realign routes 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 34 and 43, according to agency documents.
RTA buses on routes 14, 16, 17, 18 and 19 will begin arriving every 50 minutes on Mondays through Saturdays, until 6:30 p.m. Buses on these lines previously showed up at stops every 100 minutes.
Buses on Route 11 also will show up more frequently Monday to Saturday until 6:30 p.m. (every 60 minutes, instead of every 90), and Route 22 buses also will arrive slightly more frequently.
Earlier this year, RTA temporarily reduced service frequency for about 14 routes at a time of lower demand and fewer drivers, moving to a Saturday service schedule for every day except Sundays.
The RTA hopes to make another round of service changes this fall, including changing route schedules so buses operate at the same times seven days a week, Ruzinsky said.
The agency has long operated a weekday bus schedule, a Saturday schedule and a Sunday schedule.
“As more folks are working varied schedules, which often include weekends, RTA is changing to meet their changing needs,” Ruzinsky said. “Operating the same schedule seven days a week will make it more convenient for riders and better serve our community.”
The RTA’s service plan changes were developed after analyzing ridership data and identifying bus routes with low utilization, said Sharon Howard, a member of RTA’s board of trustees.
The agency also considered more than 90 public comments that were received over the course of a couple of months, she said.
Future service changes will depend on bus-driver staffing levels and will be structured to connect people to jobs, health care and education, Howard said.
“Maintaining basic geographic service coverage and late-night service were also priorities in the final design in these short- and long-term plans,” she said.
RTA officials say a fare increase also is possible sometime down the line, but it won’t happen this year.
RTA’s ridership was still down about 50% in April, compared to the same month in 2019, pre-pandemic.
Greater Dayton RTA also currently has more than 50 job openings for big-bus drivers (commercial drivers license required) and 35 openings for small-bus drivers (non-CDL positions), the agency said.
From 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, the RTA is holding a hiring event at the University of Dayton Arena where job-seekers will get a chance to test-drive the agency’s buses.
The RTA says changes to the Route 14 bus line will improve access to grocery stores and health care facilities.
Route 14 runs along parts of Ohio 48, Brown Street and Salem Avenue, with stops near the University of Dayton, Kroger and Dorothy Lane Market, as well as Miami Valley Hospital and Five Rivers Family Health Center.
Route 16 has stops near Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, the Miami Valley Hospital South campus in Centerville and Kroger in Englewood.
Route modifications will improve access to health care providers while serving major employers such as Walmart, Kroger, and Costco, RTA said.
Route 17, which has stops as far north as Vandalia, stretches down to the Dayton Mall area and Kettering Health Washington Township (formerly Southview Medical Center).
Route 18 will offer improved service to the Fuyao glass manufacturing facility and an urgent care facility in Huber Heights, the RTA said.
Changes to Route 19 will enhance access to the Kettering Medical Center and jobs at the Dayton Mall, the RTA said.
Rebecca Leahy, 29, of Dayton, takes the Route 16 bus to work about five days a week.
Leahy said she often has to catch the bus an hour early to make it to her job in Englewood on time, and more frequent service would be a big help for her schedule.
“This would be way easier,” she said. “It will give me more personal time so I’m not waiting on transportation.”
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