Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
9 <br /> 2. Comprehensive Transit Plan <br /> Alderman Seils introduced this item, and Travis Myren served as facilitator. <br /> a) Summary of Bus Hours Expansion Activities <br /> Mayor Lavelle arrived at 7:44 p.m. <br /> Theo Letman, Orange County Transit Director, reviewed information in the agenda <br /> packets. <br /> Attachment 2a-1 is Section 2 of the Orange County Transit Plan. Section 2 outlines the <br /> additional bus hours and services that have been provided through the dedicated transit sales <br /> tax (Article 43). The full Transit Plan can be accessed at gotriangle.org/orangetransit. <br /> b) Reverse Hillsborough Circulator Implementation Schedule THEO LETMAN <br /> Not sure where this fit in <br /> Attachment 2b-1 — Hillsborough Circulator Map <br /> Attachment 2b-2— Circulator B Map <br /> Attachment 2b-3— Circulator A Map <br /> Theo Letman said one new strategy is the idea of"mobility on demand" to aid those who <br /> live in rural areas lacking fixed route public transportation. He reviewed existing fixed routes, <br /> and the areas they serve, noting the lower level of ridership on some routes. He said the <br /> Hillsborough Circulator is one of the most popular routes. He said a "reverse circulator" is being <br /> considered. He said the current circulator makes a long route around Hillsborough, and can be <br /> inconvenient for passengers. He said a north-south route is being considered as well as <br /> different circulator, with two intersecting loops that create higher frequency. He said hours may <br /> also be extended at the beginning and the end of the day to cover more peak hours. <br /> Theo Letman said the Mobility On Demand is an uber type of travel. He said staff got <br /> survey results from constituents, and this need was one of the top priorities. <br /> c) Ridership and Routes Data/Stats from Chapel Hill Transit, Orange County Public <br /> Transit and GoTriangle (i.e. buses passing UNC Hospital each hour; how many <br /> commuters from Orange County/Chapel Hill to Durham and back each day, etc.) <br /> Brian Litchfield, Town of Chapel Hill Transit Director, said the most of the information in <br /> the agenda packet pertains to investments through the Orange County Transit Plan, which has <br /> been utilized since 2013 to improve services in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and to UNC. He said an <br /> additional 10,500+ hours of service have been invested, as a result of funding from the Orange <br /> County transit plan, which leaves about 1000 hours to still be invested as part of the short-range <br /> transit plan that is currently under way. He said this transit funding has also been used to <br /> purchase 8 buses, 5 of which went into service last year, and 3 are currently on order, expected <br /> to arrive in Chapel Hill in August 2019. <br /> Brian Litchfield said funding will also be used to upgrade 13 bus stops, ranging from <br /> ADA improvements to replacing entire shelters and adding sidewalks. He said the Orange <br /> County transit plan is also funding the north-south Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, which is <br /> moving into preliminary design and environmental work. He said staff continues to work on the <br /> local funding associated with that project, but it is moving forward. He said work is being done <br /> with partners to develop a short-range transit plan, a component of which will be testing the <br /> micro-transit or ride hailing services within Chapel Hill and Carrboro as well. He said the goal is <br /> to use in-house services. <br /> Alderman Slade asked if the Town is getting an electric bus. <br />