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35 <br /> because of the amount of ridership and expenditures associated with it. He said some options <br /> going forward include a fare card reader system to make the process easier. He said going <br /> fare free would result in a substantial increase in the general fund monies. <br /> Commissioner Greene said she would like to know more about that because the bar <br /> chart shows that fares only covers 1%, and she wonders how much is the 1%. <br /> Travis Myren said he will look at that. He said the fare study was done within the past <br /> couple of years, so is not very old. <br /> Theo Letman said the study is a year old, and noted that Covid has impacted revenues. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton said the demand will change with no fare versus fare, so it <br /> would cost more under a no fare system because of increased ridership. <br /> Commissioner Greene said that is true, but if the long-term goal is to get more people <br /> out of cars, it should be looked at further. <br /> Chair Price asked if the routes and services represented in the fare total could be <br /> identified. <br /> Theo Letman said it is from the fixed routes, as well as the on demand program. He <br /> said it is not as significant due to loss of state funding for the ROAP program. <br /> Chair Price asked what the fares are generally. <br /> Theo Letman said there is a $3 copay, $12.75 for on demand service, and $2 for regular <br /> bus service. <br /> Chair Price said if the County wants to expand bus service, she believes people may be <br /> willing to pay if the busses were reliable and frequent. She said restricted service does not <br /> entice people to use the bus service and pay that money. She said she would like to look at the <br /> possibility of a smaller fare, or if people use the service for work, that businesses could pay for <br /> bus passes for employees to use. She said she would like to explore ways to get people to <br /> want to use the bus. She asked if there has been any feedback on the mobility on demand <br /> program. <br /> Theo Letman said so far, so good. He said staff has played with the fares, and ridership <br /> picked up greatly when it became fare free, but it is not really sustainable right now to open the <br /> program full throttle. He said people are expressing interest in being able to get a ride from <br /> their homes after hours and on weekends. <br /> Travis Myren resumed the PowerPoint presentation: <br /> Slide #74 <br /> Community Services <br /> Orange County Transportation Services—page 345 <br /> QCPT Ridershi p <br /> ® moon <br /> n ❑RANGE COUNTY <br /> Travis Myren noted that ridership dropped off during the pandemic. He resumed the <br /> PowerPoint presentation: <br />