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ORANGE COUNTY <br /> SHORT RANGE TRANSIT PLAN <br /> Service Performance boardings per revenue hour, and it has recovered to <br /> approximately 78% of its pre-pandemic ridership. The Orange- <br /> Ridership on OCTS's demand response services declined Alamance Connector, on the other end of the spectrum, is <br /> significantly in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and currently partially suspended and covered by demand response <br /> continued to decline in 2021. Fixed route ridership did not see the service, and it had the lowest ridership of the three fixed routes <br /> same steep decline in 2020 but decreased in 2018 and again in before its suspension. <br /> 2021 (Figure 3). <br /> Figure 3:Annual Unlinked Passenger Trips by Service Type Public Engagement Key <br /> 60,000 Findings <br /> 50,000 <br /> 40,000 PHASE 1 <br /> 30,000 The first phase of engagement for the plan took place from <br /> 20,000 March 4 to March 31, 2024. Target audiences included transit <br /> riders, Orange County residents, traditionally underserved <br /> 10,000 communities (both riders and non-riders), and other community <br /> o stakeholders. The project team held a series of pop-ups at bus <br /> 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 shelters, community centers, and community events across <br /> --*—Fixed Route +Demand Response Orange County (Figure 4). Standalone polling boards featuring <br /> project details and simple questions were placed in transit <br /> Source: FTA NTD shelters at key bus stops in Orange County. A short survey was <br /> The pandemic and resulting changes to commute patterns, paired distributed both online and in print form in English and Spanish <br /> with vehicle and driver shortage challenges at the agency, have to Orange County stakeholders and 13 community centers, <br /> led to significant on-the-ground changes to the services being libraries, and apartments. A total of 191 participants completed <br /> offered in recent years, including route suspensions and service the survey. <br /> hour changes. These challenges and changes make exact Locations where participants were most interested in seeing <br /> comparisons over time difficult on the level of an individual route better transit services included between Hillsborough and Chapel <br /> or service. The Hillsborough Circulator is OCTS's highest Hill, from unincorporated Orange County into the municipalities, <br /> performing fixed-route service in both total ridership and and between Hillsborough and Mebane. Survey and pop-up <br /> Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates 4 <br />