Title
October 2023 Proposed Bus Service Improvements (Ordinance S-50097)
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to implement the October 2023 bus service changes. If approved, the service changes will take effect Oct. 23, 2023.
Report
Summary
The Public Transit Department (PTD) is proposing to extend the reach of frequent local bus service within the city under the proposed October 2023 local bus service changes. An entire route, or even segment of a route, is considered part of the frequent service network when its weekday service frequency is 15 minutes or better from at least 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
In Phoenix, local bus service has a minimum base frequency of every 30 minutes daily, Monday through Sunday, although many routes have more frequent service based on levels of ridership throughout the day. These proposed service changes focus on weekday local bus service during peak hours (from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.), or midday hours (from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.). Weekday local bus service runs from approximately 4 a.m. to past 11 p.m.
As of April 2023, 8 of 43 local/circulator routes operating in Phoenix are part of the frequent service network, which covers 34 percent of Phoenix residents within its service area. With the implementation of the proposed October 2023 service changes, the frequent service network would increase to 11 routes and cover 47 percent of Phoenix residents within its service area.
Overall, the proposed October 2023 service changes are estimated to expand the frequent service network by covering 217,000 more residents as well as 133,000 more jobs within its service area. Below is a brief description of the proposed service changes, followed by details of the current service and proposed changes.
Brief Description of Proposed Changes
- Route 0 (Central Avenue): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, modify frequency from 20 to 30 minutes. Please note that this change is not moving forward at this time.
- Route 3 (Van Buren Street): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, modify frequency to 15 minutes between 35th Avenue and 32nd Street, and extend 15-minute frequency to 44th Street.
- Route 7 (7th Street): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, modify frequency to 15 minutes between Dunlap Avenue and Baseline Road, and to 30 minutes north of Dunlap Avenue and south of Baseline Road.
- Route 16 (16th Street): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, increase weekday frequency to 15 minutes between Baseline Road and Northern Avenue.
- Route 19 (19th Avenue): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, increase frequency to 15 minutes for the entire route.
- Route 27 (27th Avenue): During weekday peak hours, increase frequency to 15 minutes between Bell and Lower Buckeye roads.
- Route 35 (35th Avenue): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, increase frequency to 15 minutes between Lower Buckeye Road and Metrocenter Transit Center.
- Route 70 (24th Street/Glendale Avenue): From 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, increase frequency to 15 minutes between Baseline Road and 43rd Avenue.
- DASH Circulator: Extend route to Roosevelt Street and 3rd Street and add evening and weekend service between Roosevelt Street and Jefferson Street.
Current Route Descriptions
Route 0: The 8.6-mile route runs on Central Avenue between Van Buren Street (to the south) and Sunnyslope Transit Center (to the north) in central Phoenix. The route overlaps with light rail on Central Avenue from Van Buren Street to Camelback Road. This route operates at a 20-minute frequency on weekdays and every 30 minutes on the weekend.
Route 3: The 24-mile route runs on Van Buren Street in the cities of Phoenix, Avondale, and Tolleson, with the Phoenix portion operating between 83rd Avenue and the Phoenix Zoo. During weekdays, the frequency intervals increase between 35th Avenue and 32nd Street. Currently, the schedule in this area of the route is every 10 minutes during morning peak hours, every 15 minutes from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., every 10 minutes from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., and then every 15 minutes until 7 p.m.
Route 7: The 25-mile route runs primarily on 7th Street between Dobbins Road to 19th Avenue and Deer Valley Road. During weekday peak hours, the route operates on a 20-minute interval north of Van Buren Street and a 10-minute interval south of Van Buren Street.
Route 16: The 23.5-mile local route runs on 16th and 32nd streets between Dobbins Road and Paradise Valley Community College. During weekday peak hours, the route operates every 15 minutes between Baseline Road and Northern Avenue.
Route 19: The 25.5-mile local route runs primarily on 19th Avenue from the 27th Ave./Baseline Park-and-Ride to 23rd Avenue and Happy Valley Road. During weekdays, the frequency intervals vary between the Jefferson Street and Union Hills Drive segment of the route. This section has 12-minute frequency during peak hours and every 15 minutes during midday.
Route 27: The 22-mile local route runs on 27th Avenue between Lower Buckeye Road and Rose Garden Lane/Deer Valley Road. The route operates every 30 minutes, seven days a week.
Route 35: The 28-mile local route runs primarily on 35th Avenue between the 27th Ave./Baseline Park-and-Ride to 23rd Avenue and Happy Valley Road, with a deviation to the Metrocenter area. During weekday peak hours, the route operates every 15 minutes between Lower Buckeye Road and the Metrocenter area.
Route 70: The 31-mile local route runs on 24th Street and Glendale Avenue, between the 24th St./Baseline Park-and-Ride to Luke Air Force Base in Glendale. During weekday peak hours, the route operates every 15 minutes between the 24th St./Baseline Park-and-Ride and the Glendale Park-and-Ride at 99th Avenue.
DASH Circulator: The 1.5-mile Downtown Phoenix Circulator runs on Jefferson and Washington streets between the State Capitol and 3rd Avenue. The weekday circulator runs every 12 minutes from 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Proposed Changes
Map illustrations of proposed service changes by route: Attachment A.
Route 0: Modify weekday frequency from every 20 minutes to every 30 minutes. Recent passenger load analysis revealed that the frequency can be reduced while not causing overcrowding on the route as the route also overlaps with light rail service between Van Buren Street and Camelback Road. Please note that this change is not moving forward at this time.
Route 3: Modify weekday peak hour frequency from every 10 minutes to every 15 minutes between 35th Avenue and 32nd Street, while also expand the frequency eastward to 44th Street, expanding the route’s contribution to the frequent service network.
Route 7: Modify weekday frequency from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. to every 15 minutes between Dunlap Avenue and Baseline Road. Segments north of Dunlap Avenue and south of Baseline Road would run at a 30-minute frequency. If implemented, operating frequency for the route would decrease south of Van Buren Street from 10 to 15 minutes; increase between Van Buren Street and Dunlap Avenue from 20 to 15 minutes; and decrease from 20 to 30 minutes north of Dunlap Avenue. The Dunlap Avenue to Baseline Road segment would become part of the frequent service network.
Route 16: Increase midday frequency from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. to every 15 minutes between Baseline Road and Northern Avenue. The frequency improvement would match the route’s current peak-hour service frequency of every 15 minutes on the same segment, making the segment part of the frequent service network.
Route 19: Modify weekday frequency from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. to every 15 minutes between Jefferson Street and Union Hills Drive. If implemented, frequency for the route would increase from 30 to 15 minutes south of Jefferson Street and north of Union Hills Drive, and frequency would decrease between Jefferson Street and Union Hills Drive from every 12-15 minutes to every 15 minutes. The entirety of Route 19 would be part of the frequent service network.
Route 27: Increase weekday frequency to every 15 minutes during peak hours between Bell and Lower Buckeye roads. The segment of the route north of Bell Road would maintain 30-minute frequency.
Route 35: Increase weekday midday frequency to every 15 minutes between Lower Buckeye Road and the Metrocenter area. The frequency improvement would match the route’s current peak-hour service frequency of every 15 minutes on the same segment, making the segment part of the frequent service network.
Route 70: Increase weekday midday frequency to every 15 minutes between the 24th Street and Baseline Park-and-Ride and the intersection of 43rd and Glendale avenues. The frequency improvement would match the route’s current peak-hour service frequency of every 15 minutes on the same segment, making the segment part of the frequent service network.
DASH: Following extensive outreach and community engagement conducted during the department's Neighborhood Transit Study, PTD proposes to expand the DASH circulator’s reach in the downtown area. The proposed expansion includes extending the route east to 1st and Jefferson streets, where it would connect with the Fry’s grocery store and multiple light rail connections within walking distance. Also, this proposed change would expand the route north to Roosevelt Street via 3rd and 5th streets to provide a transit connection to Roosevelt Row. In addition, PTD proposes to modify the service frequency, days, and hours to the following: implement frequency to every 15 minutes; extend hours to 11 p.m. between Roosevelt Row and Downtown Phoenix; and add service on weekends on the same segment.
Service Equity Analysis
Per Federal Transit Administration (FTA) regulations, a Title VI Service Equity Analysis on each proposed service change was conducted to analyze whether the proposed change causes a disparate impact on minority populations or yields a disproportionate burden towards low-income populations. In summary, the proposed changes to routes 0, 27, and 70 qualify as a major service change according to the service equity analysis policy, although the Route 0 change is not moving forward at this time. And because the proposed changes to routes 27 and 70 are increases in service levels, mitigation efforts are not required.
Details of the analysis for the proposed October 2023 proposed service change are included for the Council's review (Attachment B).
Public Input Process
PTD used the locally adopted public outreach process to solicit public feedback on proposed service changes. The public input process took place from May 8 to June 9. Phoenix and Valley Metro staff conducted outreach utilizing posters and A-Frame signs placed at key areas along each route to notify the public of the proposed changes and to direct passengers to visit Valley Metro’s website to submit comments by June 9. The proposed changes were also advertised via social media and on-board bus public messaging announcements. A hybrid (in-person and virtual) public hearing was also held on May 24 at Valley Metro’s offices.
In addition to above mentioned automated announcements and advertising tactics, staff rode bus routes with proposed service changes and distributed flyers in both English and Spanish to riders that provided a description of the proposed changes and information on how to provide comments.
Overall, 2,679 total comments and suggestions were received about Phoenix’s proposed service changes, with 1,209 of those registering either a positive or negative opinion on each proposed change. The results of the public input by route are as follows:
Route 0 - Modify weekday frequency to every 30 minutes:
- 47 Support (35%)
- 87 Against (65%)
Route 3 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes between 35th Avenue and 44th Street:
- 122 Support (87%)
- 19 Against (13%)
Route 7 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes between Baseline Road and Dunlap Avenue:
- 110 Support (87%)
- 16 Against (13%)
Route 16 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes between Baseline Road and Northern Avenue:
- 125 Support (93%)
- 9 Against (7%)
Route 19 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes:
- 133 Support (92%)
- 11 Against (8%)
Route 27- Modify weekday peak hour (from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.) frequency to every 15 minutes between Bell Road and Lower Buckeye Road:
- 112 Support (90%)
- 13 Against (10%)
Route 35 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes between Lower Buckeye Road and Metrocenter Transit Center:
- 111 Support (93%)
- 9 Against (7%)
Route 70 - Modify weekday frequency to every 15 minutes in Phoenix:
- 127 Support (93%)
- 9 Against (7%)
DASH Circulator - Extend route to Roosevelt Road and Third Street and add weekend service between Roosevelt Road and Jefferson Street:
- 135 Support (91%)
- 14 Against (9%)
The proposed changes to Route 0 is the only service change proposal receiving public opposition through the public input process. Most of the comments received point to the need to continue increasing transit services throughout the Valley to help promote a more transit-friendly environment. While the reduction of weekday frequency on Route 0 would allow the department to redistribute resources to other routes, the change is not being recommended at this time. Several comments received suggest maintaining frequency on Central Avenue north of Camelback Road on the route segment that does not overlap light rail, which staff will continue to evaluate by analyzing passenger load data.
Financial Impact
The proposed October 2023 service change will increase PTD’s operating expenses by $3,735,000 annually. Fiscal year 2023-24 financial impact is estimated to be $2,577,000 for a partial year implementation (Oct. 23, 2023 to June 30, 2024). Funding is available in the Public Transit Department’s operating budget.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
This item was recommended for approval at the Citizen's Transportation Commission meeting on June 22, 2023, by a vote of 8-0.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Mario Paniagua and the Public Transit Department.