I’m sure you all understand what Guelph Transit will be doing to the bus system come September 2nd.
This e-mail is a last minute appeal from me to do something about it. As I understand it, there is still an opportunity for one of you to add the topic to the agenda of Monday’s council meeting via an addendum. This would allow for more media attention on the issue and it would give all the councillors an opportunity to discuss it and take positions on the issue. Here are a few of the reasons why this is a misguided idea:
-Overcrowding: Lowering capacity in peak times is an embarrassing solution to delay. Fewer buses for the same amount of people will undoubtedly cause discomfort to passengers.
-Confusion: Despite the delays, our current schedule is simple and extremely user-friendly. The new schedule will be neither.
-Decreased Ridership: Both of these, and the overall drop in convenience from having less buses will undoubtedly cause a drop in ridership.
I understand that the current system is laden with delays, and that there is no more room in the budget for improvements. But thanks to the new Nextbus system, delays aren’t as much of an issue. And delays won’t really be too dire until winter hits, by which point, some sort of contingency plan can be thought out and implemented.
The proposed solution will inconvenience nearly everyone, will reduce farebox revenue, and will portray Guelph as a backwards place to outsiders. We all know it’s not. Do the right thing. DA