Bus service adjusted on more than 40 routes following Edmonton Transit riders' complaints

More than 40 service adjustments have been made to Edmonton's new bus routes in response to a slew of complaints from riders since the April launch.

In a news release Wednesday afternoon, Edmonton Transit Service branch manager Carrie Hotton-macdonald said the changes that took effect June 27 were made to help shorten layovers, increase efficiencies in scheduling and provide better service for seniors. The city didn't hold a media availability to answer questions and gave no reasoning for why the announcement was made 10 days after implementation of the service changes.

“This is Edmontonians' bus network and I want them to know that every piece of feedback is being carefully considered,” Hotton-macdonald said in the release. “We're committed to listening and making improvements where possible to help Edmontonians access their city.”

Based on feedback from essential shift workers, many late-night routes were revised along with an earlier 5 a.m. start time on some routes to improve connections and transfers to downtown.

Since the new bus routes launched in April, the city has received concerns from more than 1,000 riders asking for changes. Many frequent transit users said their commutes have significantly increased and require transferring to multiple buses rather than one direct route like under the previous system.

The new bus network has about 100 fewer routes than the previous iteration and those hours were reinvested to provide more direct and frequent service on routes connecting to different quadrants of the city. This was the first significant change to the city's bus network in more than two decades.

In addition to the changes that came into effect at the end of June, more substantial changes are expected in August with the expansion of some routes. Hotton-macdonald previously said only small adjustments would be made this year and there wouldn't be changes to routes until 2022 after reporting back to city council. On Aug. 29, Route 512 will be extended from 23 Avenue south to 21 Avenue to improve coverage in South Edmonton Common and Route 523 will extend from 34 Avenue to 31 Avenue.

Route 54 will be adding Saturday morning and evening as well as Sunday morning service between Northgate and Clareview on 137 Avenue and Route 127 will offer Sunday service between Northgate and Kensington.

Early morning trips will also be added to Routes 1, 2, 7, 54, 109, 118, 123, 140X, 509, 514, 703, 717 and 904 based on rider feedback to help accommodate early work commuters.

Alterations to service that came into effect June 27 include:

■ Route 52 adjustment to shorten the layover at St. Albert Trail;

■ Morning and evening trips adjusted on multiple routes to make weekday and weekend service schedules more consistent;

■ Some afternoon trips on Route 2 moved to start from downtown instead of West Edmonton Mall to better align with travel demand;

■ OWL late-night service trips shifted on Routes 2, 8 and 9 to improve downtown connections for essential workers;

■ Route 1 trips now alternate between 101 Avenue and 106 Avenue, rather than two trips in a row serving each road.

Feedback on the new bus system is still being accepted on the city's website and will be reviewed to guide additional changes in 2022. The first update to council on the new routes is expected in October.