YoloGo ridership study concludes

The Yolo County Transportation District is approaching the conclusion of its YoloGo process, which aimed to examine rider needs and look at the future of transportation across the county.

Specifically, the YoloGo process began in early 2019 with a key goal of establishing a comprehensive vision and “blueprint” for the future and long-term sustainability of Yolobus services, according to Jose Perez, deputy director with YCTD. The YoloGo study looked at historic and expected changes in ridership, the changing mobility needs of customers, and overall system performance while identifying areas for improvement and growth.

As the project originally neared completion in early 2020, YCTD (as well as the entire region) was challenged by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Perez added. Through further analysis, public outreach, and the hard work of YCTD staff and partners, the YoloGo strategies and service recommendations were re-assessed and further refined to account for pandemicrelated travel changes, and the YoloGo study is now ready to be reviewed and considered in its entirety.

By focusing on strategies to increase ridership, improve mobility, and reallocate limited resources, YCTD will be better positioned to maintain and improve safe, reliable, and quality public transit throughout the region, Perez stated.

A brief summary of the proposed service recommendations is presented below:

• Increase frequency on Route 42A/B to 30-minutes during peak periods and incorporate route streamlining.

• Permanently reallocate (i.e., discontinue) Express Service trips reduced during COVID-19 (one exception: reinstate Davis reverse express route 43). • Modify Woodland local fixed-routes and introduce microtransit options in Woodland.

• Combine local West Sacramento routes 35 and 39. • Continue microtransit for Winters & El Rio Villa Housing, supplemented by route 220 commute hour service to/from Davis.

• Establish “trigger” metrics and goals for consideration of re-introducing, or further reducing, express trips based on demand and performance.

To view the complete report, visit https://yolobus. com/news/ index.php/690.