TMD led the development of a Sustainable Service Plan (SSP) for Riverside Transit Agency (RTA). The plan, which the RTA Board of Directors approved in March 2023, outlines a three-year plan for future service changes. It builds off of the Systemwide Service Reduction Plan that TMD helped RTA develop in 2021 in response to changes in travel behavior from the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding that many of these travel patterns reflect permanent shifts in behavior, the SSP refocuses the allocation of RTA’s limited resources to best serve the needs of the community by investing frequency in high ridership services, realigning routes to more closely serve rider destinations, and reducing route duplication. TMD also conducted a Title VI analysis to ensure that the service changes did not cause disproportionate impacts on minority or low-income populations. In addition, TMD is working with RTA to revise and update RTA’s service standards and warrants to reflect the current operating environment.
Part of this project also involved evaluating RTA’s new GoMicro microtransit program in Hemet/San Jacinto that launched in December 2022. TMD worked closely with RTA to develop this pilot program as part of the Systemwide Service Reduction Plan in an effort to save resources by replacing duplicative under-performing fixed-route services with an on-demand microtransit zone. The pilot has been successful, carrying close to 200 passengers a day. TMD worked with RTA on strategies to manage demand, consolidate trips, and improve productivity.
Planned route profiles: https://virtualeventroom.com/rta/ssp/profiles.php
