Comments by Ken Seiling
Since Grand River Transit (GRT) was established in January 2000, the initial business plans have guided significant operating and capital investments in public transit. As a result of these investments, the bus fleet, bus and passenger facilities have been expanded and modernized; and the expansion of the regional transit network including improved route and service levels has increased annual transit ridership from 9.4 million in 1999 to 14.4 million in 2007, a 53% ridership increase. Similarly, use of MobilityPlus services has increased from 160,000 client rides in 2000 to 275,000 client rides in 2007.

The Region of Waterloo established GRT in 2000, recognizing that building a competitive public transit system is fundamental to providing mobility, reducing congestion, improving air quality and generally contributing to the vitality and quality of life of the community. Implementation of the first business plans including service improvements, transit infrastructure and customer focused initiatives, have been successful in moving towards achieving the long-term Regional Transportation Master Plan (RTMP) auto reduction target and increasing the mobility for persons with disabilities.

The new GRT Business Plan (2008-2010) builds on the successes of the previous business plans and on GRT’s solid organizational and infrastructure foundation. The new plan provides direction and outlines initiatives to enhance GRT’s ridership growth strategy and ensure the continued improvement to effective and efficient service delivery.


Grand River Transit Business Plan
Since 2001, there has been a significant growth in both service and ridership. In 2007 alone, there was a 39% per cent growth in ridership, with much of that growth attributable to new or improved services such as the universal transit pass program for students at the region's two universities and extended hours for the iXpress bus service that runs between Waterloo and Cambridge.

The GRT Business Plan (2008 - 2010) identifies the direction and initiatives that will help GRT build on its solid organizational and infrastructure foundation as the organization moves into a critical period of anticipated ridership growth and transit service enhancements. The plan incorporates both conventional transit, including a proposed rural pilot service, and MobilityPlus, reflecting the family of services approach to improving mobility in the region.


The new business plan reflects many elements of the Provincial growth strategy, called Places to Grow, and the Regional Growth Management Strategy (RGMS). Both of these broader plans place high importance on the development of more competitive public transit systems. They both include rapid transit as a strategy to help achieve a more compact urban form and, therefore, sustain and enhance economic vitality and quality of life.

The GRT Business Plan (2008 - 2010) outlines the necessary service improvements, transit infrastructure and customer focused initiatives that will continue to allow progress towards achieving the long-term target of a 7% reduction in total auto trips by 2016. The plan provides support for Rapid Transit and for the reurbanization and intensification goals of the RGMS and contributes to the Regional vision of quality of life and sustainable development.

The new GRT Business Plan will be in effect from 2008 to 2010. This horizon will allow time for the completion of the Rapid Transit Environmental Assessment and the new Regional Transportation Master Plan. Both of these transportation studies will provide strategic direction for future GRT Business Plans.

GRT Business Plan Goals and Key Initiatives
The GRT Business Plan was developed around five major goals:

1. Improve Service Levels and
Ridership

2. Improve Service Quality and
Customer Satisfaction

3. Improve Productivity and
Cost-Effectiveness

4. Develop an Implementation
Plan to Create a Region-wide
Specialized Service

5. Improve Employee Satisfaction
and Workplace Excellence

1. Improve Service Levels andRidership
Annual Transit Service Improvements 2008 to 2010
Since the current Regional Transportation Master Plan (RTMP) and GRT Business Plan were approved, two new factors that have significant influence on transit ridership and service growth targets have come to light. The population of Waterloo Region is projected to grow at a faster rate than anticipated in the 1999 RTMP and the Region plans to introduce rapid transit into the transit network in 2013 to 2014. Both these factors will contribute to higher transit ridership and service levels in the future.

The Rapid Transit Environmental Assessment planning process has projected system-wide ridership of 20 million revenue passengers during the first year of operation (2013).
This ridership level is slightly higher and for an earlier horizon year than the current RTMP ridership target of 19.7 million for 2016 and in part reflects the faster rate of population growth. The new GRT Business Plan proposes a ridership target of 16.9 million rides for 2010, which would put GRT on track to achieve the Rapid Transit ridership projection of 20 million in 2013.

To increase ridership from 14.4 million in 2007 to 16.9 million in 2010 would require an average annual ridership increase of 5.8 per cent. While this ridership growth rate is higher than the 5.2 per cent annual growth that has been experienced by GRT since 2000, it can be attained through more strategic service improvements such as higher frequency routes and iXpress type services that would attract a greater share of the commuter travel market. It is estimated that a 5.8 per cent ridership growth rate or 2.5 million more rides by 2010, can be
generated by increasing service hours by an average of 6.5 per cent annually over the next three years. To deliver the proposed increase in service, the fleet would be expanded by 10, 12 and 13 buses respectively over the next three years.
Planning for Rapid Transit
The introduction of rapid transit will have a significant impact on the transit network capacity, travel times and connectivity. GRT will begin a study that will comprehensively redesign the current bus network to integrate with the selected rapid transit system. A redesigned bus network and multi-modal stations would be put in place to support the transition to rapid transit.

Rural Transit Service Pilot
GRT is planning a one-year pilot service to provide transit service
from Conestoga Mall in Waterloo to Elmira with possible stops in St. Jacobs and the St. Jacob's Farmers' Market/Outlet Mall.
Extending transit service to rural towns will provide rural residents with access to employment, education and services within urban areas by bus rather than car. Similarly, urban residents will have access to transit destinations in rural areas.

The distance between rural towns and cities makes providing transit less cost-effective than within cities. Nevertheless, rural transit would provide a valuable mobility benefit for rural residents.


Marketing and Community Outreach
The Region of Waterloo recently completed an individualized marketing program that targeted a neighbourhood near an iXpress station. The Region directly contacted households and provided specific travel information that met their needs. Results indicated that participants who received the information were more likely to take transit, cycle and walk.

The Region will be developing an individualized marketing program that directly targets neighbourhoods where improvements to transit service are planned or where competitive transit service is now provided. The Region will also target major employers along the iXpress corridor encouraging them to establish commuter option programs for employees including subsidized transit passes, transit information, on-site ticket sales, bike parking and shower facilities.

2. Improve Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction
By improving schedule and service reliability, service predictability and trip planning capabilities, GRT has improved overall service quality, which has made the transit system more attractive to potential riders. The strategic implementation of advanced transit technology can significantly improve the quality of service that is delivered daily and enhance customer access to more timely and accurate customer information.

Advanced Transit Technology Service Monitoring:
GRT has installed an automatic vehicle location (AVL) system to automate communication between 15 iXpress buses and a central dispatch centre including real-time bus location and schedule adherence. The new technology allows for automated audio and LED display announcements of next bus stops ensuring future compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and compliance with the request from the Ontario Human Rights Commission to remove barriers for persons with audio or visual impairments. In the future, these functions will be expanded to the entire GRT fleet.

Customer Information Systems:
Over the past two years, a range of customer information systems have been put in place that help transit riders plan their trip and minimize their wait time at a bus stop by informing them of next bus arrival

times. The ability to access
accurate trip and schedule information on a timely basis and reduce passenger wait times at a bus stop contribute to greater use of the transit system. The existing customer information systems include:

A web-based trip planner that optimizes a rider's trip based on start location and destination and desired time of day by minimizing overall travel time, walk distance and number of transfers

An automated telephone information system and text messaging service that provides next bus arrival information

Flat-panel screens displaying route schedule information at the Ainslie Street and Charles Street transit terminals and at Conestoga Mall

Real-time schedule information displays at iXpress station

Based on experiences to date EasyGO systems and the potential expansion of the automatic vehicle location system for all buses, the following enhancements and expansion of traveller information systems are proposed:

Expand access to the web-based trip planner to personal device assistants (PDAs) and provide inter-city schedule information

Provide real-time information by the automated telephone information system, text messaging service and flat-panel screens

Expand the number of locations that have flat-panel display and the number of bus stops that have real-time schedule information displays

Transit Priority Measures:
GRT plans to increase the number of intersections with transit signal priority along the iXpress route and enhance effectiveness of existing transit signal priority at 17 iXpress intersections to increase reliability and reduce travel times. The Transit signal priority system detects iXpress buses as they approach the intersection and either extends the green or shortens the red signal to minimize delay.

Smart Fare Card:
Smart Card technology is being used by some transit authorities for transit fare cards that can be reloaded in person at customer service or retail outlets, by phone, online using a credit card or automatically from a bank account or credit card. Smart cards reduce the administrative burden of tickets and passes, reduce passenger/driver confrontations regarding valid fares/transfers,
speed up passenger boarding,
provide extensive passenger activity data, and easily program innovative fare structures such as frequency discounts, the U-Pass, time-based fares and fare integration with other transit systems such as GO Transit.

GRT anticipates having a smart card system in place by 2011. Before a smart card system is put in place, staff will review current fares and develop a new fare strategy to maximize the fare payment options that a smart card system can easily accommodate.



3. Improve Productivity and Cost Effectiveness
Fare Strategy
GRT will continue to reward frequent riders by deeply discounting ticket and monthly passes to encourage ridership growth.

Fare Review Schedule
Fares will be reviewed every two years with the next review scheduled for January 2009. This will allow sufficient time to monitor the impact of the previous fare change, evaluate potential fare options and consult with the public.

Fare Innovations
GRT will consider two new fare innovations. The first is to allow adult passes to be transferable. This would allow individuals in the same household, for example, to share a monthly pass to use transit at different times (i.e. one person uses it to travel to and from work on weekdays while another uses it on weeknights or weekends)
The second fare innovation being considered is a discounted adult pass for the months of July and August. This pass would be branded with an environmental theme such as eco-pass or smog-buster to reflect the rider's contribution to improved air quality by using transit during the two summer months when smog days are more likely to occur.

12-Year Bus Replacement Schedule
GRT plans to work towards a 12-year bus replacement schedule. In the past, Ontario transit systems replaced aging buses at 18 years. Based on the rising costs of operation and maintenance as a bus ages, the ideal time to replace a bus is after 12 years of operation. A 12-year bus replacement cycle also results in a more modern fleet that is cleaner in terms of emissions and is more comfortable and reliable for riders.

Small Transit Vehicles
GRT currently uses smaller vans for our BusPLUS service in lower ridership areas. These vehicles are owned and operated by an external agency and are operated under contract to the Region. GRT plans to continue with the BusPLUS service as a cost-effective way to build ridership in growing areas to levels that will eventually support a regular bus.


4. Implementation Plan to Create a Region-wide Specialized Service

The following initiatives are planned for MobilityPLUS services in order to provide customers with the most appropriate services for their particular mobility needs:

In 2008:
Begin pre-booked service between Cambridge and Kitchener-Waterloo to provide region-wide access for MobilityPlus clients;

Start a commuter bus service on a fixed route and schedule to transport cognitively disabled clients to and from workshop day programs;

Expand current urban and rural services with vans, contract services and TaxiSCRIP;

Encourage further use of conventional services by people with disabilities through transit orientation and travel training programs, accessible transit
information, and improved access to bus stops;

Organize, plan and implement changes to meet the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) standards.

In 2009 and 2010:
Improve MobilityPLUS service efficiency with a new scheduling system;

Continue current program expansion including fleet expansion;

Expand the eligibility policy to include other disabled people who cannot use conventional transit services.

Review fare prepayment program

5. Improve Employee Satisfaction and Workplace Excellence

As GRT services expand, the number of employees also increases. There are now about 500 employees involved in delivering transit services in Waterloo Region. To continue to deliver safe, efficient and progressive transportation, GRT must continue to hire and retain a team that is committed to service excellence.

Some of the initiatives planned during the term of this business plan include:

A program to support the implementation of the new fleet repair practices, to cultivate a culture focused on improved quality, productivity and operational effectiveness;

The launch of an employee awareness and relationship development program;

Additional employee engagement and outreach strategies;

Additional employee training and skills development programs.



The GRT Business Plan (2008 to 2010) is an important tool that will help build on GRT’s growth momentum and achieve ridership targets, while ensuring effective and efficient transit service for everyone in the region.