Transit Advisory Committee

THAT the agenda for the special meeting of the Transit Advisory Committee held on March 24, 2023 be approved as amended to include the addendum.

THAT the information and background items listed on the agenda for the Special Meeting of the Transit Advisory Committee re Transit Review be received.

THAT, further to the submissions from Chris Tomasini and Jodie Wilson regarding transit and students, the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • discount or free? • 12 and under are already free with a guardian - free student age range "all youth eligible to attend secondary school in Orillia" • use a cOnnect pass - 13 and up "Teen Pass" (waive or charge to cover cost of the card per year $5 - inherent value is there and youth will take care to have them/use them - provides the ability for counts) • for elementary and secondary school aged youth/students; post- secondary students are not considered for this - LHU has implemented universal pass for their students • encourage future adult riders, increase ridership • provide an option to run a one-year pilot program or trial and assess successes with actual counts • facilitates after school programming and use of Library, ORC, Rotary Place, Youth Centre, etc - gets students around town (particularly if they have been bussed from the surrounding townships into the City on a school bus) • outline how will free transit reduce costs - final recommendation needs to reflect costs for a program versus ridership benefits - transit contract costs don't change - gas tax ridership - productivity 230324 – TAC Minutes Page 2 of 6 • no capacity issue for offering free in order to fill the bus - doesn't reduce costs - increase the passengers increases the efficiency (cost per ride), in additi

THAT, further to the submission from Jodie Wilson regarding Senior Transit Fares, the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • 60 plus years of age or 55 in line with ORC • "easy fare" structure (Tooney fare as opposed to 15% discount) - still a subsidy but easier for some to understand and/or use - get them familiar and using transit) • noted that the cOnnect card provides ridership statistics for this age group • supported by Age-Friendly Advisory Committee • could tie it to a special seniors' promotional event - eg. Valentines Day, local business sponsorship, or a certain day of the month • noted rough estimate of transit cost - weekday cost is $8,613 for a 16.5 hr/6-routes

THAT, further to the submission from Jodie Wilson regarding options for Free Transit, the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • "Transit Talk" - Council members ride the transit for a day to hear from residents and riders on a Ride Free day • Sponsorship for Ride Free days - similar to Tim Hortons Santa Clause Parade and New Years' Eve transit sponsorships - build a network of community partners • Offer "Free Ride" days for special City or Downtown Orillia events • Could celebrate through sponsorship for things like Earth Day, World Water Day, Climate Actions support - support environmental benefits of using transit versus single occupant vehicles • People would begin to look forward to the free ride on that event day which then promotes transit use

THAT, further to the submissions from Chris Tomasini and Jodie Wilson regarding options for On-Demand Transit, the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • Members recognize that there may be a need to have professional consultation with respect to on-demand transit and how it may or may not work for Orillia • include a recommendation that Council establish a Working Group to explore/investigate and report back for future consideration (Noted: the CUTA on-demand transit implementation guide may be able to assist a Working Group to understand this type of transit service, its benefits/associated costs) • Invite representation from the following - Transit Advisory Committee, Active Transportation Committee, Parking Advisory Committee, Accessibility Advisory Committee, Downtown Orillia Management Board, Age-friendly Orillia Advisory Committee, Sustainable Orillia, Orillia Sunshine Youth Senate • Noted that current contract ends Dec. 31, 2025 and working group could work to review and recommend changes to align with development of a new contract - that would be a logical/appropriate time to implement new or substantive changes • May be introduced as a pilot or trial to measure uptake, advantages, and/or disadvantages - like OWLS scheduling/dispatch model (app versus person) • Consider impacts and optics of an on-demand service versus tax-rate supported transit options like Point-to-Point or On-Demand services • On-demand service co

THAT, further to the submissions from the Manager of Construction and Transit and Jodie Wilson regarding options for Route Modifications, the Transit 230324 – TAC Minutes Page 4 of 6 Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • Heat maps are very helpful to highlight use of various stops • cOnnect card is extremely important in understanding the actual rides • the Laclie Route modification from Maple Drive to Sundial Drive is supported by members • modifications to West Ridge routes - use a smaller bus as a "collector" vehicle to connect with regular established routes - outlying areas in these areas that are under rapid residential development • West Ridge area would benefit from review and consultation by a transit specialist • West Ridge: breaking the routes with a transfer station (one bus stays in West Ridge and one bus services a transfer station or essential stops for the terminal downtown across Hwy 11)

THAT, further to the submission from the Manager of Construction and Transit regarding options for Adjustments to Service Hours , the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • the staff recommendation to re-allocate 5 hours of service from evenings to weekends raises many questions for post-secondary students and the hours of their classes • reduction in hours will impact users at whatever time you recommend changes • the on-demand group could tackle how to extend weekend hours • a business case for savings versus the provision of service to citizens - we are not here to turn a profit - Recommendation #4 of the Multi-modal Transportation Master Plan - "work the plan"

THAT, further to the submission from the Manager of Construction and Transit regarding the On-demand Booking System for OWLS, the Transit Advisory Committee provides the following comments for inclusion in the report: • improved efficiency for bookings for this service • benefits for the current users for ease of access • seeing outcomes for OWLS will lead to experience, statistics and observations that might be applied to an on-demand service for regular transit

THAT the correspondence dated March 20, 2023 from the Age-Friendly Orillia Advisory Committee regarding Transit Service and Operations Review be received as information, and included as a schedule to the Committee's report.

THAT the correspondence dated March 14, 2023 from Molly Farquarson regarding the transit controversy be received as information and included as a schedule to the Committee's report.

THAT the summary of public comments dated March 24, 2023 be received as information and included as a schedule to the Committee's report.

THAT the meeting be adjourned.