Bus riders will celebrate as the City of Kelowna plans to expand its transit service for university students this fall.
The city will add 1,800 hours of service in September.
According to a report to go to council Monday, the most pressing issue for transit is service reliability and passenger growth on the route No. 8 University route, the highest performing route in the region.
City staff propose an increase to the midday service on weekends for the No. 8 route and weekday frequency every 20 minutes. Sundays would see an increase in afternoon service.
These new hours would come from a relocation of hours from the “under-performing” No. 15 Crawford route.
READ MORE: Transit improvements coming to Kelowna regional system
The key challenges for Kelowna’s regional transit system is a need for weekday peak service improvements on the No. 8 route, improved service for Academy Way near UBC Okanagan and a solution for afternoon passenger pickups on the No. 4 Pandosy/UBCO express route outbound from the university.
Staff also propose other service options to add a new route via Academy Way to Reid’s Corner during peak periods, creation of an hourly service for the No. 13 Quail Ridge route (it’s currently 30 minutes) and shifting the No. 4 route off Highway 97 into the Rutland area to increase coverage and support the No. 8 route.
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If approved by council’s at its regular meeting Monday, a detailed service design and implementation of the plan will start.
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