NEWS

Streetcar popular, but 3 fixes needed

Sharon Coolidge
scoolidge@enquirer.com

A little more than two weeks into the streetcar's operation, ridership is high and revenue is above projections but the city and the streetcar's operator are still working out glitches, its operator told members of City Council's transportation committee Tuesday.

Among the issues: Credit card readers at four of the Cincinnati Bell Connector's 18 stops don't work, there aren't enough cars running on the weekend and the every 15 minutes loop isn't living up to that ambitious time frame.

"People are forming an impression, we want it to be as positive as possible," Councilwoman Yvette Simpson said while urging fixes.

Despite problems, Assistant City Manager John Juech was optimistic.

"From our perspective things have gone very well," he said. "Various things come up. I think that is normal with a system of this magnitude."

Genfare executive director Kim R. Green listens as representatives from SORTA speak about revenue and issues facing the Cincinnati Bell Connector in its first month of operation.

Council called Metro's CEO Dwight A. Ferrell to the committee meeting to answer questions. What could have been a contentious meeting was more fact gathering with questions and answers. Council members were clearly frustrated with the pay kiosks, which people report are difficult to operate and that people can't pay by credit card at every kiosk.

Kim Green, executive director of Genfare, the company subcontracted to program the pay machines, promised the credit machines would be fixed by the end of the week. Re-configuring how the machines work will take longer, but is a priority, Juech said.

Streetcar popular during Oktoberfest

One fix that's already been made: Counting sensors and the software that supports the technology is now providing an accurate ridership count, which wasn't always the case during the first week of operation.

Ridership since Sept. 12 — the first paid day of streetcar operations — show 70,292 rides, according to SORTA reports. And that's brought in $47,755, more than anticipated. That's nearly a quarter of the total amount ($196,875) needed by the end of the year.

What's wrong and the proposed solution

Sometimes it's too slow

The problem: The streetcar has trouble making schedule.

The fix: Like cars, the streetcar must stop at red lights. A traffic pattern study hasn't been done since 1995. The city is hoping to do a traffic study. Expected cost: $300,000. The study won't be done until at least the beginning of next year, changes made by spring 2017. In the meantime, some traffic light tweaks will be made. A smoother traffic pattern will make for a faster streetcar, said John Deatrick, streetcar executive.

You can't always pay by credit card

The problem: Four of 18 credit card pay machines don't work because this is the first time the installer has worked with chip readers, required by banks to run credit cards.

The fix: Green told council he has field experts in town working the fixes. He hopes the work will be complete by the end of the week. In the meantime SORTA is pressing the public to download the Cincy EZRIDE app.

Where does the streetcar go from here?

Not enough streetcars on weekends

The problem: The city's contract with SORTA to run the streetcar calls for two cars to run on weekends, but still show up at each stop every 15 minutes. Each of the three weekends the streetcar has run, more cars have been needed, with high ridership covering the expense of extra cars. So far it's been a weekend-by-weekend solution. Council wants SORTA to make the decision; SORTA wants council to make the decision, especially since it could cost more than budgeted.

The fix: Councilman David Mann has suggested SORTA make the decisions as needed, then talk with the city on a quarterly basis about whether ridership paid for the extra cost. Transportation Committee members Tuesday sent the idea to the administration for a report. Councilwoman Amy Murray, chairwoman of the transportation committee, called on SORTA to use flex time — meaning run more cars when there's needed and less when they aren't. Ferrell said that's the plan, but a little more than two weeks of operation isn't enough data to make changes. "As we get information we’ll come back to administration and council," Ferrell said.

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