STA proposes changes to Local 68

Spokane Transit Authority officials told Cheney's City Council that ridership on the local service has dropped off significantly since route changes were implemented last September - and they have a plan to restore its use by residents and Eastern Washington University students.

Addressing the council during the information portion of the Feb. 12 meeting, STA director of planning and development Karl Otterstrom said the agency had experienced "more than typical negative feedback" on the implemented route changes and an "unanticipated negative ridership trend on the route." According to information presented, the local route 68 has seen decline in ridership, specifically in north and central Cheney.

The northern portion of the route - north of Simpson Parkway/Mike McKeehan Way - had 1,850 fewer passengers since the changes in September than it did in a similar time frame in 2017, a drop of 21 percent. Central Cheney - which includes downtown - had 7,711 fewer passengers, a decline in ridership of 43 percent, with over 50 percent of the decline coming from around EWU and the university's Pence Union Building (PUB) area.

The only portion of the route to experience an increase was in the south around the Salnave Road/Presley Drive area, which had 1,480 more riders - an increase of 134 percent. One of the changes implemented last year was an increase in bus frequency on this portion of the route.

Otterstrom said surveys conducted by the agency indicated confusion about the direction of the route once it left the stop at PUB was part of the problem. The route makes a "two-way loop" after leaving the PUB, and many riders wanting to reach a destination at one end of the route found themselves having to travel the opposite direction, sometimes a longer trip.

Otterstrom said the surveys revealed that 57 percent of respondents preferred a proposed fix to the problem that had both routes beginning and ending at the PUB rather than at the K Street Stations on 1st Street. Of the 378 responses, 300 were from Cheney with 65 percent indicating they ride the bus three days of the week or more - a number that included a large group of non-student residents.

"There's a strong interest by Cheney full-time residents to use transit to get around town," Otterstrom said.

The draft recommendation would rename the counterclockwise route 67 the "Swoop Loop" while the clockwise route 68 would be dubbed the "Cheney Loop." The 68 would operate year-round, nights and weekends - covering the Salnave/Presley area - while the 67 would only operate during the school year.

During peak ridership periods, the 64 route would be expanded to serve Salnave Presley. The layover for route 67/68 would be at Eastern's Kingston Hall on 5th Street.

"It's not final," Otterstrom said. "We hope to finalize it in March."

Councilman Ryan Gaard, who works in EWU's marketing and communications department, asked Otterstrom if there was any correlation between the ridership drop off and construction at the PUB, which was reopened this past fall after a two-year, $47 million remodel. Otterstrom said that was definitely part of the equation, noting that the new design is "lighter and brighter, but disconnected more to transit."

The proposed changes must be approved by STA's board of directors before implementation. Otterstrom said they hoped to institute them on Sept. 15, but could accelerate that to May 19 if needed.

STA executive director Susan Meyer asked Mayor Chris Grover what the city's preference was in implementing the changes.

"We just want you to do it the right way," City Administrator Mark Schuller said.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].