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Riders concerned about possible bus route cuts

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By HILARY KINDSCHUH / Lincoln Journal Star

Thursday, Mar 29, 2007 - 12:31:52 am CDT

Jennifer Irwin thinks public transportation makes a lot of sense.

“You cannot operate a car for $35 a month,” said Irwin, a StarTran bus rider. “You have to pay for parking, gas, oil, and heaven forbid something should break.”

Irwin, who rides the bus “practically daily,” went to one of two open houses Wednesday to learn about how proposed changes to StarTran bus routes and hours could affect public transportation in the city.

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(LJS file)

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Proposed changes
  • Two neighborhood routes would be added that wouldn't go through the downtown hub, as most do now.
  • The free downtown shuttle route would be condensed, allowing buses to hit stops more often. The Star Shuttle route would extend into the Haymarket and run from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays.
  • A free evening shuttle would run along P and Q streets and into the Haymarket from 6 p.m. to midnight Thursdays through Saturdays.
  • Buses that go downtown would stop taking a downtown loop along Q, 11th and K streets but would still stop at the State Office Building or Gold's Building.
  • Fewer buses would go to certain low-ridership areas, such as 70th Street and Pioneers Boulevard.
  • Buses would start going to the Prairie Lakes Shopping Center at 84th Street and Nebraska 2. The O Street route would be expanded.
  • The system would be more standardized, so people can count on a bus showing up every half-hour to hour. During peak morning and afternoon hours, buses would show up every 30 minutes on all routes except West A Street. Currently, 30-minute service is only available on some routes. During off-peak hours, buses would show every hour on most routes.
  • The buses would still run 14 hours a day, about the same as now. With city money tight, hours are unlikely to be expanded anytime soon.
  • Buses would run 12 hours Saturdays, and the routes would pretty much duplicate weekday routes, more so than they do now.

A yearlong study concluded that although Lincoln offers a lot of service, the buses aren’t used by its residents as much as in other similar cities.

Irwin says that’s because Lincoln routes, hours and frequency are not adequate.

“There is a need for public transportation in this town that’s ignored,” Irwin said. “Lincoln does not fold up and go to bed at 7 o’clock.”

People should not have to wait an hour to catch a bus, Irwin said.

StarTran driver John O’Brien said he thought the changes would reduce ridership.

“The biggest thing that bothers me is StarTran’s tendency to move around,” O’Brien said. “People who are visually impaired often buy houses on a (bus) route, then the route moves.

“We’ve got to take into account those people that need that service.”

The proposed changes would eliminate one of the bus routes near Joe Altman’s house. He is afraid he and his wife might have to sell their house.

Altman, who is blind, says there are a lot of people like him who depend on the bus daily.

“Blind folks and those who don’t drive choose places where they live based on where the transportation is,” said Altman, a cane travel instructor for the Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

Getting to work is another major issue for those who depend on bus routes, Altman said.

“Quite honestly, I’m worried about what they’re coming up with,” he said. “The worse the transportation system, the harder it is to get people employment.

“I suspect there will be blind folks losing jobs because of this — they won’t be able to get to work.”

Joe Campbell, who is visually impaired and uses the bus every day, said StarTran should be adding routes rather than cutting them.

And the city should consider adding routes on Sundays, he said.

“I’m grounded on Sunday,” Campbell said. “I have places to go and people to see, but I can’t get to them.”

Under the proposed changes, the buses would focus on areas that need service the most and stop going to low-ridership areas such as 70th Street and Pioneers Boulevard.

“The buses (may be) running more frequently, but what good will that do if they’re not servicing the people who need it?” Altman said. “Increasing gas prices, international terrorism supported by oil prices, global warming, congestion in cities, air pollution — all those things can be helped by public transportation.

“I really think that by cutting back, we’re not doing the right thing for our society,” Altman said.

Reach Hilary Kindschuh at 473-7120 or hkindschuh@journalstar.com.


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VANS wrote on March 29, 2007 5:51 am:
" Maybe Startran should invest in some vans. Like 4 or 6 and use them for the blind or more so handicapped. Thats just nonsence for a handicapped person to change his or her lifestyle just to keep a butt backwards city happy. The busses could be used to take surveys on where they need to stop the most and if there is a small amount of people that don't justify the stops then going there with a van would justify the fuel price. To easy. But then again this is the city of Lincoln. "

 James wrote on March 29, 2007 9:20 am:
" We really need a better public transportation system, but we also need people to be riding on it. People need to start thinking about alternatives. Cars rule here in rural USA, but think about the positives of not driving to work everyday. BUT, when you're sitting on a bus for 2 hours a day to go 5 miles, it isn't worth it. "

 To Vans wrote on March 29, 2007 9:29 am:
" There already are smaller vehicles that can transport blind people. They are called TAXIS. Why should blind people be transported for free when others have to pay? Seems like you are wanting everybody to pay to keep handicapped people happy, not the other way around. "

 Vans did say free wrote on March 29, 2007 10:00 am:
" Taxis are expensive compared to bus fares. And it wasn't stated that the vans would be free, just a thought to have them available for use to the handicapped. Fares can still be charged. "

 AS wrote on March 29, 2007 10:36 am:
" You want more service etc. now, but when budget time rolls around you want to cut the budget....how do you expect to pay for the increased hours/routes?? Bus Fares are a drop in the bucket when it comes to covering the expense....until the bus is utilized by more people beyond the transit dependent, this will never change. No one wants to be incovienced riding the bus, so generally only those who have no other options are riding. A city service, paid for the most part by tax payers, needs to be justified by serving the population. If only a minimal amount of the population is served, only minimal services are justified. "

 KEG wrote on March 29, 2007 10:48 am:
" People who are concerned about changes to the current routes should contact StarTran and let them know what their concerns are. People who complain but never get involved or give feedback have no one to blame but themselves if they don’t get what they want. No changes have been set in stone at this time and they are making every effort to keep current riders happy but cut down on waste. Why send busses to areas where they are not used? The new system seeks to better serve those who ride on a regular basis. As for people with disabilities, the changes purposed concentrate on better serving areas where it is known that people with visual, physical and others types of disabilities live. The bottom line is that there are budget constraints and you will never be able to please all the people all the time. Don’t like what’s happening? Get involved! In the meantime, I’d love to see less people complaining about the changes that are being made when they haven’t even really looked into it. Wouldn’t it be a nice change if people were willing to work together instead of constantly criticizing everything? "

 j wrote on March 29, 2007 10:56 am:
" FYI StarTran does have vans. 9 to be exact and we carry handicaped people on these. WE carry almost 300 trips a day and are maxed out on the vans as it is. The charge on these vans is twice what the normal bus fare. We carry enough poeple for free(low income passes 5-10 dollars a month. Lets raise the rates to cover the costs needed and then we can put more buses, drivers, vans and routes out there and keep everyone happy. Oh thats right everyone wants this all done for nothing "

 GMP wrote on March 29, 2007 11:55 am:
" Would it be more cost effective to run smaller busses, since the ridership is low? Maybe small free parking lots by a stop (a major one) where people could park and be picked up, sort of like on game days. "

 AD wrote on March 29, 2007 2:34 pm:
" Why would anyone think service is going to improve if the budget doesn't increase? To add service to an area, current service will need to be cut, how can hours be expanded without expanding budget. The real questions is.....why was money wasted AGAIN by the city hiring CONSULTANTS and doing another STUDY. Doesn't the city employ any professionals that can perform these studies. "

 RP wrote on March 29, 2007 2:36 pm:
" I have to agree. I use the bus to get around, & while the changes do not effect my day to day stuff, the proposed changes do make it so that I can not work overtime, get sick at work, or change my work hours without problems now. I used to depend on the bus service & adjust my schedule to move with it. Now I have to do that all over again with hopefully something that will work at least similarly to the current system. I'm also like the people who live where they do because of the bus service. While I'm not effected much by the change expect for loss of some route accessability, I do have a friend who just moved to be on the bus route to where we both work. After the changes, she will have to either try to transfer or move again. Add to all of this the loss of service to areas. I just wish that change could be easier. "

 oqlor wrote on March 29, 2007 4:16 pm:
" I attend mostly night classes at UNL and would LOVE to be able to ride a bus to and from class to save money on my limited budget. However, my classes end between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. I have a bus pass paid with fees for attending UNL, but don't use it since the times I need a bus, they are not running. I would use it at least 2 days a week, and I am sure more students would also utilize the system were it available. "

 Klumpy wrote on March 29, 2007 7:55 pm:
" Just studied the maps. The routes make much better sense than the old ones. Even though I'll have to go 5 blocks instead of 2 to get my bus, I will appreciate the 30 min between buses rather than the 65 min at the present time. "

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