City Council postpones vote on Sunday bus service
Iowa City residents hoping bus service on Sundays will have to wait a little longer.
The City Council decided at its Monday night work session to push back the vote on the busing issue — which was scheduled for tonight — because of a lack of conclusive information.
Councilors said they were concerned they may have to revoke a hastily made decision to add Sunday routes if the move proves to be too costly.
"[It] would be a very difficult decision for the council to make," interim City Manager Dale Helling said.
Director of Transportation Services Chris O'Brien said adding Sunday routes would cost taxpayers an additional $350,000 a year, not including revenue.
Much of the information the council had was based on comparing the Iowa City local bus system with national studies.
City councilors reached the consensus the studies were too inconclusive to move ahead.
They asked staff members to compile a comprehensive study for further investigation.
"I'd like to move in a direction where we find out whether we're going to need it or we can't afford it," Councilor Regenia Bailey said.
The city has felt pressure to implement Sunday routes since volunteers submitted a 900-name petition in April asking for an expansion to the transit schedule. The current routes include Monday through Friday routes from 7 a.m. to 10:40 p.m. and limited Saturday routes. Estimated ridership during the week is 7,800 rides and 1,400 rides on Saturdays.
The American Public Transportation Association estimates that ridership would decrease almost 25 percent on Sundays.
Transit systems in Coralville and Dubuque have schedules that resemble Iowa City, but larger cities have offered expanded bus service for years. Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority, for example, which serves Des Moines as well as eight smaller surrounding towns, offers limited service on Sundays.
In a letter to the Iowa City City Council, a group of transportation workers acknowledged demand for new routes has increased because of "factors such as city growth, population growth, increased traffic, route consolidation, tremendous growth of University Hospital and Clinics, and increased ridership."
However, they wrote, there is a need to improve existing routes before adding to them.
The council also considered combining busing with Coralville, though no actual plans have been discussed. Other options included increasing rates, which Councilor Connie Champion said she strongly opposed, or implementing cab vouchers, which Councilor Susan Mims said "may alleviate some of the needs."
The need for other transit improvements are valid, O'Brien said. Transportation officials are discussing adding new routes, replacing aging vehicles, and building a new facility, he said.
However, he said, the city can "look at Sunday service and still make modifications to the current service."
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