DART seeking comments about proposed schedule changes

Take the bus to the West Des Moines City Campus? You might be able to do that come this fall.

Take a bus directly from the Des Moines Area Community College Urban Campus to the DMACC campus in Ankeny. Probably not.

But you’ll have plenty of chances to comment about these changes which the Des Moines Area Rapid Transit authority has announced as part of an area-wide proposal for major service changes which would take place in the fall of 2019.

Meetings for public input regarding the changes, which affect regular, express and on-call routes, will take place beginning May 13 at meetings in Ankeny, Clive, Des Moines, Grimes, Urbandale and West Des Moines. There will also be an on-line meeting via Facebook Live® scheduled for noon, May 15.

Here are some of the proposals for service changes, from the webpages with information about the changes:

• ANKENY: Remove service on Express Route 98 from the DMACC Urban Campus in Des Moines. Ridership statistics show that the majority of riders are riding Route 98 between downtown and Ankeny, with few riders getting on and off at DMACC Urban. The route will continue to serve the Park & Ride lot at DMACC’s Ankeny Campus, and DMACC Urban will continue to be served by DART Local Routes 3, 15, 16, 17 and 60. DART is also proposing combining certain midday trips on Express Route 98 that have particularly low ridership. The plans would be to reduce the number of morning trips from 12 to nine and afternoon trips from 11 to 10.

DART is also proposing using resources found by improving efficiency on Express Route 98 to extend the city’s on-call zone and expand the hours that this shuttle operates. The on-call shuttle provides door-to-door service to anywhere within the on-call zone. This route is open to anyone who reserves a trip with DART and would provide a service for people in Ankeny to travel to local businesses, medical and other appointments within the community. This route also allows riders to schedule trips from within Ankeny to transfer points for Local Route 4 and Express Route 98. This change is being made to respond to requests DART has received from residents for more public transit options that allow them to travel within the city of Ankeny.

• CLIVE: The current #72 route, a “flex” route which provides for diverting off the route and returning based on passenger demand, and which serves Clive, West Des Moines and Des Moines, would be converted to a local route; there would be no opportunities for passengers who are on either side of the route to request that the bus divert to their locations. According to DART, only 2 percent of riders actually used the “flex” service on the route.

The current #74 route, also a “flex” route, would be converted to a conventional route with the same schedule, although that route would be extended down University Boulevard/University Avenue to the Walmart in Windsor Heights.

Route #92, which is the Hickman Avenue express route would have five afternoon trips, down from the current seven, DART is also proposing changing the routing on reverse commutes (trips from downtown to Clive and Urbandale in the morning, and trips from Clive and Urbandale to downtown in the afternoon) so that the route primarily travels on the interstate, getting off at 63rd Street and heading north to . These reverse commute trips are not often used by riders; traveling on the interstate would allow DART to improve efficiency for the route, DART noted.

· Des Moines: Route 10: DART created Local Route 10 in 2016 as a partnership with Broadlawns Medical Center to provide all day service to its East University Clinic. Previously, there was an extension of Route 1 that traveled along East University to Pleasant Hill during peak hours only. After several years in service, ridership along Route 10 still does not meet DART’s service standards. Therefore, DART is proposing to discontinue Route 10 midday service, essentially returning service to the level it was at prior to the partnership with Broadlawns. Route 10 would continue to operate with the same alignment and schedule during the peak hours, with three trips from Pleasant Hill to Des Moines in the morning and three trips from Des Moines to Pleasant Hill in the afternoon.

· Local Route 11 - Ingersoll/Valley Junction: DART is proposing extending Local Route 11 to travel to the Deer Ridge Apartment Complex, located off of 61st Street south of the Raccoon River. Doing so would allow DART to discontinue service on the Deer Ridge Shuttle and would provide residents of the apartment complex and nearby businesses with weekday access. This move would also allow DART to partner with Des Moines Public Schools to provide service to Merrill Middle School for students during the school year. With the proposed plans, the shuttle would make five trips from the Deer Ridge complex to Valley Junction in the morning and three in the afternoon.

· GRIMES AND JOHNSON: DART is proposing discontinuing the Grimes/NW Johnston On Call and replacing it with an extension on Express Route 93 – NW 86th. Currently, the On Call service transports riders from their homes and a Park & Ride lot at the Walmart in Grimes, to the end of Route 93 in Johnston. The service operates during peak commute hours in the mornings and evenings on weekdays.

Under the new service plan, DART would extend Express Route 93 to the Park & Ride lot at the Grimes Walmart. This would allow riders in Grimes to have an option to travel to downtown Des Moines, without needing to transfer in Johnston. DART will also update the Route 93 schedule to accommodate the extension, consolidate trips with low ridership, and start service earlier in the afternoon.

· URBANDALE/WINDSOR HEIGHTS: The current Flex Route 73, which has had low ridership, according to DART, would be discontinued. Replacing this route would be a pilot project featuring Mobility on Demand (MoD) service. DART is proposing to discontinue service on Flex Route 73 and replace it with a pilot project for Mobility on Demand (MoD) service. It would allow DART to partner with a local taxi service, Uber or Lyft within that zone. Currently, Route 73 operates during peak travel commute times on weekdays, connecting residents to the Gloria Dei and Buccaneer Ice Arena Park & Ride lots.

Qualifying trips would have to start or end at either the Gloria Dei (Route 93) or Buccaneer Ice Arena (Route 92) Park & Ride lots, or at Merle Hay Mall (Routes 5, 14, 16 and 50). Under this service model, a rider would request a trip using a smart phone app or call-in number from their home or one of those three locations. DART would subsidize the cost of the trip as long as customers were transferring to a DART bus route.

This type of service allows for more transfer opportunities for those currently using Flex Route 73, including to popular local routes. Additionally, the service will be available all day, expanding opportunities to utilize DART. Plans call for the service to be designed so that there are options to accommodate people requiring a vehicle with a ramp or lift, customers who can’t or choose not to pay by credit card, or people without smart phones or those who wish to book a trip over the phone. The pilot nature of the program allows DART to adjust the service as necessary to meet the needs of its customers.

• WEST DES MOINES: The current #72 route would no longer be a “flex” route, with opportunities for riders to request the bus to divert off its regular route in order to pick up or drop off. In addition, the route would be converted to a circulator route that would operate every hour in both directions, with additional service added onto the route along Mills Civic Parkway. There would also be service along the Mills Civic Parkway, which would serve the West Des Moines City Campus (where the city library and city hall are located), Hy-Vee, West Glen Town Center and Walmart. The route would run every hour in both directions.
• The current #52 route would be aligned so as not serve the Wells Fargo office campus near Jordan Creek Town Center. DART is proposing routing changes to Local Route 52 to help to reduce rider confusion about where to board buses and improve efficiency on the route. DART would serve Wells Fargo riders at a stop on S 68th Street rather than pull into the campus. A re-aligned Route 72 would provide service on Mills Civic Parkway east of S 64th Street.

· DART is proposing schedule changes for Route 94 to better meet riders’ needs. This would include making changes to the schedule relative to other West Des Moines express routes, including Routes 95 and 96. In addition, DART is proposing changing the routing in downtown Des Moines so that it travels to DART Central Station. This would better accommodate riders using this route who transfer to or from other local routes.

· DART is proposing schedule changes for Route 96 to better meet riders’ needs. This would include making changes to the schedule relative to other West Des Moines express routes, including routes 94 and 95. Proposed changes to morning schedules available in the table below. There are no changes planned to afternoon schedules.

In addition, DART is proposing removing service to Jordan Creek Town Center from this route. This is because only 2 riders on average are using this stop, noted DART staff. Riders who wish to board at the mall will still have access to Local Route 52. DART would look at locations on or near Grand Avenue for riders to use as a Park & Ride option for this route.

There will be many opportunities for members of the public to talk to DART staff members on the proposed changes.

Ankeny

• When: Thursday, May 23 from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
• Where: Kirkendall Public Library

Clive

• When: Thursday, May 16 from 5 - 6 p.m.
• Where: The Clive Fire Station Community Room
• When: Thursday, May 16 from 6 - 7 p.m.
• Where: The Other Place

Des Moines

• When: Monday, May 13 from 5-6 p.m.
• Where: Deer Ridge Apartment Complex, Computer Lab (6000 Creston Ave)
• When: Tuesday, May 14 from 5 - 6 p.m.
• Where: Multimodal Room, DART Central Station
• When: Wednesday, May 15 at noon
• Where: Online meeting held via Facebook Live
• When: Thursday, May 23 at noon
• Where: Multimodal Room, DART Central Station

Grimes

• When: Thursday, May 16 from 5 - 6 p.m.
• Where: Grimes Public Library

Urbandale

• When: Monday, May 20 from 5 - 6 p.m.
• Where: Urbandale Public Library

West Des Moines

• When: Monday, May 13 from 9 - 10:30 a.m.
• Where: West Des Moines Human Services, 139 6th Street, WDM
• When: Tuesday, May 21 from 5 - 6 p.m.
• Where: Jordan Creek Town Center Community Room,

Members of the public can also call 515-283-8100 or e-mail DART at dart@ridedart.com