Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 26, 1990 TAG: 9003262309
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A3 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER MUNICIPAL WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Valley Metro reported a 7.2 percent increase in passengers in February over the previous February. It transported 99,225 passengers, up nearly 7,000 from 92,501.
In the first two months after the route changes were made in November, ridership decreased as the bus company expected, said Stephen Mancuso, the general manager.
"Anytime you make changes, ridership usually drops because of uncertainity by some riders about routes and schedules," he said.
"It was down in November and December, but we held our own in January and we showed an increase in February."
Mancuso said today that ridership has continued to increase this month, although the final figures won't be available until next week.
"We are seeing a natural rebound. We thought there was a potential for more riders and this is beginning to happen as we thought," he said.
Valley Metro eliminated duplicate service in some areas and added trips on other routes. Service was also provided one hour earlier in the morning and one hour later in the afternoon.
The changes were designed to make the service more convenient for riders and to serve a larger area without any overall increase to the bus company.
But some neighborhoods objected to the routing of buses along their streets.
Residents of Windsor Avenue Southwest circulated petitions opposing the use of their street for a bus route. They complained that the buses created a safety hazard for children and caused congestion because the street is narrow.
As a result, Valley Metro changed the route.
Some riders complained that the new brochures for all routes were confusing and hard to read because the print was small. Valley Metro printed new brochures and maps for individual routes.
Valley Metro will move into a new $5 million operations center and garage in Southeast Roanoke next month.
The center is virtually complete, Mancuso said, although the contractor is working on a punch list of small items.
The center, at 12th Street and Campbell Avenue Southeast, is not to be confused with Campbell Court, the downtown bus terminal that opened two years ago.
Valley Metro received almost $5 million in federal and state money, which paid most of the cost of the new center.
Under the funding formula, the city's share of the cost was covered by the donation of the site.
Mancuso said the old garage was too small and expensive to heat and cool. The cost for renovating the old building would have been high, architects said.
Mancuso also said it would have been difficult to renovate the old building while it was being used.
The city is trying to market the old garage for economic development uses to help stimulate business in the Southeast section of the city.
Several businesses are interested in the building, city officials said.
by CNB