| RIDERSHIP STATISTICS AS AT DECEMBER 31, 2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COMBINED CASH AND PASS | 2019 | 2018 | Inc/(Dec) | % Inc/(Dec) |
| Adult | 2,467,412 | 2,396,362 | 71,050 | 3% |
| Student | 4,945,586 | 4,797,317 | 148,269 | 3% |
| Senior | 736,754 | 740,661 | (3,907) | (1%) |
| Child <5 | 77,339 | 65,647 | 11,692 | 18% |
| Tunnel | 203,568 | 182,303 | 21,355 | 12% |
| Combined Total | 8,430,750 | 8,182,290 | 248,460 | 3% |
The highest increases for ridership were in the child under 5 and tunnel categories. The child under 5 category increase is positive given the recent fare structure change for Transit Windsor to begin July 1, 2020, where the child category will be increased to include children 12 years of age and under from the current 5 years of age. This will further develop young transit riders who will continue to use transit as they get older and will encourage young families to use transit. The ridership increase that is indicated for the tunnel category can be attributed to the tunnel construction being completed as that caused a decrease in that category the previous year.
The adult and student categories both had average increases. This increase is very positive as Transit Windsor continues to increase service levels on various routes to meet the ridership demand. The adult category experienced a decrease in 2018 so an increase for 2019 is a good indication that the service frequency improvements for 2019 are working. The Transway 1C, Dominion 5, and South Windsor 7 all had service levels increased in 2019. The Transway 1C and Dominion 5 routes both had an increase in ridership for 2019 of 8%. The overloading of buses and bypassing of passengers along the Dominion 5 route due to the increase in enrollment of international students at St. Clair College have significantly decreased since the extra service has been implemented; however, overload issues are still a problem at peak hours of the day. Transit Windsor staff continues to monitor the situation in an effort to find a more permanent solution that will alleviate any further issues.
Through a successful referendum that took place in March 2019, the UPass program between the University of Windsor and Transit Windsor is now a permanent program. The success of this program resulted in a direct ridership increase to the student category.
With the completion of an 18-month long Service Delivery Review conducted by Dillon Consulting, a Transit Master Plan – "More Than Transit", was developed. This Master Plan was approved by City Council on January 20, 2020, in decision number