Charlottetown commits to adding more bus shelters over 5 years
Transit system called 'an essential service,' especially in a time of population growth
If you're one of the thousands of people in P.E.I.'s capital region waiting out in the elements for a bus, there could be some shelter coming to your bus stop.
The City of Charlottetown is spending $100,000 each year for the next five years to install new bus shelters in what one councillor calls "truly a necessity" for bus riders.
"The growth [and] development of the City of Charlottetown calls for that. The transit system is an essential service and we're very cognizant of that," Coun. Mitchell Tweel said.
He said that spending translates to between six and nine new shelters this year, continuing for the next five years. The city is also looking at improving accessibility to the stops it currently has.
Right now, there are about 400 T3 Transit stops in the capital region but only about 45 bus shelters.
Some stops have benches but others don't. Some are without shade from the sun's heat or shelter from rain or snow. Some don't offer easy access from the bus's steps to the sidewalk.
With an aging population... we need more bus shelters.— Ahmed El-Geneidy, McGull University professor
Stops are marked with a green and yellow T3 sign, but accessibility and climate change are current problems for some riders CBC News spoke to.
'Transit customers want shelters'
David Cooper with Leading Mobility, a transportation planning firm that's worked with major transit authorities across the country, says bus shelters are high priority for riders all across the country.
"No matter what agency I worked in, having a shelter is one of the top customer suggestions that we receive, in addition to having their bus run more frequently or enhancing the transfers. Shelters are quite important at those key nodes," he said.
"I'd say it's Top 3 all the time. No matter the size of community, transit customers want shelters."
Shelters can be pricey to build and maintain, though.
Some cities erect them with power connections for lighting and new sidewalk construction to make them more accessible. Riders are asking for those things, but they do come at a cost.
"It's a refuge," Cooper said. "If you're out in inclement weather and it's windy, it's raining and snowing, it protects you from those elements."
Tweel agreed.
"When they're waiting for the bus, regardless of where it is in the City of Charlottetown, I think it's important for them to have a shelter when they're dealing with the weather elements."
Satisfaction guaranteed?
Ahmed El-Geneidy, a professor in urban planning at McGill University, said shelters provide more than some respite from weather for passengers across Canada.
"With an aging population... we need more bus shelters," he said, adding that those with seats are especially important for seniors and mobility-impaired Canadians "so you don't have to keep standing for 20 minutes waiting for a bus."
El-Geneidy said if riders are happy, the transit system is more appealing to people, which means more people consider transit as a primary means of transportation.
"It's a source of increased rider satisfaction, and when you increase rider satisfaction, you increase the number of ambassador riders — the people who are going to recommend the service to others," he said.
"The investment in the shelters equals an increase in levels of satisfaction for the users... and that will lead to increased ridership down the road."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
