Peoria reorganizes transit, rolls out microtransit pilot and explores on-demand RideChoice

Peoria city staff outlined changes and new services in local transit during the March 4 meeting, explaining that oversight of transit moved last July to the Neighborhood & Human Services Department and describing ongoing pilots intended to increase flexibility and contain costs.

Chris Hallett, director of Neighborhood & Human Services, and transit manager Tremaine (surname not specified in the presentation) told the council the city’s transit program includes Valley Metro regional fixed routes (funded by regional sales-tax measures), ADA paratransit, Peoria-operated curb-to-curb Dial-a-Ride (reservation required) and a January microtransit pilot branded WeRide.

Staff said FY24 total paratransit and Dial-a-Ride trips numbered about 23,208. Peoria staff completed roughly 19,500 of those trips; Valley Metro handled about 3,500 overflow or regional trips. On-time performance for Peoria-operated trips was reported at 97%, while Valley Metro’s portion recorded about 75%; combined on-time performance was shown at 94% for FY24.

Staff described the WeRide microtransit pilot, launched Jan. 6, as an app- and phone-based on-demand service operating inside defined zones without the one-day advance reservation required for Dial-a-Ride. The pilot’s hours and coverage are limited for this phase while staff collect data; the presentation said staff have submitted an application for a grant to support a program called RideChoice that would subsidize on-demand rides through partner providers (staff reported an application amount described as “$53.1” in the presentation, but the unit was not specified in the meeting slides).

Tremaine described RideChoice as a Valley Metro program that offers subsidized, on-demand trips through contracted ride-hail and taxi providers; it requires eligibility (for ADA or similar need) and can offer monthly trip allotments (presentation cited 20- and 50-trip allotments). Staff said shifting some high-cost regional ADA trips to a discounted on-demand model could reduce per-trip city costs substantially.

Transit infrastructure and usage data presented by staff included: four Valley Metro fixed routes that form the regional backbone (Peoria Avenue, Thunderbird, Seventh Avenue and Third Avenue/Grand diagonal), a single park-and-ride (staff reported a weekly snapshot count of about 626 vehicles for FY24), about 90 bus stops citywide (all with shelters and seating per prior city work) and a small Peoria-operated fleet (11 buses with seven active drivers and four spares).

Staff said funding comes from the regional Prop 400/Prop 479 sales-tax streams, local transportation sales tax, grant funds and capital reimbursements; Chris Hallett noted roughly $6.5 million in the local transit fund balance and that 57% of FY24 operating spending went to contractuals (mainly Valley Metro overflow/after-hours support).

Council questions ranged from the location and expansion of WeRide zones to whether shelters from an earlier POGO program remain available; staff said many of those shelter units are stored at a Beardsley yard and they would follow up on repurposing possibilities. Councilmember John Edwards and others asked how Prop 479 funding and regional jurisdictional structures affect the ability to add new fixed routes; staff said Prop 479 changed some jurisdictional allocations and that pilot funding must demonstrate demand before regional fixed-route funding is committed.

Nut graf: Peoria’s transit presentation described a small, city-run operation adapting to demand with a newly launched microtransit pilot and a proposed subsidized on-demand program; staff provided ridership and on-time metrics and said they would return with follow-up data and funding updates as pilots and grant decisions progress.

Ending: Staff said they would monitor microtransit performance and return with data, pursue grant funding for RideChoice and follow up with Council on shelter inventories and potential zone expansions for WeRide. Staff also noted longer-term transit planning will reflect regional Prop 479 guidance and pilot outcomes.