DuPage County committee hears that Hinsdale Lake Terrace ride pilot has surged in use and faces near-term funding shortfall

DuPage County transportation staff told the Transportation Committee on June 3 that a subsidized ride pilot serving the Hinsdale Lake Terrace neighborhood has grown rapidly since January and faces a near-term funding shortfall.

John Loper, transportation staff, said the pilot was launched after a COVID-era study identified transportation as a primary need in the neighborhood and that the area was designated by federal agencies as transportation-disadvantaged. "This is a pilot program, as a discovery process," Loper said, reporting that enrollment rose from about 100 people in January to roughly 230 and that approximately 90 to 100 enrollees are regular users who often take multiple trips per day.

The program, operated through agreements with PACE and Uber, provides vouchers that enrolled residents use to request trips inside a defined service area. Loper said ridership has averaged about $15 per ride and that the county has recorded roughly 2,400 rides through the first quarter. "We initially budgeted a hundred thousand dollars for this, and basically, if April's bills are like March's bills, we'll be done with that hundred thousand," he said.

Steve (transportation staff) described the budget constraints and policy limits. "We can't use our gas tax or motor fuel tax for operating the PACE–Uber interface," he told the committee, noting that a prior board appropriation of $500,000 was made for sidewalks and lighting in the neighborhood and cannot legally fund ongoing operating subsidies. He said staff will seek other funding sources and that county leaders will meet with PACE later in the week to discuss program design, fees and possible alternatives.

Committee members asked how much of the trips duplicate existing transit or school service. Carrie (committee member) asked whether the pilot was replacing trips that could be served by school or fixed-route buses; Loper said staff receives trip-level reports from PACE and Uber and that many trips occur at times that do not match school schedules. Committee members requested further analysis and suggested several cost-control options, including per-ride copays, per-user caps and limited re-design of the service area or eligibility.

Staff reported several operational limits already in place: a cap of four rides per day per enrollee and a per-day cost cap (staff said the program is currently capped at $30 per day per user). Steve said asking enrollees to contribute even a small copay ‘‘would make the money go three times further’’ and said the county may pursue a mix of rider contributions and negotiated changes with PACE to reduce costs.

Members also discussed service design options: encouraging users to schedule rides to PACE bus stops for longer trips, examining whether a local circulator or township dial-a-ride could substitute for frequent short trips, and auditing trip purpose where feasible. Loper said staff will convene the community, review trip data, discuss options with PACE, and return to the committee with recommendations.

The committee voted to receive and place the Lake Terrace (RAFT) quarterly report on file. The action was seconded and approved without recorded dissents.

Ending

Staff emphasized the pilot's rapid uptake and the county's need to identify additional operating funds or program changes before the initial operating allocation is exhausted. Committee members urged a quick follow-up with PACE and with neighborhood stakeholders to refine eligibility, cost-sharing and service design and to return to the committee with detailed usage and cost data.