CityBus is offering free rides through the end of the year in an effort to reach a new record for the transit agency: 5 million rides for the year.
General manager Martin Sennett said 4,983,964 rides have been taken on CityBus through Monday, December 22nd, making 2008 already a record year. Last year CityBus delivered nearly 4.7 million passenger rides.
UPDATE 12/29/2008, 4:43pm:
Ridership as of Sunday, December 28th is 4,997,202 rides. CityBus is 2798 rides from goal.
“Achieving record ridership is something we all can be proud of,” said Sennett. “Yet the opportunity to go over the 5 million mark would be something our entire community could be proud of.”
CityBus is shy of that goal by 16,036 rides, so the transit agency’s board of directors voted Tuesday to offer free rides for all riders from Friday, December 26 through Wednesday, December 31.
“Remember ‘get out the vote?’ We’re ‘getting out the ride,’” said Sennett. “We’re encouraging everyone to get out and ride the bus. Ride early and ride often, not just to help us reach our goal, but to enjoy the benefits of transit use including saving money and the environment.”
Sennett cites CityBus’s agreement with Purdue University, which pays fares for students, faculty and staff, as a leading cause for its significant growth over the past ten years. 65% of all CityBus riders are Purdue students. Sennett said growing costs of vehicle ownership, concern for the environment, and the ease of using CityBus are other reasons to ride. CityBus crossed the 3 million mark for the first time in 2001, and the 4 million mark in 2004. (See year-by-year ridership here.)
CityBus operates a fleet of 73, including four hybrid busses. Its mission is to be a proactive community partner, striving to improve the community’s quality of life by operating safe, reliable and environmentally friendly transit services, by partnering in local economic development activities, and by providing excellent customer service and efficient, convenient access to destinations throughout Lafayette and West Lafayette.
