Harbor Transit announced that two ridership records have recently fallen helping make 2013 the busiest twelve months in the history of Tri-Cities public transportation.
On Nov. 22, Harbor Transit carried 898 passengers, a one day record. This number helped to produce ridership for the month that was 1,458 more rides than the same period of a year ago. For the twelve months ending Dec. 31, Harbor Transit realized a 6.4 percent increase in ridership over the previous year resulting in a record total of 200,437 passengers for the year. Ridership was up in all major categories with the most significant increases coming from those riders 50 years of age and over. Students from the various school locations throughout the service area continued to show increased volumes year over year.
“No doubt the expansion of our service area into Grand Haven Charter Township had an impact with respect to this increase,” stated Tom Manderscheid, director of transportation. “But we were pleased to see the other long standing areas we serve also experienced solid growth in ridership.” “In addition, the several new buses and two new mini-vans have made for better service and quicker pickup times which have also helped to manage rider demand for service.”
For the third consecutive year Harbor Transit has seen its ridership increase. During the last three years Harbor Transit has carried a total of 74,997 more passengers than the 125,440 transported in 2010 an overall increase of 59.8 percent
