BANFF - A record number of people are using public transit to get around the Bow Valley with ridership in Banff up 50 per cent compared to last year.
In June, more than 110,000 people hopped on one of three routes in Banff compared to 73,956 riders during the same month last year.
The increase breaks Roam’s previous record of 101,284 riders in August 2017 and equates to an additional 1,262 riders per day.
“We're pretty excited by the ridership increase,” said Martin Bean, CAO for the Bow Valley Regional Transit Services Commission.
"We expected to see significant increases as we've added frequency to the Banff local service, but it's also great to see when typically you read about transit and it's all about declines in ridership."
The transit authority attributed the increase in ridership to the addition of a new bus on Route 1, which has increased frequency to 20-minutes and the addition of a new bus on Route 2, which allows for 30-minute frequency during peak periods. Both buses hit the road on May 18, when summer service began.
"I think having more frequency makes it a lot more appealing to people and makes parking and driving less appealing so it's more convenient to use transit," said Bean.
In addition to improved frequency, Route 4 to Lake Minnewanka has also been operating daily since June 15 compared to last year when it only ran on weekends.
Regional service between Banff and Canmore on Route 3 is also up more than 20 per cent and ridership on Canmore's Route 5 is up more than 30 per cent.
The rise in ridership comes weeks after Canmore council unanimously approved fare-free transit on Route 5 until Sept. 3 to address traffic congestion and parking in the downtown core. The transit authority also has plans to add a route from Banff to Lake Louise next summer to replace Parks Canada's shuttle service.
"By next summer you'll be able to connect from Canmore out to Lake Louise using Roam services," said Bean.
