In less than a week, daily ridership on Athens Public Transit’s buses jumped almost twofold thanks to a free-rides-for-all promotional campaign that ended Thursday.
The free rides didn’t bring in any money, but Michael Lachman, the service’s transportation services manager, said the success of the service’s 11-day free riding program can’t be measured in a dollar amount.
But it can be measured in number of riders. Typically, the service gets 170 to 190 riders each day, but Lachman said that there were about 320 riders on a daily basis during the first week of the free riding program. Ridership information for the second week was not available by press time.
“I don’t know how much new ridership will stick,” Lachman said. “It won’t go back down to the level it was but I don’t know what the bump will be.”
Lachman said ridership last week was up 58 percent from the same week in 2012.
Although Lachman does not yet know how many passes or punch cards were purchased during the last 11 days, he said “people are more aware and more excited than before the promotion was done.”
Athens resident Bob Fuller said he didn’t need to see any promotion. He said he’s been a regular rider for four years.
The 60-year-old man picks up the bus most days from his home on Andover Road and said he hopes to see more riders accompany him on his trips to East State Street.
“I was always amazed that this is such a green city and that more people don’t take it to work,” he said.
The program was held to promote Athens Public Transit’s recent expansion of routes in Athens and The Plains, Athens City Councilwoman Chris Knisely, D-At Large, said in a previous Post article.
Hopefully riders got used to the busing service and will now pay for it, Lachman said, adding that he hopes OU students and faculty members in particular start hopping on board.
Fuller can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t at least give the buses a try.
“Most drivers are personable and it gets me where I need to go,” he said.
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@SamuelHHoward
