July-August_2021 - 35

Goals for the Service
Goal before service launch:
12,000 rides
(or 1,000 rides per week)
Goal before service launch:
15-minute
wait times
Goal before service launch:
2.5
utilization rate
(utilization rate is a measure
of efficiency and reflects the
number of rides completed
per vehicle per hour)
Source: Via performance data between Feb. 25,
2020, and May 22, 2020
By running through multiple
scenarios, the team agreed on a
service design that would achieve
the city's primary goal of keeping
wait times at or lower than 15
minutes for each ride. To accomplish
this, the service launched
with 15 Mercedes Metris minivans,
complete with their own
personal branding, and operated
Monday through Friday from
6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
After landing on a service scenario
with a designated number
of vehicles, Via began to recruit
drivers. An emphasis was placed
on hiring locally and employing
Jersey City residents per Via's
contract with the city. If that
wasn't possible, Via could look
within Hudson County or that
particular part of the state. Patel
shares the city supported Via in
this process by connecting them
with local agencies that help with
hiring and employment.
Once a driver is hired, Via
completes background checks,
onboards and registers the driver
and provides training needed to
operate within the Via system, as
well as safety training. Additional
training is provided to drivers
who operate wheelchair accessible
vehicles.
THE CENTRAL
zone includes the
core downtown
area, while the
outer zone is
less densely
populated and
has fewer transit
connections.
The last piece of the puzzle was
to educate the community about
the new service. This included
not only telling people about the
service but also how to use it, like
how to download the app and how
to book a trip. Patel explains this
involved going to each neighborhood
in the city to perform community
outreach to ensure any
concerns were addressed early on.
With everything in place, Via
Jersey City was ready to make its
debut as the state's first on-demand
public bus service. To ensure the
service was achieving what it was
intended to do, the city set specific
key performance indicators to
measure success. These included a
ridership goal of 1,000 completed
rides per week; an efficiency goal
with a utilization rate of 2.5 (vehicles
used per hour); and the quality-of-service
goal of wait times at
or lower than 15 minutes.
Using and Maintaining
the Service
In the case of Jersey City, Via is
providing its turnkey model.
" Jersey City is providing a lot
of thought and guidance into
how they want the service to be
designed, so they will provide input
on things like the fare structure
or the zones and will work
with us to implement solutions
that achieve those goals, " Lavoie
said. " But in terms of the day-today
operations, that's all managed
on the Via side. "
By using Via's technology,
people can request a trip and be
directed to a virtual bus stop.
Via's technology will match
multiple passengers headed in a
similar direction, helping reduce
congestion and emissions while
providing an efficient rider experience.
Riders pay fares to Via,
which are kept affordable thanks
JULY/AUGUST 2021 | MassTransitmag.com | Mass Transit | 35
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July-August_2021

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