Wire fencing surrounds Intercity Transit’s Olympia Transit Center downtown on April 14, the day after the agency began reservation-only service for riders taking “essential trips.”
by SARA GENTZLER (4-16-20)
Intercity Transit has provided more detail regarding its decision to temporarily move to reservation-only service for essential trips during the coronavirus outbreak in a note posted to the agency’s website.
Other attempts at limiting ridership to protect the health of riders and employees during the COVID-19 outbreak weren’t having enough of an impact, and some riders were becoming increasingly hostile in the face of tighter rules, the note reads.
The shift in service represents a U-turn for the public transit agency, which serves Olympia, Lacey, Tumwater, and Yelm and had been celebrating increased ridership.
After implementing its zero-fare policy earlier this year, IT ridership increased by 20% for January 2020 over January 2019. Then, the transit agency suddenly needed to decrease ridership in the name of public health and social distancing.
Ridership declined, the agency writes in its note, especially when Gov. Jay Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order closed all but essential businesses. But buses were still too crowded. The agency tried tactics such as running extra shuttles to ease crowds, but that didn’t work.
“Waiting for the next bus, which could also be full, left riders stranded instead of getting them to work and their appointments on time or allowing them to complete their essential tasks,” the note reads.
Some people also ignored public health guidance and rode buses without a destination, transferred bus-to-bus to ride continuously, and became “increasingly aggressive and hostile” when IT workers tried to curb the behavior, according to the agency.
A stark example of that hostility: People were shot at while trying to replace a broken window — which had been shot out previously — at the downtown Olympia Transit Center April 2.
Nobody was hurt and a weapon was found at a nearby location, according to IT spokesperson Nicky Upson. It’s not yet known whether that weapon was involved in the incident — Olympia Police are investigating, Upson said.
Starting this week, people who need transportation for essential trips need to make reservations with IT two to five days in advance by calling customer service at 360-786-1881 or emailing DALdispatch@intercitytransit.com.
The agency scheduled 2,000 trips for the first week under the new operations, Upson told The Olympian, averaging in the high 300s or low 400s every day, which she said was manageable for the agency.
“What we’re seeing is that about 80% of those trips are for work, and 20% are for essential trips,” such as trips to the grocery store or pharmacy, Upson told The Olympian.
The agency also has reached agreements with three community groups to ensure their clients are served, Upson said.
One example of such an agreement: At a Board of County Commissioners work session Tuesday, Keylee Marineau, Homeless Prevention and Affordable Housing Coordinator for the county, said IT worked with Sacred Heart Catholic Church to arrange for a Community Van to transport people to the church in Lacey so they can take advantage of the hygiene services offered there.
