Metra buses break down three to four times daily but ridership is up, director says
Metra Transit in Columbus is a lifeline for many residents going to work, the doctor’s office or grocery shopping. However, information obtained by the Ledger-Enquirer from Metra shows that the more than 4,000 riders using public transportation daily must deal with the potential for multiple breakdowns and delays.
Records provided by the agency show that in a six-month period, the transit system recorded three to four breakdowns daily or 539 calls for its fixed route buses and about two per week or 60 maintenance calls for its Dial-A-Ride buses.
The data from Metra noted the number of maintenance calls and causes of the calls for its 18 fixed routes and eight Dial-A-Ride buses over a six-month period from August 2018 to January 2019.
Maria Maxwell of Columbus said she has learned to leave home early for her appointments just in case a bus breaks down.
“That’s a terrible thing to have to say, if you think the bus is going to break down,” said Maxwell, who primarily takes the bus to the doctor and for grocery shopping.
With a fiscal budget of $7.2 million, Metra spends about $1.4 million or 31.5 percent of its budget for maintenance, according to their fiscal 2018 budget, which is listed on the city’s website.
“Anytime a bus breaks down, I can promise you, it frustrates the operator more than it does the customer,” said Rosa Evans, director of Metra Transit. “It is very disturbing to the operator to be out there and not be able to get people where they want to go. They take that very seriously.”
Evans said that some issues are related to the age of the fleet. The average age of route buses in Columbus is 9 years-old. Buses average 12 years of service, according to Evans.
“Some of them last beyond 12 years,” Evans said. “Each year, we do the budget to get new buses. We continuously recycle out and bring in the new.”
Metra looks to add new buses in the next two months, hopefully by mid June or before that, Evans said.
She said she is pleased with the staff that works to keep buses on the streets when you factor in the age of the fleet. “That is really not bad for an aging fleet,” she said.
Evans said she couldn’t provide any information that compares the maintenance challenges in Columbus with other systems in Georgia.
Craig Ross, president and CEO of the Macon-Bibb County Transit Authority, said all transit systems across the nation face the same challenges of keep buses operating.
The Macon-Bibb County Transit Authority has 38 buses, which served 700,000 riders last year. Ross said the fleet’s average age of 5-years-old has allowed the authority to experience a reduction in maintenance and break downs.
“It is a good day if we didn’t have a wrecker coming in,” he said Friday.
In Columbus, buses were shut down for faulty transmissions, check engine lights, excessive smoking, oil leaks, burning smell and other maintenance issues.
Metra buses assigned to 18 fixed routes are on the streets 15 to 19 hours per day, Monday through Friday and work 15 routes on Saturday. Buses operate from 4:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Whenever there is a break down, a supervisor driving a van goes to the scene and stays until a replacement bus gets there.
“When the replacement comes, it takes up the schedule and continues the route,” Evans said. “You cannot find many transit systems that offer that courtesy. It is not required. The only time we may run into a hiccup is when you have more than one road call. You can believe they are hurrying to get those people where they need to go.”
Gloria Davis, 64, said public transportation takes her to and from her part-time job at the downtown TSYS campus. She recalled standing on the street in December for more than an hour after the No. 7 bus didn’t make it to the Wynnton Road stop.
“I stood out there until it came like a fool,” she said. “It was cold. This was in the afternoon, in the evening. They said it had broken down.”
Despite the break downs, Davis said she depends on the bus to go everywhere. “It takes me two days to get my groceries,” she said.
Overall, Evans said ridership is up at Metra, moving 3,842 to 4,200 riders daily. Yearly riders are up too, from 1.1 million to about 1.5 million.
“It could be economy driven,” Evans said. “We made some route changes. We put some more buses out in the middle of the day where people need them. Some of the trips are attributed to later service, but not in high numbers. “
There will be problems with equipment, but riders can count on public transportation, she said. “People looking for jobs want to know if there is a bus running,” Evans said.
Take a Ride on Metra
To ride Metra, the fare for an adult is $1:30 per. Swipe cards for 7, 14 and 31 days are available respectively for $15.50, $28 and $53.
For Information, call 706-225-4673.
This story was originally published February 23, 2019 at 12:13 PM.