CHAPTER 7
Case Study Summaries
Introduction
The research team conducted five case studies selected from the alternative services of the 18 transit agencies participating in the survey. Selection criteria were transit agencies that agreed to be a case study in their survey response, different service designs, availability of data for the alternative service, different community sizes, and different geographic locations. The final case study selection is:
- Boston, MA: MBTA’s On-Demand/The RIDE Flex
- Broward County, FL: BCT’s Rider’s Choice
- Flagstaff, AZ: Mountain Line’s Paratransit Taxi Program
- Richmond, VA: GRTC’s CARE On-Demand
- San Antonio, TX: VIA’s taxi subsidy program
The case studies were conducted from November 2021 through January 2022. The continuing pandemic complicated on-site visits, so the case studies were conducted virtually. The research team collected user input and feedback for four of the alternative services: through focus groups at two of the transit agencies, interviews at a third, and a brief survey of selected users at the fourth transit agency.
The team sent write-ups of the case studies to the respective transit agencies, who provided comments and review; the team then made revisions and shared the final drafts with the transit agencies.
Summary snapshots of the five case studies are provided in this chapter, with full write-ups in Appendix A.
Snapshots of the Case Studies
Boston, MA: MBTA On-Demand/The RIDE Flex
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)’s goals for its On-Demand alternative service were to improve flexibility and mobility for its ADA paratransit customers with equal or better service at a lower cost than the ADA paratransit service, The RIDE. Through an RFP process in 2016, the MBTA contracted with Uber and Lyft to provide on-demand service for a 6-month pilot. Initially, the customer paid a $2.00 fare, with the MBTA paying up to the next $13.00, and the customer paid any fare over $15.00. The pilot was limited to the first 400 customers to register, each limited to 20 trips per month. Both TNCs provided WAV service through subcontractors.
Changes in 2017 included expanding the pilot to all The RIDE customers; setting monthly trip limits for each customer based on their RIDE use; increasing the base fare to $3.00; and
subsidizing fares up to $40.00 (with customers responsible for the first $3.00 plus any part of the fare over $40.00). Limiting monthly trips according to each rider’s historic use of The RIDE was a strategy designed to minimize cost associated with induced demand. In addition, a shared-ride service (UberPool) was added as a lower-fare option. Curb (a taxi broker app) was also added as an On-Demand option in 2018 but pulled out in 2020 because of low taxi demand.
Uber and Lyft experimented with different ways to provide WAV service. Currently, they provide about 1,000 hours of WAV service weekly. Data show on-demand response times for WAV service averaging 10–15 minutes versus sedan trips averaging 5 minutes.
In 2019, the MBTA launched another program using Lyft and Curb, known as the Provider Options Pilot (POP). With POP, a rider (via an opt-in agreement) allows the MBTA to schedule their ADA paratransit trip either the usual way—on a RIDE vehicle—or on Uber or Lyft. By opting in, a rider gives the MBTA permission to convert the trip from an ADA paratransit trip to a non-ADA paratransit trip. Either way, the rider’s fare is the same as The RIDE fare. The TNC then invoices the MBTA for the difference in trip cost.
POP was piloted for 10 months, then rolled into the On-Demand program when the MBTA issued an RFP in 2020 for the two programs, rebranding the combination as The RIDE Flex.
A cost comparison for the On-Demand program showed The RIDE’s dedicated service per-trip cost was $56.62 versus $15.92 for On-Demand. With an estimated mode shift from The RIDE to On-Demand and calculation of the number of induced trips, the MBTA found a $1.01 million (3.3%) reduction in operational costs while total annual ridership increased by over 50% from 710,000 to 1.07 million trips. With the On-Demand service supplementing The RIDE, the MBTA was able to provide more trips and improve the mobility of many of its customers while slightly reducing overall costs. As of March 2022, a similar cost comparison of the provider options component of The RIDE Flex has not been completed.
Among the case studies, the MBTA is the only transit agency to actively track service equivalency for response time and to use a cost-reduction method that differentiates between mode-shift trips and induced trips.
Broward County, FL: BCT Rider’s Choice Program
In April 2016, Broward County directed Broward County Transit (BCT) staff to explore the feasibility of using taxis to provide supplemental on-demand transportation for ADA paratransit customers. After an industry scan, review of compliance issues, and community outreach efforts, BCT staff concluded that a taxi subsidy program would be in the best interests of BCT and would provide additional flexibility and mobility for its ADA paratransit customers at an equal or better service level and at a lower cost. It would also be another source of demand for the vehicle-for-hire companies in Broward County. One key to choosing a user-side subsidy program was that the taxi industry was already providing wheelchair-accessible service, which was mandated by county code.
A 12-month pilot was launched in April 2017 and included the first 150 ADA paratransit customers to register. Registrants were given a fare payment card and a list of contact numbers for local taxi companies. Riders booked trips directly with the taxi company of choice, and could book and take trips 24/7, or access a taxi at a taxi stand or by hailing. Trip origins and destinations were limited to Broward County. Riders paid no base fare, with BCT paying the provider up to $15 per trip. The rider was responsible for any fare overage, to be paid by cash or credit/debit card. There was also a two-trip-per-day limit per rider. TNCs were invited to participate in the program, but none did.
Each customer who registers with the program is given a CabConnect fare card, which identifies the cardholder as an eligible rider when it is swiped at the end of the trip. The CabConnect
system works through an application programming interface (API) link with credit card processing technology companies, such as Verifone, that have point-of-sale (POS) devices in the backseat of the taxis. CabConnect invoices BCT using trip data for the cost of each trip (not to exceed the subsidy limit). BCT then pays CabConnect, and CabConnect in turn pays the transportation companies. BCT has no contracts with the taxi companies and no direct financial transactions with the taxi companies.
Over the years, some of the program’s ground rules have changed. The maximum subsidy per trip increased from $15 to $18 and eligibility was expanded to all ADA paratransit customers in April 2019.
The program became permanent in January 2021. There are currently 17 taxi companies in Broward County, and all but four have WAVs. BCT staff indicated Uber has taken new interest in participating in the program.
Over the last 3 years, 398 of the 575 registrants have taken a total of 50,311 Rider’s Choice trips at a cost of $682,500, for an average trip cost of $13.56. Over that same period, the average operating cost per trip on BCT’s ADA paratransit service was $26.03. BCT calculates that using Rider’s Choice equated to a savings of $627,378 over those 3 years.
Flagstaff, AZ: Mountain Line Paratransit Taxi Program
Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority (NAIPTA), doing business as Mountain Line, set up its Paratransit Taxi Program as a user-side subsidy program that began with paper-based taxi vouchers in 2006. Mountain Line wanted to reduce overall costs for its ADA paratransit service and provide an on-demand mobility option that was flexible, affordable, and within customers’ control. In particular, Mountain Line wanted a program where (1) there would be no arbitrary monthly trip limits (but where Mountain Line could limit the maximum subsidy per rider per month), (2) all communication, including trip booking, would be between rider and service provider, and (3) providers need only abide by the state taxi code and contract with Mountain Line to provide trips to participating riders, collect vouchers, and redeem the collected vouchers from Mountain Line.
Launched in February 2007 with 15 riders and six taxi companies participating, the program started with $10 and $20 vouchers purchased for 20% of their value. Funding for the subsidy came from an FTA Section 5310 grant with the City of Flagstaff contributing the local 50% match. Coconino County joined the program in 2011 with a county grant that 50% matched the federal grant. This enabled riders to go beyond the City of Flagstaff, though there was a 12-trip-per-month limit for the county portion.
In 2017, Mountain Line transitioned from vouchers to a “taxi payment card” and renamed the program the Mountain Line Paratransit Taxi Program. The impetus for the taxi payment cards was a desire to reduce administrative labor and potential for fraud, broaden the set of providers to TNCs, and eliminate the monthly voucher expiration dates. The Alliance Bank in Flagstaff agreed to partner with Mountain Line and provide the taxi payment cards. The cards are Visa but restricted to the merchant category code (MCC) that indicates use only for taxi or limousine service. Another notable change was that contracts between Mountain Line and the providers were eliminated.
The 20/80% subsidy split between riders and Mountain Line continued with the new system, but with a new maximum value per person per month, which replaced the 12-trip monthly trip limit for county riders. This maximum value started at $250 per month per person for both city- and county-sponsored trips, and in 2018 was increased to $300, where it remains. Unused money can be rolled over to the following month, but the maximum value on the fare payment card account cannot exceed $300.
Since the conversion, in addition to the participation of Uber and Lyft, the number of taxi providers has increased from the original six to 10 in 2018, 21 in 2019, and after a COVID-related dip in 2020, to the current 23 companies. Also added was an airport shuttle service.
At its prepandemic peak in 2019, over 8,700 annual trips were provided at an average transaction cost of $13.27. With the 80% subsidy, the average cost to Mountain Line equated to $10.62, which compares favorably to Mountain Line’s 2019 ADA paratransit per-trip cost of $46.05. Each trip shifted from the ADA paratransit service to the taxi program saves Mountain Line $35.43.
Richmond, VA: GRTC CARE On-Demand
The Greater Richmond Transit Company (GRTC) initiated its alternative service, CARE On-Demand, as a 1-year pilot in 2017. GRTC used an RFP process and selected UZURV, a Richmond-based “adaptive TNC” that provides a call center, WAVs, and drug and alcohol testing for drivers. A second provider was added later that year. Plans to formalize the pilot are underway.
CARE On-Demand is open to those eligible for ADA paratransit, known as CARE, which includes certified ADA paratransit riders and people over age 80. The service area encompasses the ADA paratransit area and an extended premium area. Riders pay a $6 fare, twice that for CARE, with GRTC subsidizing the next $15 of trip cost; riders pay any excess beyond $21 ($6 + $15). Ridership is predominantly ambulatory; wheelchair trips comprised 8–9% of total trips until 2021, when they increased to 14%.
With the providers submitting all required data, GRTC calculates two metrics to determine if CARE On-Demand provides cost savings for ADA paratransit:
- Proportion of CARE On-Demand trips to total CARE trips, with a 10% goal. This was achieved in 2018 and increased to more than 14% by 2021.
- Savings if the CARE On-Demand trips were provided by CARE. For 2019, this metric showed savings of 47%.
GRTC recognizes the second metric assumes all alternative service trips would have been ADA paratransit trips, understanding that some CARE On-Demand trips could be induced trips. Thus the calculation may not represent actual savings. But the subsidy is modest, roughly half of an ADA paratransit trip cost, helping to protect against potential new costs for GRTC.
A small sample of riders gave input and were very positive, with comments such as, “CARE On-Demand is an amazing service that allows me to be independent and safe.” Riders who do not use the service reported they did not know about it or did not want to pay the higher fare.
San Antonio, TX: VIA Taxi Subsidy Program
VIA Metropolitan Transit (known as VIA) initiated their same-day on-demand taxi subsidy program in 2016, responding to disability community requests for more spontaneous transportation over next-day ADA paratransit. Through an RFP process, VIA selected Yellow Cab for the service. The most recent procurement (late 2020) required the contractor to provide the taxi subsidy program service and two services to support ADA paratransit—dedicated service up to a defined number of trips and nondedicated will call/overflow service. Among requirements for the Taxi Subsidy: at least 10% WAVs, drug and alcohol testing for drivers, and data demonstrating equity for ambulatory and nonambulatory customers to assess service quality. In August 2021, Yellow Cab went out of business, then was purchased by zTrip, a hybrid taxi/TNC company, which took over the VIA contract with plans for technology and other enhancements that are currently underway.
Riders pay a $2 fare, the same as for ADA paratransit, with VIA subsidizing the next $9 on the meter for an ambulatory trip and $11 for a WAV trip. Riders pay any excess over the subsidy. Riders have a limit of 20 trips per month. VIA also set subsidy trip ceilings by day: 250 total trips/weekday; 150 trips/Saturday; and 100 trips/Sunday. In practice, if the number of trips exceeds the daily total, the extra trips are carried over to the next day’s total so that the trip limits are implemented as a monthly tally. Trips are typically short (less than 3 miles in 2019). During the pandemic, trip volumes fell 80% while trip lengths increased fourfold. While data on WAV trips was not available, VIA estimates it is 10–15% of Taxi Subsidy trips. Ridership is a small proportion of ADA paratransit ridership—6% in 2019.
The taxi subsidy program is cost-effective. Cost per passenger trip ranged from $7.83 in 2019 to $8.04 in 2021. VIA uses federal Section 5310 funds to support the program, which reduced the cost per passenger trip to $3.91 in 2019 and $4.03 in 2019.
VIA reports that its goals for the taxi subsidy program are modest and have been achieved. It is a small component of the transit agency’s service for ADA riders but serves an important role. Should ridership rebound to prepandemic levels and reach the trip ceilings and with available funding, VIA will consider plans for expansion.
This page intentionally left blank.
This page intentionally left blank.