DDOT Improving

I was fortunate enough to hear Mayor Duggan and Vice President Joe Biden talk about the great strides DDOT has made in improving service over the past 18 months. The mayor has made improving the reliability of DDOT a priority since taking office. He was happy to announce that for the first time in a long time, DDOT was able to get 100 percent of its scheduled buses on the road. This is a great improvement, especially when you consider that in 2014, as few as 58 percent of the scheduled buses were actually operating.

Since then, the DDOT fleet has 80 new buses. Seventy are standard 40-foot coaches and 10 are 60-foot articulated buses, which bend in the middle and can hold more passengers. Thursday afternoon, the last four of the new buses began service in Detroit. Now, a total of 192 are in service. In addition to the new buses, DDOT has also added 100 drivers, 35 mechanics, a transit police force, and a smart phone app to optimize Detroit’s bus system.

The mayor indicated that DDOT riders have already recognized the benefits of better service. Weekly ridership has grown to 500,000 riders. Complaints are down.

Although the event was to herald the arrival of the new buses and DDOT now making their schedule, a great deal of time was spent talking about the impact the improved transportation will have on people – people getting to jobs, people being able to get to the doctor, or grocery store, or other places they need to go. Mr. Biden said that the federal government did not make an investment in buses, they made an investment in people. He also said that studies show that transportation is the single most important factor in the chances of someone moving up the economic ladder.

The mayor said it best at the end of the meeting – we have come a long way, but still have a ways to go. This is another step in the right direction for the city. People are counting on continued improvement in DDOT. That is critical for the city to continue its turnaround.