Topeka Metro debuts on-demand service in S.E. Topeka, getting 'Uber Light' nickname
A light rain fell outside as driver Lana Dillner sat waiting for calls Tuesday morning in a small, handicapped-accessible bus in the parking lot just west of Walmart, 2630 S.E. California Ave.
Dillner plays a key role in Topeka Metro's "Metro On-Demand" program in southeast Topeka.
For $2 each, customers in the coverage zone may buy a one-way ride in a small bus on Mondays through Saturdays to anywhere else in that southeast Topeka zone.
The service has become known as "Uber Light," Topeka City Council members heard last week from Alan Bearman, chairman of the Topeka Metropolitan Transit Authority, which oversees Topeka Metro, the city's bus service.
"I think this is a great," said Councilwoman Sylvia Ortiz. "A lot of my constituents are really, really excited about it."
Credit/debit card option to become available Monday
Topeka Metro, the city's bus service, began offering Metro On-Demand on Jan. 30 to replace its Flex service, which had seen decreased ridership, said Keri Renner, Topeka Metro's director of marketing and communications.
The MOD program makes curb-to-curb transportation available from 5:35 a.m. to 6:40 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and from 8:15 a.m. to 6:40 p.m. Saturdays in a specifically defined area of southeast Topeka, Renner said.
The service isn't available on Sundays.
Anyone may book a ride by calling Topeka Metro at 785-783-7000, option five; using the MOD website or using the MOD mobile app to request a ride.
Bus drivers don't carry change. The $2-per-ride payment currently must be made using cash, but credit and debit cards will be accepted beginning Monday on the mobile app and website only.
More than 200 people already have the app, which is the most commonly used way to request rides, Renner said.
Riders must be picked up and dropped off at places within the coverage zone, she said.
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Sometimes MOD drivers "stage" at other sites, including outside the Dillon's at 2010 S.E. 29th, outside Harbor Freight, 230 S.E. 29th, and outside Walgreen's, 3696 S.W. Topeka Blvd., Renner said.
Topeka Metro generally has one MOD bus out on the street during the program's hours of operation, with one other being available for backup, she said.
The bus Dillner was driving featured two two-person seats for passengers toward the front and one five-person seat in the rear, with additional space available to accommodate people in wheelchairs, she said.
Customers requesting a MOD bus may either ask to be picked up immediately or schedule a ride for some time in the future, Renner said.
On average, riders who ask for immediate service are picked up in seven or eight minutes, she said.
MOD is a shared ride service, so customers may find themselves riding either alone or with other people.
"Passengers can access residential and commercial locations, or even connect with a fixed route bus for travel outside the defined zones," says the MOD app's website.
Bus passes, ride tickets, USD 501 and Washburn University/WU Tech passes and identification cards can't be used for the program.
New Topeka bus service 'is similar to Uber and Lyft'
Topeka Metro has spent a lot of time and energy trying to understand what its users want, Bearman told council members last week.
The changes it has made "are all designed to meet the needs of actual users, and they're all designed to be cost-neutral," he said.
Those changes include implementing MOD, which its website says describes as being a "micro-transit" or "flexible transit" service.
"It uses mobile technology to offer trips on-demand within specified zones," that site said. "It is similar to Uber and Lyft in that it is a curb-to-curb service, but it is operated by transit. Microtransit is more flexible than rigid fixed routes and paratransit and uses smaller, more nimble vehicles."
MOD has done "pretty well" here, Bearman told the mayor and council.
"We feel really good about it, and if the model works, we'll probably expand it to other parts of town," he said.
Topeka Metro officials are excited about MOD "because it is quicker, more personalized and has the ability to book a ride on a mobile app, a website or to call customer service," Renner said. "We have not had passengers use a mobile app to book a ride until MOD, and it has really taken off!"
Topeka Metro recently added Wi-Fi for MOD passengers to use, she added.
"We are receiving 100% satisfactory ratings so far and getting positive reviews from passengers," Renner said.
For what reason are Topeka customers using MOD?
For Topeka Metro customers, MOD is "a lifeline" to work, school and medical appointments, Bearman told the mayor and council.
He said Topeka Metro made sure grocery stores were included in the MOD service zone.
Stores in that zone include Dillon's, 2010 S.E. 29th; Aldi, 105 S.W. 29th; and the Walmarts at 1301 S.W. 37th and 2630 S.E. California Avenue, Renner said.
Topeka Metro also encourages residents to use MOD to ride to and from work, Renner said.
Topeka Metro hopes to partner with businesses that are regular destinations within the MOD zone, such as those that employ people who take MOD to work, she said.
"Pop-up" events are planned in which Topeka Metro employees will man tables outside popular MOD destinations, where they'll explain to the public how the system works and how it can benefit them, Renner said.
'I'm trying to figure out how to get my grandson to work'
Ortiz told Bearman at last week's council meeting that she lives just north of Interstate 70, the southern boundary for the MOD zone, meaning she isn't in that zone.
She said she "just can't wait" until the current MOD zone is expanded to include her home, so it can stop there to pick up her grandson.
"I'm trying to figure out how to get my grandson to work at (S.E.) 29th and Croco (Road)," she said.
Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: City's bus service offers new southeast Topeka micro-transit service
