C-Tran proposes to downsize Route 39

Currently, Route 39 offers 12 westbound buses to downtown Vancouver and 12 eastbound buses to Stapleton Road on weekdays. C-Tran provides 10 westbound and 10 eastbound buses on Saturdays and eight westbound and eight eastbound buses on Sundays and holidays.

In March, C-Tran proposed to eliminate Route 39, citing low ridership. It was one part of a package of proposed changes that include first-time service to The Waterfront Vancouver development.

Christine Selk, C-Tran’s communication and public affairs manager, said she believes her agency has received about 200 comments to the proposed changes, with the original plan to eliminate Route 39 generating the most.

“It is no secret that this has been the most contentious of the changes we put forth,” she said.

“Most had a negative tint to them,” she said about the response to eliminating Route 39. “It was not happily received by some folks in Rose Village.”

The Rose Village Connector would continue to loop into the VA Portland Health Care System’s Vancouver Campus and provide service to shopping in the area.

“We do feel it’s important to keep that direct link to the VA, Walmart, Safeway and Walgreens,” Selk said.

C-Tran proposes to create a “dial-a-ride” area within the Rose Village Connector loop and farther north to 39th Street and state Highway 500. Within this area, residents could request that a C-Tran shuttle or small bus take them to another destination within the dial-a-ride area.

Same-day requests would need to be made at least 90 minutes in advance, similar to C-Tran’s existing Connector service in Camas, La Center and Ridgefield. Cost would be the same as C-Tran’s standard $1.80 local fare, with a 50 percent discount for people with disabilities, children 7 to 17 and seniors 65 and older.

Low ridership

C-Tran calculates ridership as passengers served per hour of revenue-generating service from a vehicle. C-Tran’s average in October was 22.4 passengers per revenue hour for a route, for 307,000 hours of service annually.

The agency’s demarcation for a low-performing route is 11.2 passengers per revenue hour, or half the system average. Route 39’s average was 9.1 passengers per revenue hour in October.

In 2016, the route had 34,779 riders. It was modified that September, leaving it at its current shape and schedule. In 2017, the route had about 41,400 riders. The next year, ridership declined by about 11 percent.

Scott Patterson, C-Tran’s chief external affairs officer, said he suspects the popularity of The Vine has led to ridership declines on Route 39.

The Vine, the agency’s first foray into bus rapid transit, has the highest ridership in C-Tran’s system and offers service every 10 minutes. It runs along Fourth Plain Boulevard, which is within walking distance for many Rose Village residents, but Patterson said some are unable to walk that far.

Selk said she isn’t sure if Rose Village residents will see the revised proposal as a solid alternative or a token effort.

“I can’t really speak to what people feel about it or say about it,” she said. “We hope that people view it as a good faith effort at compromise.”

Jimmy Johnson, chairman of the Rose Village Neighborhood Association, criticized C-Tran for a “complete lack of communication” with his group.

“We are glad to see these positive developments,” he wrote in an email to The Columbian on Wednesday evening.

The entire package of service changes, including the Rose Village Connector, will be presented to C-Tran’s board of directors during its next meeting, at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 14, in the Vancouver Community Library, 901 C St.

If the C-Tran board approves the proposal, the changes will take effect in September.