KART is not seeing ridership numbers it anticipated for the new half-hour service, which added a Ketchum run at 7:15 a.m., KART Manager Terry Crawford reported to organization's board. Some days there are between two and six riders, while other days there are none. Crawford suggested moving that extra run to the evening, giving half-hour service between 4 and 6 p.m. The board will consider its options before deciding on routes for next season.
The KART/PEAK board of directors took a step Wednesday toward a merger with Wood River Rideshare, a non-profit entity that advocates alternate means of transportation.
"There are a lot of activities that Wood River Rideshare does that fit into our mission," said board member Jim Jaquet. "That's something we really ought to pursue."
The board unanimously voted to proceed with negotiating the merger.
Folding Rideshare into KART has been on the table for a year, but the merger with PEAK, a north-south valley commuter service, has taken precedence. That merger occurred last spring.
Board member Joan Lamb said KART/PEAK would be well served by Rideshare's marketing and outreach focus.
"Look at declining ridership (in KART)," she said. "We need that sort of marketing expertise."
Rideshare Executive Director Jason Miller spoke on behalf of his board of directors.
"We're very excited about this possibility," he said.
KART board member Beth Robrahn, founder of Rideshare, said she was also happy about the future of the entity.
"I remember eight years ago sitting in the basement of a restaurant I was working at typing ... the vision for Wood River Rideshare," she said. "I'm very pleased this is happening."
KART board members and staff will draw up a legal agreement, to be reviewed by attorneys, and an implementation plan and present the findings at the March meeting.
Wednesday's vote, Lamb said, "just implies a second step."
Not all was in harmony at the meeting, however.
Former board member Sue Noel argued against the direction KART is going, saying it was becoming an "octopus" that was reaching, and overreaching, into every transportation segment that exists now or could exist in the future.
"Something is being put over on our community that they're not aware of," she said. "This thing is a juggernaut. The goals are good. Some of what is happening ... is not. There's empire-building going on."
Everett defended the board's vision and restructured organization, which could include a new position of sales and marketing coordinator.
"I don't think we're the old KART," he said. "I don't think we're just a bus system. We have to be multiple service (oriented)."
"The current bus system as-is is losing ridership," he added. "We're in dire straits."
The board also adopted a new mission statement. Goals for the entity focus on providing multi-modal transportation at a fair price with an emphasis on reduced pollution.
The board in its future endeavors will advocate for land-use planning that addresses transportation demand management.
"Land-use planning and transportation have to be planned in tandem," Everett said.
The board also is planning to tap into local creativity when devising a new image and logo—and maybe a new name to signify the valley-wide nature of the service.
"This could be the ultimate senior project," said board member Ron Parsons.
Peter Everett, bottom, KART/PEAK board chairman, explains his reasons for supporting a wider vision for the bus authority. ?The current bus system as-is is losing ridership,? he said. ?We?re in dire straits.? Top, KART/PEAK board member Joan Lamb voted in favor of pursuing the merger with Wood River Rideshare, based in part on how it might stem the tide of declining KART ridership. ?We need that sort of marketing expertise,? she said.
Photo by David N. Seelig
