Metro aims to end use of contractors for park and ride routes by August, after $2.4M extension
Commuters line up to board the 222 Metropolitan Transit Authority bus to downtown at the Grand Parkway park and ride, Thursday, April 14, 2022, in Katy. The park and ride features a large parking garage at the corner of Interstate 10 and the Grand Parkway that takes riders on the 222 route to downtown Houston.
“We think we can bring them back in-house for the August service change,” Metro CEO Tom Lambert said, referring to the quarterly time when Metro tweaks it local and commuter bus routes and schedules. Thirteen months ago, hoping to resume park and ride service but finding it difficult to hire drivers amid an economy jostled from relief programs and a surge in re-employment, Metro hired AFC Transportation to operate some park and ride routes. In June 2022, transit officials approved First Class Transportation, another bus charter company, for additional routes. Current contracts with the companies run through the end of June and July, totaling $11.6 million.
If Metro can start using its own drivers and buses for the routes, the agency could trim up to $1.1 million from those extension costs, Lambert said. After dipping to less than 4,000 employees in early 2022, Metro has rebuilt its ranks, with about 4,200 workers as of March. In February alone, the agency hired 60 new bus operators, after retirements and leaves of absence during the pandemic left them hundreds of drivers short. Those new drivers received an average bonus of more than $1,500,Hiring more operators comes as more people wait at the bus stop for a ride. For fiscal 2023, which started Oct. 1, trips on commuter buses are up 36.
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