City to look at proposed changes for Transit Plus, transit routes

Several changes have been proposed to Winnipeg Transit, including shifting trips to later in the day for higher passenger loads.

New policies could soon come into effect for Winnipeggers who use the Transit Plus system.

The Public Service is recommending changes to eligibility for Transit Plus, how no-shows and late cancellations are handled and how many carry-on bags people can bring.

Starting with eligibility, if approved, Transit Plus would determine who is able to use the service based on their functional abilities, rather than a specific medical diagnosis.

Currently, people can qualify for Transit Plus if they are unable to walk 175 metres outside, require a wheelchair or scooter, have poor vision or visual field, and have Alzheimer’s or dementia-related diseases.

Instead, the change would focus on what someone’s abilities are physically, cognitively, or sensorily.

“The expanded eligibility criteria will allow individuals, who previously did not meet the outdated criteria, to apply. This ensures assessments for service are consistent and equitable,” the report reads.

People would be able to apply to use Transit Plus online and then functional assessments would be performed by contracted occupational therapists and physiotherapists.

Looking at no-shows and late cancellations, Transit Plus is looking to go from a penalty system to monthly limits and an educational approach.

Last year, there were 98,000 trips cancelled, with 30 per cent of them being within two hours of the scheduled pickup. As well, there were 10,000 no-shows.

When this happened, riders were fined, with the amount increasing depending on the number of no-shows and late cancellations. If the issue continued, they could be suspended from using Transit Plus.

The proposed change would switch to a monthly limit that includes educational notifications. No-shows would be set to four or more instances, while late cancellations under two hours before the pick-up window would be set at six or more instances.

“Monthly limits provide customers with built-in ‘life happens’ buffer for unexpected situations and are not counted when an occurrence takes place because of Transit Plus.”

Lastly, Transit Plus would remove the current two-bag limit policy for riders.

Trips could be denied if the limit was exceeded. Now, it’s being proposed that riders can bring what they want, as long as the items are safely stored and managed in the area where they are sitting.

More changes coming to Winnipeg Transit routes

Transit is also looking to make more changes to routes throughout the city.

The new transit network was launched last summer and the city continues to tinker with service.

The proposed changes would see Route 22 go to Grace Hospital, add three extra half trips for Route 671 Dalhousie and two extra half trips for Route 672 Killarney.

As well, some of the morning trips for Route 672 Killarney would be shifted to the evening to deal with the higher demand.

Other changes include adding an extra bus in the afternoon and evening hours for Route 677 Wilkes and shifting trips to the midday for Route 889 Sherbrook-Pembina.

All of these changes would be implemented at some point in 2027.

All the transit proposals would be discussed on June 29 at the Public Works meeting.