New contest: Win a LA Transit bus pass!
It’s that time again: time for our monthly contest. This time we’re giving away a June LA Transit bus pass.
Public transit in Lethbridge began in 1912 and consisted of a streetcar system operated by the Lethbridge Municipal Railway. The system consisted of three lines, all originating at the southwest corner of what is now Galt Gardens. One line ran to north Lethbridge, one to the exhibition grounds via 6 Avenue, and the third to St. Michael’s Hospital via 13 Street. Each car was operated by two men until 1917, when the number was reduced to a single operator on each. At the height of its operations, the streetcar system ran 10 cars over a total of 10 miles of track.
Given the cost of laying new tracks to accommodate city growth, the city began introducing motor buses in 1941. By 1947, the streetcar system had been abandoned, with the North Lethbridge line being the last to operate.
Lethbridge has seen vast improvements to its transit system in the last decade:
- Cross-town routes
- Multi-directional routes
- 15-minute service
- Improved transit guide
- Improved accessibility
- More transit exchanges
The system isn’t perfect, and likel never will be, but the staff are always working on new ideas (like Smart Cards and inclusion on Google Transit).
So, what do you have to do? Just post a comment below by answering the following question:
What could Lethbridge Transit do to increase ridership?
Winner will be randomly chosen from the contest below. Contest closes 11:59 Sunday, May 30th.
Tell your friends!
I would like to see a better rate for students. (I know it’s a pipe dream)
Also more incentive for riding… right now it costs me $3 in gas in my car to get across the coulee to go shopping and I don’t have to wait for the bus. If I take the bus, I pay $2.25 and have to wait at a stop and maybe walk a distance to get the route I need.
I like the express route system for the college, I am wondering if maybe can be put in place to go to Wal-Mart or the mall??
Thanks for listening.
Replace all buses with stretch SUV’s!
i think that they should improve the service along scenic at nights cause for me to take a bus after 7 pm to get home which is on scenic and 16 th ave i would have a 45 min bus ride to get to the nearest bus stop by my apt or i would have to get off on 10 th ave and walk up 13 th to get home and after a long day at work i am tired my feet are sore and i just would like to get off as close as i can to my house so i dont have to walk much thats what comes to mind that would help alot of people that live in scenic hieghts appt i would defenitly catch bus more often cause that would help so much i think that also with the pass if you had a pohto contest were people sumit there photos of lethbridge scenery and have them put on the the pass a pic for every month i think that would be cool i know that when i lived in regina they did that well that is my thoughts on transit hope that these ideas will help them
thank you
Lori Webb
I’d like to see improved service to the area around Sun Life on the east end of the city. There are too many transfers to catch to get there from the Westside.
maybe some sort of loyalty program? buy 10 months of bus passes get the last two months free?? or reloadable bus cards we can swipe like tim hortons cards so theres no fumbling with change?
One change that I know a lot of people would like is better hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Also having a yearly or even a 6 month bus pass. Then people would not have to worry about getting there pass each month.
I think spreading the word online more often, with contests like these, so the idea of riding the bus is always on people’s minds.
Also, I’d love to see an iPhone app, so I could keep track of schedules and have a map to show me where the closest stop was, based on my current location.
Heck, let’s go all out. Get setup with Foursquare, and have some type of system to “check-in” to each bus, maybe giving people incentives or prizes when they check in a certain amount of times.
Either way, just getting online, and having a big presence where the citizens are already congregating will help.
Incentives for using the transit by allowing to buy 3, 6 12 month passes at reduced prices for loyal ship.
I’m not sure if it would increase ridership, but it is extremely frustrating for their customers when they shut down for holidays. People still need to get to work!
Transit should some kind of loyalty program for those who buy passes each month, either free passes or reduced rates.
Get the trouble makers and indians off the busses
And the racists too!
I think more transfer points between individual routes, rather than at terminals, might help people get to their destinations faster.
I’d like to see the buses run the same routes longer into the evening. It’s easy for me to come and go from my house during business hours, but once it gets late, it’s a long walk from the nearest route.
Create an incentive program of some sort, like buy 12 passes and get the 13th free!
i think buses could use air condotion.
Serve cocktails and offer live music!
more bus stops that have garbage cans and maybe more stops with shelters and i also agree upon the incentive thing that would increase those to buy pass etc i also like the 3 , 6, 12 month pass thing and at a discounted price or buy 6 passes get one free those are great ideas and improved bus service for the scenic heights area would be nice to after 7 and weekends it is so slow and have to walk farther just to get home or spend 45 minutes on the bus to get to a closer enough stop to get home
well hope these help you
Jarrod
The link should run on the weekends, it’s a great bus route and is much needed on weekends.
I think a free and fairly short line (such as Calgary Transit has on one avenue downtown) might encourage people to try the bus. These people might not normally take the bus, and the convenience of having a bus go back and forth downtown may get them on the bus. Once people have become familiar with using L.A. Transit, they will use it more and more! This could also encourage downtown shopping, which has been a struggle for Lethbridge for a long time!
Some of my family members would prefer to take the bus when roads are bad in the wintertime, however the lack of shelters in some neighbourhoods means standing in harsh weather while waiting for a ride.
Promote the idea of being environmentally friendly. Potential energy efficient lines (if there was enough funding and interest) and definitely…..definitely no idling when stopped (like I see at the University on a daily basis)
I believe you should have a 30 day unlimited travel card so this way you will increase your ridership. Other cities in the u.s have done that and they saw a sharp increase in ridership . With this economy people want to save anyway they can . with gas prices the way they are people are gonna start using buses in record numbers . why not give them more of a incentive