On Our Radar

In an effort to accommodate passengers who may not have a substantial data plan - or any plan at all - on their mobile device, SMTD plans to implement WiFi on buses. The cost and process for implementing this technology are being explored, and, in an effort to assist all passengers in accessing fare, schedule, and other future SMTD offerings like mobile pay, we look to implement this new technology in the next year or two. When we do, we plan to offer multiple training events to assist all passengers wanting to learn how to better utilize features on their individual devices/phones.

Following up on the training events mentioned previously, SMTD plans to produce and offer more user-friendly video tutorials, walking current and prospective passengers a visual demonstration of how to use SMTD’s services. Let us know through our customer service email if there are certain processes or items you would like to see covered in one of these video tutorials. Scroll down and fill out the form that will be submitted via email to our staff.

Upgrading SMTD night service is on our short list of planning projects. The four large loop routes were difficult to use and were limited in coverage.

UPDATE: 2024 saw one west side loop route split into two bi-directional night routes, and one north side loop route replaced by extending three popular daytime routes, 2, 3, and 5, to run hourly during night service. By the time we finish this year with the east/south side routes, we will have more than doubled the number of night service routes available, and they are universally more useful as bi-directional routes.

We expect the final east side and south side night service route changes to go into effect in the Summer or Fall 2026.

Over two years ago, SMTD implemented the first complete route system re-design in our 50-year history.

After over a year of data-gathering and feedback -- even with the drop in ridership due to COVID-19 -- we have been able to identify some issues in the new system we would like to address.

Travel from one corner of the city to another could be improved, and more direct service in some areas is desirable.

Along with a few low-performing routes and new, improved roads in certain areas, we will look to make improvements as soon as we can do so with adequate headcount, fleet size, and time to properly plan and test new service.

We hope we can start the planning process this year, but any major route changes are not likely until a larger re-design would go into effect after the 3rd Street rail relocation in 2027.

A desire for Saturday night and Sunday service has been expressed by some members of our community. However, while funding of such a service would be substantial, the bigger challenge would be finding enough bus operators to sustain such an increase in service.

Since the pandemic, SMTD struggles to maintain headcount to support our current fixed route and paratransit services. A cost/benefit analysis and taking into account the hiring factor does not get us to adding these two particular services in the near future.

To do so would likely require reducing frequency during weekday service from 30-minute service to 60-minute service, which we believe would be more detrimental to the community than the current limited weekend service. That said, the comprehensive operational analysis outlined previously would likely look at weekend service as a part of the entire system.

• Upgrading shelters - We will plan to replace existing shelters in high-traffic areas with new and improved shelters and consider adding amenities like route and schedule information and solar lighting. This process is included in our five-year-plan but is probably at least a couple of years away.
• Report A Stop - With over 1,200 bus stops in our system and a small staff to maintain them, crowd-sourcing issues at bus stops may result in faster repairs and improvements. SMTD now has a website feature that allows passengers or anyone in the general public to report an issue with a particular bus stop: Report a Bus Stop Issue!

The number of employees available for any given purpose is referred to as headcount. Headcount can be affected by many factors from competition with other employers to strict drug and alcohol policies to illness and retirements. Even with a larger fleet, it still takes operators to drive the buses.

In 2019, SMTD’s significant route system re-design, along with night service additions in recent years, ultimately added considerable service hours without fully corresponding headcount increases.

SMTD is currently working to attain our desired headcount in operations, and we hope we can overcome this limitation very soon.

UPDATE: We have added buses and bus operators to our paratransit department, which has experienced the fastest-growing ridership in recent years. We hope to attain full headcount in fixed route service soon in the hopes of expanding service there as well.

Every route takes a number of buses. For instance, an hour-long route that runs every thirty minutes requires two buses.

Currently, SMTD has no spare ratio or contingency fleet other than what is generally in the garage for regular or preventative maintenance. That means we’re currently unable to add weekday service because our fleet is being utilized to its maximum capacity.

As we attain a “state of good repair” with our current fleet, we are already planning to expand the fleet with one of our next purchases of new buses.

Hopefully, the condition of our fleet will allow us to further expand rather than having to replace buses far past their suggested life.

When SMTD applies for funding from state or federal sources, nearly all available grants require a “local match”, which is funding SMTD provides from local property taxes and other sources of revenue like fare collection and advertising sales.

Since our boundaries have not changed since our founding in 1968, our tax base has grown only as far as those old boundaries have allowed. So, while our local levy is a stable funding source, the amount of leverage we can attain with 20% (federal) and 80% (state) required match remains limited.

SMTD is proud of the financial stability we have sustained, and we always plan for sustained service over time rather than risk future service cuts for the latest trend or popular service offered in much larger transit districts like Chicago and St. Louis.

As technology and additional facilities add substantially to our operating costs, we must also be mindful we maintain financial sustainability well into the future.

SMTD is often accused of using our size as an excuse for poor service. That’s simply not true, but our size does play a role in how quickly we can make major changes happen.

Our entire administration department is smaller than many individual departments at larger transit agencies. For instance, while a larger agency might have a Grants and Procurement Department that has multiple staff members looking for grant opportunities or a Planning Department constantly analyzing data and planning service improvements, SMTD usually has one person dedicated to a particular subject matter and sometimes multiple areas. So, even with excellent multi-tasking employees, major changes just take longer to plan and implement at a smaller transit agency of our size.

SMTD has worked hard to evaluate staff needs and make additions where possible and will continue to do so as we make advances in technology, service, and facilities.