Wave Transit Grows Ridership 16X for On-Demand Transit Program Using the Turnkey Solution by Bus.com

As the regional authority in the Cape Fear region in Wilmington, North Carolina, the Wave Transit team aimed to tackle multiple challenges associated with the transit-dependent rider experience. Offering greater flexibility, reducing wait times, and improving the overall efficiency of their program were top priorities for Wave Transit. Launching an on-demand transit program with proper technology and flexible fleet to support this objective was the biggest challenge for Wave Transit. 

Bus.com’s operational and technical expertise to handle the complexity of on-demand transit, paired with a ready-to-deploy, reliable bus fleet, and driver network simplified the launch of the RideMICRO program. The Bus.com team helped identify the gaps in the existing fixed routes, manage the day-to-day operations, and analyze future improvements based on data.

With the comprehensive service and fully managed rollout of RideMICRO, Wave Transit was able to exponentially grow ridership from 100 rides per month to 1600. The Bus.com team also helped eliminate two fixed transit routes, and increase the user base from 6 customers to 70 customers per day. 

As the regional transit authority for the Cape Fear region, Wave Transit has a mission to provide an effective, efficient, and safe system of public transportation services within Southeastern North Carolina. As ridership patterns evolved, Wave Transit wanted to offer a more responsive, economical, and accessible mode of transportation for the city of Wilmington and neighboring communities.

Wave Transit considered an on-demand transit or microtransit pilot program as a potential solution to better serve their customers. However, launching the program would need careful planning to replace less popular fixed routes with an on-demand service without compromising the freedom of mobility for Wilmington residents.  

Jon Dodson, Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority (Wave Transit) explains: “The primary objective for RideMICRO was to create additional flexibility for our customers, to create more efficiency to provide regional connectivity, and decrease their wait-time for existing trips within the system.” 

Limited resources to analyze existing routes, procure the fleet, integrate transit technology and manage end-to-end daily operations for the service were some of the other challenges that Wave Transit would need to solve. An aggressive timeline to launch the RideMICRO pilot made it more challenging for the Wave Transit team to find the right solution with minimum room for error.  

Wave Transit chose Bus.com for technological expertise to run complex transit initiatives and the ability to provide on-call support. The Bus.com team collaborated with Wave Transit management to identify opportunities to replace low-performing fixed routes by analyzing traffic data. This process helped Bus.com retain popular fixed routes that Wave Transit’s customers heavily relied upon.

Based on traffic insights gathered by the Bus.com operations team, Wave Transit established four service zones outside the area covered by the popular fixed routes. Identifying the gaps in the current service opened up opportunities for Wave Transit to gain a new customer base in the counties of Brunswick, Hanover, and Pender. 

To enable a smoother experience for customers, Bus.com integrated the ride-booking platform Moovit which allows customers to book trips ahead of time or on short notice. The Bus.com team worked closely with the dispatch technology provider to enable riders to plan, pay, and book rides from a virtual stop. The app also gave the ability to track arrival information in real-time. Post launch of the service, the Bus.com team continued to gather feedback and monitor traffic analytics to benchmark RideMICRO performance. 

This analysis proved crucial to fulfill the needs and exceed expectations of diverse customer groups – such as senior citizens who frequently opt for the on-demand service. Bus.com offered call-in support to help senior citizens or riders with accessibility issues for the on-demand app. The comprehensive management of the project, from procurement to continued support for onboarding customers set up the RideMICRO pilot for success.

The user-centric approach to transit separates RideMICRO from regular service. Since its launch in 2021, the service has grown exponentially in user base. While a fixed route service traditionally averages around 55 locations, RideMICRO lets users book across 3,000 virtual stops. The improved booking experience, the flexibility of virtual locations, and the highly professional, considerate drivers deployed by Bus.com are at the heart of RideMICRO’s exceptional service delivery. 

Brianna D’Itri, Mobility Manager at Wave Transit explains: “We have a lot of riders who are new to our system entirely because we didn’t go to their neighborhood before. But because we now have the flexibility of these smaller, on-demand vehicles, we can service thousands of more people than we did previously. We have a small staff of drivers who have been exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable. We can rely on them to help our passengers reach comfortably and safely where they need to go”. 

With continued improvements to routes and the booking experience, the RideMICRO service has grown from 100 on-demand rides per month to about 1600 trips per month. The service also recorded its highest week in 2023, with 450 completed rides in a single week. More importantly, it has become an inseparable part of the community, with unmatched freedom of movement.