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To: LINK Transit

Board of Directors
2700 Euclid Avenue
Wenatchee, WA 98801

From: Jessica Richmond

Moore & Associates
Public Transportation
Consultant
28159 Avenue Stanford
Suite 110
Valencia, CA 91355
Phone: (661) 253-1277
Fax: (661) 253-1208
Toll-Free: (888) 743-5977
moore-associates.net

Re: Ridership App

Date: June 4, 2019

Source: http://wenatcheeworld.com/

Introduction
The purpose of this report is to present to the
Board of Directors an evaluation of smartphone
application use within the rural public
transportation sector of the Pacific Northwest
region. The goal is to compare the features
available on the app LINK Transit currently
employs (Token Transit) to those available to
riders of different, similarly sized organizations.
The aim is to increase both customer satisfaction
and LINK Transit ridership.
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Background
LINK Transit offers riders the ability to pay for a pass (single use, daily or monthly) on the Token
Transit app available on both iOS and Android devices. This smartphone application gives riders
the option to pay for their ticket with a credit card, whereas payments made upon boarding the
bus are cash only and exact change. Token Transit also allows for the option of paying for and
sending a ticket to another person’s phone. This feature works well for parents or riders who
may otherwise be stranded. LINK Transit also gives riders the opportunity to receive route
alerts via email or text message by enrolling in this service on their website (Figure 1). These
alert messages warn riders of route discrepancies ranging from closures to delays.

Figure 1: LINK Transit provides access to technology based customer services offered to riders on their website.
Source: http://www.linktransit.com/

Discussion
Provided on the next two pages are summaries of features available to riders and smartphone
users of other public transportation companies (specifically bus) of Washington and Oregon.
For the purpose of this report, three companies of comparable size have been included. Each
offer similar services as those provided by LINK Transit, yet different ridership app services.
Listed below (Figure 2) is a population chart for service area of LINK Transit.

Populations of LINK Transit Service Cities:

CITY 2010 CENSUS 2018 ESTIMATE
Wenatchee 31,925 34,329
East Wenatchee 13,190 14,168
Malaga --- 4,684
Chelan --- 4,222
Manson --- 1,532
Entiat --- 1,250
Cashmere --- 3,157
Leavenworth --- 2,010
Rock Island --- 1,052
Waterville --- 1,213
AREA TOTAL: 67,617
Figure 2: Approximate population chart for LINK Transit service area. Does not include population data for:
Orondo, Ardenvoir, Dryden, Peshastin or Monitor.

2010 population numbers for cities with greater than 5,000 residents have been included for
reference from the U.S. Census Bureau records. Population numbers for cities with fewer than
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5,000, but greater than 1,000 residents, as well as 2018 population estimate numbers for all
cities, are recorded from the Vintage 2018 Population Estimate via the U.S. Census Bureau
website. LINK Transit service cities with a population of less than 1,000 have been excluded
from this data.

Yakima, WA
2010 Population: 91,067
2018 Population Estimate: 93,884
Yakima has a greater population, yet is the most comparable rural metro area of Washington
State to the LINK Transit service area. Yakima Transit uses a mobile friendly web application
instead of a downloadable smartphone app. This application is called Yakima iBus and is
accessible through the company website. Provided below is a screenshot (Figure 3) of the app
in use for your reference. The pros of this program are: user doesn’t need to download app to
their phone, reduced design and hosting cost, offers “Where is my Bus?” GPS tracking, alerts
tab and a map. The cons are that this program is not as user friendly as the mainstream
transportation smartphone applications, which poses a steep learning curve for potential users.

Figure 3: Yakima iBus is difficult to understand, navigate and read.

Source: https://www.esri.com/news/arcuser/0911/graphics/ibuswidget_1_lg.jpg
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Moses Lake, WA
2010 Population: 20,366
2018 Population Estimate: 24,009
The Grant Transit Authority is a smaller public transportation provider, yet has announced on
their website (Figure 4) that a Trip Planner tool with the ability to track your bus will be
available soon. Currently, they do not offer any mobile ticket pay, rider smartphone application
or real time alert messenger service.

Figure 4: GTA announcement on front page of website indicating a new app will be available soon for riders.
Source: http://granttransit.com/

Bend, OR
2010 Population: 76,639
2018 Population Estimate: 97,590
Despite being more densely populated, if including all LINK Transit service area populations and
geography, Bend, OR provides an excellent competitor service example. Cascades East Transit
provides riders with the features available from TransitApp (Figure 5). This iOS and Android
smartphone app allows users to track their bus in real time, receive up to the minute rider
alerts, as well as integrated trip planning. The pros of this service include the simple to use
interface, desirable features, use of a popular transportation app available in multiple cities
worldwide, and there is no need for a local tech support team. The cons are cost of contract.

Figure 5: TransitApp provides easy to use and desirable features for riders.
Source: https://transitapp.com/
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Conclusion
LINK Transit has a history of providing riders with innovative service and technology. This report
was prepared to evaluate the current system and compare to similar services available in the
surrounding region for the purpose of potential renovations and expansions.

Source: http://www.linktransit.com/
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References

2010 Census and Vintage 2018 population data. Retrieved from: https://www.census.gov/

Cascade East Transit information and image. Retrieved from: https://cascadeseasttransit.com/

Grant Transit Authority information and image. Retrieved from: http://granttransit.com/

LINK Transit information and images. Retrieved from: http://www.linktransit.com/

LINK Transit introduction image. Retrieved from: http://wenatcheeworld.com/

Moore & Associates contact information and image. Retrieved from:

https://moore-associates.net/

TransitApp information and images. Retrieved from: https://transitapp.com/

Yakima iBus image. Retrieved from:

https://www.esri.com/news/arcuser/0911/graphics/ibuswidget_1_lg.jpg

Yakima Transit information. Retrieved from: https://yakimatransit.org/