Earlier this month, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority launched the Drive Less RI Challenge, a yearlong initiative where participants can log “green trips” — public transit, carpool, walking and bike trips — in a newly launched app, allowing them to earn rewards or enter prize giveaways.
The initiative aims to promote the use of sustainable transportation and reduce solo driving trips. In the app, users can also see how much their choices have reduced emissions and contributed to sustainability efforts.
“Even just carpooling and taking public transit just once a week makes a difference,” wrote Cristy Raposo Perry, a RIPTA spokesperson, in an email to The Herald.
The initiative is a “really creative and innovative way” to increase RIPTA ridership, said Amy Glidden, a co-chair of Rhode Island Transit Riders, a public transportation advocacy group.
But the initiative comes on the heels of recent service cuts to over 40 RIPTA routes, which, according to Glidden, have had a significant impact on how Rhode Islanders use the bus system.
Glidden said that many local riders have cited an increasing overcrowding of buses since the service cuts went into effect.
“When those buses are full, they can’t stop,” she explained, which sometimes leaves people waiting nearly an hour for the next bus. Glidden added that many have told her “that they can no longer take the bus.”
Some people also mentioned that they would begin driving more, Glidden said. But others, she said, cannot afford an alternative to taking the RIPTA.
“The recent service reductions generally focused on lower-performing routes in an effort to close the budget deficit,” wrote Raposo Perry, citing the transportation agency’s $32.6 million operational deficit. “Looking ahead, we are focused on improving service in cost-effective ways that build ridership.”
“RIPTA is really doing anything they can to increase ridership,” Glidden added. But “the number one factor that increases ridership is frequency, and we’re going backwards.”
While Glidden still believes that most bus riders decide to take the RIPTA for economic reasons, she said some increased ridership may come from “people that have environmental concerns.”
Jack Vail ’28 told The Herald that he would take the bus for “sustainability reasons,” while waiting for a bus at Kennedy Plaza.
Vail takes the RIPTA every week to tutor at Women’s Refugee Care, in southern Providence.
While Vail was not familiar with the Drive Less RI Challenge, he said he would be interested in participating in the initiative.
The bus is “as easy as any other way” to get around, he said. But among students, Vail finds that “there’s this negative stigma around buses and public transit in general.”
In September, RIPTA launched a Bus Buddy program, which offers people who are unfamiliar with RIPTA a companion during a bus ride.
Raposo Perry explained that the program “provides personal assistance to help riders feel more confident using RIPTA services.”
Pavani Durbhakula is a senior staff writer and photographer. She is a first-year from DC and plans to study IAPA and Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys baking, reading, and searching for new coffee shops.
