SAN MARCOS — Fifteen months after its launch, North County Transit District and San Marcos officials are calling the pilot year of the city’s on-demand microtransit program a success, touting growing ridership, a larger service area and cheaper fares.
The microtransit service, known as NCTD+, was launched in June as a 12-month pilot program, featuring a fleet of 10 vans that each seat eight people. San Marcos was the first of four cities chosen for the program, followed by a rollout in Vista in May.
Service in the 14-mile zone is available weekdays from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. and weekends from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with trips able to be reserved via the NCTD+ app.
Transit officials updated the San Marcos City Council on the use of NCTD+ during a Sept. 23 meeting.
“We’ve been in service now a little bit over a year. It’s going very well,” said NCTD CEO Shawn Donaghy. “I think the thing that we’re seeing is a very positive trend, not only in ridership, but just in the excitement around what it means.”
NCTD+ San Marcos has had over 25,700 boardings since its launch, with an average monthly ridership of 2,150. During that time, NCTD made two crucial adjustments to the program: reducing fares and expanding the service zone.
The program began with a 10-mile zone, providing access to multiple areas, including several parks, Cal State San Marcos, Palomar College, shopping centers, the Boys and Girls Club, the San Marcos Civic Center, Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, and several transit stops.
Following residents’ feedback, the zone was expanded to 14 miles, to include more retail options, such as Costco and Target, as well as the San Diego Food Bank, and additional residential areas.
“The nice thing about this service is that it’s really flexible, so we have this ability to expand service to where it’s needed while also maintaining operational balance,” said Senior Transit Planner Ioni Tcholakova.
Initially, one-way trips cost $5 for the first person and $2.50 for all additional riders in the same booking as well as for trips to or from an NCTD transit center. However, NCTD officials quickly learned that this cost was a barrier to entry for many riders.
Fares were reduced to $3 per one-way trip for the first person and $1.50 for each additional person on the same booking, as well as $1.50 for rides to or from an NCTD transit center. NCTD also expanded the Youth Opportunity Pass, making the microtransit service free for those 18 and under.
The majority of trips in San Marcos are to Palomar College and the Palomar College Transit Center, Tcholakova said. Other popular destinations are Cal State San Marcos, the Boys and Girls Club, various retail locations, and the Sprinter station.
City councilmembers said they are grateful to see the program flourishing, noting that this is something the city has been wanting for a long time.
“It’s really great to see that we have this as an option, where we can actually put some money into something that we know is working and fitting in people’s lifestyle. So, we really appreciate that,” said Mayor Rebecca Jones.
Tcholakova said NCTD has seen significant usage of the app, with around 98% of trips booked on the app and the remainder booked over the phone.
Data also shows that most riders are using the service repeatedly. Within the first year, each rider took an average of 25 trips, according to NCTD.
Donaghy said the service can also help more people to use other transit, due to the opportunities for connection to and from train and bus stations.
“Being able to get into those sort of landlocked pieces of the communities that are built around the 78 or built around some of our major corridors, I think is a huge win to those communities, to either get them to the Sprinter line, get them to a fixed route bus line, or just within San Marcos in general,” said Donaghy.
NCTD is also planning to launch the microtransit program in Fallbrook and Oceanside, although identifying funding for this service has been a challenge.
Councilmember María Nuñez said she receives numerous questions from residents about when the service will be expanded to other areas of San Marcos and about possibilities for making the fare more affordable, especially for senior citizens.
Donaghy said they always appreciate feedback about the microtransit program. Feedback can be provided by calling NCTD at (760) 966-6500.
When considering expanding the service in San Marcos, Tcholakova said they need to be mindful of wait times and avoid making them too long. Currently, riders can typically expect pickup within 30 minutes.
“We don’t want to expand it so much so that we impact the customer experience and then actually discourage people to use the service,” Tcholakova said.
For more information about NCTD+ in San Marcos and Vista, visit gonctd.com/services/nctdplus.
