While its name may claim it’s on demand, residents of West Niagara say the regional transit operations in the area are anything but as the service is struggling to keep up with the increase in demand.

Beamsville resident Kaleb Brown uses Niagara Region Transit (NRT) OnDemand to get to doctor and physiotherapy appointments, as well as to run errands in town.

“The only transit we have is NRT, which needs a lot of tweaking to be decent,” he said. “I am disabled and rely on (it).”

As part of the region’s consolidated public transit system, NRT OnDemand is a shared-ride pilot project in Grimsby, Lincoln, Pelham, Wainfleet and West Lincoln. Riders can request trips through the mobile app or by phone to travel within their municipalities or surrounding municipalities from Monday to Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Speaking to Grimsby Lincoln News, Niagara Transit Commission general manager Carla Stout said a “slow down” in services across the on-demand platform occurred in February and March. This was due to “an asset exchange delay experienced by the contractor” and caused challenges with their provider in putting new vehicles on the road in a timely manner.

While its name may claim it’s on demand, residents of West Niagara say the regional transit operations in the area are anything but as the service is struggling to keep up with the increase in demand.

Beamsville resident Kaleb Brown uses Niagara Region Transit (NRT) OnDemand to get to doctor and physiotherapy appointments, as well as to run errands in town.

“The only transit we have is NRT, which needs a lot of tweaking to be decent,” he said. “I am disabled and rely on (it).”

As part of the region’s consolidated public transit system, NRT OnDemand is a shared-ride pilot project in Grimsby, Lincoln, Pelham, Wainfleet and West Lincoln. Riders can request trips through the mobile app or by phone to travel within their municipalities or surrounding municipalities from Monday to Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Speaking to Grimsby Lincoln News, Niagara Transit Commission general manager Carla Stout said a “slow down” in services across the on-demand platform occurred in February and March. This was due to “an asset exchange delay experienced by the contractor” and caused challenges with their provider in putting new vehicles on the road in a timely manner.

“That issue has been completely addressed and we expect no more problems in that regard,” she said. “Our contractor is held to their terms of the agreement, and we do not expect any further issues in meeting our Niagarans’ expectations.”

For Brown, it’s been more than just an inconvenience. He’s also suffered financially. Several last-minute cancellations and 45-minute delays caused him to miss doctor appointments, resulting in him having to pay cancellation fees.

Brown said he is thankful for the independence the NRT has given him, but “it needs to be better.”

PSW and personal support person Heather Boudreau said her clients who are older adults struggle with using the NRT OnDemand and are suspicious of putting their credit card information on the app.

“They just want to walk through town and do shopping, and you can’t pre-book (with short notice) per se,” Boudreau said. “And they’ve got to wait two to four hours (for another car).”

A lack of reliable and unco-ordinated transit in the region is a “disappointment,” added Grimsby resident Patti Kirby.

“My daughter spends close to four hours a day commuting back and forth from Grimsby to Niagara College. Every day she has to roll with whatever happens because she has no other option,” Kirby said.

She’s jokingly renamed the service “Not Reliable Transit,” as she says it’s left her daughter never quite sure what time she will arrive at her campus.

According to Kirby, there have been multiple last-minute cancellations due to the high volume of calls, even though the pre-booking had been done two days before.

Kirby said she has shared her concerns through the NRT app and emails to her regional councillor.

“I support transit in the region that is reliable and meaningful. That’s not what we have, and I have no faith that that’s what’s coming,” Kirby said. “I am concerned about what we are paying now and what we will pay down the line for transit.”

Elaine Douglas-Rioux said the NRT OnDemand service was great at the beginning, with enough drivers and reasonable wait times, but the Beamsville resident said it can now take up to an hour to get a vehicle.

“You never know if they are going to come to get you or not. I have been left stranded a couple of times,” said Douglas-Rioux.

Stout encourages any transit users who have a negative experience, either with a driver or with a trip, to contact NRT’s customer service.

“We can’t fix what we don’t know,” she said. “When we have had an issue, or if we have issues with our contractors, we’ve always found them to be very responsive to us ... So if people are having a problem, particularly with the app, and they need that extra level of special care, they can always reach out to us as well.”

As for an expansion or improvement of the NRT services, Stout said standards adopted by the regional council and by the new commission will be added to service levels across Niagara during the next two years, including on-demand hours of service and specialized transit.

“As our new NRT is very immature, we are working with all our contractors of specialized and on-demand services in many municipalities to ensure they meet the high standards of Niagara riders,” Stout said. “We regret any inconvenience to our riders that our contractor’s challenges may have caused in accessing our services.”

STORY BEHIND THE STORY — After hearing from several West Niagara residents about concerns with the regional transit service, reporter Beatriz Baleeiro wanted to find out what exactly the problems were and whether anything was being done to address it by the operator.

Beatriz Baleeiro, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Grimsby Lincoln News