The Wichita City Council has approved free transit service on Saturdays through the end of June.
The city saw a 45% drop in riders, due to the stay at home order, and because those with limited funds could not afford transportation. The city says ridership numbers rebounded some when the city provided free rides the last two Saturdays.
In light of the continued coronavirus concerns, Transit Director Mike Tann was asked what steps his department was taking to clean the buses. "Our buses are disinfected every night when they come in. They are also disinfected at the transit center, when they come in between their trips," the Director said.
In addition, all city buses get a deep cleaning on the weekend.
The city is also looking to possibly expand the service to one day during the work week. The free rides will be paid for with funding from the federal government's CARES Act.
We also heard from Visit Wichita, the city's convention and visitor's bureau. They report that January and February 2020 started strong, but thanks to COVID-19, they estimate a decrease of 58% in hotel room night stays for the rest of the year.
Their 2021 budget will be determined later this year, given the current uncertainty of the coronavirus impacts and recovery timeline.
Visit Wichita's budget is generated from a 2.75% nightly hotel room fee within the city limits.
The city council approved $100 thousand for their annual water conservation rebate program. Those rebates, in the form of water bill credits, are meant to encourage customers to install water efficient devices and appliances. The city says it helps save over 42 million gallons of water and $154,000 annually. The program was established in 2013.
Finally, look for construction in west Wichita. The city will be improving West Street to a five-lane roadway between Kellogg and Harry. It will include a center, two-way left-turn lane, and storm water improvements, along with other changes. The revised price tag for the project will be $6.05 million.
