VRE experiences steep cost of record ridership

By URIAH A. KISER
Published: October 14, 2008

As gas prices continue their decline, the number of people using pubic transportation is rising.

Virginia Railway Express carried nearly one million passenger trips in the last three months, which is nearly 114,000 more trips than the same time last year, according to Mark Roeber, VRE spokesman.

Roeber said that if ridership continues to grow as VRE predicts, the system could potentially carry four million passenger trips by June.

That would be a first for the commuter railroad.

“I think people today rely on VRE far more than in past years because it’s a viable alternative to the car and our performance is such that people are very confident in the riding experience once they try us,” said Dale Zehner, chief executive officer for VRE.

VRE attributes the record numbers to better on-time performance, fewer issues and delays caused by Amtrak and freight railroads, which use the same tracks, and the addition of 61 new railcars.

But despite the good news, VRE is still struggling to find a way to pay for it all.

VRE’s operations board will hear a proposal to raise fares a maximum of 15 percent at a scheduled meeting Friday.

Roeber said the system had a major set back when the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority lost its ability to levy taxes for transportation.

VRE was expecting at least $25 million for the purchase of 10 new locomotives.

The railway said projected fuel and maintenance costs have risen more than $1 million in the past year.

On OmniRide commuter buses ridership has also increased, by 30 percent.

The buses carried more than 560,000 commuters, an average of nearly 8,955 per day, said Christine Rodrigo, spokeswoman for the Potomac Rappahannock Transportation Commission.

PRTC, the board which operates both OmniRide and VRE, set an OmniRide ridership record on Sept. 9, with nearly 10,000 passengers, the most ever in a single day.

“We saw higher rates of ridership growth in July through September than we did in the spring when gasoline prices were setting record highs nearly every day,” said Alfred Harf, PRTC’s executive director.

OmniLink local bus service has seen its ridership increase by 9 percent.

Those buses carried an average of 4,268 passengers per day in Dale City, the Dumfries area, Manassas, Manassas Park and the Woodbridge area, said Rodrigo.

In efforts to combat the crowding, the system added 10 additional trips on existing bus routes.

OmniRide also plans to add five new buses by November, with three of them already in the shop being prepped to run, said Rodrigo.

The cost of adding the additional buses and service, however, still leaves the system in dire straits.

PRTC’s Board of Commissioners will consider a possible 18 percent fare increase at their Nov. 6 meeting.

Local politicians praised the record ridership announcements.

“When we envisioned VRE, this is exactly what we thought we could do to help our communities have viable transportation options,” said Prince William Supervisor John Jenkins, R-Neabsco. “We are proof positive that when you put a great product out there, people will embrace it.”

Jenkins also serves as VRE’s board chairman.

VRE runs 30 trains on two lines, from Fredericksburg and Manassas, to and from Washington, D.C.

Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-878-8065.