TRC celebrates launch of Kitsap Transit’s commingled on-demand and paratransit bus service on Bainbridge Island
January 17, 2024 – New York, New York, USA: The Routing Company (“TRC”), a global on-demand vehicle routing and management platform partnering with cities to power the future of public transit, today celebrated the Kitsap Transit (“KT”) launch of commingled on-demand and paratransit service – powered by TRC’s Ride Pingo app – on Bainbridge Island.
The service was first announced by TRC in September, when KT announced its additional 5 year contract with TRC to extend on-demand transit to expanded areas of Kitsap County.
KT is the transit agency in Kitsap County, Washington, part of the Puget Sound region. TRC has been serving KT with on-demand transit for over two years, having moved over 58,000 passengers through KT’s Pingo-powered “BI Ride” service on Bainbridge Island.
Commingled transit services (meaning vehicles are used for both paratransit and regular on-demand services at the same time) were launched by KT in early December, first starting on weekends. The new deployment is part of KT’s plan to introduce on-demand and flexible services across four new zones in Kitsap County. The launch of weekend commingled service on Bainbridge Island follows the first expansion of on-demand services in Bremerton, as part of the reintroduction of Sunday transit service.
TRC is supporting KT’s on-demand transit needs with its full suite of Pingo products – including flexible on-demand stops using Pingo Flex™ and allowing riders to see fixed route bus times with Pingo Journey™.
"Kitsap was our first US customer and is a trendsetter and hugely innovative transit agency. The launch of commingled service in Bremerton and on Bainbridge Island is an exciting milestone for many reasons,” said James Cox, Chief Executive Officer, TRC. “It expands access to transit for so many, and does so with incredible efficiency for both the operator and the rider. Further, it is a point of celebration of our long-standing relationship with Kitsap Transit, with whom we have innovated our products to become better and with whom we have expanded to four active services: on-demand, flex, paratransit, and dial-a-ride.”
Pingo Journey™ is a multimodal journey planning feature integrating TRC’s real-time routing technology with public transport infrastructure. Using Pingo Journey™, riders can book on-demand rides and plan their ongoing fixed-route journeys from the single Ride Pingo™ app.
Pingo Flex™ provides greater flexibility for traditionally fixed transit routes. Operators get more out of existing services by keeping scheduled stops, while adding on-demand elements to improve service responsiveness in high density or intermittently peak demand routes.
TRC recently released new Pingo data that shows operators can regularly fill 18-person shuttles with on-demand service. TRC has proven it can deliver a higher utilization of vehicles compared to industry competitors, meaning more riders per vehicle per hour – in turn meaning maximized ride pooling to reduce single occupancy trips.
TRC’s award-winning Pingo platform includes the Drive Pingo™ and Ride Pingo™ apps and the Pingo Dashboard™ operations management tool, which together provide on-demand, paratransit, fixed, shuttle, and flexible transit that enhances ridership of existing transit networks.
About TRC
Founded by MIT researchers and rideshare industry veterans, TRC is a global on-demand vehicle routing and management platform that partners with cities to power the future of public transit. Leveraging proprietary and unrivalled artificial intelligence, TRC delivers routing from multiple points of demand to one vehicle while enabling greater transit equity, accessibility, cost efficiency, and sustainability. Its leading product, the Pingo™ app, offers on-demand or advance trip requests and can operate in on-demand, flex, fixed, or paratransit mode.
With a team spanning ten countries, TRC directly supports international operations and customer growth through hubs in Brazil, Canada, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Learn more at theroutingcompany.com.
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Lindy Norris
Vice President, Marketing & Policy
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James Cox
Chief Executive Officer
