Resident:
Vernon Fisher, Northeast Oklahoma City
Context: For Fisher, the hassle of waking up three hours early to make sure he caught his bus to work became too much and he stopped relying on public transit. Fisher said the extra time needed to catch a bus is a burden on those living in low-income neighborhoods who can’t afford a car and are trying to raise a family.
Response:
Michael Scroggins, Embark Spokesman
Context: Scroggins said Oklahoma City needs to expand its public transportation system to grow the economy and help provide more job opportunities to low-income residents. The city just launched a pilot program to run two bus routes until about midnight. Most routes end by 7:30 p.m. on weekdays. Expanding the two routes is expected to cost $1.2 million annually. The city plans to add more late-night routes as funding becomes available. In recent years, Oklahoma City has had among the lowest bus hours per mile among peer cities.
A Deeper Look:
Transit Times, by City
Compare Oklahoma City’s hours and days of operation of transit service (bus) with those of other cities. Click on each card to reveal more information.
Data from the transit agency for each respective city