Arriving at your transfer transit station during your commute home at the end of a long day only to see your connecting bus take off seconds before you reach it is enough to make anyone foreswear the common man’s chariot and climb into a personal automobile.

Missed connections are just one of the problems with Edmonton Transit Service identified by the Transit Rider’s Union of Edmonton (TRUE) in their recently released ETS Growth Strategy Shadow Report.

The document comes out in advance of a city report on ways to expand Edmonton’s public transit system and attract new riders. “One of our main goals,” says TRUE spokesperson Brian Gould, “is to bring forward the transit riders’ perspective to make sure that their experiences and opinions are being heard.”

The current public transit system avoids transfers because a lack of frequent service makes getting your connection difficult, he says. That results in bus routes that meander though neighbourhoods, increasing the length of bus trips.

The TRUE report recommends shorter, more direct routes that carry lots of people quickly, especially on the main routes such as the 1 West Edmonton Mall and the 12 Northgate.

City council employed ENTRA Consultants to look at ways that ETS can attract more public transit riders. Their main recommendations include a maximum waiting period of 30 minutes between buses during the day and more bus routes to industrial areas.

ENTRA cautioned city administrators that Edmonton’s low population will necessitate a higher level of investment in order to achieve the results seen in other cities.

The TRUE report also cautions city council that an expanded system should not automatically mean expanded fares. “The fares are way too high for the transit system we have,” notes TRUE member Fraser Pick in the report. “Maybe if the system itself was open later and [was] more efficient, it would justify the high prices.”

Around-the-clock transit service is one of the group’s major goals. In January they led a campaign to get ETS to provide late-night service, especially in high-traffic areas like Whyte Avenue.

Contrary to TRUE’s recommendations, ENTRA recommends only a slightly earlier start time (5:30 a.m.) and finish time (2 a.m.).

ENTRA also recommends rerouting buses in the south to serve LRT stations, a position TRUE says “risks continuing the tradition of Band-Aid solutions.”

The official ENTRA report will be presented at the July 3 transportation committee meeting of city council.