Declining ridership in Sioux Falls public transportation has City Hall proposing millions of dollars for a hybrid transit system that includes fewer bus routes and more on demand services.

The Sioux Falls Planning and Development Services Department on Tuesday unveiled what’s being referred to as a transit development plan, outlining the city’s priorities and goals for the public transportation system, Sioux Area Metro (SAM).

Ridership data provided to the City Council shows that since 2012, the number of people using the bus system each day has declined steadily, falling off even more drastically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those numbers, while stable in 2021 and 2022, have not returned to pre-pandemic levels.

“When people kind of leave your system and have found different ways to get around, they need a reason to come back, and we need to give them a reason to come back,” said Sam Trebilcock, transportation planner for the city.

The proposed changes to the metro service include a hybrid model of both fixed bus routes and on demand services.

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