Ann Arbor Transit Service Standards Update
Project Overview
In 2022 Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority’s (AAATA) Board of Directors approved TheRide 2045, a long-term vision and strategy for transit, focusing on improving social equity and economic, social, and environmental vitality. TheRide 2045 laid out key goals for the system, such as expanding transit service through increasing service frequency and overnight service, improving access, and reducing commute times. Also in 2022, voters approved a five-year millage for transit that will help preserve existing services levels and enable AAATA to implement the first five-years of TheRide 2045.
Core Services Performed:
- Public Input Collection & Management
- Stakeholder Coordination & Engagement
- Graphic Design
- Strategic Communications
Client: Pittsburgh Regional Transit
Prime: Nelson Nygaard
Timeline: 2022 – 2025
Research
As part of TheRide 2045 AAATA contracted Nelson Nygaard and EHI to review and revise service standards and policies for all modes of service currently operated or which will be operated in the near future. These service standards determine how system resources will be allocated and must ensure that any newly developed methods of resource allocation afford equitable access to all users.
The development of the revised service standards included an examination of the effectiveness of current AAATA service standards, a review of industry best practices, and reviews of peer standards. Our team then analyzed these reviews to develop recommendations for the revised standards. We then developed a one page website that explained the recommendations and that we utilized to collect public feedback.
Report Writing
The final step in this project was completed in late 2025 and included the incorporation of public and client comments into the recommendations provided and development of the final documents. The final documents will included the final revised service standards, a technical report outlining the development process, and recommendations for how the service standards can be applied and used by AAATA.