Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox Demonstration: Pierce Transit Limited Access Connections, Evaluation Report

This report presents the results of an independent evaluation of the Pierce Transit Limited Access Connections Demonstration project, part of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox program. In this MOD Sandbox project, Pierce County Public Transportation Benefit Area Corporation (Pierce Transit), in partnership with Sound Transit and Lyft, implemented a first/last-mile system to provide access to rail stations and other destinations of interest within the Tacoma, Washington, metropolitan region. The one-year demonstration period began May 2018 and was extended seven months to the end of 2019, delivering 10,825 trips to 330 different users. The project increased transit use among users and reduced net vehicle miles traveled (VMT); however, it did not result in increased transit ridership overall. The service reduced parking lot use and travel and wait times for users. In addition, the project provided service to a local college, Pierce College Puyallup, which improved the perception of transit service quality and enabled greater mobility security through a guaranteed ride home. It also produced a number of lessons learned related to deployment regarding approaches to marketing, contracting, and cost management and operator negotiations