GreenCab on pause: Company, council continue discussions over program
Company, council continue discussions over program
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Staff reports
Sunday, Dec. 31, will be the last day that people in Marietta will be able to obtain low-cost transportation through GreenCab.
GreenCab is a 10-year-old company that specializes in non-emergency transportation to medical appointments for Medicaid recipients.
This past January, the City of Marietta instituted a "Supplemental Transportation Pilot Program" to provide residents and visitors with an affordable, on-demand transportation option that would be available in the evenings and on weekends.
Marietta City Council passed Ordinance 180 (22-23), on an emergency measure on Jan. 5, authorizing the Director of Public Safety and Service to enter into a contract with 59 Green Ltd., doing business as GreenCab of Athens, for an On-Demand, After-Hours and Alternative-Hours Transportation Pilot Program for the City of Marietta in the amount of $122,496 for a six-month period from Jan. 6 through July 7, 2023, and appropriating American Rescue Plan Act Funds for the project.
The Pilot Program was originally scheduled to end in June, but had been extended due to its success. Council plans to continue communications with GreenCab in the new year as stated by City Development Director Geoff Schenkel.
According to Schenkel, the council's end goal is to get full funding to continue the GreenCab operation as it was earlier this year. Schenkel said council had actually approved better funding for GreenCab's services for 2024, but GreenCab is still hesitant. The problem is that the funding council is providing is "still not enough to cover the rest of the bill, essentially," said Schenkel.
"GreenCab is essentially working over-time," said Schenkel. "The demand for GreenCab's services far exceeds what people initially told City Council it would be. GreenCab has discontinued services while City Council figures out a way to utilize state and local resources to fully pay for the service."
Schenkel said the council received word from the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) encouraging them to "get our heads together and make this work." Schenkel also noted that ODOT was impressed with the program and praised its innovation.
"A new challenge with the new year," Schenkel said. "City Council is hoping to work towards a hybrid program that divides up schedules and funding between GreenCab, the county, and CABL (Community Action Bus Lines)."
Over the course of the program, GreenCab provided over 8,302 trips to more than 10,706 passengers. Peak ridership occurred in September with 1,161 passengers, and GreenCab has consistently maintained monthly ridership numbers at or above 1,000 passengers since early in the program. GreenCab has additionally provided over 100 voucher trips for local social service and medical organizations, and was able to assist the city with disaster relief by providing over 50 trips free of charge for residents of WinBeri apartments in the aftermath of the recent fire.
GreenCab envisions this pause, for sustainable business purposes, not an end to its low cost transportation endeavors in the region. The end goal is to craft a new and better program, no longer a pilot, with long term support, ideally to launch some time later in 2024. Meanwhile, GreenCab remains a provider of NEMT transportation in a seven county region. Interested medicaid recipients can contact the GreenCab office at 740-200-3500 to learn more.