SALT LAKE CITY — When a FOX 13 viewer shared an issue he's been having with the UTA on Demand service, we reached out to learn more about his experiences and found that the Utah Transit Authority has heard similar concerns in the past.
Adam Danos has a long commute ahead of him when he sets out to work each day.
“I’m on the autism spectrum and it does come with challenges,” he shared.
We followed Adam on his route to work, which started at the Central Pointe Station in South Salt Lake.
“Every time I book a ride, they’re early sometimes on pickups,” Danos explained.
And if Adam's not ready within a few minutes of that early arrival, he says the ride gets canceled and he has to start all over. It recently created a big issue for him.
“I had to wait like an hour for a UTA on Demand driver, and I was an hour late to work.”
Major portion of TRAX service in Salt Lake City closing for almost 3 months:
Over the years, Danos said he has experienced some challenges with the service that serves as a low-cost shared-ride service to link riders to TRAX or FrontRunner
“When I get those inaccurate pick-ups and drivers are going over the speed limit, it gets me a little frustrated,” said Adam.
But Adam isn’t the only one frustrated with the service. Others have complained about inaccurate pick-up and drop-off locations, as well as long wait times.
“On Demand is not perfect,” admitted UTA spokesperson Gavin Gustafson.
“UTA on Demand is not a car service, it’s not a taxi, it’s not an Uber, it’s not a Lyft.”
Introduced in 2019, the service helps in neighborhoods without strong route services, like the western areas of Salt Lake City, Utah on Demand service is $2.50 per ride and is sometimes cheaper than that.
Gustafason added that the service is designed to get people to and from their nearest bus or TRAX stop, and is not to be used as a full ride service.
“It’s been incredibly popular," said Gustafson. "So much so, wait times can be a problem.”
As for Adam, he’ll continue to use UTA on Demand, but he hopes to see improvements, especially for people like him.
“Yes, UTA on Demand is a good, attractive price, but Uber and Lyft are more expensive," he explained. "A lot of people are on fixed incomes. Not a lot of people can afford rides.”
