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Halifax Transit had a problem arriving on time this summer: report

FILE - The latest figures indicate that only 73 per cent of Halifax Transit’s fleet arrived on time. Lee Brown/The Canadian Press

The latest data released by Halifax Transit indicates that this summer was not kind to Haligonians hoping for their buses to be on time.

The numbers are part of a memo on transit performance for the second quarter of 2017/2018 fiscal year (July 1 to August 31) that’s heading to Halifax Regional Council on Tuesday.

READ MORE: Halifax Transit ridership down even as it plans for transit-focused future

The figures indicate that only 73 per cent of Halifax Transit’s fleet arrived on time — which is when a bus arrives between one minute early or three minutes later than the schedule states.

According to Halifax Transit, industry standards for on-time performance are supposed to range between 85 and 90 per cent.

That’s a decrease from the 77 per cent in the first quarter of the year.

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Peak performance

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Route 1, which services the peninsula’s highest traffic area was by far the worst offender.

Throughout the day, the bus was late 40 per cent of the time and during rush hour, that figure increased to 53 per cent.

In fact, transit performance was worse for nearly all routes during rush hours, with three routes, including route 1, having their vehicles arrive late more than 50 per cent of the time.

But Halifax Transit says there are reasons that transit performance was so poor.

The daily closure of St. Margarets Bay Road required several detours for commuters and bus routes, thereby congesting roadways and delaying buses.

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Certain routes did do well though, with Route 56 only being late five per cent of the time during service. The figure barely budged during peak times either with the route only being late six per cent of the time during rush hour.

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Route changes came into effect in the municipality in August and November, so only time will tell if they have an effect on arrival times.

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