(Office of the Governor) — New transport data released by the Commonwealth Office of Transit Authority shows a significant percentage increase of 75.6% from 2019 to 2020 in its transport trips of their demand responsive shared ride service and all Covid-19 transport needs.
COTA’s trip report data, which provides transport trip information from 2019 and 2020, indicates the total number of trips in 2019 was 11,446. In 2020, the total number of trips jumped to 20,105.
“We are extremely pleased to see this new data prove that a state transit system, in partnership with other government agencies and the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force, can modernize and improve the ridership opportunities to better meet the needs of the communities we serve,” said Special Assistant for Public Transportation Alfreda PC Maratita.
Since the beginning of the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force’s quarantine mission assignment in March 2020, COTA has been activated to safely transport Saipan in-bound travelers to the designated quarantine facility sites. This includes persons under investigation and individuals who need to be released after the quarantine stay has been satisfied.
Throughout the response, COTA has made notable strides of expanding their days and hours of operations from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays (Monday-Friday) and 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Saturday-Sunday and holidays). COTA also began providing free Wi-Fi service on all transit fleet and broke ground of the future maintenance facility and administrative building to be located in Lower Base, Saipan.
“COTA continues its momentum this new year with our best foot forward as we continue our efforts towards implementing a comprehensive public transportation system for the CNMI. We welcome more riders to utilize COTA as an alternate transportation option to get around in our community,” said Special Assistant Maratita.
Gov. Ralph DLG Torres said COTA has gone above and beyond in 2020.
“Our COTA bus drivers, staff, and planners really went beyond the call of duty this last year by being an important part of our Covid-19 Task Force, safely transporting our passengers to our quarantine sites. On top of that, they still maintained their regular services and laid the groundwork for their new building for additional services in the future. Lt. Governor Palacios and I look forward to more excellent work from Alfreda and her team in 2021,” said Governor Torres.
