The Greater Des Moines Partnership recently hosted a Nov. 20 meeting of its Transit Future Work Group that featured officials from Grand Rapids, Mich., a metro area of nearly 1 million. 

The city’s bus service, the Rapid, had a route running along Michigan Avenue that had been a low performer. That changed when the city teamed with Spectrum Health, which had been having difficulty getting its workers in and out of the complex.

The answer? The city and Spectrum teamed up to offer a revamped and free Route 19. Businesses along the route began offering discounts on products. 

Ridership jumped from 54 trips a day to 1,100 — which exceeded projections by 300 riders. 

The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority, or DART, has been partnering more with businesses, recently adding the Wittern Group to a route to promote ridership among employees, and extending a route to serve a West Des Moines apartment complex. Other changes were meant to make it easier to get to businesses in and around Valley West Mall and Jordan Creek Town Center.