Salem Skipper Delivers 34K Rides In First Full Year

SALEM, MA — More than 2,000 different city residents took a ride on the Salem Skipper during the municipal ride-sharing service's first full year of operation, according to the city.

The city released statistics on the one-year anniversary of the minibus service on Thursday that said the Skipper took 34,211 overall trips in the past 12 months with a peak service of 1,320 rides per week and 247 rides per day.

There were 2,200 different unique users on the Skipper with about 1,022 residents using the service frequently with at least five trips.

The city said the service saved about 18,261 in passenger vehicle miles from Salem roads and about 16,585 in carbon dioxide emissions.

The Skipper acts like other commercial ride-share plans except that it is city-based and used a mini-bus that can carry multiple people to different destinations at the same time. Up to three passengers were allowed at any one time at the outset of the program with the Skipper service consisting of four mini-buses.

The city said the average wait time in the first year was 14.8 minutes between requesting a ride and it arriving. It said 89 percent of Skipper rides arrived within five minutes of a scheduled pickup time.

The Skipper completed an average of 3.1 rides per hour during operating hours.

Officials said at the launch of the Skipper last December that they hoped it could help Salem become a "car-light" community.

The Salem Skipper app is available on iPhone and Android devices, and the service can be reached at 844-983-1842. Riders enter a desired pickup and drop-off address to book a ride and will receive vehicle information and an estimated pickup time and location.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)