The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCC 05-05-2026 Item No. 1 Study Session SV Hopper Update _Desk ItemCC - 05-05- 2026 #1 Study Session: SV Hopper Update Desk Item PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT CITY HALL 10300 TORRE AVENUE • CUPERTINO, CA 95014-3255 TELEPHONE: (408) 777-3354 • FAX: (408) 777-3333 CUPERTINO.GOV CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT SUPPLEMENTAL 1 Meeting: May 05, 2026 Agenda Item # 1 Subject Silicon Valley Hopper: A program overview and proposed strategy for future grant funding. Recommended Action Receive an update on 2025 SV Hopper service metrics and support staff’s proposal to pursue a Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) Cycle 8 application in coordination with partner agencies. Background: Councilmember questions focused on additional metrics related to the SV Hopper program. Questions requested additional performance data, including Cupertino-related trip activity, average riders per ride, trip length, key destinations, wait times, student utilization, vehicle utilization, and rider satisfaction. Staff’s responses to questions received from councilmember are shown in italics. Q1: Thanks for the clear table with the funding of SV hopper program since 2023. I wonder whether we can expand the table to include all of the funding by Cupertino since the beginning of the program, before and during Covid? Staff Response: The SV Hopper program originally launched as the Via-Cupertino pilot in 2019. The initial pilot was funded at $1.75 million through the General Fund for an 18-month period. Service was later paused for approximately nine months during the COVID-19 pandemic. Q2: The staff report states "For the program's ffrst three years, Cupertino covers 58% of these costs... Starting in FY 26/27, Cupertino will be responsible for 39% of the non- grant-funded costs." How is the coverage percentage calculated? Based on the ridership numbers or just geological area sizes? Staff response: This share is based on the area being served within each jurisdiction. For the ffrst three years of the program, Cupertino’s share was based on the portion of the service area located within Cupertino compared to the full Cupertino/Santa Clara service area. Beginning in FY 2026/27, Cupertino’s share decreased because the expanded service area includes a larger portion of Santa Clara, reducing Cupertino’s proportional share of costs. Q2-2: Any information on the number of rides originating from Cupertino? Staff response: Based on available trip data, approximately 60% of SV Hopper rides start and end in Cupertino. An additional 25% of rides either start or end in Cupertino. Q3: The staff report states "In 2025, SV Hopper’s cost per passenger, after accounting for TIRCP funding, was $15.91. This reifects the fact that TIRCP covers 50% of the contract costs". Does this mean the total cost is in fact almost $32 dollars per passenger? Staff response: That is correct. The total operating cost per passenger is approximately $32 before grant funding. The $15.91 cost per passenger cited in the staff report reifects Cupertino/Santa Clara’s cost after accounting for TIRCP grant funding, which covers approximately 50% of eligible contract costs. Q4: Thank for the information on the number of rides. I hope that more data is provided. For example, • What's the average riders per ride? • What's the average length per ride, with and without the rides to CalTran or El Camino Hospital? • What's the percentage of rides going to and from Caltrain, El Camino Hospital? What's the average wait time at different hours of the day? Staff response: The average Passengers per Loop is 1.4. Passengers per Loop measures the average number of passengers carried during the period between when a vehicle ffrst becomes occupied and when it becomes empty again. The average trip length is approximately 3 miles. Staff does not currently have the average trip length separated by speciffc destination types, such as Caltrain or El Camino Hospital. Isolating those trip destinations would require additional analysis. About 10% of all SV Hopper trips either start or end at Caltrain, and approximately 2% either start or end at El Camino Hospital. Average wait times vary by time of day, but the daily average wait time is 17 minutes. Q5: How's the utilization for K-12 school students? Staff response: A little over 50% of SV Hopper rider accounts are listed as student accounts, and riders must be at least 13 years old to ride alone. However, this category includes more than students ages 13-18 because De Anza College students are also eligible for the student discount. As a result, the available student account data provides a general indication of student use, but it does not allow staff to precisely determine the share of trips taken speciffcally by Cupertino students. Q6: How many vehicles are operated by SV Hopper to support this program now? Staff response: SV Hopper operates with 12 vehicles and 1 spare. Q7: It seems there are some larger passenger vans with maybe 18 seats too? How are they utilized? What's the ridership numbers with and without those large passenger vans? Staff response: SV Hopper does not operate 18-passenger vehicles. SV Hopper uses a mixed ifeet that includes wheelchair-accessible vehicles (WAVs), and the WAVs can seat 5 ambulatory riders and 1 wheelchair passenger. While staff can identify trips associated with ADA rider accounts, the wheelchair-accessible vehicles are also available to the general public and are not used exclusively for ADA trips. They are matched when needed for wheelchair rider accounts, but may also serve other trips when available. As a result, the current data does not provide a clean ridership comparison between larger passenger vehicles and the rest of the ifeet. Q8: As I remember, when we ffrst approved the Via program back in 2019 or 2020, we were told that the cost would be about $12 with 3.5 riders per ride? My memory might not be reliable. What's a potential sustainable model for SV Hopper? Staff response: In 2019, staff had informed Council that the target utilization rate would be 3.5 (average number of passengers per vehicle per hour). Cost per passenger was not projected; several potential funding models were presented to the Council, which considered total program costs and cost per vehicle-hour. The current SV Hopper program operates in a different cost environment from the original pilot, with a larger service area. The most sustainable path forward is likely a blended funding model. This would include continuing to pursue long-term grant funding, while also recognizing that some level of local General Fund contribution would be needed to maintain service over time. In addition, conversation with regional transportation agencies for operating this program should continue. Staff can also continue exploring supplemental revenue opportunities, including advertising and potential private-sector partnerships. However, based on preliminary discussions with Via, advertising revenue in other markets has generally provided only a limited offset to operating costs. Q8: Have we done any user survey for SV Hopper? (from the usability of the app, to the riding experience, to the elficiency) Staff response: Staff typically conducts an annual rider survey focused on demographics and general rider characteristics. The City has not conducted a separate user-experience survey speciffcally focused on app usability, ride experience, or service elficiency. However, the SV Hopper app does capture rider experience data through post-trip ratings. From December 2025 through April 30, 2026, SV Hopper received 20,436 bookings with rider ratings. Of those, 19,056 received a ffve-star rating. The average ride rating during this period was 4.9 out of 5. Q9: Other cities have also adopted their own micro transit program, such as Sunnyvale, Milpitas. What do they use and the cost? Perhaps, they have done some comparative study before they adopted their program and we can get a copy of their staff report? Staff response: Several nearby cities have adopted or are exploring microtransit programs, including Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, and Milpitas. Sunnyvale’s citywide program will launch later this fall, and detailed information on program management, operating costs, and performance is not yet available. Attachments Provided with Original Staff Report: A. 2025 Completed Trips Map