BENTONVILLE — Big changes are under way to make Ozark Regional Transit more efficient, its director told City Council members Tuesday.

Director Joel Gardner said he’s working to make sure buses arrive where they are supposed to be when they are supposed to be there. Gardner was hired as the transportation provider's director in September after his predecessor, Phil Pumphrey, was reassigned in the wake of a failed sales tax measure.

Bentonville pays $123,000 a year to Ozark Regional Transit, money that Gardner says is now being "well invested."

"The board knew we needed to move in a different direction," said Debi Havner, Bentonville’s representative on the transit board. "With Joel's guidance, we've already seen a marked difference."

Gardner said the provider must attract what he called "choice riders," users of alternative transportation that ride the bus because they want to — not because they have to. To do that, the system must make strides in its on-time delivery.

"We will be there within minutes of when we're supposed to be there," he said. "Late is not an option anymore."

One of the ways the service is making better time is by stopping at the edge of parking lots instead of driving up to the doors of grocery stores and Walmart stores, avoiding gridlock in the parking aisles.

Cost-saving measures have come through ending Saturday service and only offering front-door paratransit service to people qualified for it through the Americans With Disabilities Act.

"Those that are not qualified can use the fixed route," Gardner said.

Bentonville has one of the largest numbers of paratransit users, with 22 to 25 calls day, Gardner said. The vehicles have a special lift to help the rider into the car that takes about three to five minutes to use.

The money the transit group is saving by canceling Saturday service is going to add three trips between Fayetteville and NorthWest Arkansas Community College, as well as adding runs within area cities.

Gardner said he would like to see a bus route running counter-clockwise in Bentonville to help with route times. He said he recently rode the bus with a family traveling to Walmart in Bentonville. It took 40 minutes to get to the store and 10 minutes to get home because of the circular, one-bus system.

Alderwoman Mary Baggett said she was happy to see renewed enthusiasm at Ozark Regional Transit.

"For some, the service is absolutely crucial," she said.

Council members also heard annual reports from the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Parks and Recreation Department. Kalene Griffith, director of the bureau, said its goal is to bring in "new dollars" from visitors living 50 miles or more from Bentonville.

Some successes for 2012 include more than $13 million worth of free editorial content in national and international publications, much of it stemming from Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the city’s burgeoning dining scene, she said.

The number of bus tours coming to Bentonville skyrocketed from 15 in 2011 to more than 100 last year, she said. Taxes from lodging and dining establishments were up 13 percent from 2011 to 2012.

The Parks and Recreation Department also reported continued growth. The department brought in $665,810 from recreation programs, events and facility use. The Melvin Ford Aquatic Center had a record-breaking $109,172 year, said David Wright, parks and recreation director.

"The programs we're offering really do pay for themselves," he said.

Wright said the item he was most pleased with was more than 41,000 hours donated to the department by volunteers. He valued those hours at $880,000 and the equivalent of hiring 20 additional staff members.

"I'm thankful that we have the volunteer base that we have in our community," he said.

The department also instituted a safety checklist this year, where staff go and "put eyes" on every park and every bathroom in the city at least once a week. Wright said the first inspection alone turned up hundreds of work reports.

"If we've prevented on injury, we've done our job," Wright said.