Bus service makes big plans

New bus routes on highways 99 and 70 to Sacramento, regional van pools and additional service to Live Oak and Wheatland could be in the offing for Yuba-Sutter Transit in the next 10 years.

The plan presented to the transit board of directors this week complies with new legislation mandating a long-term plan for all transit agencies.

"Nothing in this plan is guaranteed to occur," Transit Manager Keith Martin said, adding that funding, demographic changes and other factors force the transit agency to be flexible.

But the plan also reflects a reality of new residents who are likely to travel elsewhere for work, especially to the greater Sacramento area. Martin said ridership and population studies indicate residents aren't just headed to downtown Sacramento jobs anymore.

As a result, the agency may join a regional vanpool program that serves commuters to eastern Placer County, could serve Rancho Cordova and provide service as far away as the Vacaville/Fairfield area, he said.

The plan does not have a timeline for such service, but notes the expected increase in workers by 2018 in areas other than downtown Sacramento.

More routes between Yuba-Sutter and Sacramento are likely, however. By 2013, the long-range plan calls for two additional morning and afternoon routes to the capital on 99 and 70, though lack of funding could delay such a move.

When it happens, Plumas Lake resident Julie Parra said she'd welcome it. A retirement specialist with the California Public Employees' Retirement System in downtown Sacramento, she has become a regular Yuba-Sutter Transit rider since moving to the area in March.

"At first I thought I'd have to drive to commute," said Parra, 34. "The buses are on time, the drivers are friendly.

"It would be more convenient to have another afternoon bus in case I wanted to go home early sometimes," she said.

Other service upgrades will stay closer to home. Bus routes to Wheatland are recommended to expand to three days a week during the 2011-12 fiscal year, and expansion to three round trips to Live Oak is recommended for 2013-14.

Within the core Yuba City/Marysville market, there are recommendations for more trips on Route 4 during 2013-14, "lifeline" Sunday service on routes 1, 2 and 3 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in 2015-16, and extended evening service to 8:30 p.m. on weekdays for routes 1, 2 and 3 in 2017-18.

Service upgrades would come with higher fares. During the 2010-11 fiscal year, the base rate would go from $1 to $1.50, with only a 25-cent increase for seniors, disabled and student riders.

Sacramento routes would go from $3.50 to $4, and there would also be fare increases for riders from Live Oak, Wheatland and the Yuba County foothills in 2010-11.

Fares have not gone up since 1993, the report notes.

Martin said the transit agency has to balance service expansion and providing routes for new residents with the reality of many living in outlying areas, particularly in Yuba County.

"Those are a challenge because they're not really productive routes in the early years," he said. "The key is, when do you start services within your system?

"We've always been very conservative in our services. We try to grow from our core."

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Ben van der Meer at 749-4709 or bvandermeer@appealdemocrat.com.