VACAVILLE — A Solano County grand jury investigation of the Vacaville City Coach bus system, spurred by a perceived lack of ridership, produced a report released Thursday titled “A Good Ride” and stating that the system is working hard to promote ridership.
“City Coach has strong community outreach programs designed to inform the public of its services and to increase ridership,” the jury report states.
Grand jury members’ methods included using City Coach, reviewing a 2015 independent audit and interviewing the city manager.
Vacaville has operated a citywide bus system since 1981 and six routes plus paratransit services to residents with disabilities is now provided, the grand jury said in the report.
The Vacaville School District does not provide transportation for middle and high school students, the report said. Students account for the largest percentage of City Coach ridership, according to the jury.
Vacaville spokesman Mark Mazzaferro said Friday that, “We’re glad it was a positive report.”
“It validates all the great things City Coach is doing,” Mazzaferro said. “At the very least it shows how important the system is to schoolchildren.”
Federal and state funds provide 90 percent of the coach’s budget, the jury report noted, while the rest comes from the fare box, advertising and Clipper System, an electronic card for public transportation in the Bay Area.
The grand jury recommends Vacaville consider buying vans when replacing paratransit buses because they would reduce maintenance and operating costs.
May 28, 2016
Fairfield Daily Republic
By Ryan McCarthy
No comments:
Post a Comment