By Mary Owen
With gas topping $4 a gallon, the local bus system is bursting with new riders.
“We have been picking up regularly,” said Frank Brown, interim road supervisor for Chemeketa Area Regional Transportation System, also known as CARTS.
Brown said April statistics showed ridership up throughout CARTS’ service area by 18 percent, an amount he expects to jump another 3 percent with the next count.
“Fuel is a major part of the cause, but consistency of routes is another,” Brown said.
Oregon Housing and Associated Services’ Wheels Community Transportation program operates CARTS. The transportation system is a partnership between Marion, Polk and Yamhill counties to provide senior citizens, disabled, economically disadvantaged and other residents access to medical services, employment, educational, shopping and recreational opportunities.
Wheels designed and now operates a network of CARTS point-deviated, fixed routes in Marion and Polk counties that meet inter-regional connectivity needs. Dial-a-ride service is provided in many areas not currently serviced by the fixed routes. And CARTS connects with Salem’s Cherriots bus system, with service to and from the main bus terminal in downtown Salem.
“The whole system has grown,” Brown said. “The biggest growth in Marion County is to Gates and back.”
Brown said Santiam Canyon ridership has steadily increased since January. With growing gas prices and shrinking budgets, he expects numbers to continue to rise.
“Dispatch gets three or four calls a day for information,” he said.
CARTS buses operate Monday through Friday except for major holidays. Times vary per route, and schedules are posted online.
With better-established routes and demand for rides, gaps in service due to the scarcity of funding may join lower gas prices as a thing of the past, Brown said.
“Routes have been established for awhile and predictability helps riders feel good about using the bus,” he said. “There’s nothing more convenient than driving your own car, but this is the next best thing.”
For now, rides cost $1.50 each way per adult and $1 per child, disabled or seniors 60 and above. A day pass is $3 and $2, ticket books are $13.50 and $9, and monthly passes $45 and $30 respectively. Riders who buy monthly passes will break even at 15 rides, Brown said. Children under 5 ride free.
“Fares will possibly need to increase as well,” Brown said of a possible consequence of spiraling gas costs, even though less than 15 percent of operating costs are now covered by these fees. A non-profit entity, CARTS is mainly funded by government means. “That’s tax dollars at work,” he said.
Brown said the CARTS board will review costs and if a decision is made to increase fares, public hearings will be held.
Future options may also include adding flex bus service between Silverton and Stayton, “if there is ever a need,” Brown said.
With the possibility of additional routes, smaller buses, some with more than 300,000 miles on them, may get replaced with larger ones, he said.
Currently, CARTS runs buses between Salem and Dallas, Salem and Woodburn/Mt. Angel, and Salem and Santiam Canyon. Various routes stop at cities in between destinations. Stayton’s City Loop is a dial-a-ride service that operates 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with no service from noon to 1 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Sublimity and Stayton area residents needing transportation should call Wheels Community Transportation Dispatch Center, 503-585-5187 to reserve their trip at least 24-hours prior to the day and time they need to travel. Same day requests will be accommodated whenever possible.
For information on CARTS, contact OHAS/CARTS at 503-585-6193.
