Not only are the buses smaller, but the fares have shrunk,
too.
Morgan Hill – Not only are the buses smaller, but the fares have shrunk, too.
The Valley Transportation Authority launched its community bus service Monday in South County, placing smaller, cheaper-to-ride buses on six local routes in Morgan Hill and Gilroy.
Adult riders pay $1 at the fare box and seniors and children pay 50 cents. Fares on regular VTA buses, such as routes 68 and 121, remain $1.75 for adults, $1.50 for children 5 to 17 and 75 cents for seniors 65 and older. In Gilroy, the VTA is introducing community bus service on lines 14, 17, 18 and 19. Line 18 replaces the former southern tip of line 68 and will operate between the Gilroy Transit Center and Gavilan College.
Line 68 will continue to take South County riders from the Gilroy Transit Center to San Jose Diridon Station, seven days a week.
It also serves Gilroy High School. Line 14 operates between the Gilroy Transit Center and the Gilroy Crossings shopping area, formerly served by line 17.
The agency launched the smaller busses after months of planning and a two-year pilot program in Los Gatos. VTA officials hope to streamline costs and make route-planning more flexible with the smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.
