Dial-a-Ride Bus Service Approved

Responding to requests from numerous Camarillo residents, the City Council has approved an agreement with a transit provider to operate a new dial-a-ride bus service throughout the city.

But the new contract will not abandon the fixed-route system that has Camarillo Area Transit buses cruising the city on a timed schedule.

Instead, the new agreement calls for Laidlaw Transit Services, the current provider, to scale back its fixed-route system and divert the extra buses to dial-a-ride service, which has proven more popular with bus riders.

The $351,502 contract also expands the hours of operation, from the current 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. schedule to 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. Saturday service will remain 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. even after the new contract goes into effect on Jan. 6.

“Due to the concentration of ridership from Leisure Village, the transit study recommended that one of the dial-a-ride vehicles serve the village as a subscription service,” traffic engineer Tom Fox told council members in his report. “In essence, the bus will serve the village each hour and follow a fixed route throughout the city.”

The remaining three Camarillo Area Transit buses will operate on dial-a-ride schedules.

One other transit service bid on the contract. But that firm, Santa Barbara Transit, bid more than $50,000 over Laidlaw’s price.