Summit Stage will soon be rolling out a bus route from Breckenridge to Alma and Fairplay in neighboring Park County, part of an emerging five-year operations plan that could significantly change the free bus system's routes for the first time in years.
Summit Stage, which is run by the county government, is still in talks with officials in Park and Summit counties but has secured preliminary financial commitments from the jurisdictions involved, operations manager Geoff Guthrie said.
Transportation officials have mulled the idea of a commuter line into Park County for years, and a recent rider survey showed that the idea is highly popular with riders, the majority of whom are full-time locals that use the bus to commute.
The cost of purchasing a bus has presented the biggest obstacle. But the Colorado Department of Transportation is now prepared to donate a bus for the route, clearing the way for the new route as soon as the late summer.
Sixty-two percent of Summit Stage riders are locals, and 44 percent ride the bus almost every day, according to the latest rider survey. Serving that core ridership is one of the system's top priorities, Guthrie said. But it's also important to start reaching people who drive their own cars because it's faster and more convenient.
"We need to attract the single-occupancy vehicle people who can afford their own car and can afford that drive to work," Guthrie said. " So if they hop on the bus instead, we can reduce congestion all around. The challenge is making it convenient enough so that people will actually do that."
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