Auburn launches new Confluence bus route

People who can't find parking in the Auburn State Recreation Area this weekend will have a new option to access the Confluence area, as the city of Auburn is launching a weekend bus route. The bus route, which now runs Friday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., will make six stops along popular spots in Auburn, with flexibility as well. "We want people to know that this is a very flexible route," said Mengil Deane, transit manager for the city of Auburn. "We are trying to reduce seat time for passengers." The stops include the Confluence, Joe Elders Station in Downtown Auburn, Old Town Auburn (adjacent to the historical fire station), Springhill Suites by Marriott on Bowman Road, Holiday Inn Auburn on Highway 49 and the Gold Country Fairgrounds parking lot (on request). The cost to ride is $3.50 round trip, with children, seniors and disabled $1.75. "We are encouraging people to go to one of the city-owned parking lots and the bus can pick people up at any of those locations," Deane said. Deane said if a bus stop isn't close enough to walk to, people can park in a city lot and call 530-906-2118 to be picked up. City parking lots include the jury lot on Auburn Folsom Road near Old Town Auburn, behind City Hall, Nevada Street train station, Downtown Auburn on East Placer Street, at Lincoln Way and Cleveland Avenue and at Cherry and Magnolia avenues. The route is a two-year pilot program the city council unanimously approved Monday and is designed to have the city recoup its costs and make 10 percent. "We anticipate that there will be more folks down at the Confluence this year because people just want to get out," Deane said. "So, we think this service is going to take right off." While improving access to the Confluence is a definite plus to the route, it isn't the only advantage for the city. "We want to provide this to the hotels as a chance for economic development," Deane said. "We want to bring visitors into our business districts." City Manager John Donlevy said the city was only recovering 4 percent of the cost of the current Auburn Transit system. Deane and Donlevy have been looking for ways to change how the city delivers transportation options to its residents. "We can see that transit isn't working because ridership is going down and the cost of transit services is going up," Deane said. Deane unveiled another new pilot to create on-demand busing – a program to mimic Uber or Lyft – slated to begin July 1. "The transit bus will pick you up and if there are others headed in a similar direction, they will be picked up, too," Deane said. While details are being worked on, Deane said this will cut transit expenses of running a route over and over again. The cost to ride will be set at $3.50, he said. "We looked at the city of West Sacramento and rural areas to see what they are doing," Deane said. "They are reimagining what transit is, and this is an opportunity for Auburn to do the same thing." Donlevy said he wants to create a system for people who want to go out to be able to use transit – to enjoy shopping or dining anywhere in Auburn. "This will blow up into a positive experience for everybody," Donlevy said. "This will be an opportunity for us to revolutionize transit."