The North Central Regional Transit District’s (NCRTD) RTD Blue Bus will begin a contracted pilot bus transit service on Dec. 17. The route will operate two days a week on Tuesday and Thursday between Holman in Mora County, N.M., and the City of Las Vegas in San Miguel County.
The new service was requested by Mora County and will begin as a 10-month pilot program. Mora County will finance 50 percent of the operating costs. Strategic financial partners to Mora County on this venture are the city of Las Vegas, Highlands University and Luna Community College. The remaining 50 percent will be funded by federal 5311 funding grants allocated to NCRTD.
Fare-free service on the #810 Mora route will begin with two roundtrips per day on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There will be 11 regular stops along the route including the Holman and Mora post offices, Cleveland Fire Station, Mora Valley Health Services, Sapello, Las Vegas Walmart, Alta Vista Hospital, Luna Community College, Las Vegas Plaza, Highlands University and the Las Vegas Amtrak Station.
“We recognized a real need for public transit to serve the community here in Mora,” said Mora County Commissioner Veronica M. Serna. “To be able to provide access to educational opportunities at Highlands University and Luna Community College, as well as employment, shopping, medical and social services in Las Vegas is a huge benefit to our residents. We would also like to acknowledge NM Representative Joseph Sanchez (Dist. 40) for his role in making this happen.”
“The NCRTD is very excited to provide this service to the residents of Mora and San Miguel Counties,” Daniel Barrone, NCRTD Chair and Mayor of the Town of Taos added. “Public transit enhances quality of life in rural area and promotes sustainability. We are grateful for, and encourage, everyone’s support.”
The NCRTD continues to take aggressive measures to clean and disinfect passenger vehicles. The district’s top priorities are to continue service to the public, and to keep them and our employees healthy and safe. Masks are required to ride and must remain on for the duration of the trip. During this time, reservations will be required to ride as vehicles are limited to five or less to provide social distancing.
