Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s (VTA) 2016 Measure B funds will allow the city of Mountain View, Calif., to expand its weekday operating hours for the free Mountain View community shuttle to 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
The new schedule, effective Jan. 3, 2022, will extend operations by three hours in the morning and end one hour later in the evening. Weekend hours will remain the same, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The added service was funded in part by a $704,000 grant from the 2016 Measure B Innovative Transit Service Models Grant Program, in addition to $176,000 in matching city funds. The program supports affordable new transit service models that provide first- and last-mile connections to transit, serving vulnerable, underserved and transit-dependent populations.
According to the community shuttle’s online operational statistics, weekday ridership doubled in 2021 from 3,418 in January to 6,882 in September.
The community shuttle provides fare-free service between residential neighborhoods and key destinations in Mountain View. The shuttle service has 50 stops on its route, including the downtown transit center, Whisman and Middlefield roads, Rengstorff Park and the Mountain View Senior Center.
Currently, the community shuttle operates from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on a bidirectional loop with service every 30 minutes on weekdays and every 60 minutes on weekends.
The Mountain View Transportation Management Association operates the shuttle in partnership with the city of Mountain View. The service was initiated as a pilot program in 2015 through a city partnership with Google, which has committed to funding this transportation resource through June 30, 2024.
