Have you noticed lately all the people standing at COAST bus stops when you are driving through your Town or City? We have! They are all taking advantage of one the most affordable, safe and reliable transportation options available in the greater seacoast – COAST. This summer COAST users took nearly 95,000 trips on the bus system.
COAST passenger counts have grown significantly year-over-year for almost every one of the last 13 years. This past summer however, COAST carried more people in a two month period than ever before in their 32 year history.
In the past 12 years COAST has grown into a robust regional public transit system, now employing over 70 staff and contributing multi-millions of dollars annually to the local and regional economies.
Just over a year after COAST implemented a substantial expansion of commuter-oriented services within the region, the large increase in the number of people taking advantage of COAST bus services demonstrate the strong demand within the region for a more affordable alternative to driving.
At the same time that COAST has made improvements in the frequency of service it is providing on the street for passengers, it has also invested significantly in helping potential passengers improve their understanding of the service itself. A quick visit to COAST’s updated website on your home computer or smartphone gives you instant access to clear and easy to understand information on how to ride the bus, route maps and schedules, timely service updates and even helpful tools to plan your trip using free smartphone apps like Google Transit or HopStop.