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RVTD celebrates return of Saturday bus service Comment By Caitlin Fowlkes for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Caitlin Fowlkes for the Mail Tribune Posted Jul. 8, 2016 at 3:43 PM By Caitlin Fowlkes for the Mail Tribune Posted Jul. 8, 2016 at 3:43 PM » Social News The Rogue Valley Transportation District is expanding bus service with a Saturday service, more routes and increased frequency on specific routes. The new Saturday service will be celebrated with a “First Saturday Celebration” from 10 a.m. until noon Saturday, July 9, at Front Street Station in downtown Medford. Saturday service begins this week and runs from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. every hour depending on individual bus routes. All bus fares and Valley Lift services will be free this Saturday. The celebration will includes music from The Bear Creek Band, games, refreshments and information on the expanded services. Booths and information will be available from RVTD and Rogue Valley Clean City Coalition. United Way of Jackson County will demonstrate how to use the bike share at Front Street Station. “We have some people that have never ridden the public service before and since it’s free they’re willing to try,” said Paige Townsend, RVTD support services manager. “We like to make ourselves available to help people figure out what routes work best for them.” The expanded service is funded by a property tax levy approved by voters in May. The measure will provide added funding for five years, until 2021. “We’re hoping to try to find other stable funding to be able to provide these services (once the measure expires),” said Julie Brown, RVTD general manager. “We’re hoping to go out for another ballot or that the state Legislature will start funding public transit statewide.” The Saturday service will include seven routes: Routes 10 (Ashland), 40 (Central Point) and 2 (West Medford) will run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Routes 21 (Poplar Drive, Medford), 24 (Rogue Valley Medical Center) and 60 (White City) will run from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with the exception of Route 60, which will run until 4:30 p.m. Route 30 (Jacksonville) will run at 8:15 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 3 p.m. and 3:45 p.m. Along with Saturday service, the added funding will increase the frequency for some routes: Route 24 to Rogue Valley Medical Center for buses now runs every half hour. Route 10 to Ashland now runs every 20 minutes. Two new routes will also be added: A route to Rogue Community College's Table Rock Campus and surrounding areas in White City Monday will begin Sept. 26. A route to South Medford High School and surrounding area will be launched in the spring of 2017. RVTD provided Saturday service from 2012 to 2015, responding to surveys showing that more than 40 percent of its passengers would not have transportation on Saturdays if the bus service were not available. The service, which was funded by a temporary federal grant, ended when the grant expired in 2015. Passenger surveys also showed the need for extended service on Route 24, especially among east Medford residents traveling to and from downtown Medford, according to a document released by RVTD. Reach reporting intern Caitlin Fowlkes at [email protected]. By Caitlin Fowlkes for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Caitlin Fowlkes for the Mail Tribune Posted Jul. 8, 2016 at 3:43 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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