City to review bus system for improvements

BARSTOW — For Barstow resident William Snyder, life is tough without a car. He relies on Barstow Transit buses to take him and his wheelchair-bound mother, Anita Snyder, around the city and to her room at the Rimrock Convalescent Home.

Some Barstow residents say that though they are generally happy with the city’s public transportation, buses can be slow and infrequent.

“It’s hard getting around sometimes,” he said.

The city will soon be developing a multi-year plan to assess its transit system with a $98,000 grant San Bernardino Associated Governments approved Wednesday. The plan will analyze bus routes, the location of bus stops, and service standards to make sure the system is running efficiently, said city manager Hector Rodriguez.

“It’s to study how we can best serve the needs of the community,” he said.

He said that the city reviews the system, operated by bus company MV Transit, every few years. This study will be used to develop an operating plan for the system for 2008 until 2012, he said.

“There’s always room for improvement and that’s why these things get done,” Rodriguez said.

Many city residents without their own cars depend on the buses and some say more buses are needed. Bus driver Bobbie Spotts said she thinks most riders find it pretty easy to get around on the transit system but mobility is more difficult for some groups than for others.

“It’s a lot harder for seniors and the disabled. We need more drivers and more buses, period,” she said.

Some residents exclusively use public transportation to get to work. Richie Ortiz buys a $38 monthly pass to ride from his home on East Williams Street to his workplace on West Main Street.

“I depend on it,” he said.

He said that though he’s “pretty happy” with the current system, buses arriving late have caused him to occasionally be late for work.

“Sometimes (the buses) take too long. They take short cuts off the normal routes,” he said.

Ortiz said he used to rely on cabs until the taxi service left the city two years ago.

No taxi companies currently service the Barstow rea, but Chris Christman, president of Network ParaTransit Systems, is hoping to change that. The taxi company was granted permission from the City Council on Monday to obtain a business license to re-establish taxi service in Barstow. Christman says his company will fill a vital need.

“Barstow is not a small town by any means and it’s fairly spread out,” he said. “You have a body of citizens, you have visitors, you have Fort Irwin, all with a number of people who need cabs.”

He said the company will likely begin service in the city with two cabs but could introduce more as needed.

“If the casinos ever come to fruition, taxis would be absolutely necessary. Taxis are part and parcel of the future of growth in the city,” he said.

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(760) 256-4126 or jason_smith@link.freedom.com