A: Good news! WTA is introducing an online trip planner this fall. It's in the final stages of testing right now. Once our own system is up and running we'll be tapping into Google Transit as well. Thanks for the question/suggestion and thank you for riding with us.

A: Thank you for your questions. I’ll start with your last one first. Yes, you would have seen Route 72X on Highway 9 toward Acme. WTA’s Route 72X, which serves the relatively densely populated city of Kendall, also serves Van Zandt. I can understand why this looks unusual, given the small population and rural nature of the Van Zandt area! In fact, service to Van Zandt exists as the result of a timing issue: in order for Route 72X’s arrival to be timed optimally (for connections throughout our system), it has extra minutes to provide service to Van Zandt. The 72X enjoys consistently high ridership, but certainly the vast majority of the ridership is between Bellingham and Kendall. Route 80X is an express trip, intended to connect Mt. Vernon and Bellingham as quickly as possible. Like most express trips, it connects two large nodes with few stops en route in order to appeal to those who would otherwise drive alone. Residents of Glenhaven wishing to access Route 80X would catch it at the Alger Park and Ride. Finally, WTA did consider service to Glenhaven when we last upgraded our service to Sudden Valley. Staff members drove a bus along a proposed route to evaluate its viability. After several community meetings however, attendees strongly emphasized the need for Sudden Valley service to be hourly so that transfers to other routes could be made. Based on the timing, we could not provide hourly service from Sudden Valley and also provide service to Glenhaven. Due to the existing ridership in Sudden Valley, its relative population density, and the requests of meeting attendees (many of whom were regular riders), we prioritized hourly service to Sudden Valley over service to Glenhaven. I understand your statement about feeling left out, even in light of the answers I’ve provided. Hopefully I’ve at least shed some light on why we’ve made some of the decisions we’ve made.

A: I too have seen many close calls between pedestrians and vehicles in this area, as have our drivers, I'm sure. We will be reevaluating the placement of our shelters and stops now that the new pedestrian island has been installed. Riders are instructed to wait until the bus departs before crossing the street no matter the location. Unfortunately, not all of them do.

A: Thank you for expressing your concern. I'll need to speak with someone in our operations department to get the answer to your question. Perhaps it would be best if we followed up by phone. Feel free to give me a call at 527-4718 and I can tell you what I've found out.

A: It depends. Recent service changes, such as increased frequency along the GO Lines, service connecting Whatcom and Skagit Counties, increased express (commuter) trips from Lynden and Ferndale, and others implemented since 2005, resulted from a major Strategic Planning effort in 2004. During that process we conducted surveys of riders and non-riders, interviewed community leaders, and gathered input regarding unmet needs from an advisory group comprised of a broad spectrum of stakeholders. Alternately, expansion of service can result from requests from riders, as in the case of recent trips added to routes serving Lynden, Ferndale and Kendall. All requests are considered within the context of the overall system. Once a request has been determined as an unmet need, there are many factors by which we evaluate it. Questions we consider include ‘how crucial an unmet need is this?,’ ‘how many people will potentially benefit?,’ ‘how efficient would it be to meet this need within the existing system?’, ‘what would be the increased cost-per-new-rider based on the number of riders we could expect to attract?’ Having said all of that, remember that due to our current revenue shortfall (WTA’s funding comes primarily from local sales tax), WTA is not expecting to expand or add service anywhere in the near future. Thank you for your question.

A: Thank you for your request. Unfortunately, no. Though I agree the current connection is not convenient, there are no plans to create a direct link from Sumas to Lynden at this time.

A: Thank you for your request, and thank you for riding with us.

A: I'm sorry the Route 49 schedule doesn't work for your work trip. There is one departure that's not in the transit guide that may help(it was added after the book was printed). It departs WTA at 4:30 pm. Some in this (our) neighborhood have been able to make use of Route 49 by arriving at 8 and departing at 4:30. I realize this won't work for everyone, and agree that the schedule is limited. Unfortunately, we have no plans to increase service to the Irongate Industrial District in the near future.

A: The main factors that would determine whether or not WTA would pay for damage to a bike on one of our racks would be 1) whether or not the bike was racked properly and 2) whether or not WTA was at fault. In the event of an accident caused by another motorist, it would be the responsibilty of that motorist (through his/her insurance carier) to cover the damage. WTA (or any insurance policy) would generally cover the depreciated value.

A: Thank you for riding with us, and thank you for your suggestion and question. You're correct that less than 10 percent of our operating revenues come from the fare box. The rest comes from our local sales tax paid by all Whatcom County residents. Though WTA does receive some federal funding for capital projects (like our fleet replacement), none of our operating revenues (money to run bus service) comes from the federal government.