Night Service On The City Bus Is Close To Reality

It's something that's been years in the making for public transit riders in Cedar Rapids. Expanded service into the evening hours is closer than ever to becoming a reality.

The immediate success of the 380 Express line that offers inexpensive round trips between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City has made it a big hit and a major upgrade, having already expanded its operation to Saturdays, for passengers making that loop. But that program is run through the Iowa Department of Transportation, and the city of Cedar Rapids has never offered service in town past 6:30 p.m.

An infusion of federal transit dollars could make possible a plan to extend transit hours to 9:30 p.m. starting in June 2020, without a tax levy imposed on citizens. Currently, the buses stop running at 7:30 with the last routes leaving downtown around 6:30.

Ridership continues to climb, making this plan potentially more feasible without an additional expense to taxpayers. For workers getting off later in the evening or folks wanting a "sober ride home" following an evening out, the expanded hours will offer an inexpensive and safe way to get that.

[Via Gazette]