The city of Fresno will no longer charge bus fare starting March 1. By a 5-2 vote, the city council approved suspending fares until the end of the city's emergency order. In a debate that lasted more than two hours, the council discussed how to offset the revenue loss as...
Local Team Says Tech Can Block COVID on Buses. Will Transit Agencies Use It?
University researchers in the Central Valley have identified technologies that they say will wipe out just about every speck of coronavirus passing through air-handling systems on buses. But transit operators, while excited at the prospect of making bus travel safer for passengers and drivers, say it could take months or...
Controversial Housing Grant Program Returns to Fresno Council
The Fresno City Council will vote on an amended aid program on Thursday that a civil rights group claimed was illegal in its prior form. Authored by councilmembers Esmeralda Soria, Luis Chavez, and Paul Caprioglio, the legislation creates a $1.5 million Housing Retention Grant Program. Also in Politics 101: Fresno County...
College Students Keep Riding Buses For Free. District Seeks Long-Term Funds.
Fresno-area community college students will be able to ride city buses for free at least through the fall 2020 semester after State Center Community College District trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to continue funding the program with parking revenues. In the meantime, district officials will keep looking for long-term solutions, which...
Ending Fresno CC Free Bus Program Shouldn't Be an Option
Fresno City College's popular free student bus program must be saved. And I expect that it will be saved — if everyone puts a little skin and leadership into the game. The program, which began as a pilot for the fall 2017 semester, benefits students, our community, and the Valley's...
Has $56 Million BRT Investment Reversed Bus Free-Fall?
Nearly a year after the launch of Bus Rapid Transit, what conclusions can be drawn about the $56.2 million upgrade to Fresno's mass transit system? For starters, frequent riders praise it. So does Mayor Lee Brand. "It's a great compliment to our overall transit strategy, especially because it provides a...