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Reimagine METRO

 

Waves of change are coming! Santa Cruz METRO is reimagining bus routes and frequencies to better meet our community's needs. Our goals are to:

  • Increase the amount of transit service
  • Make transit more useful and attractive for many people’s trips
  • Make transit more relevant to the community’s needs

 

The first wave of Reimagine METRO service changes was implemented in December 2023 with Phase 2 services changes beginning in March 2024. As of December 2024, METRO has rolled out 90% of the planned Reimagine METRO service. Thanks to our riders' support of the Reimagine METRO service changes:

  • Ridership has increased 23% since the first wave was implemented in September 2023
  • Specific segments in FY24 Q3 also witnessed substantial ridership growth, with UCSC, Cabrillo College, and K-12 ridership escalating by 27.1%, 26.8%, and 147.6%, respectively.
  • Productivity in FY24 Q3, measured as riders per revenue hour, increased by 4% year over year.

 

Here is a brief overview of where we are and where we are headed.

 

Reimagine METRO Phase 2: The Waves of Change Are Bringing You More Buses & More Frequency

 

View METRO’s Winter Service 2024 System Map

 

September 2024

  • Increased weekend service on Route 35 that matches weekday service levels.

 

June 2024

  • The Wave Hits Route 1 every 15-minutes from 6AM - 9PM and will now serve Soquel Ave. instead of Water St.
  • Routes 18 & 19 continue to provide service every 15-minutes.
  • Hwy-17 Express will now operate every 30-minutes during peak periods.
  • Route 90X will now operate every 30-minutes on weekdays and hourly on weekends (Temporarily Suspended Through September 2025).

 

March 2024

  • More evening service. Routes 2, 3B and 73 will provide service until midnight.
  • More express service. Route 90X will operate 6 morning trips and 6 evening trips, in both directions.
  • New Route 78. New all-day service on West Beach Street, Ohlone Parkway, and to the new County Social Service offices at Westridge. This route will also serve Watsonville Community Hospital and Freedom Centre.

 

 

Reimagine METRO Phase 1: Straighter more direct routes.

 

December 2023 Improvements

  • Higher frequency at UCSC. In September 2023, METRO introduced service every 15 minutes on Routes 18 and 19.
  • Simpler and more direct service between Santa Cruz and Watsonville. Routes 1 and 2 now offer faster service from Watsonville to Santa Cruz, by both taking Highway 1 between Watsonville and Aptos. Route 90X provides added express service at peak hours.
  • Simpler and more frequent service in Watsonville. Most Watsonville residents now live near a route that runs at least every 30 minutes on weekdays.
  • East-west service in Santa Cruz. The introduction of Route 3 piloted a direct service between UCSC, Downtown Santa Cruz, and Live Oak. METRO will suspend the direct service in June 2024 until a layover facility is constructed at UCSC, which will allow buses to maintain better on time performance.
  • More direct service between the San Lorenzo Valley and Santa Cruz. All trips on Route 35 now head directly to Downtown Santa Cruz. Emeline St is served by Route 4.

 

 

Final Reimagine METRO Phase 2 Improvements 

 

Changes planned for September 2025:

  • Route 73: New routing and service increase in Capitola Village. Route 73 will now serve Capitola Village in both directions between Capitola Mall and Watsonville every hour, seven days a week, following the former 55 routing. That means more frequent service and extended hours in Capitola Village. 
  • Route 55: New routing and service increase in Aptos/Seacliff/Rio Del Mar: Route 55 service now starts at Cabrillo College and runs to Aptos/Seacliff/Rio Del Mar every hour, seven days a week with service to Aptos Village in the inbound direction (towards Cabrillo College). Additionally, service will run to La Selva Beach every other hour, seven days a week. 
    • Route 55 will no longer serve Capitola Village. For service to Capitola Village, transfer to Route 73 at the Aptos Library (Stop ID 1849). For service from Capitola Village, transfer to Route 55 at Cabrillo College (Stop ID 1840).
  • Highway 17: Additional weekday and weekend service. Highway 17 will now operate two trips per hour from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekdays and 8:00 a.m to 8:00 p.m on weekends, with service until midnight seven days a week.
  • Route 16 will be reintroduced, providing service every 30 minutes from downtown Santa Cruz to UCSC via Laurel and Bay.
  • Route 90X: More weekday service to support your commute: Trips have been added in the evening to extend service through 7:00 to Watsonville, and 8:00 from Watsonville to Santa Cruz.
  • Route 40 and 41: More weekend service connecting to Santa Cruz. Two trips have been added in the 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. hour.
  • Route 18 and 19: More weekend service so you can get around town. Service will now run every 15 minutes for most of the day.
  • Route 1: Additional evening trips. After 9:00pm, trips will operate every 30 minutes instead of hourly.

 

 

Major Service Increases

 

Santa Cruz METRO intends to increase service by over 40 percent through the Reimagine METRO service restoration and expansion plan, thanks to new funding and intensified operator recruitment. This will make it possible to improve frequencies and increase service in many places. The Reimagine METRO Network includes:

  • Frequent service in east Santa Cruz, Live Oak, Soquel, Aptos and Watsonville.
  • Saturday and Sunday frequencies that match weekdays on most routes, including Routes 1, 2, 3, 17, 20, 35, 75.
  • More consistent service on Highway 17. More service from Santa Cruz to San Jose, every 30 minutes, every day.

 

View Phase 2 Report

 

 

Benefits of METRO’s Fast, More Frequent and Reliable Service

METRO’s reimagined bus system with WAVE SERVICE will double ridership to more than 7 million rides per year. This equates to a VMT reduction of 9,852,903 miles per year and a CO2 emission reduction of 40,068 metric tons per year. Meaning less congestion and emissions in Santa Cruz County. That’s transformational.

 

METRO with the new WAVE SERVICE brings livable transportation alternatives to residents—no matter what age, income or race. Equitable and easy to use transportation options for everyone, including freedom of travel to education, job access, health care. All signs of a healthy community. Finally, but certainly not least, METRO with WAVE SERVICE brings opportunities to better align housing opportunity with quality transportation, which will bring enhanced State and federal funding opportunities.

 

 

Project Timeline

    • March 2023 (Complete): Phase 1 Public Outreach and Existing Conditions
    • May 2023 (Complete): Early Wins defined
    • July 2023 (Complete): Alternatives Report
    • July-August (Complete): Phase 1 Public Outreach:
    • September 22 (Complete): Public Hearing Meeting
    • December 2023: Phase 1 Reimagine METRO begins with Winter Service Schedule
    • February 2024(Complete) Public Review and Feedback on Phase 2 Plan
    • March 2024 (Complete): Additional Phase 1 changes
    • June 2024 – December 2024 (Complete): Additional service increases will be implemented based on public feedback on the Phase 2 Plan