MOORPARK : Bus Firm to Carry Metrolink Riders

Fillmore Area Transit Corp. will begin bus service Nov. 9 to the Moorpark Metrolink station on a 60-day trial basis.

After a recent survey was mailed to Fillmore residents, the company decided that there were enough favorable responses to schedule daily trips to the new station, said company President J. Chapman Morris.

“There are a number of people in Fillmore who do commute to L. A.,” Morris said. “We were pleasantly surprised in finding how many would actually be interested in using this service.”

Morris recruited Russ Wilson, a retired Rapid Transit District field operations official, to coordinate the service. According to Wilson, early-morning commuters will board at the Fillmore City Hall bus stop about half an hour before 5:06 a.m., when the first train of the day leaves from Moorpark. A return bus will be awaiting passengers arriving in Moorpark on the 6:56 p.m. train.

“If this does not meet the needs of the majority, we’re more than willing to change the schedule,” Wilson said. One-way bus fare will be $1.

About 4,400 surveys were mailed to Fillmore residents last month, and more than 150 have been returned. So far, about 50% of the respondents say they will use the service daily or at least a few times a week. “Even though we have a low number of returns now, I think it was a very positive return,” Wilson said.

While some riders might find the $176 monthly Metrolink pass to Union Station a bit expensive, Wilson said he believes that the commuters are getting a good deal. “If people sit down and figure out the cost of parking, car maintenance--not to mention traffic hassles--they will find the train a tremendous advantage,” he said.

Fillmore Area Transit, a privately run bus system, welcomes further comment from area residents. “We’re willing to try and make it work,” Morris said. The trial run “will give us an opportunity to see how many actually will take the ride to Moorpark.”

For more information, call the transit company at 524-2319.