CAMARILLO : City to Replace Unreliable Buses

Camarillo residents are in for an easier ride on the city’s public buses.

The City Council has approved spending $253,000 to replace two old buses that frequently break down on their daily runs.

The money, which will come mainly from a federal grant, will go toward buying three new buses that are expected to be on Camarillo streets in about four months.

Many of the city’s senior citizens, students and disabled residents depend on the city’s two public buses to get from their homes to shopping centers, schools and community centers.

But the 12-year-old buses have become less dependable with age, city traffic engineer Tom Fox said.

“We’re probably getting a breakdown a week because they’re barely able to keep running,” he said.

When the buses break down, it is typically in the middle of their daily routes, temporarily stranding passengers who have to wait for a replacement bus and throwing off the bus schedule by at least half an hour, Fox said.

“A lot of people don’t ride the buses because the buses break down so often,” said Margaret Gowder, chairman of the transportation committee at Leisure Village retirement community.

In addition to being more reliable, the new buses will have smaller steps and other features to make them more accessible to senior citizens and the handicapped, Fox said.

The new vehicles will also be smaller than the 35-foot-long, 30-passenger buses now in use. Two will seat 18 passengers and the third will hold 22.

Although city officials hope that the new buses will encourage more residents to take public transportation, they said the smaller sizes of the vehicles will still be more appropriate for the level of ridership, which is now about 2,500 rides per month.

“There won’t be so many empty seats,” Councilman Michael Morgan said.