WHEELS (California)

src: wheelexperts.com

WHEELS is a bus service that provides public transportation in the Tri-Valley Region (southeast Alameda County) of the San Francisco Bay Area, in the United States. Started in 1986, Wheels offers service to various communities in three cities, and connects to Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) and Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) trains for connections to and from the greater Bay Area (Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose) and Central Valley (Stockton, Modesto, Tracy).

Wheels is operated by the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA), and it has carried nearly 2 million passengers annually.

Video WHEELS (California)

Areas served

WHEELS operates in Alameda County, with limited service in Contra Costa County.

Alameda County:

• Dublin
• Pleasanton
• Livermore

Contra Costa County:

• Pleasant Hill
• San Ramon
• Walnut Creek

Maps WHEELS (California)

Fixed-route service

As of January 2017, Wheels operates nine (9) local routes, three (3) express routes and fifteen (15) select school trippers and three (3) shuttle routes. Descriptions for all routes are described below.

Local Routes

Note that routes with an X are express routes. And routes with an R are Rapid routes

• Wheels also operated an All-Nighter route, Route 810, that ran between Downtown Livermore to Bay Fair BART Station in San Leandro, serving areas currently provided by the all-day Route 10. However, due to budget cuts and low ridership, this route was eliminated on June 27, 2009.

Tri-Valley Rapid

On January 24, 2011, Wheels launched its first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service called the "Tri-Valley Rapid",dubbed route "R" for short. Billed as "the next generation transit system", the Tri-Valley Rapid makes travel in the Tri-Valley area (Dublin, Pleasanton, and Livermore) cleaner, easier, and faster. Route R was a route that ran parallel to its parent route-route 10 from Stoneridge Mall to the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. As of August 2016, Wheels rolled out a second Rapid route numbered "30R" along with new and modified routes throughout the system. Route 10 was then modified and renumbered as route "10R". Wheels Rapid service incorporates similar features already used by local Bay Area transit agencies, like AC Transit and Golden Gate Transit, including:

• Buses operating every 15 minutes from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m on weekdays. And 15 minutes all other times to provide maximum convenience for passengers
• Stops are mainly concentrated at major intersections and attractions along the route
• All-day service (operates from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekdays)
• New technology using bus only lanes with signal priority also known as "Queue Jump Signals" at certain intersections
• New low floor, ultra low emission hybrid buses with distinct styling and free on board Wi-Fi
• Enhanced bus shelters with electronic bus arrival signs (similar to the NextBus deployed on AC Transit and San Francisco MUNI)

Schedule and stops served by the Tri-Valley Rapid

Express Routes

All express routes operate weekday peak periods only (between 5:00 and 9:00am and 3:30 and 8:00pm). Limited holiday service is provided on two routes on the following holidays:

• Martin Luther King Day
• Presidents' Day
• Day after Thanksgiving
• Christmas Eve (unless weekday service announced)
• New Year's Eve (unless weekday service announced)

Shuttle Routes

Wheels shuttle routes are numbered between 50 and 59, and usually operate on certain days and at certain times only. These routes serve destinations close to BART, local events, office and industrial parks, and ACE stations.

Select School Day Services

Wheels operates fifteen (15) dedicated Select School routes (also known as School Trippers) that bring students to and from schools in the cities of Dublin and Pleasanton. These routes only operate when schools are in session.

Regular Routes that Provide Select School Day Services: These routes provide additional trips to serve nearby schools along their main routes.

• 2 (East Dublin) Fallon Middle School
• 14 (Pleasanton-Livermore) Livermore High School, Hart Middle School
• 10R (Dublin-Livermore) Amador Valley High School
• 30R (Dublin-Livermore) Livermore High School, East Ave. Middle School

Select School Day-only Services: These trips are identified as routes numbered:

• Dublin schools: 500 series routes
• Pleasanton schools: 600 series routes

These operate during school days only, with most morning trips leaving later on Wednesdays

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Transfer hubs

The major transfer points for Wheels routes include:

• Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station routes: 1, 2, 3, 8, 14, 10R, 20X, 30R, 54, 70X, 503, 580X.
  • Also the main transfer point for Amtrak Motorway, County Connection, Modesto Area Express (MAX), San Joaquin RTD, and Stanislaus Regional Transit (StaRT).

• W. Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station routes: 3, 30R, 53, 503.

• Livermore Transit Center in Downtown Livermore routes: 10R, 11, 14, 15, 20X, 580X.
  • Also the main transfer point for ACE commuter trains and Amtrak Motorway.

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Ticketing

Fares

Fares are effective 22 March 2009

• Children under 6 ride free and must be with an adult
• Appropriate identification must be presented to obtain the discounted Senior/Disabled fare.
• In order to facilitate passenger connections between Wheels and County Connection buses, transfer slips are issued upon request at the time the proper fare is paid. Transfer are valid for two hours.

Transfers

Transfers are given out to passengers only at time of boarding, and these are honored only on the day issued and are valid on any Wheels fixed route bus within two (2) hours after boarding.

• Local Wheels route to another Wheels route: Free with transfer
• County Connection: Free with transfer
• ACE: Free with a valid and visible ACE train ticket
• BART to Bus: $1 discount with a white BART to Bus ticket upon exiting the BART Station (you can't use a regular BART ticket)
• Bus to BART: $2.00 (you can't use a regular BART ticket)

Passes

Wheels offers for sale several bus passes or punch cards which provide a discount over cash fare:

• Monthly Pass (East Bay Value Pass) for US$60.00, valid on all Wheels, County Connection, Tri Delta Transit and WestCAT fixed-route buses
• Senior (65+)/Disabled Monthly Pass for US$18.00
• Farebusters Ticket Strips (10 Rides) for US$16.00

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Connecting transit agencies

• ACE, at the Pleasanton, Livermore, and Vasco stations
• Amtrak California, at the Livermore Transit Center and the Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station
• BART, at the Dublin/Pleasanton and West Dublin/Pleasanton stations in Alameda County, and at the Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill stations in Contra Costa County
• County Connection at the Dublin/Pleasanton, Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill BART stations, Pleasanton ACE station and at shared bus stops along Dublin Blvd.
• MAX Modesto BART Express, at the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station
• San Joaquin RTD Route 150 to Stockton at the Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station
• Stanislaus Regional Transit (STaRT) to Patterson from the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station

The local transportation demand management organization 511 Contra Costa also provides information for intermodal transfers throughout the county and works closely with Wheels to improve regional transit options.

src: saviniwheels.com

All-Time roster

src: www.wheelexperts.com

References

src: themustangsource.com

External links

• Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority official website
• List of Wheels bus routes and descriptions

Source of article : Wikipedia