Short Range Transit Plans
San Luis Obispo Joint Short Range Transit Plan (2024 )
For two planning cycles, LSC has conducted the joint Short-Range Transit Plan updates for the San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority and the City of San Luis Obispo’s SLO Transit system. Together, these two systems serve over 1.2 million passenger boardings per year, including ridership generated by the California Polytechnic University. For both cycles our work included the following:
Onboard surveys of all routes and services, including passenger perception and transfer surveys;
Performance review of all services;
Cost and ridership analysis of service alternatives, capital alternatives and management alternatives;
Detailed evaluation of the regional Runabout paratransit program, operating costs; and
Specific evaluation of means to better coordinate the two transit services, including schedule revisions, route revisions, shared goals/objectives/standards, and fare alignment.
Capital planning and fare structure changes
Draft plans for both agencies have been presented to governing bodies. Final plans are scheduled for adoption in the coming months. The 2024 updates included the following elements:
Regional route service changes to address loss of funding from neighboring City of Santa Maria
Reimplementation of pre-COVID services
Implementation of CalITP fare technology combined with a $2 for 1 hour fare capping strategy
New routes to serve new development within the growing City of San Luis Obispo
Evening city-wide microtransit pilot program
Modoc County SRTP (2025)
The Modoc County Transportation Commission retained LSC to prepare the 2024 update to the Modoc County SRTP. The plan focused on Sage Stage, operated by the Modoc Transportation Agency (MTA), which provides a demand-response Local Bus in Alturas, CA, along with three interregional routes to Redding, CA, Klamath Falls, OR, and Reno, NV. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the SRTP offered an opportunity to reassess services in this rural county and identify strategies to meet local needs with limited resources. LSC’s work included passenger surveys, a comprehensive service and operations review, development of goals and performance measures, cost and ridership analysis of service alternatives, and recommendations for capital, marketing, and fare improvements.
The final report proposed several key changes: redesigning the Redding intercity route to terminate in Burney, adding Saturday service to Klamath Falls and Alturas, implementing microtransit technology for the Local Bus, and simplifying the interregional fare structure. To support implementation, LSC developed a five-year action plan for MTA, extending through FY 2029–30, and created a performance tracking tool to assist agency staff in monitoring progress and outcomes.
Redwood Coast Transit Authority SRTP (2025)
LSC was retained (with AIM Consulting, and LeFrancois Engineering as subcontractors) to compile the SRTP for the Redwood Coast Transit Authority (RCTA). RCTA’s system serves over 80,000 passenger boardings per year, including ridership generated in the communities of Klamath and Smith River, both home to significant Native American populations. Our work included the following:
Onboard surveys of all routes and services, including trip patterns and passenger perception.
Performance review of all services;
Cost and ridership analysis of service alternatives, and capital alternatives.
Coordination with stakeholders and local tribes including the Yurok Tribe, Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation, and Elk Valley Rancheria.
Specific evaluation of means to further promote expansion of the North State Express (NSX), a regional partnership between RCTA, Humboldt Transit Authority, and Mendicino Transit Authority slated to increase mobility on California’s north coast.
Both financially constrained and unconstrained service and financial plans were developed. The financiallyconstrained plan includes minor reductions to underutilized services to maintain the long-term fiscal sustainability of RCTA operations. The unconstrained plan is designed to position RCTA to secure new funding opportunities through expansions to Crescent City local routes to increase ridership and better meet community needs, as well as extensions to Route 20 to strengthen the NSX partnership. Both plans include fare adjustments to RCTA’s intercity fare structure to align with NSX partner agencies and enhance regional connectivity and ridership growth.