By Stephanie Schaerr
Thanks to new express bus routes, commuters who travel from Payson to Salt Lake City can now shave 30 minutes off their travel time each way.
UTA bus route 805 began running the last week in August, and has proven helpful to commuters who need to travel between south Utah County and Salt Lake City during regular rush hours.
The 805 is the eighth express bus route in Utah County. Buses leave the Payson stop around 5:30 and 6:30 a.m. and arrive at the last stop in Salt Lake City at 7 and 8 a.m. In the evening, buses begin running at 4:10 and 5:10 p.m. and arrive at the Payson stop at 5:41 and 6:41 p.m.
Utah Transit Authority spokesman Justin Jones said the route has seen 15 percent more riders than originally expected. He said a great demand for express bus routes to Salt Lake City exists, and he gets requests all the time for new routes. However, limited funding has made it impossible to create more routes from the area. This is one of the reasons the Utah Department of Transportation and the Utah Travel Authority have come together to study the possibility of improved transit service to Utah County.
The route begins at the Payson Park and Ride, makes stops in Spanish Fork and Springville, then travels straight to Salt Lake City without stopping in Provo, Orem or anywhere else in between. This allows the southern county residents to get to work earlier in the morning and return home earlier each evening.
Tommy Wells, a sophomore from Payson studying business, said it normally takes two hours for him to get to Salt Lake City from his house. He usually rides the bus to Sandy and then takes the Trax to Salt Lake City. He was excited to learn that he could save a half hour taking the new route.
?Yeah, that?d be way better, obviously,? he said. He would like to not stop in Orem or at UVSC, where the buses normally pick up lots of people, he said.
Though the 805 does not make any stops in Provo or Orem, UTA officials would still like BYU students to comment on the study by visiting the Web site at www.rideuta.com.
