Although the number of people who are using UTA has recently gone up in Weber and Davis counties, Utah County?s numbers have become stagnant.
UTA spokesman Justin Jones said ridership has increased in these areas for the same reasons Utah County has had increases in the past.
?Five years ago we redesigned our bus system to specifically accommodate BYU and UVSC students, and increase our frequency up and down State Street,? he said. ?Before those changes we had been consistently declining and since then our ridership numbers doubled in Utah County. Now it has leveled off this year, partly due to BYU?s decision to offer free parking, but our ridership is still strong in the area, especially around UVSC and our commuter routes.?
Jones said the newly designed routes to accommodate students along with high gas prices were reasons why Weber and Davis County have experienced such growth.
Even though BYU?s decision to offer free parking has hurt UTA?s numbers in Utah County, plenty of students are still using UTA?s services, Jones said.
?The bus makes it so I don?t have to fight for a parking spot, but I still get up here in time for class,? said Daniel Ames, a 24-year-old mathematics major. ?With the free parking permits that they have given out they have basically clogged up all the parking spaces so it is not even worth getting a parking pass. It is much better than having to drive every day. It takes about the same time to get from the house anyway, once I find a parking spot.?
Like Ames, 98 percent of UTA passengers have some alternative form of transportation, according to Jones.
BYU student Analize Chavez is another student with a car who opts to ride the bus.
?Before I couldn?t find parking,? she said. ?It was too difficult. I would be late for class, unless I could get here at 7 a.m.?
Although some students ride the bus out of convenience, there are others who ride the bus out of necessity.
Student Amanda Copus, who uses the bus because she doesn?t have a car, said she doesn?t appreciate the high price of buying and replacing a bus pass.
?If you lose that pass you have to pay $50, which is almost the same price you paid just to get the bus pass,? she said. ?The pass does last a year, but it still is pretty expensive.?
Although Utah County?s ridership has not been increasing, Jones said ridership among students continues to grow.
?When people see how easy it is and how much money they save when they ride the bus, they continue to seek the service,? Jones said. ?I think what you see is when people gave it a try and rode the bus they found that letting someone else do the driving, they found it was a relaxing way to get to and from work or to and from class.?
(For comments, e-mail Dylan Roberts at droberts@byu.net)