The city of San Luis Obispo has designated May 8 as the official day it will celebrate SLO Transit’s 40th year anniversary.
The event will be marked with a recognition ceremony for past and present mass transit committee members, council members and invited community members who have contributed to the success of the local transit system. The event will be held at the Ludwick Community Center at 4pm. Additionally, SLO Transit will be rolling back the bus fare to prices not seen since 1974, when bus fare was only 25 cents. Riders will get to ride SLO Transit from May 5th to the 9th for only 25 cents, each way, in honor of the special occasion.
In December 1972, the San Luis Obispo City Council established the volunteer/citizen based Mass Transportation Committee (MTC) to help design and develop the City’s first public transit system. In April 1974, the MTC’s hard work paid off, as SLO Transit rolled into service with two 17 passenger Micro Buses. The new service consisted of two routes: Route 1 provided half hour service to Foothill Boulevard and Route 2 provided service to Johnson Avenue and to the Laguna Lake area with hourly service. SLO Transit transported approximately 168,000 passengers in its first year of service.
SLO Transit has grown considerably since its start in 1974. Today, SLO Transit now operates eight routes and transports over 1.2 million riders annually on its fleet of 16 vehicles. SLO Transit has received numerous awards and recognitions, including qualifying for Federal Small Transit Intensive Cities (STIC) funding; provide only to “small cities (which) provide a level of transit service far greater than their size and density characteristics would typically suggest.”
SLO Transit will be introducing free Wi-Fi on two of its vehicles, as of May 8th, as an additional amenity on its vehicles. SLO Transit wants to say “thank you to the citizens of San Luis Obispo” for making SLO Transit a success for over 40 years.
