Wheels on bus going round and round

Don Purdy sat in a blue row on a Reno bus beside a small bag holding headphones.

He likes to listen to talk radio on the ride.

Purdy used to drive the 80-mile round-trip from Indian Hills to Reno for work, but he had to stop.

"The money," he said, as he rode the Regional Transportation Commission INTERCITY bus.

Purdy, who used to drive about 24,000 miles a year to his job in the accounting division of a non-profit, laughed about the difference in the effect on his car now that he's stopped driving to work.

"I do 2,000 miles a year," he said.

Purdy has seen many more people using public transportation since he started about two years ago and, according to the Reno transportation commission, rides from the bus system's two stops in Carson City to Reno have increased about 45 percent from June 2007 to June 2008.

The price of a gas jumped about a dollar a gallon during that time.

But gas prices aren't the only reason people are riding more, said Felicia Archer, a representative for the transportation commission.

Some people are concerned about the environment, she said, and some might rather sleep than drive.

Carson City's Jump Around Carson (JAC) bus system has also seen a big increase in riders since it started close to three years ago.

Patrick Pittenger, city transportation manager, said this is in part due to more people simply learning about the city's public transportation.

Officials want to expand the program to include more than its four routes and 11 buses to meet demand, he said, but that's difficult to do on a less than a $1 million-a-year budget made up mostly of federal grants.

James Simmons, 45, said he'd like to see buses, which run from about 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., provide earlier and later service because his car overheats in heavy traffic.

He said he has to use public transportation for most of what he does.

"Everything," he said. "Every day."

Nancy Koch said she wishes the buses ran on Sunday, not just Monday through Saturday, but she is impressed with the friendly and informative service.

She especially likes the 50-cent rides she gets as a senior.

"You can't beat that with a stick," she said.

- Contact reporter Dave Frank at dfrank@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.