(The Associated Press circulated the following article by Noreen Gillespie on October 1.)
HARTFORD, Conn. — As average prices for a gallon of gas crept to the $3 mark, the lines for the blue and sliver Connecticut Transit buses got longer.
So much, in fact, the carrier is thinking of adding more buses to its reserve fleet.
The state’s commuter bus system and other alternatives to cars are reporting big boosts in ridership due to gas prices.
“People are saying, ‘I could buy a bus pass for $77, and I’m paying that much in a week and a half just filling my tank to go to work,” said David Lee, general manager of CT Transit.
Statistics show that use has increased by about 10 percent — from 63,000 to 68,900 — in a year for express commuter buses. The buses offer direct routes to Hartford from 12 outlying suburbs.
Transportation officials are considering increasing the number of reserve buses used in daily routes to accommodate the extra travelers, and they expect the numbers to go up more. Business was increasing even before the post-hurricane Katrina gas spike, Lee said.
The Rideshare Co., which operates Easy Street commuter vans, has also seen a big increase in the number of people interested in the service, said spokeswoman Connie Dice. There are 378 vans operating in Connecticut and across bordering states, carrying an average 3,600 riders a day, she said. And demand has been going up lately.
“Normally in a quarter if we put on seven new groups that’s good,” she said. “Right now, we are working with about 38 potential new drivers. Our two salespeople are inundated.”
A $1.3 billion transportation package approved this year includes funding for new train cars for Metro-North’s busy New Haven line, which carries 110,000 riders a day.
The DOT is also studying the feasibility of a commuter train line that would run between New Haven and Springfield, Mass., with 12 stops including Hartford. Officials last year estimated it would serve 2,000 riders a day.
Amtrak provides service from New Haven to Springfield, but it is not designed for commuters, a spokeswoman said.
Chris Cooper, a state Department of Transportation spokesman, said higher gas prices make commuting by train an even more attractive option.
“You already couldn’t park in New York for the price of a round-trip ticket to New Haven,” Cooper said. “With gas prices being what they are, the demand for mass transit is going to grow.”