Santa Barbara MTD Announces Cutbacks on Most Major Bus Routes

Starting April 25, MTD will be making temporary service reductions to improve system reliability, due to a shortage of bus operators. Despite efforts to recruit bus operators, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused MTD to experience ongoing workforce shortages, causing occasional bus trip cancellations that create uncertainty for passengers.

This temporary reduction of service is a necessary step to ensure schedule reliability, according to MTD General Manager Jerry Estrada. Estrada said he hopes this change will allow time for MTD to increase staff and return to higher levels of service later in the year.

Changes will adjust service to a level that can be more reliably covered by the current MTD bus operators, and these reductions are intended to last for the spring and summer period. MTD will notify the public with any future service adjustments. 

Passengers are encouraged to review the schedule of the bus lines they ride in advance of April 25, as changes will be different for every line. Hard copies of temporary schedule guides will be available at the Transit Center and on buses by next week.

In the meantime, the new schedule guide can be found online here and further details here.

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