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Laboratory employees and members of the community listen as members of the Lab, the state Highway and Transportation Department and All Aboard America, the contractor hired to operate the state's Park-and-Ride bus system, field questions about the commuter bus service. Most of those in attendance were Lab employees who live in Española, Santa Fe and other surrounding communities. Feedback from the meeting will be used to improve the transportation program. Inset photo: Jim Holt, associate director for operations (ADO) at the Lab, answers questions about the new Park-and-Ride bus system Wednesday in the Otowi Building side rooms at Technical Area 3. Holt believes the transportation system has eased overcrowding in the Lab's parking lots by giving employees an alternative to driving. Photos by LeRoy N. Sanchez, Public Affairs

Lab workers approve of new commuter bus service

Returning after a four-year absence, the Park and Ride commuter bus service is receiving good reviews from passengers who commute to and from Los Alamos.

Officials from the state Highway and Transportation Department, the Laboratory and All Aboard America -- the contractor hired to run the shuttle service -- answered questions and listened to comments from Lab workers at a meeting Wednesday in the Otowi Building side rooms at Technical Area 3. The commuter service began operating May 12 and passengers pay $1 per ride.

This is the first of a handful of meetings scheduled to take place in Española, Santa Fe and other surrounding communities to help the bus company and the state learn what residents in Northern New Mexico desire in a commuter bus service.

"We won't use the 'We're from the government, we're here to help' attitude," said Jack Wigely, president of All Aboard America. All Aboard America is a national company with operations in Texas and Arizona.

In an effort to make the shuttle service convenient for patrons who drive from Albuquerque to Santa Fe, a new parking lot is tentatively scheduled to open on Jaguar Drive off South Cerrillos Road. Commuters who live on Santa Fe's southside or in Albuquerque will be able to park their vehicles in Santa Fe and then take a bus to Los Alamos or Española.

There also are tentative plans to add a 4:45 a.m. shuttle that will pick passengers up at the proposed Cerrillos Road lot. Another bus at 6:30 a.m. is also tentatively planned to make a stop at the southside location.

Wigley feels the level of service has been received very well. He noted that a Web site for this service should be finished within 10 to 12 days. A schedule and list of drop-off and pick-up points will be listed on the site.

Patrons at the meeting suggested more shuttles running between Los Alamos and surrounding areas. Some would like the bus to come 15 minutes earlier so they can get to work on time.

"I thought it was great they were asking for comments," said Melissa Lewis of Manufacturing Quality Systems (NMT-6)." She added that she wishes a later bus would be added so that she could drop of her children at daycare.

Some employees expressed concern that there isn't a traffic light on East Jemez Road near the Radio Shop at TA-3. Some noted that drivers for the Lab's new contractor, KSL, are having difficulty in the morning because there isn't a traffic light at the bus drop-off/pick-up location.

"Safety has been on our minds since the commuter service started," said Los Alamos Police Officer M.J. Brooks. "Having an officer on the roadway every minute is not how we want to do things. We want to teach drivers and citizens how to work things. That won't happen overnight."

Jim Holt, associate director for operations (ADO) at the Lab, noted how important the bus service is to the Laboratory. He said it has had an impact on the parking situation at the Lab, where there is a shortage of parking spaces.

All Aboard America will soon begin tracking which bus routes are more heavily used and where improvements need to be made. The company has already been distributing surveys asking for input on how the bus service can be improved.

Patrons of the shuttle service expressed a desire for the service to continue. The program is being funded by federal government road construction money, which will run out in about 18 months upon completion of a $46 million highway improvement project on U.S. 84-285 between Santa Fe and Pojoaque.

The highway department and Governor's Office is looking at funding alternatives to keep the program solvent, said Rebecca Montoya, deputy secretary at the State Highway and Transportation Department.

For a schedule of bus routes, click here. (Adobe Acrobat reader required).

-- Michael Carlson

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