Riders on Amador Regional Transit System have two new buses and a new express route to choose from, following a windfall gift from the city of Riverside.

The buses, described by ARTS Transit Manager James Means as "trolley-type," will be used on a Jackson-Sutter Creek express route on a more frequent, 60-minute round-trip run between the two cities.

The route will operate from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with stops at Raley's, Sutter Amador Hospital, Court Street medical offices, Petrovich Park, Kmart, Wal-Mart, Safeway, The Arc and the Sutter Creek Post Office.

Means told ARTS directors that the trolleys, which are "dual fuel" and run on both compressed natural gas and diesel, are designed to appeal to a broader element of the area's residents and visitors, and also to provide more convenient service for existing transit users.

Means said he plans to take delivery of the busses Dec. 10 and will implement the new routes during this holiday season. He said the city of Riverside was not using them and offered them as a gift, adding the two trolleys originally cost Riverside more than $500,000.

In other actions taken during the regular ARTS meeting Nov. 30, directors approved a fiscal year 2009-10 budget revision and service plan in response to reports of lower sales tax receipts for Amador County and a dramatic drop in funding from the state of California.

The serious loss of funding is being blamed on the current state budget crisis, combined with a drop in ridership on several routes, some of which will be curtailed or eliminated completely.

ACTC Executive Director Charles Field said the revised budget calls for "a significant reduction in service."

Existing S1, S4, S6 and S8 bus routes will be eliminated, as well as M2, M4 and M7 runs. In addition, the I1 and I8 runs, as well as the X2 mid-day Sacramento run and service to River Pines will no longer be offered.

Route P service will be revised, eliminating the P1 run and reducing P2 to two days per week.

Means told the commission he hopes to add back services when the situation improves. "When we can afford to do it. We're going to build it back in," he said.

A report prepared for the commission by a private consulting firm says revenues have dropped 27 percent from a peak of $1.24 million during the fiscal year 2006-07.

The report also says changes in ridership have been caused by several factors, including service reductions, fare increases, the economic recession, worker furloughs and the drop in gas prices from the highs of 2008.

Running Gold and Ridge Road intersection under scrutiny

An effort to alleviate the high number of traffic accidents at the intersection of Running Gold Road and Ridge Road is underway by the Amador County Transportation Commission.

Commissioner Dave Richards asked that the intersection be studied after hearing reports about the dangers faced by drivers at the intersection.

"I thought it might come up," Richards said. "There's almost an accident there every day and when they put the street in, the intersection in, they only had about 10 percent of the cars going by on Ridge Road as they have today, and people are usually speeding about 60 miles an hour and the side view from the east isn't really good, so that's the reason we have so many accidents.

"I'm not asking for a traffic light or a flashing light, it's already got a stop sign, I'm just asking for a turn lane."

Commission members directed ACTC staff to examine the costs and feasibility of a center turn lane and/or a right hand- turn lane at the intersection.

ACTC will hear the results of the report at the next meeting Jan. 20, 2010.