New Redding to Chico bus line starts this week

Travelers will be able to take Redding Area Bus Authority transportation from downtown Redding to Chico starting Thursday under a new agreement with the San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority.

It's the first RABA bus service to operate outside of Shasta County, said Transit General Manager John Andoh.

"We're hoping that it'll get more riders, especially people going between Shasta and Butte counties," he said.

"I figure, like, maybe we can get folks that live in Redding that would want to go to classes at California State University, Chico, for instance," said Andoh.

He said the agency is hoping the expansion means ridership will increase from the current 10 to 15 passengers per trip to 25 to 30 riders, or "half a full bus. So that would be ideal for us."

How Amtrak's 'bus bridge' operates

Currently, the bus out of Redding carries passengers from Redding to Sacramento via Amtrak's Thruway bus service that is open only to Amtrak passengers heading for the train station in Sacramento.

The Buzz: 'The Hound' is back. Greyhound returns to downtown Redding

California law hadn't allowed people to buy Amtrak tickets just to ride the bus. But lawmakers in 2022 changed the law so public transit agencies like RABA that operate an Amtrak route now can sell bus tickets without requiring people to also ride the train.

That translates to new travel destinations for RABA bus riders, since passengers can ultimately buy an Amtrak bus ticket between Redding, Red Bluff and Chico and connect to buses going to Sacramento or Stockton, all stops along the Route 3 corridor. "And they don't have to ride the train," said Andoh.

Once in Chico, passengers wanting to continue to other cities can transfer to another Amtrak bus, he said.

Is there a bus that goes to the Sacramento airport?

The new service does not go to Sacramento International Airport. To get there, bus passengers would need to go to Sacramento and then transfer to the public Yolobus or Sacramento Regional Transit District systems, which are located near Sacramento's Amtrak station, Andoh said.

All aboard: The Buzz: Greyhound returns to Redding

FlixBus — the German bus services company and current owner of the Greyhound bus line — now operates only two trips a day between Redding and Chico, he said.

People can see the bus-only schedule on the RABA website and buy Amtrak tickets for bus travel on Amtrak.com .

Amtrak's operator in the region, the San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority, was hearing that the public wanted a bus-only service along the Interstate 5 corridor that did not also require the purchase of a train ticket.

The authority is paying RABA $392,000 annually to operate the Redding-to-Chico bus service 365 days a year, said Andoh.

Whatever happened to the Salmon Runner bus?

Andoh said the new bus travel additions from Redding are not meant to replace a proposed Redding to Sacramento airport bus service called the Salmon Runner.

"This is an interim step towards the Salmon Runner should Shasta Regional Transportation Agency wish to continue to implement it," said Andoh, adding that "the pandemic changed a lot of things."

SRTA is now evaluating the inter-city needs for Shasta County and whether the demand for the Salmon Runner still exists, he said.

Redding Record Searchlight Local Managing Editor Michele Chandler can be reached at mrchandler@gannett.com or 530-338-7753. To support and sustain our local news coverage, please subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: New Redding to Chico bus line starts this week