WestCAT
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| WestCAT | |
| Locale | Contra Costa County |
|---|---|
| Transit type | Commuter Bus |
| Began operation | 1977 |
| System length | 20 mi² (52 km²) |
| Number of lines | 16 |
| Number of stations | 300 |
| Daily ridership | 4,782 |
| Operator(s) | Western Contra Costa Transit Authority |
WestCAT is a public transportation service in western Contra Costa County (north of Oakland, CA). It is a service of the Western Contra Costa Transit Authority. The Western Contra Costa County Transit (WestCAT) was established in August 1977 as a Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement between the County of Contra Costa and the cities of Hercules and Pinole. It was created with the purpose of owning, operating and administering a public transportation system serving the area between the Richmond/El Sobrante border to the west and the Al Zampa Memorial Bridge to the east. WestCAT is governed by a 7-member Board of Directors and supported by professional staff of six. The two cities of Pinole and Hercules are each represented by two board members, while the unincorporated communities of Crockett, Rodeo, and MonTaraBay each have one representative, appointed by the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors.
This agency provides local service in the towns, communities, and areas of: Hercules, Pinole, Richmond including the Hilltop area, Rodeo, Crockett, and Port Costa. It also has express lines connecting the aforementioned places and Martinez with The El Cerrito del Norte BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit District) Station in El Cerrito. The routes are (Local) 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19. Also (Express) J, JX, JL/JR (referred to as the "J" by most riders, the "L" designates via Lakeside Drive, and the "R" designates via Richmond Parkway), JPX (serves Pinole Valley residents wanting to go to the Hercules Transit Center or BART), and the Martinez Link 30Z.
There is also a direct route linking the Hercules/Rodeo area to the Transbay Terminal in San Francisco called the Lynx. With stops in the Rodeo Park and Ride located on Willow Avenue, North Shore Business Park near Bio-Rad, the Victoria by the Bay neighborhood in Hercules and the Hercules Transit Center. From the Hercules Transit center the line then goes nonstop to San Francisco via the High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes on I-80. WestCAT currently offers free Wi-Fi service on the Lynx line.
WestCAT also runs a route called the C3 - Contra Costa College connection which provides a direct link to Contra Costa College from Hercules and Pinole along the San Pablo Avenue Corridor. This route now operates year round. It also has connections to AC Transit's route 72R at the college.
WestCAT's fleet started out with shuttle vans, and then using buses made by El Dorado National and Thomas Built Buses. Now, WestCAT runs an almost all Gillig fleet, ranging from Gillig Phantoms, to 2 Gillig Low Floors serving mostly the 16 - Pinole Valley/Pinole Vista route, as well as 5 new 2007 model Gillig BRT buses not yet in service. By summer of 2008 WestCAT expects to begin phasing in new Motor Coach Industries (MCI) over-the-road coaches to its fleet for use on the Lynx.
