2021 Transit Service Plan

Restoring transit service will be a gradual process and evaluating multiple transit plan scenarios will help us transition smoothly out of “COVID Service. However, as restrictions in Santa Clara County continue during the pandemic, it has become necessary to pause efforts on advancing the draft transit service plan to focus on the more urgent and significant issue of passenger pass ups on existing service.

It is increasingly necessary to provide safe and effective transit service while being responsive to public health mandates like mandatory masks and appropriate physical distance on transit. When we began the 2021 Transit Service planning process this fall, we anticipated there would be some relief on current conditions and operations by early next year. In the meantime, while implementation of the draft plan is on hold, we will focus our efforts on increasing frequency on routes experiencing the most crowding.

Frequency improvements will occur on lines 23, 25, 64, 66, 68, 71, 77 and go into effect on Feb. 8, 2021. This table shows a detailed description of the changes for each of the seven routes, plus anticipated schedule adjustments for connection and timing purposes (not increases or decreases in service levels) for most routes in the system.

Modifications will also be made to two other routes: 

• 523 – End weekday service at SJSU instead of Berryessa BART (recommendation carried over from the 2021 service plan community outreach)
• 64 – End 64B Saturday and Sunday service at SJSU instead of McKee & White and increase 64A service to every 30 minutes (so that weekend service on the 64A segment south of downtown improves to every 30 minutes and serve on the segment east of downtown remains at 30 minutes as it is today)

An immediate return to previous levels of service will not be feasible given the economic and financial changes brought on by the pandemic that needs to be addressed in the draft 2021 Transit Service Plan scenarios, such as

• Preserve as much ridership as possible system-wide.
• Ensure reductions are fair and equitable.
• Minimize service reductions by achieving transit speed increases.
• Ensure schedule running times are accurate and reflect real traffic conditions.

Interactive Maps & System Maps

• Explore the Interactive Transit Map for the Draft 70%, 80%, 90% Plans​​​​​​.
• View the System Map for the Draft 70%, 80%, 90% Plans.

Compare the Plans

• By route
• By city

Three Draft Plans

• The 70% Plan
• The 80% Plan
• The 90% Plan

The 2021 Transit Service Plan will have to reflect several new realities related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including lower sales tax revenues, new travel patterns, and potentially lower ridership.

The plan, to be implemented in February 2021, will be leaner than our pre-COVID service (launched on December 28, 2019) to reflect the financial impact of COVID on VTA’s transit budget.

To facilitate a VTA Board of Director’s decision on the total amount of service that can be provided based on these factors, staff is developing three service plans for community feedback and ultimate Board consideration that will include the following main objectives: 

Objectives

• Maintain the Frequent Network
• Avoid eliminating entire routes
• Prioritize weekday service levels over weekend service levels
• Maintain as much accessible service as possible in South County
• Prioritize BART and Caltrain connections

Community Outreach

Current public health official requirements limit in-person interaction with the community during the public engagement process, changing the nature of how the public will provide input.

Engagement efforts focus heavily on VTA hosted virtual public meetings and joining established virtual meetings with community-based organizations and neighborhood groups. 

Virtual Community Meetings

VTA held two virtual community meetings to collect input on the draft 2021 Transit Service Plan. The virtual meetings featured a presentation from VTA staff and opportunities for the public to ask questions and provide input into the VTA planning process.

• September 23, 2020, Virtual Community Meeting. View on VTA YouTube Channel.
• September 29, 2020, Virtual Community Meeting. View on VTA YouTube Channel.
• Ver presentación en español aquí.