The expansion of Mountain Line Transit Authority bus routes in and around the Downtown and Evansdale campuses is taking motorists off congested roadways, West Virginia University officials say.

During the first week of fall semester classes, Mountain Lines new Blue&Gold Connector averaged over 400 passenger boardings per day, said Bob Roberts, WVU director of public safety and transportation.

This new continuous route that we announced in July is doing just what we had hoped it would do,Roberts said.By the rider numbers being logged, we can see that mass transit can have a very positive impact on traffic and parking resources. These numbers reflect over 400 people per day who are not in traffic or fighting for parking spaces.

The Blue&Gold Connector runs a continuous loop from Grant Avenue along Beechurst Avenue to the Creative Arts Center, along Evansdale Drive by Engineering and Towers, to University Avenue by the College of Law, and back down Eighth Street to Grant/Summit and Life Sciences.

It operates year around, seven days a week, every 20 minutes. Hours are 6:30 a.m.- 11 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 6:30 a.m.6:30 p.m Sundays, with slight varied summer hours.

The Connector is free to students and employees with valid ID and the normal fare (75 cents) for other riders.

The new bus route is in addition to the current arrangement the University has with Mountain Line that allows students and employees with valid WVU ID to ride any regular bus routes for free, whether its the Orange, Red, Gold, Campus PM, or any of the other 11 countywide bus lines.Our goal is to continue seeking ways to encourage use of mass transitlike buses and the PRT as well as other modes of transportation, rather than the single occupant vehicle,Roberts said.We hope that others will see the benefit and seek ways to get their employees to join our riders. We want to reduce traffic in Morgantown and make this a safer and more enjoyable community in which to live.

For information on Mountain Line bus routes, go to www.busride.org , or email info@busride.org or call 219-RIDE.