Gold Coast Transit District, formerly known as South Coast Area Transit (SCAT), is a local bus operator in western Ventura County, California, serving Ventura, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Ojai, and the adjoining areas of unincorporated Ventura County. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 3,380,300, or about 12,100 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024.
 | |
 Gold Coast Transit bus at Oxnard Transit Center in 2015 | |
| Founded | 1973 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 301 East Third Street Oxnard, California |
| Service area | Ventura County, California |
| Service type | bus service, paratransit |
| Routes | 23 |
| Fleet | 64 buses |
| Daily ridership | 12,100 (weekdays, Q3 2024)[1] |
| Annual ridership | 3,380,300 (2023)[2] |
| Website | goldcoasttransit |
History
editGold Coast Transit District was founded in 1973 as South Coast Area Transit with the merger of the Ventura City Transit Lines and the Oxnard Municipal Bus Lines. Until 1994, SCAT also served Santa Paula. Service to Santa Paula has since been replaced with VCTC Intercity fixed-route and dial-a-ride services. The system adopted the name Gold Coast Transit effective July 1, 2007. This accompanied a change in bus livery and the acquisition of 26 new buses.[3]
In October 2013, California Assembly Bill 664 was chartered as the enabling legislation to transition Gold Coast Transit from a joint powers authority to a special purpose transit district. On July 1, 2014, the agency officially became Gold Coast Transit District.[4] The district's founding member jurisdictions include the cities of Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, and Ventura and the County of Ventura. The bill allows other cities in Ventura County to subsequently join the district.[5]
In 2014, GCTD leadership was recognized with the District being honored as the “Transit Agency of the Year” at the Small Operators award ceremony hosted by the California Transit Association (CTA) [6] as part of its 49th Annual Conference and Expo in Monterey, California.
On May 10, 2017 Gold Coast Transit District broke ground on a new operations and maintenance facility in Oxnard.[7][8] The facility opened in July 2019.[9]
Service area
editGold Coast Transit District provides bus service to these cities and communities:
Routes
editLocal routes
editAs of May 2024, Gold Coast Transit District operates 18 local lines and 4 school trippers lines as well as paratransit service.[10]
| Route | Terminals | Via | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | Oxnard | C St, Saviers Rd |
| |
| 1B |
| |||
| 2 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Colonia
San Gorgonio Av & Gibraltar St |
Colonia Rd, 1st St |
|
| 3 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Oxnard
El Dorado Av & Channel Island Bl |
J St, Channel Island Bl |
|
| 4A | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Gonzales Rd, Rose Av, 3rd St |
| |
| 4B |
| |||
| 5 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Oxnard
Hemlock St & Patterson Rd |
5th St, Wooley Rd | |
| 6 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Ventura
Ventura Av and Willett St |
C St, Victoria Av, Telegraph Rd, Ventura Av |
|
| 7 | Oxnard
Centerpoint Mall |
Oxnard
Butler Rd and Pleasant Valley Rd |
Saviers Rd, Pleasant Valley Rd |
|
| 8 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
Oxnard
Centerpoint Mall |
5th St, Rose Av, Bard Rd, Saviers Rd |
|
| 10 | Ventura
Ventura Transit Center |
Ventura
Darling Rd & Jonquill Av |
Telegraph Rd |
|
| 11 | Ventura
Ventura Transit Center |
Ventura
Wells Rd and Carlos St |
Telephone Rd | |
| 15 | Oxnard | Oxnard
Auto Center Dr & Paseo Mercado |
Vineyard Av, Alvarado St, Gonzales Rd | |
| 16 | Ventura
Ventura Transit Center |
Ojai
Ojai Av & Fox St |
Thompson Blvd, Ventura Av, Ojai Av |
|
| 17 | Oxnard
Esplanade Shopping Center |
Oxnard
Oxnard College |
Ventura Bl, Rose Av | |
| 19 | Oxnard
Oxnard Transit Center |
5th St, Victoria Av, Gonzales Rd, Rice Av, 3rd St |
| |
| 21 | Oxnard
Centerpoint Mall |
Ventura
Ventura Transit Center |
Channel Islands Bl, Victoria Av, Telegraph Rd |
|
| 23 | Oxnard
Oxnard College |
Oxnard
Esplanade Shopping Center |
Pleasant Valley Rd, Ventura Rd | |
School Trippers routes
editGold Coast Transit District operates five "school trippers" that supplement school bus service to local high schools. While intended to serve students with service only on school days, these routes are open to the general public.
| Route | Terminals | Via | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18A | Oxnard
Channel Islands Bl & Ventura Rd |
Oxnard | C St, Doris St |
|
| 18C | Oxnard
Oxnard High School |
H St |
| |
| 18E | Oxnard | Rose Av |
| |
| 18F | Ventura
Ventura Av & Norway Dr |
Ventura | Ventura Av, Santa Clara St |
|
| 18G | Oxnard
Nyeland Av & Ventura Bl |
Oxnard | Rose Av | |
References
edit- ^ "Transit Ridership Report Third Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
- ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
- ^ "Transit service gets new name, colors". Ventura County Star. July 2, 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-12-04. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
- ^ "Assembly Bill No. 664" California State Legislative Information Accessed 18 November 2014
- ^ Public Utilities Code: DIVISION 10. TRANSIT DISTRICTS: PART 18. GOLD COAST TRANSIT DISTRICT § 107000
- ^ "Transit Agency of the Year". California Transit Association. 2014. Retrieved 2015-09-02.
- ^ Coverly, Lynnette. "New Facility Groundbreaking". www.goldcoasttransit.org. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
- ^ Harris, Mike (April 22, 2019). "Gold Coast Transit prepares for clean air future with electric bus test run". Ventura County Star. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
- ^ Harris, Mike (July 12, 2019). "Grand opening Saturday for Gold Coast Transit's new 15-acre headquarters in Oxnard". Ventura County Star. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
- ^ "Routes & Schedules". Gold Coast Transit District. Retrieved 2024-05-15.