California Transit Association

1973

The private company was not able to continue financially. Rather than have no transit at all, the City of Modesto decided to take over the operation.

Division of the City of Modesto Public Works Department. The City Council is the governing board.

The City's transit service was initially known as the Modesto Motor Bus Service and was operated by a private owner. Ridership on the service peaked during World War II when automobiles and gasoline were in short supply. Ridership and the service's profitability began a steady decline after the war due primarily to the popularity of the automobile.

The City first became involved with public transit in an attempt to maintain the profitability of the private transit company. By 1968 the buses used by the company were old and undependable and due to their advanced age required a high level of expensive maintenance. The City obtained a federal grant to purchase four new 1968 buses which it turned over to the private company to replace its aging fleet. The new buses reduced operating expenses and attracted new riders and thus enabled the company to continue in business.

By 1973 the company owner, who did everything himself from maintaining buses to dispatching and driving, decided that the business could no longer continue profitably. No buyers were interested in acquiring the business and it was about to shut down. The City determined that it was important for the community to have public transit service continue and decided to operate it as a public service, ultimately changing the name to Intracity Transit. At the time the City acquired the service it was carrying a few hundred thousand riders per year. The service now carries the name Modesto Area Express (MAX), which was adopted by the City in 1990, and serves approximately 3,600,000 passengers annually.

• Garrad Marsh, Mayor

• The Downtown Transportation Center opened in 1994 to provide transfer hub for Modesto Area Express (MAX), Stanislaus Regional Transit and Greyhound. It accommodates 150,000 buses annually.
• Our new Bus Maintenance Facility was completed in 2012 to maintain all fixed route buses.

9

Fixed Route - 3,630,874, Demand Response - 113,580

21

• 22 new fixed route buses are to be delivered during 2015.
• 14 2003 buses will be refurbished in the next 12 months.