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Yolobus’ new commuter line between Woodland and the Davis campus, with a stop in the Health Sciences District, is delighting a small but growing number of campus employees.

Keeton-Garcia

“This is the perfect route for those of us who work the 8-5 shift over in the Health Sciences area,” said Maria Keeton-Garcia, a hospital transcriptionist in the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System.

Before Commuter Route 243 came along on Jan. 1, Yolobus didn’t stop in the Health Sciences District — and Keeton-Garcia had to rush from the Thurman Laboratory to the Silo Terminal to catch a bus home in the evening. Now, she has a much shorter walk to the Route 243 stop on Hutchison Drive at Health Sciences Drive.

With the addition of Route 243, Yolobus now has two commuter lines between Woodland and Davis.

• — One bus in the morning and one in the evening, Monday-Friday, between Second and Court streets in Woodland, and Cowell Boulevard and Drew Avenue in Davis The morning bus stops at the Silo at 7:31 and reaches Cowell and Drew at 7:40. The evening bus begins at Cowell and Drew at 5:10 and stops at the Silo at 5:21. New this year: Route 242 added a stop in Woodland, at the County Fair Mall Transit Center.
• — Two buses in the morning and two in the evening, Monday-Friday, between the Spring Lake neighborhood, and Shields Library and the Art Building. The morning buses reach Hutchison and Health Sciences drives at 7:48 and 8:18; the Silo at 7:51 and 8:21; and the Art Building at 7:53 and 8:23. The evening buses depart Shields Library at 5:09 and 5:39.

“I’m excited for this new commuter bus, and hope more people from the (Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital) area hear the news of how convenient it is,” Keeton-Garcia said. “I also hope that people who live on the east side of Woodland and work over in this area have heard that Route 243 serves the east side of Woodland, where the newer housing development is.”

The Yolo County Transportation District, which runs Yolobus, says the route is too new for any ridership statistics to be available.

Keeton-Garcia started riding Route 243 on its first day, and said her bus — the earlier of the two — grew from just two people to eight during the first week, and is now up to about 20 people.

She also said the new route is a faster way home for Woodland residents than waiting for buses on the 42 line — which must fight Sacramento traffic before arriving on campus.

“I think this may be the best secret on the west side of campus,” she said. “Yolobus Route 243 rocks!”