Low income riders on the Wheels bus system will become eligible for reduced fares beginning Monday January 25. Wheels is participating in a pilot program administered by the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) called Clipper START. The pilot will continue through the end of the year at a minimum.

Applicants to the pilot program can provide a copy of an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card or Medi-Cal card, a county benefits eligibility letter, their Muni Lifeline card number or a copy of their last federal tax return to demonstrate their eligibility. Once approved, they will receive a personalized Clipper card that must be loaded with cash value before use.

The Clipper START discounts are automatically applied whenever the card is used. On Wheels buses, the discount is 20 percent off of the regular $2.00 one-way fare. Clipper START is not a transit pass — it is a program that offers discounts for single rides on 22 participating Bay Area transit systems.

Riders interested in Clipper START can learn more about the program and apply online at clipperstartcard.com. The website guides customers through the application process, details what documents customers need to upload, and will save applicants’ progress to allow them to return later to complete the application if necessary.

Cards can only be obtained through the Clipper website and are not available at the Livermore Transit Center, the Wheels Administrative Office or at any of the other Tri-Valley retail locations where Clipper Cards are available.

Income guidelines for the program are listed below.

Clipper Start Income Guidelines

Household size	Household income up to
1	$25,520
2	$34,480
3	$43,440
4	$52,400
5	$61,360
6	$70,320
7	$79,280
8	$88,240

Add $8,960 for each additional household member over eight.

About the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority

The Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA) was created in 1985 by the cities of Dublin, Livermore and Pleasanton and Alameda County to serve area transit needs. In 2018 and 2019, LAVTA was named Transit Agency of the Year by the California Transit Association and the California Association for Coordinated Transportation, respectively. In 2020, LAVTA was named the top transit agency of its size in North America by the American Public Transportation Association.

LAVTA supports environmental sustainability by reducing vehicle trips and traffic congestion on local streets and improving air quality in the Tri-Valley region. In addition to passenger fares, the agency is supported financially by federal, state and local agencies, including the Alameda County Transportation Commission’s Measure B and BB.

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) has announced the selection of the Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority (LAVTA) as the recipient of the 2020 Outstanding Public Transportation System Achievement Award. The annual award acknowledges excellence among public transportation providers in North America. In LAVTA’s 35-year history, this the first time it has received this honor.

 

In announcing the award, APTA Chair Nuria Fernandez said “This is a prestigious and well-deserved honor for your organization. It also spotlights your outstanding leadership, working with your Board, your team members and your community. Your success is a model that our industry can emulate.”

 

LAVTA’s award is for rail or bus transit systems providing 4 million or fewer passenger trips annually. Agencies are evaluated by APTA’s Awards Committee based on a combination of qualitative and quantitative criteria. The qualitative criteria include safety, operations and maintenance, customer service, financial management, diversity and inclusion, marketing, and community relations. Quantitative measures include ridership, cost effectiveness, and road call data.

 

Livermore Vice Mayor Bob Woerner, currently LAVTA’s Board Chair, recognized the LAVTA staff and thanked the other members of the LAVTA Board of Directors. Woerner noted “In the past three years, this agency comprised of a 14-person staff and a seven-member Board of Directors has been named Transit Agency of the Year in California by two different organizations and has now been selected as the top transit agency of our size in North America. These honors are truly a testament to the quality of our small staff and the effective collaboration between that staff and our Board of Directors. In the midst of the current pandemic, during which our employees are busy providing an essential service to the residents of our region, it is nice to be able to take a moment and reflect on all we have accomplished recently as an organization.”

 

Among the accomplishments which led to LAVTA receiving the award:

• An increase in ridership of 12.1% over the two-year period from 2017 to 2019

• The successful passage of a Student Mobility Initiative at Las Positas College (LPC) to fund unlimited access transit passes for all LPC students

• Launching a Shared Autonomous Vehicle (SAV) project in proximity to the East Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station to help provide first and last mile connections with BART

• Serving as executive and administrative support for the Tri-Valley – San Joaquin Valley Regional Rail Authority (Valley Link), which held its first Board meeting in January 2018

• Partnering with the city of Livermore to relocate and rehabilitate the Southern Pacific Railroad’s historic train depot for use as LAVTA’s Livermore Transit Center sales and operations building

• Initiating Go Dublin, an on-demand real-time mobility alternative for Dublin residents utilizing a unique partnership with Uber and Lyft

 

LAVTA and the rest of this year’s award winners will be honored at an APTA Virtual Meeting in October and again in March at APTA’s annual TRANSform Conference.