SunLine Transit Agency

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SunLine Transit Agency
File:SunLine Transit Agency.png
SunLine Transit Agency, three New Flyer C40LF buses, Palm Springs.jpg
Three SunLine New Flyer C40LF buses in Palm Springs
FoundedJuly 1, 1977; 46 years ago (1977-07-01)
Headquarters32-505 Harry Oliver Trail
Thousand Palms, California
Service typebus service, paratransit
Routes10[1]
Fleet68 buses, 27 paratransit[2]
Daily ridership7,300 (weekdays, Q2 2022)[3]
Annual ridership2,118,100 (2021)[4]
Websitesunline.org

SunLine Transit Agency, a transit operator in Riverside County, California (with over 3.5 million passengers a year), is a transit agency providing bus service in the Coachella Valley, with service extending into Downtown Riverside during peak hours.[1][5] In 2021, the system had a ridership of 2,118,100, or about 7,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2022.

History and description

SunLine Transit Agency (STA) was established under a Joint Powers Agreement, initially between Riverside County and Coachella Valley cities (Coachella, Desert Hot Springs, Indio, Palm Desert, and Palm Springs) on July 1, 1977. Cathedral City, Indian Wells, La Quinta, and Rancho Mirage were added later. Each of the nine member cities selects one member of the SunLine Board of Directors, with the tenth provided by Riverside County.[6]: 1 

The service area covers 1,120 sq mi (2,900 km2), bounded approximately by the San Gorgonio Pass on the west and the Salton Sea on the southeast.[6]: 13  In addition to its transit operations, SunLine regulates local taxi services (as the SunLine Regulatory Administration, a division of the SunLine Services Group)[7]: 25  and sells CNG and hydrogen to the public from dispensers at its Thousand Palms and Indio operations facilities, under the brand SunFuels.[8][9]: 3 

Routes

Current SunLine Transit Routes[1]
Route Terminus 1 Terminus 2 Operations Notes
Dir. Destination Dir. Destination Frequency Hours
1 E Coachella W Palm Springs 20 min 5am–10pm
2 N Desert Hot Springs S Cathedral City 20 min 5am–10pm
3 E Desert Edge W Desert Hot Springs 60 min 5am–8pm
4 E Westfield Palm Desert W Palm Springs 40 min 5am–10pm
5 N Desert Hot Springs S Westfield Palm Desert 60 min 6am–8am; 4pm–6pm Weekdays only
6 E Coachella W Westfield Palm Desert 45 min 6am–7pm
7 N Bermuda Dunes / Indian Wells S La Quinta 45 min 5am–8pm
8 N North Indio S Thermal / Mecca 40 min 5:30am–9:30pm
9 E Oasis W North Shore 60 min 6am–9pm Loop route
10 E Indio W San Bernardino 120–300 min 5am–6pm Branded Commuter Link. Operates weekdays only. One-way trip takes approximately 135 minutes. Connects to Los Angeles Union Station at San Bernardino Transit Center

Destinations

Destinations served include:[10]

Governance

SunLine is governed by a board of directors with 10 members[11]

  • 1 City Council member From Palm Springs
  • 1 City Council member from the 9 cities in the Coachella Valley that are not Palm Springs City.
  • 1 from the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, District 4

Chair

Glenn Miller

Vice Chair

Lisa Middleton

Chief Executive Officer

Lauren Skiver

Facilities and fleet

Early fuel cell buses
XCELLSiS ZEbus refueling at Thousand Palms facility
Thor/ISE ThunderPower in service with AC Transit after initial operations with SunLine

The initial fleet included 22 buses in 1977. SunDial paratransit operations started in 1991.[12]: 11  The SunLine Board of Directors adopted a resolution in 1992 to convert their fleet to alternative fuel, and became the first transit agency in the United States to do so in 1994, using compressed natural gas (CNG) buses.[12]: 11 

Starting in 2000, SunLine began limited operations with hydrogen fuel cell buses, installing a hydrogen fuel station using a Stuart Energy electrolyzer to supply the XCELLSiS ZEbus for a 13-month trial.[13] The first revenue operations were conducted with the Thor/ISE ThunderPower fuel cell bus, using an ElDorado National EZ-Rider II chassis, between November 2002 to February 2003.[14] By that time, SunLine also had installed a HyRadix methane reformer to generate hydrogen.[15]: 6  SunLine tested a hydrogen hybrid internal combustion engine (HHICE) bus in early 2005; the bus was subsequently sent to Winnipeg Transit for cold weather testing.[16]

STA plans to convert their fleet to zero-emission buses (ZEB) by 2035, with only ZEBs purchased starting in 2021.[17]: 1, 3  Due to the relatively long fixed routes, the final mix of ZEBs is expected to be mostly hydrogen fuel-cell buses.[17]: 9 

SunLine Transit Fleet
No.
(qty) 		Manufacturer Model Year Fuel Length
560–574
(13) 		Orion V 2006 CNG 40
575–594
(16) 		New Flyer C40LF 2008 CNG 40
601–621
(21)
710–719
(10) 		ElDorado E-Z Rider II 2009 CNG 32
FC2
(0) 		New Flyer H40LFR 2010 Hydrogen 40
FC3
(1) 		ElDorado Axess 2012 Hydrogen 40
(3) BYD K9 2014 Electric 40
FC4–FC5
(2) 		ElDorado Axess 2014 Hydrogen 40
FC6
(1) 		2015
622–627
(6) 		New Flyer XN40 2016 CNG 40
FC7–FC10
(4) 		ElDorado Axess 2018 Hydrogen 40

SunLine has two operations and maintenance facilities: one (including the administrative offices) in Thousand Palms, and another in Indio. As of 2021, on-site refueling and charging capabilities include an electrolyzer that can produce 900 kg/d (2,000 lb/d) of hydrogen at Thousand Palms, which came online in 2019, and six 80 kW AC/DC battery-electric bus chargers, three each at both Thousand Palms and Indio.[17]: 1, 3, 17  Hydrogen dispensers (using delivered liquid H
2) and additional chargers are planned for both facilities.[17]: 7–8 

Hydrogen production started in November 2000. Two electrolyzers and a natural gas reformer were part of the initial installation. One electrolyzer, supplied by Teledyne Brown, generated 40 cu ft (1.1 m3) per hour using 7.5 kW of electricity, supplied by solar panels; the other electrolyzer, supplied by Stuart Energy, produced 1,400 cu ft (40 m3) per hour. The reformer produced 4,200 cu ft (120 m3) per hour.[18] The HyRadix Adéo reformer was installed at the end of 2003.[19]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Routes and Schedules". SunLine Transit Agency.
  2. ^ fleet information
  3. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Second Quarter 2022" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. August 29, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  4. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2021" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 10, 2022. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  5. ^ "Annual Report 2007" (PDF). Sunline.
  6. ^ a b SunLine Transit Agency Short Term Transit Plan, FY 2018/2019 | FY 2020/2021 (PDF) (Report). SunLine Transit Agency. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  7. ^ SunLine Transit Agency Short Term Transit Plan, FY 2016/17 – FY 2018/19 (PDF) (Report). SunLine Transit Agency. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  8. ^ "SunFuel Alternative Fuel Stations". SunLine Transit Agency. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  9. ^ Affordable, Sustainable Transportation in the Coachella Valley: Solutions for the Local Workforce (PDF) (Report). California State University San Bernardino. January 29, 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Destinations". SunLine Transit Agency.
  11. ^ "Boards and Committees | SunLine Transit Agency". www.sunline.org. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
  12. ^ a b SunLine Transit Agency Short Term Transit Plan, FY 2017/18 – FY 2019/20 (PDF) (Report). SunLine Transit Agency. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  13. ^ Cooperative Agreement Project Number CA-26-7022 (PDF) (Report). Federal Transit Administration. September 2, 2001. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  14. ^ "SunLine Test Drives Hydrogen Bus" (PDF). United States Department of Energy. August 2003. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  15. ^ Chandler, Kevin; Eudy, Leslie (November 2003). ThunderPower Bus Evaluation at SunLine Transit Agency (PDF) (Report). U.S. Department of Energy. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  16. ^ "SunLine Tests HHICE Bus in Desert Climate" (PDF). US Department of Energy. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  17. ^ a b c d Zero-Emission Bus Rollout Plan (PDF) (Report). SunLine Transit Agency. June 24, 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  18. ^ Clapper Jr., William L. "SunLine Transit Agency: Hydrogen Commercialization for the 21st Century" (PDF). SunLine Transit Agency. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  19. ^ Harness, John (2006). "Auto-Thermal Reforming Based Refueling Station at SunLine Services" (PDF). US Department of Energy. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
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