SANTA CLARA VTA RIDERS UNION P. O. Box 390069 Mountain View, CA 94039-0069 http://www.vtaridersunion.org/ MEDIA ADVISORY * FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE * TO: Editor or News Assignment Desk or Transportation Reporter Press Contact (in alphabetical order): Eugene Bradley 24 hr. cell/pager (408)888-2208 email: eegenebradley@yahoo.com BUS ALTERNATIVE TO GILROY GARLIC FESTIVAL AVAILABLE Web Site Informs Festival Goers On Using VTA's 68 Bus to Beat Gridlock to Festival MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA (July 28, 2005) - The Santa Clara VTA Riders Union (SCVTARU - http://www.vtaridersunion.org/), a public transit advocacy and watchdog group in the South Bay, has provided a web page for attendees and workers of the 27th annual Gilroy Garlic Festival (www.gilroygarlicfestival.org) a transit alternative to driving in gridlock. The web page with the transit alternative can be found at http://www.vtaridersunion.org/guides/gilroygarlic.html Specifically, the transit alternative to the Festival (which runs from July 29-31)is the Valley Transportation Authority's (VTA - http://www.vta.org/) Line 68 bus that starts at Diridon Station in San Jose and ends at either Gilroy's Transit Center or nearby Gavilan College. The guide recommends taking Line 68 buses destined for Gavilan College, as it stops nearest the Festival parking area on West 10th and Princevalle Streets in Gilroy. The 68 bus (http://www.vta.org/schedules/SC_68.html) runs to Gavilan College every 30 minutes on weekdays, and every hour on weekends. According to VTA, one-way bus fare for senior/disabled passengers, youth aged 5-17, and adults over 18 is 50 cents, $1.50, and $1.75 respectively. A one-day only pass for senior/disabled passengers, youth aged 5-17, and adults over 18 is $2.25, $4.50, and $5.25 respectively. Day passes grant you free rides on any VTA local/limited stop/rapid bus or light rail for that day purchased only. SCVTARU founder Eugene Bradley acted on an anonymous tip from a casual VTA observer who noted that Steam Engine 2472 was not going to run to the Festival this year due to repairs. The observer also noted that VTA's vaunted web site did not advertise the 68 bus as a transit alternative to the Garlic Festival. "I was surprised that VTA missed an opportunity to promote the 68 bus as an alternative to gridlock," said Mr. Bradley. "The 68 bus is the South County's only daily transit connection to the rest of the Valley and should not be overlooked." ### About the Santa Clara VTA Riders Union -------------------------------------- Founded in October 2000 by Eugene Bradley, the Santa Clara VTA Riders Union is a grassroots-based organization dedicated to ensuring that elected officials improve and implement cost-effective, frequent, and reliable mass transit in Santa Clara County. Our web site is at www.vtaridersunion.org. We are based in Sunnyvale, CA. Our organization has absolutely no affiliation with, nor is endorsed by, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) in any way whatsoever. Note to Editors and News Desks: More information on SCVTARU can be found at the following URLs: http://www.vtaridersunion.org/whoarewe/who.html http://www.vtaridersunion.org/PR