Carmen Fernandez at the May 2 Loma Linda University Employee Benefits Fair
Carmen Fernandez can’t wait for the start of passenger service of the first sbX corridor, so she can have lunch more with her sister.
The Colton resident, a nine-year photographer for Educational Support Services at Loma Linda University’s School of Dentistry, currently uses Omnitrans Route 2 once a week to meet her sibling, who works at Sam’s Club in San Bernardino near the popular rows of restaurants on Harriman Place and Hospitality Lane.
She also takes routes 8 and 9 to visit her parents and get to her acupuncture therapy sessions in Redlands; and routes 19 and 325 to get between home and work. She has a car but chooses to use public transit because she shares the car with her daughter, a boxer who trains at a gym in Reche Canyon.
“I choose to do it,” Fernandez said of bus riding. “Three miles is a little too far to walk, and I could park free in two of the lots. It’s convenient, so why not?”
She also takes advantage of her employer’s rideshare incentive, which allows her to purchase a $47 monthly pass for $22.
Carmen, a native of Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico, sees bus service with Omnitrans as less frequent but more reliable. “I consider bus riding a game, which makes it fun for me,” she said, “especially with NexTrip. It’s more precise than relying on the Bus Book. That makes it fun. I think most people who don’t use the bus think it’s boring. The drivers who know me stop if they see me and I’m running a little behind. It’s exciting.”
–David Rutherford
david.rutherford@omnitrans.org
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