SPOKANE, Wash. — On Wednesday, Spokane Transit Authority (STA) invited people to test ride one of its new city line buses.
Every day, Spokane bus riders say the battery-powered ride was smoother and quieter compared to STA's standard fleet.
The city line is just two months away from launching. The rapid transit line will feature battery-electric and zero emission buses. People can board from either side and get from Spokane Community College to Browne's Addition faster.
Right now, STA is finalizing the rider experience. On Wednesday, test riders boarded a city line bus for the first time.
People say they enjoyed the ride and are looking forward to the line's launch.
"It was quiet. It was fast. I didn't have to wait very long to get on," one test rider said,
"I've been wanting to ride this bus ever since I'd seen it come out," another rider said.
STA says it ran over 6 million rides last year. STA says the city line will reduce traffic congestion and bring in an estimated $175 million to Spokane over the next 20 years.
STA will be offering free rides for seven weeks starting July 15 to celebrate the city line launch.
DOWNLOAD THE KREM SMARTPHONE APP
DOWNLOAD FOR IPHONE HERE | DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID HERE
HOW TO ADD THE KREM+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KREM in the Channel Store.
Fire TV: search for "KREM" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com.