The County Connection (officially, the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority, CCCTA) is a Concord-based public transit agency operating fixed-route bus and ADA paratransit (County Connection LINK) service in and around central Contra Costa County in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Contra Costa County has four major public bus transportation services, divided geographically: three mostly serve destinations within the county, covering western (WestCAT), central (County Connection), and eastern (Tri Delta Transit) regions, and one (AC Transit) serves Bayside cities along the western edges of Contra Costa and Alameda counties.
Established in 1980 as a joint powers authority, CCCTA assumed control of public bus service within central Contra Costa first begun by Oakland-based AC Transit as it expanded into suburban Contra Costa County in the mid-1970s (especially after the opening of BART). In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of .
History
AC Transit began operating local bus service under contract in central Contra Costa County in the 1970s after the coming of BART. Service began in Concord on September 8, 1975; in Pleasant Hill on December 8, 1975; and in Moraga and Orinda on September 13, 1976. Walnut Creek began operating a downtown shuttle route connecting to BART in December 1974.
On March 27, 1980, the Central Contra Costa Transit Authority (CCCTA) was created by a joint powers agreement between the cities of Clayton, Concord, Lafayette, Martinez, Moraga, Pleasant Hill, and Walnut Creek, plus the County of Contra Costa. The agency took over operations of the Walnut Creek system on July 1, 1980; by 1982, it had seven routes and twelve minibuses. The CCCTA originally planned to take over the other services in its district from AC Transit in August 1981. However, slow delivery of the buses and heavy rains that slowed construction of a maintenance facility delayed this until 1982.
A Walnut Creek writer, Elizabeth Tenney, won a contest in early 1982 to create a slogan for the CCRTA system. Her slogan, "The County Connection", was adopted as the system branding. The CCCTA took over local bus service in its district from AC Transit on June 7, 1982, with a fleet of 24 new Gillig buses. (AC Transit continued to operate express bus service that functioned as feeder service for BART.) At that time, the Walnut Creek routes had 2,500 daily riders, while the routes taken over from AC Transit had 8,000 daily riders. Several routes were consolidated with the takeover, while a new Martinez–Concord–Clayton route was added.
County Connection took over the operations of three private paratransit providers in 1990 to form its paratransit service, branded as LINK. In 1994, the agency took over the BART express bus feeder service.
Fares Current standard single-ride fares are $2.50 with cash and $2.00 with a Clipper card. Fares are automatically capped at $3.75 a day with Clipper, however, a monthly pass can be purchased for $60. Clipper START users, youth (0-18), senior (65+), and disabled fares are half-off when paid with Clipper. Reduced fares when paid with cash are only offered to senior and disabled customers.
Transfer discounts are only offered when using a Clipper card. A single free transfer from bus-to-bus within two hours of initial boarding is given. This free transfer is also valid for a transfer to neighboring systems (SolTrans, Tri Delta Transit, WestCat, Wheels). BART-to-bus transfers give a $1.00 fare discount upon boarding ($0.50 for discounted fare holders). In addition, ACE passengers can ride the 92X for free with a valid ACE ticket. Amtrak passengers can also ride any County Connection bus for free with either a paper ticket for the date printed as well as the following day or with a valid digital transfer.
Service As of May 2020, the County Connection operates 25 weekday routes (three of which also operate on weekends), seven weekend-only routes, and 19 school tripper routes within central Contra Costa County.CCCTA – Maps & Schedules All routes, with the exception of some of the 600-numbered series select service trips, connect with regional train service, primarily BART, in addition to ACE in Pleasanton and Amtrak, including Amtrak California's Capitol Corridor and Gold Runner services in Martinez. Among its 30 weekday routes, the County Connection operates seven express routes (Routes 91X—98X). With support from the city of Walnut Creek, the County Connection also operates a free downtown circulator with trolley livery (Route 4) with service between Walnut Creek and Broadway Plaza.
The fleet consists of 121 accessible buses and 63 paratransit vans.
Bus service does not operate on New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
Route overview
Weekdays Weekday service is provided on all routes except 300-numbered series routes, which operate only on weekends. 600-numbered series routes are select service trips convenient to area schools and operate on school days, with service timed to school bell times. RouteDirectionTerminalsACE, Amtrak, or BART Connection atNotes/Weekend Route North/East Terminal South/West Terminal 1 North-South Mitchell Dr Park & Ride Rossmoor Walnut Creek Ride 301 on Weekends 4The Free Ride North-South BART Walnut Creek Broadway Plaza Walnut Creek Free, daily service between BART Walnut Creek and Broadway Plaza via downtown 5 North-South BART Walnut Creek Creekside Dr Walnut Creek 6 East-West BART Lafayette BART Orinda Lafayette, Orinda Also operates on weekends Operates 3 trips per day to Orinda Village and Community Center 7 East-West BART Pleasant Hill Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek Operates from 6am – 7pm 9 North-South Diablo Valley College BART Walnut Creek Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek Also serves JFK University 10 East-West Clayton – Clayton Library6 AM—8PMClayton Rd & Kirker Pass RdBefore 6 AM and after 8 PM BART Concord Concord Service via Clayton Rd; Ride 310 on Weekends 11 East-West BART Concord BART Pleasant Hill Concord, Pleasant Hill Service via Meadow Ln and Oak Grove Rd (north of Treat Blvd); Ride 311 on Weekends 14 North-South BART Concord BART Walnut Creek Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek Service via Monument Blvd; Ride 311 and 314 on Weekends 15 East-West BART Concord BART Pleasant Hill Concord, Pleasant Hill Service via Treat Blvd; Ride 315 on Weekends 16 North-South Amtrak Martinez5:40 AM—8:40 PMCrescent Plaza & Crescent DrAfter 8:40 PM BART Concord Martinez (Amtrak), Concord Service via Alhambra Ave, Crescent Plaza – Downtown Pleasant Hill, and Monument Blvd; Ride 314 and 316 on Weekends 17 North-South BART North Concord BART Concord North Concord, Concord 18 North-South Amtrak Martinez BART Pleasant Hill Martinez (Amtrak), Pleasant Hill Also serves Diablo Valley College; Ride 316 on Weekends 19 North-South Amtrak Martinez BART Concord Martinez (Amtrak), Concord Ride 316 on Weekends 20 East-West BART Concord Diablo Valley College Concord Also serves Sunvalley Mall; Ride 314 and 320 on Weekends 21 North-South BART Walnut Creek San Ramon Transit Center Walnut Creek Service via Danville Blvd; Ride 321 on Weekends 27 East-West BART North Concord Mason Circle Martinez (Amtrak), North Concord Also serves Diablo Valley College 28 East-West Amtrak Martinez BART Concord Martinez (Amtrak), Concord Also serves Diablo Valley College 35 North-South San Ramon Transit Center BART Dublin/Pleasanton Dublin/Pleasanton Service via Windemere Pkwy and East Branch Pkwy only during midday from 10:30 AM to 3:45 PM; Ride 335 on weekends 91XConcord Commuter Express Loop BART Concord – Airport Plaza Concord Operates during AM and PM peak periods only 92XACE Express North-South Mitchell Dr Park & Ride ACE Pleasanton Pleasanton (ACE) Operates during AM and PM peak periods only. Also serves Danville Park & Ride and San Ramon Transit Center 93XKirker Pass Express East-West BART Walnut Creek AM terminal Hillcrest (Antioch) Park & RidePM terminal Walnut Creek Operates westbound AM only, eastbound PM only (mornings to Walnut Creek, afternoons to Hillcrest Park & Ride) 95XSan Ramon Express North-South BART Walnut Creek San Ramon Transit Center Walnut Creek Operates during AM and PM peak periods only. Also serves Danville Park & Ride 96XBishop Ranch Express, North Loop BART Walnut Creek – Bishop Ranch Walnut Creek Operates mainly during AM and PM peak periods only with three midday trips. Also serves San Ramon Transit Center 97XBishop Ranch Express, South Loop BART Dublin/Pleasanton – Bishop Ranch Dublin/Pleasanton Operates during AM and PM peak periods only. Also serves San Ramon Transit Center 98XMartinez/Walnut Creek Express North-South Amtrak Martinez BART Walnut Creek Martinez (Amtrak), Walnut Creek Route also serves Contra Costa Blvd & Viking Dr – Sunvalley Mall 99XMartinez/North Concord Express East-West Amtrak Martinez BART North Concord Martinez (Amtrak), North Concord Route serves Arnold Industrial Wy & Pacheco Transit Hub Alamo Creek Shuttle North-South BART Walnut Creek Alamo Creek Walnut Creek Operates 3 northbound trips and 2 southbound trips AM, 3 southbound trips and 2 northbound trips PM (last morning trip does not return to Alamo Creek, last afternoon trip does not return to BART).
Operates using specially wrapped vehicles under County Connection Link 712 East-West BART Pittsburg/Bay Point BART 19th Street Oakland Pleasant Hill Early Bird Express route with limited early-morning trips 715 East-West BART North Concord/Martinez BART Lafayette Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek Early Bird Express route with limited early-morning trips
Weekends Service is provided on the following 11 routes: RouteDirectionTerminalsACE, Amtrak, or BART Connection atNotes North/East Terminal South/West Terminal 4The Free Ride North-South BART Walnut Creek Broadway Plaza Walnut Creek Free, daily service between BART Walnut Creek and Broadway Plaza via downtown 6 East-West BART Lafayette BART Orinda Lafayette, Orinda Also operates on weekdays 250Gael Rail Shuttle North-South BART Lafayette Saint Mary's College Lafayette Operates PM trips only Thursday—Sunday 301 North-South John Muir Medical Center, Walnut Creek Campus Rossmoor Walnut Creek 310 East-West Clayton Rd & Kirker Pass Road Concord Bart Concord 311 East-West BART Concord BART Walnut Creek Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek 314 East-West Concord BART Diablo Valley College Concord Service via Contra Costa Blvd, Monument Blvd, and Clayton Rd 315 East-West Clayton Rd & Bel Air Dr BART Concord Concord 316 North-South Alhambra Ave & Walnut Ave BART Pleasant Hill Martinez (Amtrak), Pleasant Hill Also serves Diablo Valley College 320 East-West BART Concord Diablo Valley College Concord Service via Diamond Blvd 321 North-South BART Walnut Creek San Ramon Transit Center Walnut Creek 335North-SouthSan Ramon Transit CenterBART Dublin/PleasantonDublin
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