[Nfbmt] Fwd: Salt Lake Express Restoring Montana Bus Routes

[Dan Burke]

Great news!


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Lisa Ballard, Current Transportation Solutions"
<lballard at currenttransportation.com>
Date: Fri, 5 Apr 2013 19:35:14 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Salt Lake Express Restoring Montana Bus Routes
To: burke.dall at gmail.com



Yesterday all services between Missoula and Billings were restored, and starting
 April 15th Great Falls to Butte will have service. See below for the
press release.
We are trying to keep information updated on http://mtndintercity.wordpress.com/
 [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001FE0eWrFG8Qd2_ycNPperQRaJMop7xMZMMxdr3vAeMoaHmuFL4XLdMZ1JCj5wZpAhyo-CDarwHJMstOGzhoz0yYVxy8atjpoXNVAFY6T5gXQKspDVMWkkmE8_xczBiJM8]
Lisa Ballard, Current Transportation Solutions
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Salt Lake Express Restoring Montana Bus Routes

Companies working together to restore service to six of Montana's seven largest
cities

Yesterday April 4th Salt Lake Express (SLE) began running two roundtrip routes a
 day from Billings to Missoula; one of these schedules will service Helena with
the other connecting through Butte. Starting April 15th, the Rexburg,
Idaho based
business will begin offering bus service in and out of Great Falls
twice a day with
one shuttle going to Helena and the other passing through Helena and connecting
on to Butte. Great Falls and Helena have been without intercity bus
service since
March 22, when Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
inspectors shut
down the Billings-based Rimrock Stages bus fleet.

"We are thrilled to be able to help out in the interim covering
several of the routes
previously serviced by Rimrock Stages," said Jacob Price, Operations Manager at
Salt Lake Express (SLE). "SLE believes Rimrock Stages may resume
operations in the
future. If this occurs, these lines will be picked up again by
Rimrock." Price says
SLE will be hiring 10 to 15 local Montana drivers to cover these
routes. All ticket
agency and boarding locations will remain at the same locations that have served
 Rimrock Stages.

SLE and Minnesota-based Jefferson Lines are working together to restore service
to six of Montana's seven largest cities. They have been assisted by
Lisa Ballard
of the Missoula-based transit consulting company Current
Transportation Solutions,
who has been volunteering her time to act as a central point of
contact and facilitator
for the parties involved. Ballard said that Montana Department of Transportation
 (MDT), North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT), and the
Federal Transit
Administration (FTA) are also working hard to seek solutions.

On Saturday, March 30 Jefferson Lines began one round trip from Billings through
 Butte to Missoula and extended its Glendive run from Fargo on into Billings. In
 combination, Salt Lake Express and Jefferson have been able to restore most of
Montana and North Dakota intercity bus service to previous levels. US
93 from Missoula
to Kalispell, and I-94 between Glendive and Bismarck remain without
service. This
restored service allows daytime bus travel to many Montana
destinations, and removes
12-hour layovers for cross country travelers.

"As a progressive business with great customer service we feel privileged to be
able to help passengers by making national connections through our main express
routes between Montana and Salt Lake City," said Price.

All SLE's schedules are programmed to link with Greyhound, Arrow
Stages and Jefferson
Lines. Salt Lake Express currently provides a bus connection from
Southeastern Idaho
to Butte, Montana and Salt Lake Valley in Utah. They also serve West
Yellowstone,
Pocatello, Boise and the Cache Valley in Utah. By April 21st, their
express routes
will service Moab, UT and Richfield, UT.

Current Transportation Solutions has been involved because the company
has worked
closely with Rimrock Stages, gaining a detailed knowledge of the
Montana bus service
through development of a 2011 transit plan completed under contract
with the Montana
Department of Transportation (MDT). Current Transportation Solutions
has also created
a temporary website with updates and information about the situation:
http://mtndintercity.wordpress.com/
[http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001FE0eWrFG8Qd2_ycNPperQRaJMop7xMZMMxdr3vAeMoaHmuFL4XLdMZ1JCj5wZpAhyo-CDarwHJMstOGzhoz0yYVxy8atjpoXNVAFY6T5gXQKspDVMWkkmE8_xczBiJM8]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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