The Whatcom Transportation Authority recently announced it will propose changes to bus routes in Whatcom County and in Bellingham to help alleviate the problem of a lack of local supermarkets.
Set to come into force in 2019, most of the proposed changes will be made in the Birchwood neighborhood, and in the eastern part of Whatcom County. Neither areas have supermarkets close by, which leads them to be characterized by the term ‘food desert’—an area where it’s not easy to purchase food. Route 4, which currently serves St. Joseph Hospital, but which has few riders, will be rerouted through this area to make it easier for people to get to stores.
Other changes will be made around Western Washington University, according to the authority’s director of service development, Rick Nicholson. He said almost all of the routes near the campus will be affected, and acknowledges that the route that runs through the campus often runs late.
WWU has a student body of 16,000, but Route 190 won’t run as often. However, WTA plans to add additional routes to serve the students. He added that routes near the campus where buses currently run will still have service, but the times and route numbers might change. Officials making major changes like this can use poster printing to inform residents of new routes.
Additionally, the Happy Valley neighborhood, which is home to a growing population of students, will have service later in the evening.
