The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) has allocated up to $42.4 million to support community-based transit programs throughout the county, providing communities with transit services that best match their local needs.

The funding is provided through the voter-approved Measure M half-cent sales tax for transportation, helps cities and the country move residents and visitors safely and efficiently with popular and flexible programs.

“Our primary mission at OCTA is to keep Orange County moving, and this is another great example of working with cities to best meet their needs and help make public transit an attractive option for people to get where they need to be,” said OCTA Chair Tam T. Nguyen. “With this effort, we are enhancing accessibility and improving connectivity throughout Orange County.”

Constantly Improving

OCTA has focused on reshaping the transit system in recent years, recognizing that there are different solutions to meet the diverse travel needs of residents and visitors.

Traditional bus service has been increased in areas with higher ridership and OCTA has worked with cities to find the best solutions in areas of the county where demand is lower.

With 25% of funding from Measure M set aside for transit, the goal of this ongoing effort is to find the most efficient way to move people in every community.

Over the last fiscal year, more than 712,000 boardings were recorded on these shuttles and transit services.

Overall more than 4.6 million boardings have helped move people on public transit while reducing roadway congestion.

The cities and county applied for the funding on a competitive basis and each has committed to providing at least 10% in matching funds.

Establishing New Services

OCTA’s Board of Directors approved the funding recommendations at the September 23 meeting. These recommendations included:

• The continuation of 11 existing community-circulator services extended to June 2031 including several serving seasonal and special events.

• The expansion of four services in the cities of Laguna Beach, San Clemente, and the County of Orange.

• The implementation of eight new services throughout the county, including in Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Niguel, Los Alamitos, Mission Viejo, San Clemente, and San Juan Capistrano for special events and for seasonal and on-demand service.

These services work alongside regional bus and rail service to help fill gaps in some areas.