READY TO ROLL

MAT-SU — With a fresh coat of pink paint, Valley Mover buses are set to start operations Monday.

Valley Mover will provide scheduled bus service throughout the Mat-Su Borough with trips to and from Anchorage. The first planned routes are still being tweaked and trips will be fairly limited, at least until more funding becomes available, transportation director Janet Boyd said.

“Basically, we are targeting the work force to promote jobs and the economy,” she said.

In the beginning, the “skeleton” service will focus on getting riders from Willow, Big Lake and Knik into the core area, and from the core area into Anchorage.

On weekdays, one bus will pick passengers up at the Willow Townsite Store. It will make stops along the Parks Highway, head into Big Lake and run to Wasilla and Palmer. Another bus will start at the intersection of Vine Road and Knik-Goose Bay Road and run into Palmer.

Once in the core area, riders can then take a bus into Anchorage. The ultimate destination is the bus stop near the Anchorage Museum. The first bus will get riders there at about 7:45 a.m., Boyd said.

“People can catch People Mover (the Anchorage bus service) from there. Also, the downtown transit center is about five blocks from there,” she said.

That same bus then turns around and heads back to the Valley following much the same route. There is limited service between different points in the Valley throughout the day, and the Anchorage bus picks riders back up at 7 p.m.

Valley Mover will run a similar route on Saturdays, but starting later in the morning with another in the afternoon.

There is a complete schedule on the group’s website at www.valleymover.com.

This schedule is subject to change, Boyd said, as Valley Mover is still working out the timing and fine-tuning the routes. To confirm a scheduled stop, the website recommends calling the Valley Mover office at 892-8800.

Valley Mover began when Mokie Tew, owner of a string of local automotive shops and heavy machinery operations, noticed a need in the Valley for a regularly scheduled mass transit service. He bought seven of the handicap-accessible buses from People Mover, painted his signature pink stripe on each bus and started the non-profit organization using his company’s money.

“We’ve got enough people. It needed to happen,” Tew said in a prior interview. “If we can help, we can help.”

Boyd said Valley Mover is not in competition with the existing transit group, Matanuska-Susitna Community Transit.

MASCOT focuses more on on-demand service for riders who may not be able to make it to regular bus stops. MASCOT also runs commuter trips to Anchorage, but Boyd said Valley Mover picked times to offer later trips in both the morning and evening.

Valley Mover has always asked potential riders for input about routes and times. This invitation remains open, Boyd said, and will be helpful when the bus service can expand.

“We just want to people to get out there, try it and let us know what they think,” Boyd said. “There is still a lot of needs we know we are not able to meet at this time. But again, if someone wants to write us a check, we will put it down.”

Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.