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Sunshine/Talkeetna Shuttle Adds Extra Day
-- Now Runs Tuesdays & Wednesdays
By John R. Moses
ALASKA PIONEER PRESS
TALKEETNA – A free shuttle that helped many people get where they needed to go during its
first weeks of operation is expanding to two days a week, and organizers encourage more
people to catch a ride.
The Sunshine Transit committee is sending a free van up and down the Talkeetna Spur Road
on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Scheduled stops include the Talkeetna Roadhouse (side door),
Sunshine Community Health Center, and Cubby’s Marketplace. But it will also take passengers
to Moores’ Hardware, Whole Wheat Radio, the local credit union or to any Sunshine or
Downtown Talkeetna business.
The non-profit transit committee is working with the clinic, the Upper Susitna Senior Center
and the schools.
Shuttle driver Mike Sterling of the Sunshine Transit committee said the riders in his eight-
passenger van often went to multiple stops. He even brought skiers to and from ski hill.
The shuttle runs between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. each Tuesday and Wednesday. Clinic-bound
passengers have priority.
The official schedule, printed below, shows only the main stops on the route. The van will
stop for people anywhere in between if they’re in a place where it’s safe to stop and they can
wave down the shuttle.
Sterling advises potential riders to stand at an intersection where the van can easily pull off the
road. While Sterling will be flexible about where he goes, limitations are still being defined. A
drive down Mastodon or to Birch Creek Ranch is a little too far off the track, but a jog down
to Whole Wheat Radio on E. Birch Creek Road is fine with him.
There is a bike rack that can carry two bicycles and a baby seat is available. Sterling said there
is room behind the third seat for groceries or other purchases.
One of Sterling’s recent “passengers” wasn’t even human – he agreed to pick up and drop off
six bags of concrete for an East Talkeetna resident. Sterling was thinking more of hauling “a
hose or a box of nails” if he stopped at the hardware store, but said the concrete was do-able
in that instance.
The van can’t carry anything flammable, such as propane tanks.
Riders may call the driver during hours of operation and leave a message at 230-3791. Sterling
said he’ll get back to callers when it is safe to talk on the phone.
Lou Friend of Wasillla-based Mat-Su Transit has been in meetings with the Talkeetna/Sunshine
group and said he’s been in talks with the community about some form of transit on the Spur
Road for about six years.
“The enthusiasm is what’s bringing that forward,” Friend said of the shuttle service. Friend
said that he has proposed a five-year plan to his board that would include linking the
communities between Houston and Trapper Creek. But, he said, all hinges on how to fund
those programs.
Usually a mix of local, state and federal funding keeps the wheels rolling and buses or vans
maintained. Friend said he is encouraged by transit funding trends.
The shuttle service was funded by a state grant that expires in June. Ridership figures are
being compiled to demonstrate to future funders that there is a documented need for the
service and that a permanent shuttle would be used.
In Houston, where Paratransit service was expanded last year, Friend said the benefits are
already clear and the routes are expanding. One young woman said she can attend community
college thanks to the new MASCOT Paratransit link, Friend said.
The MASCOT buses run people on errands along a set route. That service recently linked
Houston to Wasilla and Meadow Lakes.
-- Now Runs Tuesdays & Wednesdays
By John R. Moses
ALASKA PIONEER PRESS
TALKEETNA – A free shuttle that helped many people get where they needed to go during its
first weeks of operation is expanding to two days a week, and organizers encourage more
people to catch a ride.
The Sunshine Transit committee is sending a free van up and down the Talkeetna Spur Road
on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Scheduled stops include the Talkeetna Roadhouse (side door),
Sunshine Community Health Center, and Cubby’s Marketplace. But it will also take passengers
to Moores’ Hardware, Whole Wheat Radio, the local credit union or to any Sunshine or
Downtown Talkeetna business.
The non-profit transit committee is working with the clinic, the Upper Susitna Senior Center
and the schools.
Shuttle driver Mike Sterling of the Sunshine Transit committee said the riders in his eight-
passenger van often went to multiple stops. He even brought skiers to and from ski hill.
The shuttle runs between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. each Tuesday and Wednesday. Clinic-bound
passengers have priority.
The official schedule, printed below, shows only the main stops on the route. The van will
stop for people anywhere in between if they’re in a place where it’s safe to stop and they can
wave down the shuttle.
Sterling advises potential riders to stand at an intersection where the van can easily pull off the
road. While Sterling will be flexible about where he goes, limitations are still being defined. A
drive down Mastodon or to Birch Creek Ranch is a little too far off the track, but a jog down
to Whole Wheat Radio on E. Birch Creek Road is fine with him.
There is a bike rack that can carry two bicycles and a baby seat is available. Sterling said there
is room behind the third seat for groceries or other purchases.
One of Sterling’s recent “passengers” wasn’t even human – he agreed to pick up and drop off
six bags of concrete for an East Talkeetna resident. Sterling was thinking more of hauling “a
hose or a box of nails” if he stopped at the hardware store, but said the concrete was do-able
in that instance.
The van can’t carry anything flammable, such as propane tanks.
Riders may call the driver during hours of operation and leave a message at 230-3791. Sterling
said he’ll get back to callers when it is safe to talk on the phone.
Lou Friend of Wasillla-based Mat-Su Transit has been in meetings with the Talkeetna/Sunshine
group and said he’s been in talks with the community about some form of transit on the Spur
Road for about six years.
“The enthusiasm is what’s bringing that forward,” Friend said of the shuttle service. Friend
said that he has proposed a five-year plan to his board that would include linking the
communities between Houston and Trapper Creek. But, he said, all hinges on how to fund
those programs.
Usually a mix of local, state and federal funding keeps the wheels rolling and buses or vans
maintained. Friend said he is encouraged by transit funding trends.
The shuttle service was funded by a state grant that expires in June. Ridership figures are
being compiled to demonstrate to future funders that there is a documented need for the
service and that a permanent shuttle would be used.
In Houston, where Paratransit service was expanded last year, Friend said the benefits are
already clear and the routes are expanding. One young woman said she can attend community
college thanks to the new MASCOT Paratransit link, Friend said.
The MASCOT buses run people on errands along a set route. That service recently linked
Houston to Wasilla and Meadow Lakes.
Shuttle Schedule:
8:30 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
9 a.m. Stop at Clinic
9:15 a.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
9:30 a.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
10 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
10:30 a.m. Stop at Clinic
10:45 a.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
11 a.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
11:30 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
12 p.m. Stop at Clinic
12:15 p.m. Stop at Cubby’s Market (Break)
8:30 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
9 a.m. Stop at Clinic
9:15 a.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
9:30 a.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
10 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
10:30 a.m. Stop at Clinic
10:45 a.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
11 a.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
11:30 a.m. Depart Talkeetna Roadhouse
Southbound
12 p.m. Stop at Clinic
12:15 p.m. Stop at Cubby’s Market (Break)
1:15 p.m. Leave Cubby’s Market Northbound
1:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
2 p.m. Depart Roadhouse Southbound
2:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic
2:45 p.m. Stop and turnaround at Cubby’s
Market
3 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
3:30 p.m. Depart Roadhouse Southbound
4 p.m. Stop at Clinic
4:15 p.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
4:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
5 p.m. Return to Roadhouse (drop off only)
Call Driver: 230-3791
1:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
2 p.m. Depart Roadhouse Southbound
2:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic
2:45 p.m. Stop and turnaround at Cubby’s
Market
3 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
3:30 p.m. Depart Roadhouse Southbound
4 p.m. Stop at Clinic
4:15 p.m. Stop and turn around at Cubby’s
Market
4:30 p.m. Stop at Clinic Northbound
5 p.m. Return to Roadhouse (drop off only)
Call Driver: 230-3791