St. George and Zion National Park are connected by a new public bus route

St. George, Utah — The first public bus from St. George to Zion National Park, which had been planned for almost 15 years, left on Friday morning. For the foreseeable future, it will be open on days other than Sundays.

Megan Sweidan had gone on one of the longest trips of any person on one of the first buses out of St George, traveling nonstop from Melbourne, Australia.

Sweidan remarked, “I’ve taken a bus from San Diego to Zion, like all through buses.””It’s fantastic in such a large country,”

The Suntrans bus travels from St. George to Zion and back in an hour and twenty-five minutes. There are seven stops along the way, including Red Cliffs Mall, Hurricane, and Virgin, before reaching the Zion shuttle stop in Springdale.

With the Zion line being the eighth bus route, Suntrans’s transit service is nothing compared to that of Salt Lake City’s Utah Transit Authority.

Additionally, it took four months to hire enough drivers, which caused the July launch to be postponed.

According to Cameron Cutler, St. George’s public works director, the bus will service two distinct populations.

“Workers, employees who work in Springdale and reside in Hurricane, St. George, Washington, or Virgin,” Cutler stated. Zion National Park receives millions of people annually.

Additionally, they have the choice of lodging in hotels in St. George, Washington, and Hurricane. By taking this bus, they may visit Zion National Park without worrying about parking in the park or about having a car.

In order for Barbara Bruno, the mayor of Springdale, to board one of the first buses, she had her husband drive her into St. George.

“A lot of traffic passes through the town of Springdale without stopping to visit our establishments,” Bruno stated. Their destination is Zion National Park. Therefore, it is always a gain when we are able to remove any vehicles from the road that improve traffic flow in our town.

Additionally, several St. George residents rarely visit the national park in their backyard. Particularly when you drive there and there isn’t any parking.

You do not need to drive. Tanisha Lee, a resident of St. George, stated, “Don’t worry about those crazy people on the road.”Don’t get angry on the road, okay? Yes, simply take a seat back and unwind.

The project was financed by a Washington County sales tax and a $15 million grant from the Utah Department of Transportation. In total, $9 million went on five new buses and a new repair facility.

Naghi Zeenati, the chair of the UDOT Commission, stated, “It is just one of those projects that came together because people work together to make it right.” “UDOT’s objective is to connect all communities, make roads driveable, move people from corner to corner, and make every community accessible to the transit system.” Therefore, it is crucial for UDOT that all communities are connected.

Sweidan remarked, “You know astute travelers travel wisely, find the cheapest, most efficient route.” “It might not be the most efficient, even if you’re spending half the money and taking twice as long.”

Because she is unable to drive alone, a crippled woman decided on the heat of the moment to do something she has never been able to accomplish. Come experience the splendor of this location.

According to Cutler, the St. George to Zion shuttle’s future depends on its level of popularity.

We have made estimates ranging from 50,000 to 300,000 annually. It simply relies on how well it’s utilized and how simple it is to get on and off,” Cutler stated. Ten routes each day, ten round trips, are the number of routes we have planned for today. We will add more if it is used a lot more.