Projo — What was behind RIPTA's decision to get rid of nonstop bus service to South County beaches?

Scarborough State Beach in Narragansett. Frieda Squires, The Providence Journal, File

May 18, 2022

By Antonia Noori Farzan — Update: On Wednesday afternoon, following the publication of this story, Gov. Dan McKee said that he would RIPTA to run express beach buses this summer. More here. 

For decades, the "beach bus" was a staple of summer, allowing working-class Rhode Islanders to escape the sweltering urban core for the state beaches in Narragansett for a dollar or two a day.  

Rhode Island Public Transit Authority buses would leave from Providence, Central Falls, Pawtucket, Woonsocket and Cranston in the morning, packed with everyone from teenagers to young families to retirees. In the afternoon, after a day spent sprawled out in the sand or cooling off in the pounding surf, passengers would climb back onto the bus and return to the city. 

Now, RIPTA plans to eliminate those express beach bus routes, citing low ridership and staffing issues. 

In 2021, the express beach bus had an average of just nine passengers per trip, according to spokeswoman Cristy Raposo Perry. Offering the service this year would cost $85,000 — the equivalent of roughly $112 per person, if ridership numbers were to remain consistent.

By comparison, Raposo Perry said, RIPTA's average cost per person for fixed-route service in 2021 was $8.64.

Transit advocates, along with the union that represents bus drivers, are skeptical. They argue that more people would take advantage of the beach bus if they knew it was an option — and question why service is being cut at a time when gas prices are skyrocketing and the state has a projected $878-million budget surplus.

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