For elderly and handicapped riders, the fare is only 25 cents at all times. Prior to 1989, the SCTD fare was 50 cents, but it was raised to meet a state mandate requiring the District to cover at least half of its operating cost through the farebox. The District provides two distinct types of service, local and express. Local service is provided mainly within Southwest City with a number of routes extending into residential areas and employment sites immediately outside the city's borders. These routes run from the city limits to Southwest's bustling downtown office district.
Express service is provided only during the morning and evening peak periods.
The SCTD devotes a great deal of attention to its express-route network as the Board views congestion and pollution reduction as one of the District's key missions. The SCTD has undertaken a vigorous marketing program for the express routes including popular radio and TV advertisements. Table 2 presents the operational characteristics of the SCTD local and express route networks. Because the local buses come more often but move more slowly during rush hour and because of the thirteen extra rush-hour local routes, SCTD needs more than twice as many buses to run its local service during the peak as off the peak. The express routes also require additional buses.