STA slogging through

Spokane Transit Authority has buses running at full force most places, though delays are common. The buses in Spokane are being held up today more by traffic than weather, said Molly Myers, spokeswoman for STA. Buses have been running on all routes, but no where in Browne’s Addition. The city has caught up from the mass accumulation of snow and is keeping the roads clear, she said. When the storm hit last week, only four of the 40 routes were open, she said. Joel Pence, who rides the bus regularly, said he believes STA is doing the best it can. The hardest part is wading through the snow to the bus, he said. “I’ve been able to get almost anywhere on the bus,” Pence said. Chris Shartle, another rider, said that he would rather take a bus than drive in the snow. “I had to miss a day of work because the buses didn’t run,” Shartle said. The paratransit is not running normal routes and is making emergency trips only, Myers said. “We are taking it one day at a time and will see how it goes,” Myers said. It will be early January before STA has data to show how the storm affected ridership, he said.