The local agency has already deployed four of its 60-foot buses on campus, looking like gigantic accordions on wheels, with six more that are expected to be put into service by the end of the year and two that will be kept in reserve.
The funds will be used to install 23 bus shelters, 23 bus benches and 18 trash cans concentrated within Metro's South County service area along the Watsonville-Santa Cruz transit corridor.
This weekend, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 862 which gives voters the opportunity to decide if the county should raise the transaction and use tax – otherwise known as a sales and use tax – above the state's combined tax rate limit as a means for supporting Santa Cruz Metro's long-term financial health and operational goals.
Santa Cruz Metro is expected to finalize the purchase for 57 hydrogen fuel cell-electric buses in a matter of weeks and it will be the single largest purchase for that variety of zero-emission vehicle in the nation.