Need a lift? How to catch a ride on the new free shuttle bus in downtown Modesto
While there is still no such thing as a free lunch, you now can catch a free ride to go eat that lunch if you’re in downtown Modesto.
The new Cityride Modesto electric shuttle bus launched this week, part of the ambitious slate of projects being spearheaded by the team behind the new high-end steakhouse coming to 10th Street. The hop-on, hop-off shuttle is currently in its testing phase, and running during the lunch and dinner hours weekdays. It should also be out during dinner this Saturday.
“We are just getting the word out there and spreading awareness,” said Brandon Brush, who works for the Downtown Improvement District and is serving as the shuttle’s inaugural volunteer driver. “So far, it’s been great. People love it. Everyone in it is smiling, taking photos inside ... It’s been very positive. Right now, we’re just educating people how it works.”
The shuttle can seat six, the driver and five passengers. You can hail it off the street if you see the distinctive boxy white bus with ads on its side driving past. Or you can catch a ride by calling the shuttle’s phone number and asking for pickup at a specific spot.
Either way, the trip to your downtown destination will be free — though tips are warmly accepted for the driver.
The shuttle will take passengers anywhere within the main downtown business area, with some wiggle room. That should run from Five Points at the base of McHenry Avenue to Ninth Street, and from the DoubleTree and Skewers Kabob House on L Street to Surla’s Restaurant on 12th Street by special request.
The initial hours will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays. Permanent weekend hours are still to determined, but Brush said they should run Saturdays from around 5 to 9 p.m. during the dinner hours. But they don’t plan to cater to the late-night bar crowd.
“This isn’t going to replace Uber,” Brush said. “We don’t necessarily want to pick up a bunch of people who have been drinking all night. We just want to get people who are going to lunch or dinner or a show around more easily,”
Jaime Jimenez, who is partnering with James Madrid to open W. Stuart C. Steakhouse and Stuart’s Pizza, said he wanted to launch the shuttle to encourage people to explore the shops and restaurants of downtown Modesto more.
“We want you to come down to downtown Modesto, and as soon as you see the shuttle, jump on,” he said. “Go four, six blocks. Then go to another shop. And get the vibe that it is free.”
The shuttle is being funded through advertising on its exterior, and currently has more than half a dozen ads for primarily downtown businesses wrapped around it. Prices for ads currently run from $150 per month for a side panel all the way up to $4,000 to take over the full shuttle.
If the shuttle concept takes off, Jimenez said, he hopes to add more to the fleet. The first shuttle is a $25,000 Polaris Gem electric bus that can go about 25 miles on a single charge. By next summer ideally, he wants three or four shuttles on the road providing free rides.
The shuttle is the first project to launch to the public from Jimenez and Madrid. You can expect their new pizza-by-the-slice shop, Stuart Pizza, to open by mid-January on 10th Street. Then, if construction goes smoothly, the steakhouse in the old World Savings/Wachovia bank building about a block away also on 10th Street should debut by late April, early May.
The team also hopes to open a fitness center and tea bar downtown, but their initial 10th Street location proved too big a challenge and they’re selling that building and looking for another site.
The shuttle has so far attracted a lot of curious stares and a handful of riders. Brush said he expects more people to start to embrace the service once they realize how it works.
“I think a lot of people are trying to figure out, is it really free?” he said. “Yeah, it’s really free. Hop in and we’ll take you around.”
For a lift on the Cityride Modesto shuttle, call 209-450-5267. For more information, visit www.stuartsteakhouse.com.
This story was originally published December 12, 2019 at 4:56 PM.
