Getting to festivals and shopping within Santa Barbara County just got a bit more relaxing with the addition of the Clean Air Express Saturday Services and its “Ride Me to Festivals” service.
The service features charter-style buses with free Wi-Fi, reclining seats, and internal bays for transporting bicycles, and serves the communities of Buellton, Solvang, and Los Olivos, as well as Santa Barbara. Clean Air Express Saturday Service provides Santa Barbara residents with travel to Buellton, Solvang, and Los Olivos for the day, and Buellton and Solvang area riders can travel to Santa Barbara for the day.
The regular fare to ride is $7 per person each way or a booklet of 10 passes is $50 in advance. Children 2 years old and younger ride free. The Saturday morning route starts with pick-ups in Buellton at 9:30 a.m. and Solvang at 9:40 a.m. before heading south.
Drop-offs and pick-ups in Santa Barbara are on State Street at La Cumbre Plaza at 10:25 a.m., mid-town at 10:30 a.m., Paseo Nuevo at 10:40 a.m., and the train station at 10:45 a.m. The bus then travels directly to Solvang at 11:40 a.m., Buellton at 11:50 a.m., and Los Olivos at 12:05 p.m. for drop-offs.
A second loop in the late afternoon returns riders to their points of origin. Santa Ynez Valley riders are encouraged to use the “Ride Me to Festivals” service to visit the Santa Barbara 14th annual SBSA Open Studios Tour on Sept. 5, the Santa Barbara Harbor and Seafood Festival Oct. 17 or Santa Barbara’s Open Streets on Oct. 24.
The first year of the service is funded by a partnership between Santa Barbara county Association of Governments, county of Santa Barbara, Buellton Visitors Bureau, Solvang Conference and Visitors Bureau, and Visit Santa Ynez Valley. Complete schedule and route information is available at 692-1902 and www.cleanairexpress.com.
