WestCAT is a public transportation service in western

Contra Costa County ) of the San Francisco Bay , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_name1 = California , subdivision_type2 ...

(north of

Oakland, CA Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...

). It is a service of the Western Contra Costa Transit Authority. The Western Contra Costa County Transit (WestCAT) was established in August 1977 as a Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement between Contra Costa County and the cities of Hercules and Pinole. It was created with the purpose of owning, operating and administering a public transportation system serving the area between the

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

/ El Sobrante border to the west and the Al Zampa Memorial Bridge to the east. WestCAT is governed by a 7-member Board of Directors and supported by professional staff of seven. The two cities of

Pinole Pinole, also called pinol or pinolillo, is roasted ground maize, which is then mixed with a combination of cocoa, agave, cinnamon, chia seeds, vanilla, or other spices. The resulting powder is then used as a nutrient-dense ingredient to make di ...

and

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

are each represented by two board members, while the unincorporated communities of

Crockett Crockett may refer to: People and fictional characters *Crockett Gillmore (born 1991), American National Football League player *Crockett Johnson, pen name of David Johnson Liesk (1906-1975), American cartoonist and children's book illustrator *C ...

Rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...

, and Montalvin Manor each have one representative, appointed by the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors. WestCAT's fleet started out with shuttle vans, and then using buses made by El Dorado National and

Thomas Built Buses Thomas Built Buses, Inc. (commonly known as Thomas) is an American bus manufacturer. Best known for its production of yellow school buses, Thomas produces other bus designs for a variety of usages. Currently, its production is concentrated on sc ...

. Now, WestCAT runs an almost all

Gillig Gillig (formerly Gillig Brothers) is an American designer and manufacturer of buses. The company headquarters, along with its manufacturing operations, is located in Livermore, California (in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area) ...

fleet, ranging from 19 Gillig Phantoms, to 18 Gillig Low Floors. WestCAT also has 5

Motor Coach Industries Motor Coach Industries (MCI) is a North American multinational bus manufacturer, specializing in production of motorcoaches. Best known for coaches produced for intercity transit and commuter buses, MCI produces coaches for a variety of appli ...

(MCI) over-the-road coaches for use on the LYNX. In addition, WestCAT has 10 Ford E-450 Paratransit vans, and 2 Toyota Camry hybrid electric sedans used for Dial-A-Ride.

Fixed-route service

As of September 2013, WestCAT provides a network of local and express bus routes throughout western

Contra Costa County ) of the San Francisco Bay , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_name1 = California , subdivision_type2 ...

. In addition, WestCAT operates regional service between Martinez (Route 30Z) and the Hercules Transit Center and between the Hercules Transit Center and Contra Costa College (Route C3). The (Local) routes are 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19. Also (Express) JX, JL/JR (referred to as the "J" by most riders, the "L" designates via Lakeside Drive, and the "R" designates via Richmond Parkway), JPX (serves Pinole Valley residents wanting to go to the Hercules Transit Center or BART). Also, WestCAT operates transbay service between the Hercules Transit Center and the

Salesforce Transit Center The Transbay Transit Center (officially the Salesforce Transit Center for sponsorship purposes) is a transit station in downtown San Francisco. It serves as the primary bus terminal — and potentially as a future rail terminal — for the San ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

called the LYNX with stops in the Rodeo Park and Ride located on Willow Avenue, North Shore Business Park near

Bio-Rad Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. is an American developer and manufacturer of specialized technological products for the life science research and clinical diagnostics markets. The company was founded in 1952 in Berkeley, California, by husband an ...

, the Victoria by the Bay neighborhood in Hercules and the Hercules Transit Center. From the Hercules Transit Center the line then goes nonstop to San Francisco via the High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes on I-80. WestCAT currently offers free

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wave ...

service on the LYNX line. Major transfer points for the majority of WestCAT and other agency's routes include: *

Hercules Transit Center Hercules Transit Center is a major commuter hub in the western Contra Costa County, California, Contra Costa County city of Hercules, California. It is anchored by WestCAT bus services. The center was originally on San Pablo Avenue. In August 2009 ...

Hilltop Mall Shopping Center Hilltop Horizon, formerly known as Hilltop Mall, East Bay Science and Technology Center and The Shops At Hilltop, was a regional shopping center in the Hilltop neighborhood of Richmond, California. Hilltop is managed and co-owned by Prologis, ...

Richmond Parkway Transit Center The Richmond Parkway Transit Center or RPTC is a park and ride lot and bus terminal located in Richmond, California. It is named after the adjacent Richmond Parkway. It serves as a transfer point for the WestCAT and AC Transit. It is located on th ...

* El Cerrito del Norte BART in El Cerrito *

Martinez Amtrak Station Martinez station is an Amtrak passenger train station in Martinez, California, United States. Located at the west end of downtown Martinez, the station has one side platform and one island platform, which serve three of the four tracks of the Un ...

in Martinez *

Routes

* PXRichmond Parkway Transit Center service only during midday from 9:40am to 2:30pm, route also serves Hercules Transit Center. * JR Via Richmond Parkway and Blume Drive and JL Via Lakeside Drive. * ynxRoute serves Hercules Transit Center, and most peak period services also serve

, all terminating at Victoria By The Bay. Also operates midday (non-commute) trips between San Francisco and Hercules Transit Center, and it does not serve Bio-Rad or Victoria By The Bay. * arly BirdThese routes, which replace early-morning BART service, have a limited number of weekday trips.

Service Area

WestCAT provides service to the communities of: * Bayview *

* El Cerrito *

* Martinez * Montalvin Manor *

* Port Costa *

* San Pablo * Tara Hills The local transportation demand management organization 511 Contra Costa also provides information for intermodal transfers throughout Contra Costa County, and works closely with WestCAT to help transit users make regional connections beyond their immediate service area.

References

External links

WestCAT
{{DEFAULTSORT:Westcat Public transportation in Contra Costa County, California Bus transportation in California 1977 establishments in California Transit agencies in California