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New bus service connects Park City, Denver

Patrick Parkinson, Of the Record staff

Greyhound announced Tuesday that a new low-cost bus service between Salt Lake City and Denver will stop at Newpark Hotel at Kimball Junction.

The route will connect rural communities along the U.S. 40 corridor by providing reliable transportation to especially the elderly, low-income households and people with disabilities, said Tracy Young, rural public transit manager for the Utah Department of Transportation.

"This is the official launch of the Greyhound service from Salt Lake to Denver," Young said in an interview Tuesday in Park City. "We’re very excited about this and the fact that we’re connecting these rural communities with the urban areas."

Daily stops in Utah include Salt Lake City, Park City, Heber, Duchesne, Myton, Roosevelt and Vernal. There are also stops in Colorado in Dinosaur, Craig, Hayden, Milner, Steamboat Springs, Kremmling, Hot Sulpher Springs, Granby, Winter Park, Idaho Springs and Denver.

"There is one service each way that is available 365 days per year," Young said.

Traveling from Park City to Denver takes about 12 hours and costs roughly $77, she said.

"We have done several studies and the findings have shown us for some communities this is one of their top priorities, to have this intercity service come through their areas," Young said. "Members of the public have come up and have said, this is so needed and they’re glad it’s back."

In 2004, a Greyhound route between Denver and Salt Lake City was discontinued for budget reasons.

"We eliminated a lot of rural-type routes because they just weren’t making money," Greyhound District Manager Michael Timlin said in an interview Tuesday in Park City.

About $275,000 in federal transportation money will subsidize the new route in Utah.

"I’m glad to see that the federal government is providing the money to the states to reinstitute the service," Timlin said.

To launch the new route UDOT partnered with Greyhound and the Colorado Department of Transportation.

"Because the route covers Park City, Winter Park and Steamboat Springs, we see some real connectivity with tourism here to get the skiers between the resorts," Young said. "There is room to have packages, your luggage and skis on the bus. So this is going to make that very accessible for skiers and snowboarders."

Eastbound departures leave Salt Lake City at 7:45 a.m. with arrival in Denver at 8:05 p.m. Westbound departures leave Denver at 11 a.m.

"We’ve had some pilot runs and the initial ridership is double what we expected," Young said.

Meanwhile, passengers unloading at Kimball Junction can connect with Park City and Summit County’s free transit system to travel the final seven miles into Old Town.

"We’re trying to link to our transit system so we’ll be able to bring people all the way into The Canyons, Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley," said Destry Pollard, who helps manage City Hall’s bus system. "For people riding from Salt Lake to here, I think it will be a good option for people to come to Sundance. They can get to Park City, they can spend the whole day and they can catch a bus back down that evening."

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