Job Access and Reverse Commute (jarc) Program fy 2009 Service Profiles Region X alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington October 2010 fta-08-0162 Job Access and Reverse Commute (jarc) fy 2009 Service Profiles: Region X

Location: Ardenvoir and Wenatchee (WA)
Type: Trip-Based Services/Flexible routing
Goal: Improved access/connections
Service description: This JARC grant help fund two routes which serve two very rural areas of Link’s service area.
- Route 20 serves Highway 97, from Wenatchee to Chelan. Along the way to Chelan, Route 20 serves Orondo and Chelan Falls, which sits on the Columbia River, approximately 30 miles north of Wenatchee. Highway 97 snakes along the Columbia River through very rural orchard and sage brush land. There is a large fruit grower with a packing shed just north of Orondo, a small community, Sun Cove, 20 miles north of Wenatchee and Chelan Falls.
- Route 26 serves Ardenvoir, which is ten miles up the Entiat Valley, a very rural valley that is growing in population due to the close proximity of Wenatchee and beauty of the valley. Ardenvoir is a small community with one store and a restaurant.
Both routes serve Columbia Station, which connect with all other routes Link provides along with Amtrak and Northwest Stagelines.
Evaluation: Link evaluates its routes based on Board adopted performance measures. For rural routes, Link’s performance measures require a minimum of five riders per hour, for this time period, these routes averaged 6.4 riders per hour.
Accomplishments: These routes are not new to Link. Link had served both these routes prior to I-695 passing which took away MVET money. These routes serve very rural areas which allow many to access work and allow school age kids to participate in after school activities and be able to get home. The communities and citizens which now can use Link in these rural areas are very supportive of the service and this grant allows Link to provide this service.
Lessons learned: Not much advice, except don’t expect big numbers on rural routes. These routes have many miles between stops and communities so you must be patient and know that the people you do serve need and appreciate the service.