Pullman Transit has added two new bus routes this semester, meaning public transportation is now available at some capacity seven days a week.

Brad Rader, operations manager of Pullman Transit, said there were a couple reasons for creating these routes now.

“A lot of it is based off of public demand we have had over recent years,” Rader said. But he said it is also partially because Pullman is one of the last Washington transit agencies that services a university that does not offer service every day.

The Sunday North and Sunday South routes run from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and are each 45-minute loops, according to the transportation department homepage. The routes are generally north and south relative to Martin Stadium. North goes past Beasley Coliseum, toward Merman Drive, and south goes past the Stephenson residence halls and toward the Pullman Regional Hospital and Walmart.

The money to fund the routes will come from a two-year state grant awarded to Pullman Transit this year. Rader said he and his department would be willing to expand the hours of the Sunday routes after the fall semester if demand proves it necessary.

“If we need to expand that service,” Rader said, “we are in a position to do so and would do so at the appropriate time.”

Overall, Rader said the addition of services has been in the works for the past couple years. Two years ago, he said, Pullman Transit reduced service to stabilize its budget.

“At that point, we promised the City Council and the public that within two years we would start adding some of these services back,” he said. “This is the start to that process.”

A second change for this semester is increased hours for the express shuttles in the morning. Last year, they typically ran from 8:15 – 9 a.m. This fall, they are running from approximately 8:23 – 10 a.m., Rader said.

This time next year, the goal of the department is to do away with the 45-minute loops, and go back to the 30-minute loops, similar to transit routes from 3 – 4 years ago, Rader said. To accomplish this, the current plan is to add a new Monday-Friday route to cut travel distances and travel times.

Pullman Transit averages over 1.4 million rides per year to Pullman residents, according to its website.