Michael Aro, deputy director of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, told the Los Gatos Town Council the news on April 18, along with a start date: July 4.

"I suggest the launch be done at the July 4th celebration," Vice Mayor Diane McNutt said. "We can play off the theme of independence."

For some bus riders, though, the bus will actually inconvenience their attempts at maintaining independence.

West Valley resident Rose Alberico rides VTA buses from her home to take swim classes in Los Gatos. Route 60, which now comes from the north into Los Gatos on Winchester Boulevard and into the downtown area, will end at Winchester and Knowles Drive. Alberico and others coming from the north will then need to transfer to the new Route 48, which will proceed down Winchester.

Alberico told the Los Gatos Weekly-Times that she would not be too upset by the new change. Though she is 90 years old, she is in good health and able to walk without a problem. For some of her friends, though, it will be troublesome. She said it would be helpful if buses ran more frequently than every 30 minutes as planned, or at least were timed so that one bus was waiting for the next when it arrived.

"They should wait for each other," she said. "If I have to wait, I'll just walk."

Others have lamented the change in Route 27, which comes from San Jose via Blossom Hill Road and loops through downtown Los Gatos before taking Los Gatos-Saratoga Road out to West Valley Community College and back. Under the new plan, it skips most of downtown Los Gatos, requiring a transfer for anyone taking the bus from downtown Los Gatos to Saratoga.

Still, Los Gatos council members said they were excited about the opportunity to increase the number of riders in town. Though the new buses on routes 48 and 49 will hold about 20 passengers, VTA officials say there are rarely that many on any bus trip within the town.

Councilman Steve Glickman said he hoped the buses could be used by students to travel to and from campuses not only at the beginning and end of the school day, but also at lunch in the case of high school students. He asked if it would be possible to increase the frequency of trips past the high school at lunch.

"We love those kinds of challenges—too much ridership," Aro said.

He said the organization would consider increasing the frequency if there was sufficient demand.

He also showed a proposal for the design of the shuttles. The entire surface area of the buses can be decorated, using "bus wrap" material. The design he displayed featured a blue sky and cloud background with pictures of various town symbols on either side: a N. Santa Cruz Avenue street sign, the Opera House, the La Canada building and more.

Council members had mixed reactions to the design. McNutt said she favored a simpler design, perhaps a bright color with "Los Gatos" in bold letters. Glickman said some people might find the N. Santa Cruz sign confusing, thinking that the shuttle only operated on that street or was headed there. Their feedback will be used to present a final proposal.

The VTA Board of Directors is scheduled to discuss the community bus plan May 5 at 5:30 p.m. in the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors Chambers, 70 W. Hedding St., San Jose. The agency can be reached by phone at 408.321.2300 or 800.894.9908 or by email at customer.service@vta.org.