Mike Clark has a routine: Every morning for nine years, he has boarded Clallam Transit’s commuter bus in Forks to go to work at Evergreen Collision in Port Angeles.
And every afternoon, he gets on the return bus.
But Monday — his 54th birthday — Clark found out he represented the 20-millionth bus fare sold on Clallam Transit since the system started in 1980 and was awarded a bevy of prizes including a year’s worth of bus passes.
“This is pretty exciting,” he said as the bus driver whisked him away.
“I ride this bus every single day — I will put this to good use.”
Clark was selected because he is a faithful rider who frequently helps out new drivers on the route and was boarding at the time that was calculated for selling the 20-millionth fare, said Terry Weed, Clallam Transit general manager.
“He is our best guess when it would be happening,” Weed said.
“There isn’t a way to know absolutely for sure, but this is as close as we can get.”
Birthday surprise
Although Weed was familiar with who Clark was and all his qualities as a good passenger — he was shocked to find out it was his birthday.
“We had no idea it would be his birthday,” Weed said.
In addition to the free year of bus rides, Clark also was awarded a gift basket from Sterling Savings Bank, a $50 gift certificate to 7 Cedars Casino, $25 in CTS Employees’ Association Downtown Bucks, Higher Grounds travel coffee cups, Swain’s General Store $25 gift certificate, $10 Gordy’s Pizza and $10 8th Street Grill certificates from KONP, Co-op Farm T-shirt, Sunny Farms T-shirt and $10 gift certificate, and a Red Lion Hotel backpack, coffee cup and beanie.
The agency has tried to make a habit of awarding prizes every 5 million or so passenger fares.
The 20-millionth fare was calculated based on how many passengers per day travel on the buses, said Clint Wetzel, operations manager for the countywide public bus service that transports an average of 3,100 people daily.
Premium pass
The pass Clark received was based on the $36 cost of a monthly premium pass for all routes. So the yearlong pass is worth $432.
The system sold its 5-millionth fare in 1990.
Its 10-millionth passenger fare boarded a bus May 1, 1998, and its 15-millionth boarded Nov. 10, 2005.
When Clallam Transit started service in fall 1980, it had only one route — between Port Angeles and Sequim — employed 13 people and carried a little more than 700 riders per day.
The bus service — which celebrated its 30th anniversary Oct. 13 — now operates 15 routes throughout the county from Diamond Point and Sequim Bay in the east to LaPush and Neah Bay in the west.
Clallam Transit has 68 full- and part-time fixed-route employees and sells about 920,000 passenger fares annually.
Rides cost $1 for adults and 50 cents for youths, the disabled and elderly.
Route changes affecting Port Angeles, Sequim and Forks took effect Monday.
Clallam Transit, faced with a $400,000 budget deficit, cut several low-ridership bus trips to save costs.
For more information, visit www.clallamtransit.com or phone 360-452-1315 or 800-858-3747
Clallam Transit offices are at 830 W. Lauridsen Blvd., Port Angeles.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
