The Irvine City Council’s advisory Transportation Commission unanimously approved an extension of the city-run Irvine CONNECT bus route to Northwood on April 15 as part of a broader system expansion.
The expansion would extend the existing Yale-Barranca route north to Portola Parkway, an area not currently serviced by any public transportation or school bus route, by August. According to Transit Administrator Mike Davis, the success of the free bus service at other IUSD schools, along with advocacy from Northwood students primarily organized by the Honors Interdisciplinary Climate Exploration class, influenced the change.
“Them listening to student voices and acting on student voices makes us really proud and really motivated,” ICE senior Gabby Lan said. “It’s not just important that we have free education, but that we also have easier transport to get that education.”
City staff plan to fund $5.53 million, or about 62%, of Irvine CONNECT’s expanded annual operating costs over the next 16 years by discontinuing the commuter iShuttle service.The remaining cost, estimated by staff to be around $3.35 million, would be paid by the city. Improvements to the bus fleet, schedule and stop furniture and signage were also considered, including repurposing the more modern iShuttle buses for Irvine CONNECT.
The commission recommended approving the routes only if the city council funds 20 minute bus intervals. However, some commissioners and public commenters argued that the council could afford an even more ambitious expansion.
“What we’re doing here is not frivolous,” Transportation Commissioner Youssef Kaddeche said. “I want us to be a little more comfortable spending the city budget on infrastructure like this. This is the long-term solution of where we need to be heading as a city.”
The expansion proposal for Irvine CONNECT, which was launched last year as a pilot program aimed at reducing congestion, car dependence and carbon emissions, was prepared with a unanimous city council vote on Feb. 11 due to community support and increased ridership.
Two additional routes servicing UCI, John Wayne Airport, The Market Place and Irvine City Hall are planned by July 2026. Staff will assess the viability of a fourth route to the Great Park after a city funding source is identified. Davis believes that further improvements such as these may be made possible by an initial expansion.
“Yale-Barranca gets across-the-board usage, but looking at ridership, we probably have a higher percentage of students and seniors,” Davis said. “Anytime you introduce a new service into the city, as people get used to it, sometimes they start doing it more. I’m hoping we’ll see increased and even broader use of it in the years ahead.
The city council will review the expansion for final approval on Tuesday. Those interested in the proposed extension can find more information in the staff report on the city’s website and provide public comment at the next city council meeting.
“There are big issues to resolve, and having young people very much involved and vocal about it is helpful for the future,” Davis said. “Having students ride public transit and seeing the involvement even at commission meetings and city council meetings supporting Irvine CONNECT, public transit and climate issues that will affect them, it’s very heartening.”
