Highway 17 Express

Highway 17 Express buses operate between San Jose and Santa Cruz 365 days per year, with hourly departures on weekends and midday weekdays, and more frequent service during weekday rush hours. Schedules are coordinated with Capitol Corridor train schedules, and are adjusted seasonally based on travel demand to San Jose State University and UC Santa Cruz.{{Cite web |title=Schedules |url=https://www.scmtd.com/en/routes/schedule |access-date=2025-02-12 |website=Santa Cruz Metro}}

All trips serve the River Front Transit Center in downtown Santa Cruz and San Jose Diridon station, with an intermediate stop in Pasatiempo. Approximately half of all trips serve the Caballaro Transit Center in Scotts Valley. During weekday peak hours, the service's northern terminal is extended to San Jose State University.

File:Santa Cruz Metro 1001 in SJ Diridon.jpg

Highway 17 Express service is fully accessible to individuals with disabilities. Additionally, buses are equipped with bicycle racks, which are available free of charge.

The regular fare for the Highway 17 Express is $7.00. Daily and monthly unlimited passes and multiple-ride tickets are also available, and discounted fares are available for seniors and individuals with disabilities. Unlimited passes for the Highway 17 Express are also valid for local bus and light rail services in San Jose and Santa Cruz.{{Cite web |title=Fares |url=https://www.scmtd.com/en/fares/fares |access-date=2025-02-12 |website=Santa Cruz METRO}}

Amtrak and Greyhound sell tickets for the Highway 17 Express, for trips that connect to their national networks. Santa Cruz Metro services, including the Highway 17 Express, do not accept the Clipper card. Tickets are also sold through the METRO Splash Pass mobile app.

File:Peerless Stages 246 at Pacific Bus Museum, April 2018.JPG bus, preserved at the Pacific Bus Museum]]

Direct transportation services over the Santa Cruz Mountains from Santa Cruz to San Jose have operated since 1858, when stagecoach services began. The stagecoach route over the mountains represented a significant improvement over the former route via San Juan Bautista and Watsonville, which had been driven by Charley Parkhurst among others.{{Cite web |last=Placzek |first=Jessica |date=2019-04-25 |title=Meet Charley Parkhurst: the Gold Rush's Fearless, Gender Nonconforming Stagecoach Driver |url=https://www.kqed.org/news/11742467/meet-charley-parkhurst-the-gold-rushs-fearless-gender-nonconforming-stagecoach-driver |access-date=2025-02-13 |work=KQED}} Travel times were cut from three days to one, and one-way fares dropped from $4.00 (${{Inflation|index=US|value=4|start_year=1858|r=0}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US}}) to $2.50 (${{Inflation|index=US|value=2.5|start_year=1858|r=0}}).{{Inflation/fn|US}}{{cite book |last1=Beal |first1=Richard |url=https://archive.org/details/highway17roadtos0002beal |title=Highway 17: The Road to Santa Cruz |publisher=The Pacific Group |year=1990 |isbn=0-9629974-0-4 |location=Aptos, California |url-access=registration}}{{Rp|page=70}}

Stagecoaches were made obsolete when the South Pacific Coast Railroad began service over the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1880, further reducing travel times. The SPC was bought by the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1887, and passenger service over the line continued until February 1940, when severe storms damaged the tracks.{{Cite web |last=Arcuni |first=Peter |date=2021-04-15 |title=The Story Behind Those Old Train Tunnels in the Santa Cruz Mountains |url=https://www.kqed.org/news/11869346/the-story-behind-those-old-train-tunnels-in-the-santa-cruz-mountains |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=KQED}} Parts of the SPC route continue in operation: the VTA light rail Green Line uses the northern end of the line's right-of-way, and the Santa Cruz, Big Trees and Pacific Railway operates tourist services from Santa Cruz to Felton.

The first bus services over the Santa Cruz Mountains began operation in the early 20th century, taking advantage of continuously improving roads. A direct predecessor of the Highway 17 Express service was an Oakland–San Jose–Santa Cruz bus line operated by Peerless Stages, which began operation in the 1910s{{Cite book |last1=Meier |first1=Albert E. |url=https://archive.org/details/overroad0000meie |title=Over the road: a history of intercity bus transportation in the United States |last2=Hoschek |first2=John P. |date=1975 |publisher=Motor Bus Society |location=Upper Montclair, N.J. |page=14 |oclc=2717312 |url-access=registration}} or early 1920s.{{Cite book |last=McCaleb |first=Charles S. |url=http://archive.org/details/trackstireswires0000mcca |title=Tracks, tires, and wires : public transportation in California's Santa Clara Valley |date=1981 |publisher=Interurban Press |isbn=978-0-916374-48-8 |location=Glendale, CA |access-date= |url-access=registration}} Road improvements culminated with the opening of the four-lane Highway 17 in 1940.{{Rp|page=88}}

File:USGS - 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake - Landslide Debris on Highway.jpg

On October 17, 1989, a major earthquake struck California, with its epicenter near Loma Prieta in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The earthquake had major impacts across Northern California, and caused severe mudslides that partially blocked Highway 17 for weeks.{{Cite book |last1=Clough |first1=G. Wayne |author-link=G. Wayne Clough |url=http://www.nap.edu/catalog/2269 |title=Practical Lessons from the Loma Prieta Earthquake |last2=Martin II |first2=James R. |author-link2= |last3=Chameau |first3=Jean-Lou |author-link3=Jean-Lou Chameau |date=1994 |publisher=National Academies Press |isbn=978-0-309-05030-2 |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=29–68 |chapter=The Geotechnical Aspects |access-date=}} The highway partially reopened in late October, with only buses and carpools allowed.

The transportation authorities in Santa Clara County and Santa Cruz County began operating a joint bus service from Scotts Valley to San Jose on October 24. The service used 9 buses purchased with FEMA funds, and drivers from local tour bus company Discovery Charters.{{Cite news |last=Schmitt |first=Christohper H. |date=1989-10-24 |title=Buses Running Over Summit, Scotts Valley to San Jose |work=The Mercury News |page=15A |pages= |via=NewsBank |issn=0747-2099}} Highway 17 fully reopened to single-occupancy cars in late November, as approximately 200 people rode the service every day. 1,200 letters and petition signatures supported continuing the service after Highway 17 fully reopened, and transit officials made plans to expand it.{{Cite news |last=Bailey |first=Brandon |date=1989-11-29 |title=Transit Twists: Over-The-Hill Firm, 2 Counties in Bus Battle |access-date= |work=The Mercury News |page=1B |pages= |via=NewsBank |issn=0747-2099}}

The Highway 17 Express service competed with the established bus service operated by intercity bus line Peerless Stages, which had operated the route without subsidy since the early 20th century. Peerless held exclusive rights to the line, and operated 7 trips per day in each direction in 1989. Peerless charged $3.80 (${{Inflation|index=US|value=3.8|start_year=1989|r=2}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US}}) for a one-way ticket, nearly four times the $1 (${{Inflation|index=US|value=1|start_year=1989|r=2}} in {{Inflation/year|index=US}}) charged by the emergency commuter service. Peerless objected to the new service, and predicted that it would be discontinued soon after Highway 17 reopened to single-occupancy cars.{{Inflation/fn|US}}

The Highway 17 Express was made permanent in late 1990.{{Cite news |last=Halajian |first=Pauline |date=1990-11-24 |title=Highway 17 Express rolls on |url=https://history.santacruzpl.org/omeka/items/show/103311 |access-date=2025-02-09 |work=Santa Cruz Sentinel |via=Santa Cruz Public Library}} The Highway 17 Express served over 900 passengers per day in March 1991 when Peerless sued the consortium, arguing that the service's subsidy violated multiple provisions of the California Public Utilities Code.{{Cite news |last=Beebe |first=Greg |date=1991-04-11 |title=Bus firm sues to halt rival Express route |url=https://history.santacruzpl.org/omeka/items/show/103314 |work=Santa Cruz Sentinel |via=Santa Cruz Public Library}} In 1999, the two county transportation authorities formed a joint powers authority to operate the service, with drivers and buses provided by Santa Cruz Metro.{{Cite web |last1=CCS Planning and Engineering Inc. |last2=Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. |date=2000-05-05 |title=Highway 17 Transportation Improvement Study: Executive Summary |url=https://sccrtc.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/hwy17.pdf |access-date=2025-02-12 |work= |publisher=Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission}}

File:Highway 17 Express bus at San Jose Diridon station.jpg

The San Jose–Santa Cruz Amtrak Thruway bus service was merged with the Highway 17 Express in 2004. The Amtrak service was exclusively available for connecting passengers from Capitol Corridor trains, and served approximately 1200 passengers per month at the time of its discontinuation. When the services were merged, Highway 17 Express service was extended to downtown Santa Cruz, serving the Santa Cruz Metro Center.{{Cite news |last=McCord |first=Shanna |date=2004-03-27 |title=Express-bus merger forges ahead with fare increase |url=http://www.santacruzsentinel.com:80/archive/2004/March/27/local/stories/07local.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040405120115/http://www.santacruzsentinel.com:80/archive/2004/March/27/local/stories/07local.htm |archive-date=2004-04-05 |work=Santa Cruz Sentinel}} When the merged service began operation in early 2004, Caltrans anticipated a ridership of 7,000 riders per month by the end of the year.{{Cite news |last=Charles Seifert, CDOT External Affairs |date=2004-05-07 |title=California Department of Transportation Press Release |url=http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/paffairs/news/pressrel/04pr06.htm |access-date=2008-06-24 |publisher=California Department of Transportation}} As part of the Amtrak Thruway network, Highway 17 Express tickets are sold through the Amtrak national ticketing network.

In February 2015, Santa Cruz Metro reported 31,102 total riders, 1,239 on the average weekday, for the Highway 17 Express.{{Cite news |last= |date=2015-05-11 |title=Metro Advisory Committee February 2015 Ridership Report |url=http://scmtd.com/images/department/planning/2015_Feb_Ridership_Summary.pdf |access-date=2015-08-27 |publisher=Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District}} Greyhound discontinued its service to Santa Cruz in 2020, and entered into a ticketing agreement with Santa Cruz Metro in 2021. The ticketing agreement allows passengers to purchase Highway 17 Express tickets as part of Greyhound itineraries, through the Greyhound and FlixBus sales channels.{{Cite press release |title=Greyhound and Santa Cruz METRO Announce New Interline Partnership |date=February 4, 2021 |publisher=Santa Cruz Metro |url=https://scmtd.com/images/department/news/20210204-Greyhound-Santa-Cruz-METRO.pdf |access-date=2025-02-12}}

{{reflist|30em}}

• {{Cite journal |last1=Tsuchida |first1=Pamela |last2=Wilshusen |first2=Linda |date=1991 |title=Effects of the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake on Commute Behavior in Santa Cruz County, California |url=https://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1991/1321/1321-005.pdf |journal=Transportation Research Record |volume=1321 |pages=26–33 |issn=0361-1981}}

{{commons category}}

• [http://www.scmtd.com/en/ Santa Cruz Metro website]
• {{LocalWiki|santacruz|Highway_17_Express}}

{{San Francisco Bay Area Public Transit}}

Category:Bus transportation in California

Category:Public transportation in Santa Cruz County, California

Category:Public transportation in Santa Clara County, California