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40

September 15 4:00 AM

Starting on Monday the August 31st, Route 40 towards Blaine & 24th will detour around construction. The following stops will be closed: AB436 Main & 27th. Riders can use Lyft code "MAINCONSTX" to get to or from the bus stop at Idaho & 13th.

8

September 15 4:00 AM

Starting on Monday the August 31st, Route 8 towards Discovery & Chinden will detour around construction. The following stops will be closed: AB427 Idaho & 15th, AB433 Main & 17th, AB435 Main & 23rd, AB436 Main & 27th. Temporary stops will be placed at 13th & Idaho. Riders can use Lyft code "MAINCONSTX" to get to or from the bus stop at Idaho & 13th.

7

September 15 4:00 AM

Starting on Monday the August 31st, Route 7 towards TSM will detour around construction. The following stops will be closed: AB427 Idaho & 15th, AB433 Main & 17th, AB435 Main & 23rd, AB436 Main & 27th. Riders can use Lyft code "MAINCONSTX" to get to or from the bus stop at Idaho & 13th.

4

September 15 12:00 AM

Stop at Latah & Alpine SWC closed. Temp stop placed just south of Vaughn near Latah Village Apartment complex

9

September 11 4:00 AM

Outbound route 9 State and Pierce Park stop closed, no temp placed due to construction.

4 5

September 11 3:30 AM

Stop closed on Americana and Shoreline. Temp stop placed long.

9

September 10 4:00 AM

Inbound State and Pierce Park stop closed, no temp placed due to construction.

9

September 10 2:00 AM

Route 9 OB stop at State and Ellen's Ferry closed. No temp stop placed.

16

September 10 1:00 AM

Stops on 1st & Idaho and 1st & Bannock will be closed. Please use the bus stop on Main & 1st.

4

September 09 4:00 AM

The stop on Latah and Alpine towards MSS for route 4 is closed for construction and temp stop placed near side.

9

September 09 4:00 AM

Inbound route 9 stop on State and 11th is closed, temporary stop placed at State and 12th near side.

28

August 11 4:00 AM

Route 28 is on small detour at Frank Church High School; the bus will be taking right onto Salt Creek from Pro Tech, servicing the temp stop on Salt Creek, and then taking a right on Trabuco back to regular route.

Home > News > Valley Regional Transit bus donation to help veterans in hospice care travel to favorite sites

Valley Regional Transit bus donation to help veterans in hospice care travel to favorite sites

A Treasure Valley veteran in hospice care being transported by ambulance from the Boise VA Medical Center to Salt Lake City had a simple request – one last opportunity to visit the Shoshone Falls near Twin Falls.

“We got there, took him out, and he really, really enjoyed it,” recalled William “Bud” Paine, a board director and Emergency Medical Services director of Lifestar Rural EMS Solutions. “The mental health aspect of this is just staggering.”

The success of this act of kindness got Paine to thinking about finding a way to get other veterans in hospice care to destinations in southern Idaho that they may never see again. Lifestar considered using a wheelchair van or ambulance, but those vehicles would not be large enough to accommodate the veteran, his or her family, and medical staff. And buying a larger vehicle for this purpose would be difficult due to the financial restraints Lifestar faces as a non-profit.

Paine decided a used smaller bus would be perfect for this service. He reached out to Valley Regional Transit (VRT), who will provide him with a smaller bus that was destined to be sold for scrap. The 2011 Ford 450 bus has eight seats and can accommodate four wheelchairs.

Leslie Pedrosa, VRT Chief Operations Officer, said the bus was beyond its useful life per Federal Transit Administration schedules and has been replaced in the VRT fleet.

“It was our pleasure to work with Bud and Lifestar to secure a vehicle for this service,” Pedrosa said. “The fact that this bus will have a second life and provide an honorable service to our veterans in hospice care is amazing and something that will provide the family a lifetime of memories.“

“Without this vehicle donation, it would have been at least another year before we could have secured one,” Paine explained. “This would not be happening now.”

Paine is already thinking about who may be one of the first passengers to ride on the bus. “A lady at the VA said one of her hospice patients retired as a park ranger and wants to go back to what he called ‘his mountains,’“ Paine said.  “We’ll try to make that happen.”