Myrtle Beach area bus service making major route changes Friday

The Grand Strand’s public bus service will begin a new schedule on Friday with some major changes to key routes.

Coast RTA officials met with residents and community leaders earlier this year to go over their plans, which will move many buses from Ocean Boulevard to Kings Highway.

“Overall we received positive input from the passengers who attended the meetings,” Coast RTA General Manager Brian Piascik said in a news release. “We listened to their concerns and reviewed our proposed route realignments to better serve our passengers and their needs.”

Coast officials have said the changes will make the bus service more efficient. Ocean Boulevard congestion often delayed buses and Coast leaders hope the modifications will speed up travel times. The changes will also allow the organization to make some improvements over the summer, including adding designated stops (with signage) and creating a public information system that provides smart phone users with up-to-the-moment updates.

“Passengers will know the location of their bus in real time and if it’s running on time or if they’ll need to wait a few minutes at the designated bus stop,” Piascik said.

Another change Coast officials are implementing is ending service at 8 p.m. – the time the last bus would leave Myrtle Beach (other than the entertainment shuttle) for Conway. Coast has traditionally extended its hours to 11 p.m. during the summer, but Piascik has said he’d like to keep the same schedule throughout the year.

Internal research showed the late-night service wasn’t used much last summer.

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Here are the route changes that will take effect Friday:

• Route 10: This route departs from the Myrtle Beach Transfer Station and offers stops at Broadway at the Beach and Coastal Grand Mall. The new route will no longer visit Myrtle Beach International Airport, but will instead serve some city neighborhoods.

• Route 15 North: Traditionally an Ocean Boulevard route, this bus will now leave the Myrtle Beach Transfer Station and make stops along Kings Highway from 9th Avenue North until 38th Avenue North. At 38th Avenue North, service will move back onto Ocean Boulevard with stops up to 82nd Avenue North.

• Route 15 South: Like its northern counterpart, this route will move stops from Ocean Boulevard onto Kings Highway. Route 15 destinations include Myrtle Beach International Airport, Market Common, Warbird Park, Horry Georgetown Technical College’s Grand Strand campus and the VA clinic.

• Route 16: This South Strand route has added service to Tidelands Health Georgetown Memorial Hospital and moved stops in Murrells Inlet to U.S. 17. This means Murrells Inlet’s Restaurant Row will no longer have stops, though there will be some on U.S. 17 Business. Additional destinations include physicians’ offices and Tidelands Health Waccamaw Community Hospital. These changes, officials said, will reduce travel time between Georgetown and Myrtle Beach by 18 minutes.

• Route 21: The free “Entertainment Shuttle” serves Broadway at the Beach and downtown tourist attractions from Memorial Day through Labor Day on an 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. schedule. The shuttle does operate on Ocean Boulevard but does not stop at the transfer station.

For more details, visit www.RideCoastRTA.com.

This story was originally published March 28, 2016 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Myrtle Beach area bus service making major route changes Friday."