132 Route to Yosemite Gets Push by Walt Williams Modesto Bee - August 19, 2000 Russell Bruce of Santa Monica hadn't visited Yosemite National Park for more than 30 years. He spent Thursday night at the historic Jeffery Hotel in Coulterville, then had breakfast Friday in the coffee shop down the street, and boarded the big blue-and-white Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System bus for a leisurely 25-mile ride into the park. With YARTS driver Cindy DeWitt at the wheel of the 47-passenger bus, Bruce talked about stories he's heard about Yosemite traffic snarls and parking problems. "This is the only way to go," he said. The free bus trip Friday from Coulterville through Greeley Hill and Buck Meadows was scheduled to promote ridership for the Highway 132-120 service to the park's Big Oak Flat entrance. The service will run through Sept. 17, when it closes for the winter. "Highway 132 is the fastest route to the park for Modesto- and Manteca-area residents, but most people don't even know this bus is available," said Jami Westervelt, spokeswoman for the Merced County Association of Governments, which runs the YARTS buses. Westervelt said daily YARTS runs on Highway 140 between Merced and Yosemite are close to meeting ridership goals, but the Coulterville trip "needs a little boost." YARTS bus service started May 15. YARTS is a joint powers authority made up of representatives of Mariposa, Merced and Mono counties. Its goal is to reduce congestion and parking problems in the park by providing an affordable alternative to cars. The promotional bus trip was scheduled to coincide with a tribute to Cathy Zarate, leader of the drive to get YARTS service to the Coulterville area. "Cathy was the catalyst who made this happen," Mariposa County Supervisor Doug Balmain said. Zarate, manager of the West Gate Motel at Buck Meadows since 1997, died a week before the first YARTS bus run. In a ceremony at a bus stop dedicated to Zarate, Balmain and another Mariposa County supervisor, Bob Stewart, presented a plaque to Zarate's husband, Joe, son, Joe Jr., and daughter, Dawn. Stewart noted that when project consultants recommended against the Coulterville run, Zarate "dug in her heels, got the community involved, and worked until she got the results she wanted." "She knew when to use bullets, and when to use bombs," Joe Zarate said. The weekends-only Highway 132 bus leaves Coulterville at 9 a.m. and arrives at the park 55 minutes later. Inside the park, it stops at the Yosemite Visitors Center, Crane Flat, Curry Village, Ahwahnee Hotel and Yosemite Lodge. The return run leaves the park at 6:30 p.m., arriving in Coulterville at 7:25 p.m. Round-trip fee is $10, with a $1 discount for senior citizens and children 12 and under. The fare includes park admission, which is $20 per car. Schedules and more information are available by phone, (877) 98-YARTS, and online, www.yosemite.com/yarts.