New schedules, new buses and a new Lewiston bus station have added up to a 20 percent increase in bus riders, according to Twin Cities transit officials.

A new Auburn bus station and two more low-floor buses should keep the streak going, according to Marsha Bennett, transit coordinator for the Lewiston-Auburn Transit Committee.

“Right now, the system seems to be in pretty good shape,” Bennett said. “We have a good schedule so we don’t see many changes coming there. And some new buses and an Auburn station will help.”

The number of riders on all Twin Cities routes jumped this spring, from 536 average daily passenger trips in January and February to 700 in March. The system has averaged 724 daily passenger trips since then.

Bennett said most of the increase could be caused by the new twin-hub schedule that debuted in March. All Auburn routes run through Great Falls Plaza and all Lewiston routes run through the Oak Street bus station – with the exception of the College Street route, which continues on to the Auburn Mall.

Both hubs are connected by a free shuttle. Not surprisingly, Bennett said the shuttle accounted for almost half of the increase in riders.

All of the other routes have increased as well, however.

“It’s not limited to the shuttle,” she said. “Passengers are transferring to the regular system.”

Bennett said two “kneeling” buses, with especially low floors, have also helped attract riders. The buses, currently running on the Sabattus Street and Auburn Mall routes, make it especially easy for the elderly and handicapped to get on and off.

“The state (Department of Transportation) is supposed to go out to bid for two more of those buses for our system,” Bennett said. “They’re very nice, even for people without access issues. It makes loading and unloading the bus much faster.”

And Bennett said the new Oak Street bus station in downtown Lewiston is attracting riders. Plans call for building a similar station onto a new parking garage in Auburn’s Great Falls Plaza.

The routes to Lisbon, Sabattus and Main streets have been the heaviest used. An estimated 3,220 passengers used the Lisbon Street bus in August. The Main Street bus had 2,473 passengers in August and the Sabattus Street bus had 2,417, Bennett said.