Humboldt Transit Authority reported more than 700,000 rides in its latest fiscal year, surpassing the agency’s pre-COVID ridership levels, while a temporary hydrogen fueling station remained out of service and limited the number of hydrogen buses it could operate.
The disclosures came during the Humboldt County Association of Governments’ Sept. 17 meeting. HTA General Manager Katie Callender said the agency was trying to find another temporary fueler or resolve the problem with its current company. She said the fueling issue was creating capacity constraints because some hydrogen buses could not currently be fueled.
The meeting did not specify how many buses were affected, whether routes or trips had been canceled or reduced, or how long the fueling problem would last. HTA also did not provide a precise year-over-year ridership comparison or identify the pre-COVID year used as the benchmark during the meeting.
The report underscores a developing operational challenge for an agency experiencing renewed demand: HTA is handling ridership above pre-pandemic levels while seeking a replacement or other solution for equipment needed to support part of its bus fleet. The record does not establish the problem’s broader effect on passenger service.
