LAKES REGION – The Lakes Region Shuttle bus, which was slated to begin transporting passengers and commuters between Naples and Portland July 1, has been delayed until later in the summer.

According to Dan Goodman, spokesman for the bus service’s sponsor, Regional Transportation Program based in Portland, the shuttle service is “still a go” but RTP needs to determine the exact schedule and route.

“We’re still working with our partners – the municipalities and the businesses – finalizing the schedule and route,” Goodman said earlier this week. “To finalize the schedule and the stops, we’re taking everyone’s input to try to present the best possible schedule.”

Goodman said an online survey this spring designed to solicit rider input was “hugely successful,” with more than 500 respondents.

“The residents who filled out the survey identified many stops and we are just trying to narrow it down to the stops we feel the residents want,” Goodman said.

The shuttle bus service will link Naples with Portland. The idea has been floated for many years, with lack of funding the main obstacle. Goodman said the delay in starting the service is only temporary. A rough schedule has been hammered out, he said, with the service starting at 6 a.m. in Naples and following Route 302 to Portland, about a 30-mile trip. The bus will stop once in Naples, once in Casco, once in Raymond, twice in Windham, and once in Westbrook before terminating at The Pulse station in Portland, where passengers can connect with buses that travel to other areas of Portland or surrounding towns.

There will be two round trips from Naples to Portland in the morning, from 6 a.m. to about noon, and another two in the afternoon, beginning at The Pulse at about 4 p.m. and ending in Naples after two round trips at about 8:30 p.m.

Since there are no established Park & Ride lots in the Route 302 corridor, Goodman said RTP is working with local landowners to gain access to areas where commuters can leave their cars and hop on the bus.

“This couldn’t be happening without a lot of businesses along the Route 302 corridor,” Goodman said. “They’re allowing us to use their parking lots as Park & Rides for the bus stops. So this couldn’t be happening without the support of the town managers and these business owners.”

Derik Goodine, Naples town manager, said the passenger bus service should be a boon for commuters.

“I think it’s great,” Goodine said. “It gives an alternative to commuters going to Portland, to get a ride to work, save gas, save on monthly parking fees. And it also gives them an extra hour on their way to work and their way back home, especially if they are going to have the high-speed Internet on it.”

The bus has been purchased with a combination of federal and state funding, reports Goodman. The bus has room for 18 seated passengers, two wheelchair users and nine standing passengers. Goodine said the bus could get some vehicles off the busy Route 302 corridor.

“It will help out somewhat with congestion on Route 302 itself, although I don’t know if taking 10-15 cars off the road will make a big difference, but every little bit helps.”

The fees for riding the bus have yet to be determined, although initial estimates call for a cost of $1.50-$5 depending on the length of the trip.

According to Elizabeth Trice, grants and special projects coordinator for Cumberland County, which helped develop the online survey and coordinate funding for the bus service, “the hope is to build long-term partnerships with businesses and organizations so that this bus can serve commuters, shoppers and potentially tourists.”

Rider fares alone aren’t expected to generate sufficient revenue in the long-term, Trice said, so corporate or organizational sponsorships – and possibly local taxpayer support in towns along the route – are expected to make up the difference.

In retrospect, Goodman said, a July 1 unveiling of the bus system may not have been the best time to start a shuttle. Since it’s primarily designed for commuters and shoppers, a late summer start may be better timing, he said.

“This is primarily going to serve the residents of the Lakes Region and I don’t think starting it the week of July 4 was the best time to start,” Goodman said. “I can imagine the first week people are using the service to go to work, there’s going to be a lot of tourists, a lot of people using the service in the Lakes Region, going to the lake, and so let’s let the big holiday go by and then we’ll get the bus on the road.”