Santa Barbara Airbus, which provides service from the South Coast to Los Angeles International Airport, announced reopening plans for early May after being closed for more than a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The travel industry was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the rebuild of the business will span multiple years,” General Manager Samantha Onnen said. “Airbus is excited for the chance to open their doors and start serving the community again.”
Airbus shuttles will resume services to and from LAX on May 6, with 10 trips per day, according to Onnen.
The shuttles will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for COVID-19 prevention, including mask wearing, social distancing and increased cleaning procedures, Onnen said. The buses will run at limited capacity to allow distance between passengers and will be sanitized after each trip.
The treated air filtration systems onboard will keep passengers breathing clean air throughout their trip, Onnen added.
Airbus staff, and all transit employees, became eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in mid-March, Onnen said, adding that they’ve been working on securing vaccination appointments.
“We believe that we are reopening as safely as possible for our staff and customers,” she said. “We are excited to be open in time for summer travel.”
Airbus previously announced plans to reopen on Nov. 16 after being closed since last March, and subsequently delayed that reopening until Dec. 14.
Then, on Dec. 2, as the winter surge in COVID-19 cases was gaining momentum, the company announced that it would delay reopening yet again until 2021.
“Airbus has weathered many ups and downs during our 38 years of business,” CEO and co-founder Eric Onnen. “COVID has been the hardest. We are thankful to have endured the business closure and look forward to returning to operations and rehiring our valued staff.”
Reservations can be booked online for May 6 and onward, and the Airbus office will be open for extended office hours on May 3, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., according to Samantha Onnen. Airbus travel agents can be reached by calling 805.964.7759.
“We are looking forward to reopening for a community that made it clear they missed and valued our service and being able to do it with a team of people that genuinely care about one another and this business,” Samantha Onnen said. “Lucky does not begin to cover how we are feeling!”
— Noozhawk staff writer Jade Martinez-Pogue can be reached at jmartinez-pogue@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
