Just in time for the new school year, Sunnyvale launched its new citywide low-cost ride service, BEAM, on Aug. 18. A Sept. 1 ribbon-cutting ceremony gave the service its official inauguration.

“Today’s event was about celebrating the launch of this new service for the city — it’s brand new,” said Sunnyvale Chief Public Information Officer Jennifer Garnett. “It’s only been operating since Aug. 18, so barely two weeks old. Today was our big celebration to mark the launch.”

BEAM is an on-demand, door-to-door ride service run by Via, the company that also runs Peery Park Rides, a separate free shuttle serving the Peery Park business district. The service was initiated last February, when the city received a grant that covers half the $8.35 million cost of operating BEAM. Rides are $3.50.

Riders can request a BEAM trip on demand through an app or by calling. The service will take them anywhere in Sunnyvale, to Homestead High School and the Kaiser Permanente medical facility at Homestead and Lawrence. Garnett said the two added stops reflect the City Council’s wish to serve high school students and seniors who can no longer, or would rather not, drive.

The service serves essential needs for people who don’t drive, students and the “last mile” to mass transit.

“Mobility is something that’s so important for everyone — it’s a freedom to get from point A to point B,” said Santa Clara County Supervisor Otto Lee. “We also have an aging population. My parents are in their 80s, and taking the keys away from them is one of the hardest things we have to do.”

It’s the right thing to do, said Lee, but seeing people lose their freedom of movement is painful.

This service gives people “the feeling of freedom, getting to places where they need to be,” said Lee. “It’s a very low-cost, door-to-door service.” BEAM operates nine shuttles, with three that are wheelchair-accessible and six with bike storage.

Another population that BEAM will serve is clients of Sunnyvale Community Services (SCS), said SCS Director Marie Bernard.

“Transportation is one of the challenges, just for people to get to our services,” said Bernard.

The need for a service like BEAM became clear years ago at Fremont High School, said Former Sunnyvale City Council Member Russ Melton, CEO of the Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce.

“We had many students who needed that extra boost to get to school,” he said. “Even with VTA doing everything that they could, it was always the last mile, or the hours for after-school sports or whatever. So that’s always been the need that’s being filled here.”

Via’s Bay Area general manager Ben Latham said there was a “long tail of opportunities” for serving people with limited mobility.  

“Maybe they can’t book a ride in a Lyft because they [ride services] don’t have a wheelchair-accessible vehicle, or they don’t have the financial means to take a Lyft or Uber everywhere,” said Latham. “So, we blend the convenience of a rideshare service like Lyft or Uber with the cost structure of public transit, like a bus, to bridge that gap.”

Of course, the transit problem in Silicon Valley isn’t limited to getting around within city boundaries. Currently, Cupertino, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale all have ride services run by Via, yet there’s no way to use these services to get across borders.

“We are not the silver bullet to public transit challenges, but we hope to be one of the force multipliers,” said Latham.

One example is his own commute, from BART to Caltrain to Sunnyvale, then BEAM or Peery Park Rides to a meeting at City Hall.

For information about BEAM, go to sunnyvale.ca.gov/beam or download the BEAM app to your phone from Google Play or the Apple App Store.

Carolyn Schuk can be reached at carolyn@santaclaraweekly.com.