AUGUSTA -- It would be fitting if the first passengers to board the bus at Concord Coach Lines' new Augusta terminal took a moment to remember Bennett Katz.

It was the former state senator's editorial in 2003, after all, that called for the Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce to persuade Concord to add an Augusta stop.

Five years later, after a number of challenges that threatened to scuttle the project, Concord buses will begin service on Wednesday with five daily trips to Portland and Boston. Katz, who died last year, may well have hopped on one of those busses to go see his beloved Red Sox in the playoffs, said Peter Thompson, president of the Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce.

"Were he still alive he would be quite pleased," Thompson said. "I give a great deal of credit (for the terminal) to good old Bennett."

The nearly $2 million Augusta Transportation Center at 9 Industrial Drive has been in the works for nearly three years. The project was initially approved by the Planning Board in 2005, but that decision was later appealed by neighbors and the issue wound up in court. The bus company subsequently worked out a design that satisfied neighbors.

The facility includes a building with amenities including rest rooms, ticket office and waiting area, and more than 200 long-term parking spaces.

The schedule includes five daily trips to South Station and Logan Airport in Boston that leave Augusta between 6:15 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. The trips take about three hours and a round-trip fare to Logan is $69.

Harry Blunt, Concord Coach Lines' owner, said the process was frustrating at times, but will be worthwhile for both the company and the central Maine region.

"We see it as a hubbing point for a lot of folks," Blunt said. "We're looking at it as a regional watershed area."

The terminal is opening when more people are looking to public transportation to reduce fuel expenses and help the environment, Blunt said.

"To be able to climb on a bus, work or read, or sit back and watch a movie, I think more and more people are seeing that as a good alternative to driving their own car (to Boston)," Blunt said.

The numbers certainly support Blunt's theory.

Ridership in Maine has increased about 12 percent for the year the year compared to 2007. Blunt anticipates a total of about 500,000 passengers in Maine by the end of 2008, which would be up from 415,000 last year.

Studies suggest the Augusta terminal will average between 35,000 and 50,000 passengers a year once it has been developed, Blunt said. Bangor, which Blunt said is similar to Augusta in that both cities are service centers for large regions of the state, averages about 50,000 passengers per year.

The Portland-to-Boston run averages about 400,000 riders per year, Blunt said.

Concord Coach Lines already travels U.S. Route 1 between Searsport and Brunswick. The Augusta hub might one day offer service to Bar Harbor and the coast, Blunt said.

"That's why we put a lot of time and effort into developing this the way we wanted it," he said. "We're tickled about it."

The bus service will begin just weeks after the federal government approved a new two-year contract with Colgan Air to continue providing subsidized commercial air service at the Augusta State Airport beginning in November.

The airline plans to bring in larger, 34-passenger Saab turboprop planes to service Augusta, offering 19 flights a week from Augusta to Logan Airport in Boston.

Officials hope the new planes, an upgrade over the 19-passenger planes used in Augusta now, will help them reach a goal of doubling the number of passengers flying to and from Augusta.

"It's really quite a year for public transportation," said Augusta Mayor Roger Katz, son of Bennett Katz.

"It's tough to provide public transportation in an area our size and here we have two major developments within months of each other."

Better transportation makes Augusta a better a better place to live and do business, but the benefits will spread well beyond the city, Katz said.

"For anyone who tries to drive their car into Boston and park, this is really welcome news," Katz said.

"I think the demand is there. I think it will do very well."

Craig Crosby--623-3811 Ext. 433

ccrosby@centralmaine.com