How to Get to the O.C. Fair on the Cheap

The Orange County Transportation Authority is bringing back the OC Fair Express bus service with locations across the county for just $2 each way, allowing riders to save time and money. 

The OC Fair Express will provide non-stop weekend bus service from eight locations to the OC Fair, including two from South Orange County, from July 11 to Aug. 10. Buses will run hourly betweennoon and midnight on Fridays and 9:30 a.m. and midnight on Saturdays and Sundays.

The express service begins with a kick-off celebration at 11 a.m. Friday at the Laguna Hills Transportation Center, 24282 Calle de los Caballeros in Laguna Hills. The free event will include OC Fair food coupons and prize drawings. The first 100 people at the Laguna Hills event will get a free ride to the OC Fair on a bus that departs at noon. 

At all other times, the OC Fair Express is $2 each way (75 cents each way for riders ages 60 and older) and riders will receive a coupon valid for $3 admission to the fair – a savings of $8 off the regular ticket price. 

“The OC Fair Express helps take cars off of busy roads around the fairgrounds while also offering riders a convenient and more affordable option to get into the fair,” said OCTA Chairman Shawn Nelson, also the chairman of the Board of Supervisors. “OCTA is pleased to be partnering with the fair again this year.” 

In 2013, more than 58,000 fairgoers rode the Fair Express, a 26 percent increase in ridership over the previous year.

New this year, riders can also download the OC Fair Express app. From there, they can buy tickets in advance, which will be scanned on the smartphone as they board. There they can also see the OC Fair Express schedules and routes. 

The OC Fair Express is made possible in part by a $600,000 grant provided by the Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee. The committee provides subsidies for cleaner transportation alternatives.  

Riders can catch an OC Fair Express from two South O.C. locations:

• Laguna Hills Transportation Center, 24282 Calle de los Caballeros in Laguna Hills
• Junipero Serra Park and Ride, Corner of 1-5 Freeway and Junipero Serra Road in San Juan Capistrano

For more information about the OC Fair Express, visit www.octa.net/ocfairexpress.