Fresno Area Express (FAX) is a public transportation operator in Fresno, California. , the system had 19 routes, over 100 buses, and over 1,600 bus stops. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of . FAX fixed routes run as far south as Malaga to Valley Children's Hospital in the north. Lines also run as far east as Fowler Avenue and as far west as Hayes Avenue near Highway 99 in western Fresno.

FAX has paratransit operations called Handy Ride, operated by a private contractor. FAX offers free transfers as well as wheelchair lifts and bike racks on all buses.

History The public transportation system in Fresno started in January 1889 with horse-drawn streetcars. By 1901, lines had been established on Fulton, Fresno, and Mariposa Streets, which merged into the Fresno City Railway Company. The company was renamed the Fresno Traction Company in 1903 as employees began the process of converting the lines to electric streetcars. These electric streetcars operated on approximately 42 miles of track by the mid-1920s.

In 1939, the streetcar system was purchased by National City Lines, known for its role in the General Motors streetcar conspiracy. The company renamed the system Fresno City Lines, and like the other lines it purchased around the nation, National City Lines started to replace Fresno's rail system with buses and all streetcar operations ended on May 20, 1939.

The city of Fresno took control of Fresno City Lines in 1961, renaming it Fresno Municipal Lines. The system would be renamed Fresno Transit in 1969 and received its current name, Fresno Area Express or FAX, in 1989.

In 2001, FAX started the process of converting its fleet to be fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG), a process that was expected to take about 10 years.

In January 2017, the agency introduced FAX15, a frequent bus service, on the Shaw Avenue and Cedar Avenue corridors. On these lines, buses arrive every 15 minutes on weekdays between 6 am and 6 pm. Bus stops along the FAX15 lines were improved in 2022 and 2023. A third FAX15 route along the 1st Street corridor was added in August 2023.

FAX Q, a frequent bus service that the agency brands as bus rapid transit, opened on February 19, 2018. The line operates on the Blackstone and Ventura/Kings Canyon transit corridors and cost to build.

The agency started the process of converting to a zero tailpipe emission fleet in 2021, with the introduction of two battery-electric buses in late 2021. As of May 1, 2024, all nine battery-electric buses were out of service. The agency also plans to purchase hydrogen fuel cell buses. FAX expects to purchase its last CNG-fueled buses in 2027, and retire them by 2040.

Routes , the Fresno Area Express system had 19 routes.

Route Service type North or west terminal Destinations served South or east terminal 1 – Q Bus Rapid Transit Q BRT Woodward Park(Fresno & Friant) River Park, Manchester Transit Center, Fresno City College, Downtown Transit Center, Fresno Fairgrounds Sunnyside(Kings Canyon & Clovis) – Herndon Regular Marketplace at El Paseo(Herndon & Riverside) Sierra Sky Park Airport, Saint Agnes Medical Center, Clovis North Educational Center Clovis Community College(Willow & International) – Shaw FAX 15 Shaw & Brawley Fig Garden Shopping Center, Fashion Fair, Fresno State Shaw & Willow – Brawley Regular Shaw & Brawley Central High School East Campus, Inspiration Park, Forestiere Underground Gardens Brawley & Shields – Hughes/McKinley Regular Marketplace at El Paseo(Herndon & Riverside) Fresno High School, Fresno City College VA Medical Center(Fresno Street & Clinton) – West Ave/Tulare Regular West & Bullard Fig Garden Library, Downtown Transit Center, Santa Fe Passenger Depot Clovis & Kings Canyon – Palm/Butler Regular Nees & Blackstone Bullard High School, Fresno High School, Tower District, Downtown Transit Center, Fresno Fairgrounds, Mosqueda Community Center, Fresno Pacific University Fresno Yosemite International Airport – DSS/Manchester Center/West Fresno Regular County of Fresno Clovis Campus(Dakota & Peach) Manchester Transit Center, Fresno City College, Fresno High School, Fresno Chandler Executive Airport Crystal & Kearney – Church Ave Regular Hinton Center(Church & Fairview) West Fresno Branch Library, Edison High School, Fresno City College–West Fresno Center Sanger West High School(Church & Jensen) – Fresno St Regular River Park(El Paso & Blackstone)Downtown Transit Center Kaiser Hospital, VA Medical Center, Community Regional Medical Center, Downtown Transit Center North & Elm – Belmont Regular Belmont & Delno Roeding Park, Fresno Chaffee Zoo Maple & Butler – 1st St FAX 15 River Park(El Paso & Blackstone) River Park, Saint Agnes Medical Center, Politi Library, Hoover High School, Fashion Fair, Downtown Transit Center North Pointe Business Park – Olive Regular Brawley & Shields Roeding Park, Tower District Olive & Peach – Cedar FAX 15 River Park(El Paso & Blackstone) River Park, Fresno State University, Duncan Polytechnical High School, McLane High School, Roosevelt High School Downtown Transit Center – FYI/Clinton Regular Shields & Brawley VA Medical Center, McLane High School Fresno Yosemite International Airport – Malaga/Shields/Chestnut Regular Marks & Shaw Manchester Transit Center, Fresno Pacific University Grand & Harding – Ashlan Regular Justin Garza High School Central High School East Campus Shields & Stanford – NE Fresno Regular River Park(El Paso & Blackstone) Clovis West High School, Woodward Park Regional Library Champlain & Perrin – Children's Hospital Express Valley Children's Hospital (no stops; connects to Madera County Connection at Valley Children's Hospital) River Park(El Paso & Blackstone)

Transit centers Fresno Area Express has two primary transit centers, hubs where passengers can transfer between several routes. The Manchester Transit Center is located on the west side of Blackstone Avenue and is served by routes 1, 28 and 41, additionally, it is the location of the FAX Customer Service Center. The Downtown Transit Center is located at Courthouse Park and is served by routes 1, 22, 26, 28, 32, 34 and 38, along with the Fresno County Rural Transit Agency's Coalinga, Orange Cove, Southeast and Westside routes, along with Visalia Transit's V-LINE service.

Fleet , Fresno Area Express has a fleet of 136 buses, with 110 needed for service on weekdays and 77 on weekends. The buses in the spare fleet are used when necessary to cover for buses that need to be taken out of service for maintenance.

The fleet primarily consists of 40-foot buses powered by CNG-fueled engines, but there are also three 29-foot buses for use on low-ridership routes and nine battery electric buses as the agency begins its transition to a zero tailpipe emissions fleet.

ModelLengthYearPower typeNotesNew Flyer C40LFR40' 0901–0916 16 2009 CNG1301–1311112013Refurbished buses acquired from Valley Metro 5000 series. Gillig Low Floor BRT 40' 1101–1109 9 2011 CNG 29' 1201–1203 3 2012 Used on Route 33 and 58 only 40' 1401–1410 10 2014 1612–1617 6 2016 Gillig Low Floor BRT Plus 40' 1601–1611 11 2016 CNG Used on FAX15 routes. 1701–1726 26 2017 1701–1708 used on FAX15 routes.1709–1726 used on FAX Q route. 1801 1 2018 1905–1906 2 2019 2001–2008 8 2020 2103–2108 6 2021 2403–2414 12 2024 2605–2615 11 2026 Proterra ZX5 40' 2101–2102 2 2021 Battery electric 2201–2207 7 2022 New Flyer XHE4040'2401–240222024Hydrogen

+Future fleetModelLengthYearPower typeNotesNew Flyer XHE4040' 2601–2604 4 2025Hydrogen

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