BRUNSWICK — The Brunswick Explorer public transit line recently was featured as part of a panel on “Successful New England Projects” during the 2013 New England Transportation Conference in Boston.

Operated by Rocklandbased Coastal Trans, the local bus route is a publicprivate partnership with funding provided by both Federal Transit Administration and the Maine Department of Transportation, the Town of Brunswick and other local partners including Brunswick Housing Authority, Sweetser, Bowdoin College and Mid Coast Hospital.

Established in 2010, Brunswick Explorer uses hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles and has registered increased ridership from 17,500 in its first year to more than 30,500 in 2012.

Lee Karker, Coastal Trans’s executive director, represented Brunswick Explorer during a panel discussion.

“It was an honor for the Brunswick Explorer to be recognized as a successful project by a group of transit professionals working to promote alternatives to the automobile,” said Karker.

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