The Utah Transit Authority has agreed to restore bus routes in Salt Lake County that had been proposed for elimination as part of a massive bus-system redesign, after uproar from low-income and disabled advocates and other transit riders about the plans.

With approval Wednesday from its board of trustees, UTA will now move to implement the redesign — which is the largest in UTA history — by Aug. 26. Of the 80 routes it had originally proposed with the redesign, 55 will be changed. Those restorations include buses that run to the Veterans Administration Hospital in Salt Lake City, along 100 South, and from Cottonwood Heights to TRAX in Sandy.

The agency plans to spend an extra $1.5 million over the next 1 1/2 years to restore the bus routes.

UTA also decided not to hike fares for paratransit riders in 2007 and restored unlimited monthly trip passes for the disabled riders after receiving complaints. Beginning July 1, UTA will implement a series of fare increases over the next two years that will range from 25 cents to $1.50. Paratransit fares will stay the same this year and then increase by 20 cents for a one-way ride in 2008, and another 25 cents in 2009.

Even with the restoration of the routes, low-income advocates and transit riders are upset with the redesign. They want the agency to study it longer before implementing it. Transit riders also say UTA has done a poor job of informing the public about changes.

During Wednesday's board meeting, riders were not told that the agency had decided to change more than 70 percent of its original redesign plan in response to the outcry. They were even allowed to give comment in the board meeting for 20 minutes about UTA's original redesign, but no member of the board told them about the changes.

When told about the changes by a reporter after the board meeting, Nikki Christensen, a University of Utah student and vocal opponent of the redesign, said that UTA's lack of communication showed a "complete disregard for community involvement."

Since March, when UTA first announced the redesign, more than 3,000 people have commented on the plan. About 65 percent of the comments were negative, and 35 percent were positive.

UTA spokesman Chad Saley said the public wasn't informed of the changes because of scheduling issues. Special-interest groups will be apprised of the changes this afternoon, he said. The media was informed of the changes before the board meeting Wednesday.

"Some of the changes were just being finalized," he said. "It was just a matter of scheduling."

Over the next few weeks, UTA plans to begin posting yellow notices about the redesign changes on bus stops that will be affected. In addition to route adjustments, all route numbers in Salt Lake County and in south Davis County will be changed.