If he came back to CA, it was probably because there were jobs here that paid better, or had better working conditions, than in UT. Would be interesting, as a random data point, to hear from him why, though.

As for buses, they're transit. Transit is useful, but in my case the main usefulness of buses (flexible routes, etc.) are ignored by the local transit people. So I have to drive or bike to rail transit for most of my transit trips. That works, but it would be nice to have a bus less than 20 minutes' walk from the house, about the same time as the bike trip to the train. Interestingly, there was recently a test around here of subsidized Uber service to light rail or main-line buses; no reports yet on how many people used it or how well it worked.