The Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation (COAST) is the primary provider of mass transportation[citation needed] for the Seacoast region of New Hampshire, as well as parts of southern Maine.[1] COAST is a non-profit agency founded in 1981 to provide public transportation options in southeastern New Hampshire. First established solely as a private contractor to previously existing bus lines, COAST now runs its own set of public transit routes and transports almost 500,000 passengers per year.