Southwestern eyes expanded bus service

BY TIMOTHY LAROCHE
[email protected]
CLAREMONT — A group of people can be seen standing near the Moody Building overhang on any given morning just before 8 a.m., waiting for a burgundy-emblazoned vehicle to arrive.

Their ride, one of the busses from Southwestern Community Services, has become a common sight and well-used commodity in Claremont — servicing more than 3,200 riders in the city last year. As development of the next city budget gets underway, directors from the organization are pushing for continued funding for the public transportation service, with the hopes of eventually expanding.

“I wasn’t sure a year ago that we would be in a position that we could consider expansion, but we are,” Chief Administrative Officer Keith Thibault said.

Currently, the bus service runs between Claremont, Charlestown and Newport, with riders paying a nominal fee. However, after talks with the Sullivan County Economic Profile group revealed an interest in expanding transportation with the Upper Valley, Thibault said, the organization has “dusted off” a plan to provide daily service with Lebanon and Hanover.

“It will allow folks from this region to access the job shed — the market in that area,” Thibault said. “Conversely, the plan would be to try and bring people home to Sullivan County that work up in that region right now. It’s intended to be a dual benefit to both sections.”

The idea of expanding transit between Claremont and the upper Valley has roots going back nearly decade. In 2011, the Upper Valley lake Sunapee Regional Planning Commission unveiled the findings of a transportation study on the viability of expanding bus service in the region.

The study found that Claremont, Lebanon and Hanover all had population clusters without easy access to transit. Claremont and areas of Newport were also identified as having high rates of poverty and persons with disabilities — populations cited by the study as showing high need for the service.

While job markets in the Upper Valley have been stronger in recent years than those in Sullivan County, the study identified housing shortages as a challenge for Lebanon and Hanover. Meanwhile, housing prices in Claremont are lower than the state average, and the city’s infrastructure is capable of serving nearly 7,000 more people than the 13,500 residents that currently live in the city.

With the two focus areas of the study showing the potential for mutual benefit from increased transit, the report found that bus service along the Route 120 corridor between Claremont and Lebanon would be viable, connecting many of the region’s large employers with underserved housing markets. The recently-adopted Claremont Masterplan also sets a goal of improving public transportation along the Route 120 corridor.

While the proposal garnered support from Claremont city councilors and those partaking in county-wide economic development talks, Thibault said, implementation is contingent on additional funding.

For the bus service’s first year in operation, beginning October 2016, the Claremont city council approved $22,500 for the service. While initial drafts of the 2017 city budget cut funding for the bus service out entirely, City Manager Ryan McNutt and councilors agreed to appropriate $25,000 for the service at a meeting on June 14.

Charlestown, Newport, the Sullivan County Commissioners and several non-profit and private groups also give money for the program. Outside of the municipal allocations, the service’s funding stream comes from revenues from advertising and fares and federal grants.

However, funding from the Federal Transit Administration is limited and contingent upon local matches, SCS Transit Director Terri Paige said. 

The organization has already leveraged federal funding to provide the current service, she said, so additional services will likely require greater municipal contributions and revenues. The organization has not yet come out with any specific funding requests.

“It brings people to jobs,” Thibault said of the proposed service. “It enhances commerce. It brings people to businesses to not only shop but work.”

 

Follow Timothy LaRoche on Facebook at Eagle Times – Timothy LaRoche, or on Twitter at @TimothyLaRoche.