By: Lydia Crawley The Parsons Advocate
Starting in July Tucker County will have bus service, that is what representatives of the Potomac Valley Transit Authority informed Tucker County officials on May 8th at the Davis Town Hall. PVTA General Manager Doug Pixler and PVTA Director of Communications Suzanne Park-Lewis presented the company’s plans to representatives from across Tucker County including county and municipal governments, as well as tourism officials.
“We’re pretty excited about getting up here,” Pixler said.
Funding for the expansion is through an ongoing $750,000 grant targeted at expansion into counties that currently have no public transit service. Park-Lewis said the bill specifically named Tucker County in it. The permanent funding is managed through the Division of Public Transit. Funding for the expansion project does not come out of any local or county funds and is entirely grant match funded.
“We did get our funding through the State,” Pixler said. “Randy Smith was instrumental in putting it all together for us, as well as John Paul Hott.”
PVTA will offer route and on demand service in Tucker County, as well as medical ride service to Morgantown. The Morgantown service can be covered by insurance such as Medicaid or self pay at 30 cents a mile, according to Pixler.
Route service in Tucker County, Pixler said will be based on a zonal system. An initial cost of $2 is assessed with an additional charge of $1 for each zone, Pixler said. Total cost for any ride in the county will depend on the number of stops and how many zones are crossed. PVTA is currently finalizing the zones for the Tucker County area, Pixler and Park-Lewis said.
Riders 65 and over are eligible for ½ price fares that include ½ price on monthly passes. Monthly passes will be available for $60 ($30 for seniors). Monthly passes will allow riders unlimited rides throughout the month.
Pixler and Park-Lewis said that routes and schedules for the buses will be flexible and will likely change depending on the needs of the community in Tucker County. The company currently operates in five counties: Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Mineral and Pendleton and the needs differ in each county. PVTA anticipates that Tucker County will differ drastically from their other service areas due to the tourism industry.
“What it looks like in July, it probably won’t look the same in October,” Pixler said. “It just depends on what the needs are and the flow of how things are going.”
PVTA also anticipates working with local employers to offer transportation services for employees. In other counties, PVTA works with employers who subsidize the transportation costs of their employees. Park-Lewis said she anticipates extending the same offer to local employers in Tucker County.
The PVTA is also exploring shopping trip routes to neighboring communities such as Elkins and Oakland.
Three buses have already been purchased for use in Tucker County, Pixler said. Bike racks are being ordered to be mounted on the front of the buses. There is a misconception throughout a lot of the communities that PVTA serves that the buses are strictly for the elderly, Park-Lewis said. The buses serving Tucker County are available to everyone in the County, regardless of age, residency or disability. All the buses are handicapped accessible. Children under 12 are requested to be accompanied by an adult generally, however.
PVTA is currently seeking CDL licensed drivers.
