Bus service set to roll in Pa.

February 19, 1997

By LISA GRAYBEAL

Staff Writer, Waynesboro

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - Bus service in Waynesboro will likely start in May once paperwork and funding details are settled.

Waynesboro Council members plan to sign a contract with Chambersburg Transit Authority and an agreement with the state Department of Transportation at their March 5 meeting to start a bus service from Waynesboro to Rouzerville and Zullinger.

The grant application for state reimbursement for operating the bus service also will be ready for approval at next month's meeting, said Borough Manager Lloyd Hamberger.

Washington Township officials will also have to sign the documents.

Once PennDOT gets the grant application and the agreement, it will take about eight weeks for it to be executed, said Bill Parkin, manager of PennDOT's rural transportation bureau.

The process has been delayed to clear up complicated language in the contracts and agreements and to address concerns by Council members about funding.

At the last meeting, some Council members questioned the operation of the bus service if it starts to lose money or if the grant money is used faster than planned.

Parkin reassured the council that state and local officials will closely monitor the bus service during its first few months of operation.

"If it's not what we think it should be then we'll re-evaluate the service," Parkin said. "There are things that can be altered as we go along."

He told Council members that it will take between two and four months of operation before they'll know if it's successful or not.

"We can't promise it's going to be a success. We don't know that until we try," Parkin said.

By attending community meetings in the past, Parkin said he has every indication that the public is looking forward to the bus service.

The projected cost for operating the bus route is $7,175 a month. In addition to money from the state, funds will be collected through bus fares, advertising, and the lottery.

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