Harrisonburg, Rockingham residents say they'll help front the $200K startup cost for transit
Roughly 100 residents of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County took their plea for a countywide public transit system directly to the county board of supervisors on Wednesday, armed with a $200,000 check to help pay for the startup costs.
It was a check that would not be cashed.
Members of Valley Interfaith Action, composed of 26 faith-based congregations, child care centers, immigrant associations and other nonprofit groups, wants county supervisors to offer an endorsement for countywide transit to the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, the state agency that must greenlight the project.
Valley Interfaith Action member Kent Carneal said too many people across Rockingham County are without a mode of transportation to work, to the grocery, to the doctor's office.
He said he is proud of the assistance his organization can provide, but "we don't want people to rely on charity."
The check for $200,000, raised from local employers and donations, was presented to the board of supervisors Wednesday by Jennifer Scarr, pastor at Bridgewater Church of the Brethren.
It was later returned.
Rockingham County Administrator Stephen King said the check could not be used by the county but only by the Department of Rail and Public Transportation.
Supervisor Sallie Wolfe-Garrison said it is difficult to support the Valley Interfaith Action proposal since it contradicts a feasibility study looking at transit service in Rockingham County.
Supervisors have already endorsed a proposal from another group based in Augusta County called ACTION, or Alliance Committed to Improving our Neighborhoods. That group would offer transit service principally in Rockingham County's Bridgewater and Mount Crawford communities.
That proposal is like what was recommended to the county by consultant Kimley-Horn. A Kimley-Horn transit feasibility study paid for by the state concluded the best ridership for a transit system would be in Bridgewater-Mount Crawford, an area that covers many of Rockingham County's largest employers and is near U.S. Route 11 and Interstate 81.
Wolfe-Garrison said the Bridgewater-Mount Crawford area is "densely populated and the likelihood of success in that area is higher."
Ray Eppard, a Staunton pastor, a member of ACTION and chairman of the Augusta County Republican Committee, said the ACTION plan will help Rockingham County employers reduce absenteeism and increase retention.
He also said ACTION has hired a grant writer to help secure funding for its plan, which he believes can be accomplished without using any Rockingham County tax dollars. A formal proposal for the plan must be submitted by January to the Department of Rail and Public Transportation.
While Rockingham County considers the possibility of a transit system, county leaders say transportation services are already provided by private employers and support organizations.
King and Assistant Rockingham County Administrator Casey Armstrong noted private employers such as the Massanutten Resort and the Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative in Hinton provide transportation for their employees. Blue Ridge Community College in Augusta County also offers shuttle service into Rockingham County.
Beth Bland, executive director of the Valley Program for Aging Services, based in Waynesboro, said VPAS primarily helps Rockingham County seniors who need a ride to medical appointments but can also help them with trips to the grocery store.
The board of supervisors may have returned the XX check, but the nonprofit network is not going up.
Scarr said the group encourages the board to endorse its plan at its Dec. 11 meeting.
Bob Stuart (540) 932-3562
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