WTA asked to pursue bus routes

The Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA) is looking into applying for state funds to provide bus service to Point Roberts, after a well-rehearsed local nudge.

Joan Roberts and her son Neal Teutsch, Henry Rosenthal and Beverly Griffiths appeared before the WTA board on September 18 to present why virtually all segments of the Point Roberts community needed a bus to Blaine that could connect with the rest of the county. “One hundred and forty school kids can’t access activities or visit peers, seniors can’t get to services, and workers can’t get to work,” said Roberts, who owns Brewster’s restaurant.

The group put together a hefty proposal for six round-trip runs to Blaine a day, which they estimated would cost $170,000 a year. Two early morning runs and two afternoon runs would connect in Blaine with WTA runs to the rest of the county, which Roberts said would allow commuting to and from the Point. “We have real problems with our workforce. There aren’t enough workers in the summer and not enough jobs in the winter,” she said. A 10 a.m. run with no connections is also proposed so seniors can get to shopping, their doctor, or their lawyer in Blaine. Finally, an evening run is proposed at 7:30 p.m. with students in mind.

“I’d like to see at least a couple of nights so kids could go to a football game, a concert, or socialize after school,” Roberts said. “It would eliminate the need for teen activities on the Point and keep them close to their peers. Isolation is a real problem for kids here”

The group also identified a funding source – state rural mobility grants. “When I spoke with the department of transportation they said our community needs this funding and qualifies for these grants,” Roberts said. In the 2001-2003 biennium the state handed out $3.3 million in rural mobility grants, which specifically target public transit in isolated areas. The funds can be used for planning, operations, vehicles and construction. In the last biennium Island Transit was awarded $268,941 to provide public transportation between Oak Harbor and Mount Vernon in Island and Skagit counties.

The WTA board directed staff to review the proposal and scheduled a special meeting to decide whether to submit the application by the October 16 deadline. “We’re trying to pull it together for a special meeting October 10,” said WTA director of service development Rick Gordon. “We need to cost it out.” Gordon said that while the proposal did qualify for the grant, it might be a long shot. “They’re asking for six trips and it’s a community of 1,200. We have five trip to Everson, Nooksack and Sumas and there are 6,000 people in that corridor,” he said. He added that WTA had applied for funding last year to run service up the Mount Baker Highway last year and had been turned down. He also estimated the service would cost more than the group had originally projected.

“I figure we should shoot for the max,” Roberts said. If the grant is approved there will still be some kinks to work out, from which runs people use to how the schedule might need to be adjusted to deal with the border lines. “Flexibility is necessary until we see what works.”

Community members who support the grant proposal should mail letters to the WTA at 4111 Bakerview Spur, Bellingham WA, 98226
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