Nicholasville, KY- Bluegrass Ride is making major changes to its public transit service in Nicholasville and Danville, with the free deviated fixed-route system shutting down at the end of the day Friday.
Bluegrass Community Action Partnership, which operates the transit program, says the decision comes after years of mounting financial pressure.
"This is not a choice that we wanted to make. We do understand that transportation is a huge barrier to a lot of people," Troy Roberts, executive director of Bluegrass Community Action Partnership, said.
Roberts said BGCAP's transportation program has lost large amounts of money over the last 3 years. That, combined with a reduction in federal public transportation funding and uncertainties stemming from recently passed House Bill 2, left the organization unable to continue operating the Nicholasville route system.
"Each one of these routes was going to cost our agency more than $330,000 per year," Roberts said.
Roberts said BGCAP could not jeopardize the entire organization to keep the system running.
"I'm sorry, I know it looks bad but that's just the reality of it," Roberts said.
When asked how quickly the situation could be resolved, Roberts said, "I spoke with the mayors of both cities before making the announcement. We're looking at more than $330,000 for each route that we're gonna go in the hole on and we can't afford to do that. So, unless someone comes up with that kind of money, we don't have a lot of choices here."
For daily riders like Danielle Sadler, the shutdown is more than an inconvenience.
Sadler said she worries about others who depend on the bus for basic needs.
"To go to the grocery store...a lot of people I find here, they commute from work, so they're gonna have no way," Sadler said.
"We just don't want it to get shut down," Sadler said.
The free Bluegrass Ride system is also shutting down this weekend in Danville. Following the changes, all public transportation trips will be door-to-door. Reservations can be made through a number listed on the BGCAP website.
This is what was provided by Roberts:
"We do know that public transportation is greatly needed and will still provide that through BGCAP Transit. This model will allow us to use our coordinated system that is already in place and operate our transportation program more efficiently. Once the Nicholasville Route system is ended, people needing transportation can call 800-456-6588 to schedule a ride 24 hours in advance. All public transportation trips will be door-to-door. In other words, riders will be picked up at their location and dropped off at the address they are going to. The cost will be $1.75/ mile or $1/ mile if pre-paid with a credit or debit card when scheduling. There will be a $5 minimum charge."
