By Meredith McCulloch
Carla Olson, Healthy Bedford Coordinator, and Sue Baldauf, Youth and Family Services Director, recommended to the Selectmen on April 27 that the Town go forward with a pilot project for a new bus service.
The plan is for an afternoon circular bus route during the school year that would use a transportation service at an estimated cost of $56,000 per year.
The desire for more public transportation scored as high interest among town residents in Bedford’s National Citizen Survey. A subsequent transportation needs survey showed that the greatest need for bus service is on weekday afternoons. A Healthy Communities Implementation Grant funds the study.
There is some bus service within the town, but many needs are not met. The Town currently provides one 12-passenger bus, Bedford Local Transit (BLT,) that can be booked ahead for door-to-door service, and also one fixed weekday afternoon route to the Burlington Mall. That service is heavily utilized by seniors, leaving little capacity for others to use it. Youth in particular are in need of more transportation options. Other residents are looking for ways to connect to existing transportation hubs such as the MBTA and the commuter rail in Concord.
Possible options presented include purchase of a larger vehicle, adding staff to extend availability of the current BLT program, or contracting with a transportation company. Proceeding with the pilot project is the recommended next step.
After some general discussion about funding options, Selectman Margot Fleischman commented, “We must decide whether or not to move forward [with analysis] without knowing what the sources of revenue would be.” The Selectmen were in agreement that an investigation of possible routes and funding options should continue.
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