Angry riders and advocates of C-Tran, the Clayton County bus service that is scheduled for shutdown March 31, berated the county’s commissioners Tuesday night at their final meeting before the buses come to a halt.
Commissioners who disagree with each other on the issue got into the fray as well, with the chairman and vice chairman accusing each other of misrepresenting the facts.
"If we can spend $45 million on roads for the rich, why can’t we spend $6 million for the poor?" asked the board’s chairman, Eldrin Bell, who insisted that if his fellow commissioners really wanted to fund C-Tran, they could find a way in the budget. "We’re just simply refusing to do it."
Bell was the lone dissenter in the 4-1 vote to stop the service.
Commissioner Wole Ralph responded that by law, the $45 million had to be spent on roads and as for the rest of the budget, the commission had to act responsibly in tough times.
"Much of what you've said is untrue," Ralph said. "And it continues to be untrue."
More than 100 counties and towns in Georgia provide some form of local mass transit. After the shutdown, Clayton will have no service for regular local riders. The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority runs some long-haul commuter buses, but those don't serve the same purpose as C-Tran, with its many stops spread throughout the county.
The board did take a vote that they hope will fund paratransit, the vehicles for disabled passengers and medical visits. Ralph said they would take some grant money the county already expects to receive from the federal government and apply it to the paratransit service.
Bell said they had no idea whether that idea would meet federal rules for the grants and hadn't checked. Ralph said he believed it would meet the requirements.
C-Tran passengers, state legislators and transit union members ended the meeting by giving the board a piece of their mind.
"You all are still running in circles," said Gary Frank, who uses C-Tran. He added that they would pay at election time.
"It baffles me," said Alvatina Upshaw, a transit union member whose parents live in Clayton County. "You all are capable of providing this service ... homeowners will lose their jobs."
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