Minutes 12-11-2012 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Sam Gharbo lives in Efland. He said that he is glad that Orange County is increasing its infrastructure. He said that the plan has a backbone with no real extending ribs to support it. The plan should reach into the rural areas of Orange County because this would be a catalyst for growth. He said that it would be great to be able to get on a bus in Efland and get to places in a reasonable amount of time. Tish Galu read a prepared statement: "I am Tish Galu. I am speaking tonight on my experience with many who use or would like to use the bus system for transportation. I was on the Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness for two years and in that time helped to begin Support Circles for the Homeless. While researching this program I spoke to individuals in residential facilities and in the shelters. In addition, I have been part of a ministry that has helped to provide furniture to over 70 individuals/families transitioning out of these facilities into rental housing. Most in this transition phase have jobs —jobs that barely support them. But almost all do not own cars as they cannot afford the cost of the car, the upkeep, the insurance, or the licensing. These are the individuals that need public transportation to get to their jobs and do their shopping. I know and have worked with these families that are currently taking buses to their work— but for some — a 15-20 minute car ride takes 2 hours or more to get to work and three bus changes. And because these individuals work on Sundays —there is no bus service at all. Some have relied on taxi service —which can cost most of their salary for that day! Or they lose the opportunity to work on the weekend. And the same thing happens when bus service is reduced when school is out. Since 60% of the cost of the bus service is currently supported by UNC, they have tailored the service to students. But when the students are not in school, it does not mean that the workers are not there! The workers are the forgotten entity in this agreement. The hospital is still open 7 days week and UNC staffs are still working when students are not there. In addition the hospital and school is expanding their clinics and campus outside Chapel Hill. And workers in our community need the transportation to get to their work that may not be at UNC. That said, we are very pleased that the plan now includes some service on Sundays and when school is not in session, but it does not go nearly far enough to meet the needs of the residents of our community. The current setup of lines needs to be expanded so residents can access the bus lines to go work, shopping, or the library more easily. When it takes two or three bus changes and an hour or more just to go shopping at the grocery store —you're not likely to choose this route. What it does is deter you from using the bus because of the way the lines are currently set up. The "hub" is currently the hospital/UNC. We need to determine where there should be more "hubs" in the community and start to realign the plan to meet the needs of those that can and want to utilize the bus lines. And of course align them with Durham's and other bus lines to have an integrated plan. The transit plan needs to be evaluated to assist those who need transportation to work, to shop and to live in Orange County. This is your opportunity to look at funding significantly increased service for increased use by our residents not just the students, to reevaluate the plan to meet the needs of the entire community. Now is the time for better research, better planning and better allocation of the money for this project to truly meet the needs of our community. Jeanne Brown read a prepared statement. "I am a resident of southern Chapel Hill and, as a visually impaired individual who is unable to drive, I am a transit supporter. During the past year I was a regular participant in the Chapel Hill 2020 "Getting Around" group which focused on transportation issues. As a group, including our staff liaisons, we agreed that Chapel Hill Transit does a good job of serving the UNC/UNC healthcare downtown campus but did not feel that it does a good job serving the broader community.