Column

An appeal for mass transit

By C.T. BOWEN, Editor of Editorials
Published September 13, 2007

They are younger than 24 and have to get to college classes. Or, they are middle aged with a modest income and require transportation to and from work. Maybe they are 60 or older and have a doctor's appointment or need to go shopping.

They are the typical riders on Pasco's mass transit system along the county's western corridor, according to early returns of a survey of riders on the Pasco Public Transportation System. Monday morning, they began filling out the on-board public opinion poll to let the county know what they're thinking.

They want later service. Rides now end in the early evening. One suggested going until 11 p.m. "so you're late enough for night workers, yet not too late that (you) run into drunks on the road at 2 a.m."

They want weekend service. Sundays would be great. They want more routes. Several mentioned the delayed service to the Moon Lake Road area that commissioners scuttled for the coming year because of a tight budget. Others await cross-county service along State Road 54.

One wants trash cans to curb littering at bus stops. Some want the route schedules posted on-line in an easy-to-find location. They have plenty of ideas and are willing to share them.

If only others did.

Consider central Pasco. Commissioner Pat Mulieri said during last week's budget discussions that people there want regularly scheduled mass transit service.

Certainly, Peter Hanzel does. He chairs the governmental affairs committee for the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. He advocates a bus circulating among the area's housing developments and the three major shopping centers/malls sprouting in the community at State Road 56 and Interstate 75, at Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and SR 56 and northwest of the State Road 54 and I-75 interchange. Hanzel even believes current routes in east and west Pasco will need to connect to the middle of the county to serve customers and employees of the retail boom.

Hanzel detailed his thoughts at a public workshop Tuesday at the Land O'Lakes library branch as planners began accumulating ideas for a 10-year transit plan. Unfortunately, the number of interested parties in central Pasco rivaled the amount of points the Buccaneers put on the scoreboard.

Not counting staff members or yours truly, you could tally the attendees at the three-hour workshop on one hand. Mulieri might have overestimated the public demand for service in central Pasco.

At least the public has two more chances to attend the workshops today in Dade City and next week in New Port Richey.

Dennis Costantio, a financial analyst who lives in Land O'Lakes and works in New Tampa, came to the workshop and looked at the proposed long-term transportation map attached to the library's wall. He pinpointed the dilemma facing county government, business recruiters and highway planners.

He pointed to the gray area indicating Hillsborough County. "The jobs are here," he said and then moved his finger northward to the map's green blotches indicating approved developments in Pasco. "The people live here."

Costantio said he gave up a job in Ybor City because the daily commute could take an hour and 40 minutes. His route to New Tampa now includes all local roads so he can avoid southbound traffic on I-75. He said a park-and-ride transit service won't work for him because the future sites for the lots are inconvenient.

But the reluctance to part with the personal automobile on a daily basis must be overcome if the region is to mature into more than an interstate highway system doubling twice a day as a parking lot.

Reliance on your own vehicle isn't an option for many of the west Pasco mass transit users. The most common reason for using the bus system is the rider's lack of car or a driver's license, according to the survey results I perused.

The same rider who included comments about late-night bus service elaborated on his or her own reasons for mass transit: Insurance. Car payments, tickets, vehicles repairs, gas prices "are all too expensive."

It's hard to imagine mass transit service working in central Pasco until more of its residents start to think likewise.

Fast facts

If you go

Pasco County public transportation workshops are scheduled:

Today: From 3 to 6 p.m. at the Hugh Embry Library, 14215 Fourth St., Dade City.

Tuesday: From 4 to 7 p.m. at the Regency Park Library, 9701 Little Road, New Port Richey.

[Last modified September 12, 2007, 20:29:45]