MOUNT VERNON — A pilot program set to start next week means residents will have a reliable transportation option for getting to seven frequently visited sites in the city.
Knox Area Transit and Knox Public Health partnered to create a free fixed route with seven stops:
•The Station Break
•Knox County Service Center (Chestnut Street entrance)
•Kroger
•Knox Community Hospital
•Knox Public Health
•Walmart
•Opportunity Knox
The route will run Monday through Friday 8 am to 4 pm with stops scheduled every 30 minutes at each site.
“It’s the first true fixed route that we are operating,” Transit Administrator Martin McAvoy said. “This sets a time for us to be there to pick up.
“You can work public transit into your schedule instead of having to wait on it,” he added.
Both agencies contributed funding to the program, which runs through June 2023. KAT contributed $36,776 from a grant designed to help people get to health facilities and pharmacies.
KPH contributed $60,000 in COVID-relief money earmarked for increasing access to vaccinations and health care.
“This is something we’ve been talking about with Martin [McAvoy] for several years,” Health Commissioner Zach Green said.
In other transit news, McAvoy told the county commissioners on Thursday that ridership continues to grow, up more than 1,600 compared to August 2021. General fares account for 84% of revenue; contract trips make up the remaining 16%.
The village shuttles are still discontinued after COVID until there is more demand. Eight to 10 people consistently ride to the industrial park each day, and that sector is starting to grow.
“Maybe with employers needing workers, employers would be willing to contract something for employees to get to work,” Commissioner Teresa Bemiller said.
Regarding a new transit facility, the Ohio Department of Transportation is still reviewing the funding application. McAvoy said ODOT expects to make tentative awards the end of this month.
2023 budget
ODOT only approved $1.75 million of KAT’s $5.2 million 2023 funding request. That means KAT’s 2023 budget dropped from $3.15 million to $2.45 million.
McAvoy said ODOT did not give a good explanation of why it reduced funding but said available money vs. funding requests is always a factor. Other factors include local match requirements and ODOT’s expectation that the county will use carryover money from 2022.
“You really can’t budget all of the carryover because you have to have it. You have to save enough to cover Quarter 1 [2023],” County Administrator Jason Booth said. “If we use all we have, that’s it. But going into 2024 we will have nothing.”
Booth noted that the state is frequently late getting funding to the county, which is why KAT needs enough carryover to cover the first quarter. That was the case in 2021, when the county had to advance KAT money to cover first-quarter expenses.
“If they are going to use the carryover against you when you request funding, they need to do a better job of getting the money to us,” Bemiller said.
As far as the local match requirements, McAvoy said KAT has contract revenue left from years 2020, 2021, and 2022 it can use.
“The local match is difficult in rural communities, because we don’t have a tax base,” McAvoy said.
