Recently, there has been some talk of eliminating the Westhampton-16 GRTC bus that runs through the Near West End from Downtown to the University of Richmond campus.  Not only does this idea totally confuse me, but the timing is just horrible.   Just last month, UR announced that it would give any employee free bus tickets. Perhaps it is not coincidence. It’s not to far fetched to think it was  a move on UR’s part to keep the Westhampton Route from being eliminated.  I’m not sure it will work, according to reports, only about 150 folks have taken them up on the offer.

Regardless, eliminating the bus route completely is a very bad idea. Especially with gas prices the way they are and the fact that UR needs workers who may not own cars, the route is vital to their livelihood.  At the very least, they should still run the route in the morning and the evening. And GRTC should work with UR officials to find a solution that works for both parties.

Seems like it’s the logical thing to do. The Times-Dispatch quotes bus rider Dave Macguire:

Dave Maguire, 59, a federal prosecutor who lives in Henrico and works in downtown Richmond, said he has been riding the 16 Westhampton bus for seven or eight years. He said the proposals to cut several routes are “disappointing and shortsighted.”

“There needs to be more regional cooperation between the city and the various counties to fund this thing,” he said.

Ironically, he said, GRTC’s plans come at a time when higher gas prices are nudging more people toward public transportation.

“Getting people out of their cars and into buses is part of the long-range solution [to] global warming,” Maguire said. Private businesses should subsidize bus passes instead of subsidizing the cost of parking, he said.