Oskaloosa Bus Route Stalled

Members of 10-15 Transit and Ottumwa Transit (center) at a recent meeting about bringing a fixed bus route to Oskaloosa. Now 10-15 Transit and Ottumwa Transit are splitting, and talks must begin anew.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – Public transportation is commonly associated with larger towns and cities in Iowa, but several community organizations say the need is great for a public transportation in Oskaloosa for those with income and mobility issues.

Providing that service could prove to be a costly adventure, one that those same organizations and the local government entities say must be funded in a way that is sustainable. Those options include looking at government grants to help supplement the service offered by 10-15 Transit.

10-15 Transit and Ottumwa Transit have recently spilt because of the need to keep under 50 employees because of regulations in Obamacare or Affordable Care Act. With those changes in the management, the route planning is now officially at square one once again, Amy Langdon of Mahaska County United Way stated.

“I think a lot of people were under the impression that 10-15 were going to cover all the costs of actually managing the bus,” says Langdon. “The last we had heard in the summer was that the city of Oskaloosa or some party therein would have to come up with a para-transit bus.”

So the group was under the impression that once they acquired the para-transit bus everything else would have been covered by 10-15.

Earlier this year, community partners boarded a bus and rode a proposed route. From that experience they determined that some stops needed to be trimmed from the route in order for the bus to complete the route in an hour.

So, after the summer had come and gone, Langdon called down to 10-15 Transit to see if there was any loose ends that needed to be taken care of.

Regional 10-15 Transit then said that the city, or someone else, would have to finance the cost of running the bus, including the salary of the bus drivers. A driver’s pay would cost upwards of $25.00 per hour, and would require two drivers, one driving the fixed route and the other driving the para-transit bus. The cost would be approximately $1000.00 per week in salary alone. “Which no one has the money for at this time,” says Langdon.

So now organizers are looking to clarify more details from 10-15 Transit as to what the real cost would be for them to provide. “There has to be some sort of subsidizing of that (bus route), or it would make it cost prohibitive, I think.” Langdon said.

The fares would never help make the bus run in the black or even come near to breaking even, so without Federal subsidies, the route could be on its final stop before ever getting into gear.

Currently, there is service available to Mahaska County residents utilizing the 10-15 transit system. Most times, riders must call ahead at least 24 hours in advance, and the fares for the transit buses are already subsidized.

Discussion on the project will take place at the next 10-15 Transit meeting.