RBA, Hammond seeking stimulus cash for buses

BY SUSAN BROWN, Times of Northwest Indiana
sbrown@nwitimes.com

HAMMOND | Obtaining assistance from the much-anticipated stimulus package has become the No. 1 option for officials seeking to preserve bus service in Hammond past June.

"We're going after that first," Regional Bus Authority Executive Director Tim Brown said Thursday, one day after meeting with Hammond city officials.

The meeting was the second in a round of meetings with officials in Gary, Hammond and East Chicago regarding consolidating services as the RBA was instructed to do by the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority.

In Hammond, where transit has been written out of the current year's city budget, bus service is set to end by July 1 when $400,000 in gaming money allocated to the service is expected to run out.

Brown said officials agreed to first and foremost attempt to preserve the existing service by extending the $400,000 in gaming dollars with stimulus dollars.

"It's the only light at the end of the tunnel we can see right now," Brown said.

Brown said it was agreed to have RBA Project Director Ken Dallmeyer and Hammond Transit Director Keith Matasovsky write the proposal for the stimulus dollars.

Hammond is certain to have competition. Brown said all the area bus providers are expected to make a pitch for help from the stimulus package.

Brown said a secondary option comes in the form of a proposal floated by Whiting Mayor Joseph Stahura, who supports Lake County adopting a local option income tax and directing it toward major area projects, including bus transit.

Hammond and the RBA will consider whatever options available to preserve bus service as long as possible, but Wednesday's meeting left it undetermined whether Hammond is interested in consolidating facilities, Brown said.

"This is a continuing discussion," he said.