Photo by Adam Vogler
Lori and Chuck Torres get off of the LCAT on Wednesday at Flint Hills community Health Center, 15th Avenue and State Street. The Torreses are part of a group of Olpe residents using the LCAT to commute to work in Emporia.
Some Olpe-area residents are hoping that a trial L-CAT run will turn into a permanent bus route to get to and from their jobs in Emporia.
“We’re saving on gas, saving on wear and tear on the car,” said rider Lori Torres, a nurse who works at the Flint Hills Community Health Center. “It’s going to be wonderful this winter because we don’t have to scrape, we don’t have to warm up our vehicles.”
The bus leaves Olpe at 7:10 a.m. and arrives here at about 7:25 a.m.; the ride home starts at 5:10 p.m. and stops in Olpe about 5:25 p.m.
“Right now, I’m only having to get up about 10 minutes earlier than I used to,” Torres said.
The Olpe bus riders are looking for others to join them on the ride to Emporia in an effort to make the service viable for the Lyon County Department on Aging, under which the transportation program operates. In addition to the health center workers, other riders have jobs at Emporia State University and the doctors’ clinics adjacent to Newman Regional Health.
Torres said that co-workers at the health center provided the impetus to inquire about setting up the trial route.
Suzanne Miller of Emporia, who has used the service, looked into the possibility of extending it to Olpe, Torres said; Elena Mahoney of Olpe made flyers to attract riders and hung them around Olpe to get out the word to potential riders.
Some of the current riders come from the city of Olpe, a couple drive from outside Olpe and park their cars at a gas station in town, and another health center worker gets picked up at a convenience store at the south edge of Emporia.
On July 28, at 7:10 a.m., Torres, her husband Chuck and the other riders boarded the L-CAT for the first time.
The Torreses always had ridden together to their jobs here, and had wondered whether they were a good fit for the L-CAT.
“You hate to give up that car,” Torres said. “We go run errands on lunch break and stuff, but it really hasn’t been as hard as we thought it would be.”
The $49 monthly fee for a family pass — $35 for individuals — includes unlimited ridership anywhere in Emporia, allowing riders to take the bus to doctors’ appointments and other locations. Torres said, though, that occasionally the couple does need to drive their own vehicle to run errands.
Torres said that they were spending $75 in gas every two weeks to drive to work and the savings will only mount if the trial route turns permanent.
Workers and clients at the health department have received a side benefit from the Olpe route.
“Here, our parking is kind of minimal for employees, so that’s kind of freeing up some parking spaces, too,” she said.
The current Olpe riders should know by the end of the month whether they’ll still be riding the bus in September.
Doug Stueve, director of the county’s department on aging, said that so far, the ridership seems steady and the route is going “real well.” A review of the trial route will come at the end of the month, when final figures are in.
“We’re pretty happy,” Stueve said. “We think it’s a good first step.”
The riders seem to agree.
“I think all of us have really liked it, and we hope that L-CAT’s able to continue it,” Torres said. The service adds a little extra time to relax, both early in the morning and after a hard day at work.
“We bring our coffee,” Torres said. “It’s very nice to just let somebody else do the driving.”
Comments
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Posted by USNretired (anonymous) on August 15, 2008 at 7:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Sounds like LCAT is living up to its name.
Posted by bdprotheroe (anonymous) on August 15, 2008 at 8:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What a fantastic plan, alternative commuter options!
Posted by ESUHORNETS2014 (anonymous) on August 19, 2008 at 6:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I hope it comes to olpe i hate speading money on gas!
Posted by create (anonymous) on August 19, 2008 at 7:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
OMG!
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