By Steve Huffman
shuffman@salisburypost.com
Rowan County commissioners will hear an update on the proposed East Rowan Express when they meet Monday night.
The presentation will be made by Clyde Fahnestock, the county’s senior services director.
The Express would provide daily bus service to the eastern side of the county. Destinations of the proposed Express would include Granite Quarry, the East Rowan YMCA (and Nazareth Children’s Home), Rockwell, Faith and the Rowan County Health Department of Social Services location on East Innes Street in Salisbury.
Members of the Granite Quarry Board of Aldermen voted 4-0 earlier this month for a resolution supporting the Express. Fahnestock, who is also director of Rowan Transit Service, told Granite Quarry board members that his agency has applied for ó and expects to receive ó a $74,161 grant through Rural General Public supplemental funding.
A firm route schedule remains a work in progress, but it would have one bus making four morning and four afternoon trips Monday through Friday. Each roundtrip for the bus would take 1.5 hours.
The Express fare would be $1, which would cover free transfer passes to Salisbury Transit’s three bus routes and the “Express” that goes to southern Rowan and Kannapolis.
The route for the East Rowan Express will cover 25 miles. At eight trips a day, that would total 200 miles or about 50,000 miles per year.
Fahnestock told Granite Quarry board members that the grant and a match from commissioners would cover expenses of the Express. He said Rowan Transit Service would then look to establish a local matching formula where all participating towns would pay level share beginning in fiscal year 2011.
Fahnestock said his goal would be to keep the match for smaller towns like Granite Quarry at less than $3,000 per year.
In other matters on commissioners’ agenda for Monday:
– Recognition of the Rowan County American Legion baseball team whose members finished third in the country.
– Consideration of a request from the Rowan County Health Department concerning imaging patient records.
– Presentation of a Small Community Air Service Development grant application by Dave Thomas, Air Service program manager.
– Discussion concerning a tourism development authority by County Manager Gary Page.
– A resolution in support of legislation against involuntary annexation. The resolution will be presented by Commissioner Chad Mitchell.
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Commissioners meet at 7 p.m. Monday in the J. Newton Cohen Sr. Room in the County Administration Building at 130 W. Innes St., Salisbury.
Post reporter Mark Wineka contributed to this story.