The Centre Area Transportation Authority is subsidizing rides for State College area residents traveling to court and government buildings in Bellefonte through a new agreement with Centre County Transportation Office.
Residents will pay $5 each way ($10 roundtrip) for trips on the county’s scheduled shared-ride service to the Centre County Courthouse, Willowbank Building and new Community Services Building, according to a memorandum of understanding approved by the county Board of Commissioners on Tuesday. CATA funding will offset the remainder of the cost for regular fare on the county service.
Trips must originate from and return to a CATA member municipality — State College Borough and College, Ferguson, Harris and Patton townships. The subsidized trips are available to residents of those municipalities who do not already have free or reduced-cost transportation through another program, Dave Lomison, Centre County transportation director, said.
The Centre County Transportation Office provides door-to-door van service for anyone countywide. Residents 60 and older ride for free, and individuals with disabilities or who receive medical assistance pay $4.25. For those who are not eligible for a subsidy, however, fares range from $21.50 to $36 depending on mileage.
CATA’s move to subsidize rides to the court and government buildings comes after the Borough of Bellefonte discontinued its contract with the authority on July 1, ending CATA’s B-Line service to and from the county seat. (Bellefonte Borough has also separately partnered with county transportation to subsidize $5 trips for its residents in lieu of CATA service.)
“I know that they were bringing people here under the CATA Go service and the CATA Ride service previously and since July that has stopped,” Lomison said. “So they want to make sure these individuals get to where they need to go and I think help their people out in their member municipalities.”
Riders can schedule trip by calling 814-355-6807 up to two months in advance and no later than 2 p.m. one business day before, though Lomison recommended booking as early as possible.
“There are times when we have to shut it off earlier [than 2 p.m. the day before] due to the number of trips, so the sooner you call to schedule the better,” Lomison said.
Board Chair Mark Higgins said he appreciates “CATA stepping forward on this,” and Commissioner Amber Concepcion said the agreement eases a concern she had when Bellefonte withdrew from CATA.
“This, I think, really helps meet some of those needs we were worried about with making sure people throughout the county have access to transportation to our facilities,” Concepcion said. “This is one good sized chunk of the county that this will cover.”
The $5 fare is “pretty reasonable,” Commissioner Steve Dershem added.
“If you consider what it costs an individual with a car, that’s a good deal,” Dershem said.
CATA currently has no cap on the number of rides it will subsidize for member municipality residents.
“Obviously if it became an astronomical number they would have to reconsider, but we don’t see that happening,” Lomison said. “I don’t think there’s an overwhelming number of people that need that service, but there are some and they want to continue to serve them, which is why they’ve asked for this agreement.”
