A ride to a better job
Published on 6/17/2008
In a remarkable bit of foresight, Georgetown County will get a new bus route on Saturday, July 5. The route will link residents of Choppee, Sampit, North Santee, Graves Station, White Creek, Maryville, Greentown and Andrews to jobs at Waccamaw Community Hospital, Inlet Square Mall, Hard Rock Park and Market Commons. The route will be an extension of the present Georgetown-to-Myrtle Beach route.
With the price of gasoline topping $4 a gallon, more people are considering mass transit over their automobiles as a means of getting to work.
Myers Rollins Jr., general manager of Coast Rural Transit Authority, which will operate the new bus route, says ridership on existing routes is up 41 percent in the past month.
The operation represents an investment of taxpayer money in jobs for Georgetown County residents. County Council put up $220,000 to establish the new route. It was used to secure $253,000 in matching federal funding.
Riders will pay $3. Children under 12 years of age will ride for free with a paying adult.
The investment will pay off if people ride the bus to a better job. The former Lymo route between Georgetown and Myrtle Beach could often be seen rolling down the highway with only a rider or two to keep the driver company.
Today, it would cost the average driver around $12 for the gasoline to drive from Georgetown to Myrtle Beach and back.
The payback will come when Georgetown County residents have a better chance at a better life.
There is no substitute for a good job. Former deadbeat dads can afford to support their children and stay out of jail. Children living in poverty can see that a good job is a way to a better life.
Private bus lines -- they are also subsidized -- roll through Georgetown every day bringing workers from Williamsburg County to Myrtle Beach. Commuting is not easy. It adds a couple of extra hours to the workday. But if Georgetown County's citizens can seize the opportunity, the county's investment will pay off in many ways.
|
Hats off to our local politicians for providing a real benefit to residents. Having recently retired in New Jersey I and my family relocated here after vacationing in Georgetown and Myrtle Beach for a number of years. The community has everything that we sought except 1 thing mass transit. In Camden NJ mass transit is part of the fiber of the community like police, fire, and trash pick ups. My wife and I used mass transit daily to get to & from work. Our kids used it to get to their part time jobs and after school activities. We bought a home in the neck area and simply assumed (wrongly) that a county growing as fast as Georgetown would provide a way for residents to get around the community. It is a mistake to assume that everone has a car or can drive. With gas at $4 it is a stretch to pay our mortgage, pay our utilities, buy clothes and groceries and buy gas on our fixed incomes. We have 2 teenagers who want to work part time jobs to earn some money. My wife & I are unable to provide a car or pay for gas for them to get back & forth. Thanks to the new bus service they both got jobs at the new hard rock park and will be able to get back & forth to work. A tip of the cap to the County. Posted by JerseyGuy on 6/19/2008
|
