RDA prepares ultimatum to GPTC

The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority is preparing what may be its final offer to Gary Public Transportation Corp. to either consolidate or lose out on $1.8 million in funding.

RDA members were reviewing the latest version of a memo of understanding on consolidation from GPTC on Tuesday, according to RDA Executive Director Bill Hanna.

"With fiscal realities being what they are and the Indiana General Assembly starting in January, leaving problems unresolved will just exacerbate the situation," Hanna said. "So it's time to bring this process to a close."

The RDA has been urging GPTC to merge with the Northwest Indiana Regional Bus Authority ever since the Gary bus agency submitted a request for $4.1 million in funding earlier this year. That amount since has been whittled down to just more than $1.8 million by the RDA but has not yet been approved.

Throughout the summer, the issue of consolidation was batted back and forth by the RBA, the RDA and the GPTC board of directors.

Twice the GPTC board of directors rejected proposed memorandums of understanding on consolidation proposed by the RDA. On Sept. 2, the board of directors approved a memo revised by their own lawyer after a meeting between RDA, RBA, GPTC and city of Gary representatives.

But RDA members said they wanted a careful look at that proposed memo, which included an understanding that GPTC was not committing to its own elimination as a provider of bus services in Gary.

On another front, ridership on the recently expanded Hammond bus service, now going by the moniker of EasyGo Lake Service, jumped 28 percent in its first month of operation, according to RBA figures.

Some 16,874 riders took the buses in August, as compared to 13,136 in July, according to RBA figures. In August, waiting times for almost all buses were reduced from one hour to half an hour and some routes were extended.

And that growth in ridership has continued apace in September, according to RBA Project Manager Ken Dallmeyer.

The only route not generating many riders is the new Brown Route from Munster to Crown Point. That route had fewer than 90 riders in August. By means of transfers, it is meant to connect Hammond residents and others with the Lake County Government Center in Crown Point.

Since January, the former Hammond Transit has been run by the RBA. The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority granted the RBA $4.8 million to expand the Hammond service. The city of Hammond is contributing $900,000 per year in casino revenue.