Planned cuts in Lake County bus service make riders queasy

HAMMOND | Riders expressed concerns Wednesday about proposed cuts and changes to the easygo Lake Transit Service during a public hearing here.

The Northwest Indiana Regional Bus Authority, which runs the service, anticipates a loss of local revenue to support the routes by the end of December. The agencies wants to eliminate the Brown Route from Hammond and Munster to the Lake County Government Complex in Crown Point

The RBA also is considering reducing the daily commuter service on the Red and Green regional routes that run in the morning and evening from Monday through Friday.

Residents who attended the hearing at the Hammond Public Library included Nancy Ebert, of Hammond, who said she's pleased with the RBA-contracted paratransit service she receives. She said she is concerned about prospects of the affordable service being diminished.

Ebert said she believes access to transportation to educational institutions and many other agencies empowers people who are seeking the tools to enter or re-enter the work force and improve their lives.

Ebert would like to see the RBA add an easily accessible route to St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago.

"St. Catherine Hospital is very critical to many people in this community," she said.

Mark McLaughlin, of Hammond, would rather see the RBA increase, not decrease, its services, especially in light of rising gas prices.

"It seems like every economically successful area has a really good mass transit system," he said.

Karen Cook, of Hammond, said she has had good experiences with the RBA but believes there are some people who aren't familiar with the routes.

"I think whoever determines the routes did an excellent job," she said. "The only problem is nobody knows where they go."

Cook also said it would be a shame to discontinue the Brown Route because it connects people with Merrillville, Westfield Southlake mall and the county government center.

Tim Brown, RBA executive director, spoke of promoting the service and said that ridership has gone up, but "it just hasn't gone up a lot."