GRTC wants to merge routes that serve the West End

GRTC Transit System may scale back but not eliminate bus service to the West End, including the University of Richmond.

Officials are revamping their months-old plan to scrap inefficient routes by proposing to combine, rather than cut, the No. 16 Westhampton and No. 13 Main Street/Church Hill routes.

The new, merged route would extend from downtown as far west as Carytown, said John M. Lewis Jr., GRTC chief executive officer.

To offset the loss of service to UR that's now available on the Westhampton route, GRTC is proposing a new express route that would stretch between downtown and the university campus with potentially two stops along the way. That route would cater to weekday commuters and allow transfers onto the merged Westhampton/Main Street route.

If approved by the City Council, the express route could start as early as July, but it's also dependent on UR providing a park-and-ride lot, Lewis said. He would not release a map of the proposed route because it hasn't been presented to the council.

"We will still have considerable savings and still be able to provide service along that [Cary Street] corridor," Lewis said of the changes.

UR officials are weighing the impacts of using the bus-turnaround area off Campus and Boatwright drives as a commuter parking lot with at least 20 spaces.

"We're very supportive of working with GRTC to keep a bus stop close to the university," said Carl Sorensen, associate vice president for human resources. "We still haven't resolved whether we can give up parking spaces."

GRTC would receive $11 million from the city to operate in fiscal 2009-10 -- the same amount as this year -- under the budget proposed last week by Mayor Dwight C. Jones.

That means the City Council will need to approve GRTC's route-cutting plan or face the likely need for fares to be increased to at least $1.50 from $1.25 for the local, nonexpress routes, Lewis said.

"If we're able to cut back on our underperforming routes, I think we'll be OK," he said.

By continuing the routes, GRTC faces a deficit of $4 million in fiscal 2009-10. Lewis believes the deficit can be completely or largely erased by making the route changes as proposed and by using state and federal money.

Council President Kathy C. Graziano said she expects a vote once the details of the West End changes are resolved. She also isn't ruling out the need for a fare increase.

"We've got to balance the needs of the buses and the use, and the money the city is paying into the system," she said.

City Councilman Bruce W. Tyler, who represents the West End, said he supports the idea of consolidating routes but said GRTC also needs to look at ways to operate more efficiently, by using smaller vehicles and providing more service on demand.

"It's time to stop running these oversized buses around the city of Richmond with one or two passengers on them," he said.

Contact Will Jones at (804) 649-6911 or .