By Ryan Berry

DailyAdvocate.com

GREENVILLE — The Darke County Commissioners have agreed to a contract with the City of Greenville to provide transportation to county residents through the Greenville Transit System (GTS).

Commissioner Larry Holmes worked closely with the city to make the agreement possible. “This contract is to expand Greenville Transit Services to the boundaries of the county. Currently, they serve to the city limits. I very much appreciate the city willing to work with us. Katie Benge has been working on the details, there will be more to come,” said Holmes.

It was previously reported that under this contract all residents of Darke County will have access to transportation. GTS is setting up three zones. Depending on which zone you are picked up in will determine your cost. The northern and southern zones will have a fee of $10 and the middle zone will have a fee of $5. For example, if you are picked up in Ansonia and travel to Greenville, the cost is $10. If you need to return to your home and are picked up in Greenville and need to travel to Ansonia, the cost is $5.

Holmes said the city and the county are targeting Feb. 1 as the start date for the program. Clients in the county will be required to call and schedule a ride 24 hours in advance.

“There’s been talk about a need and we will not know the need until we go down this path and see what happens,” Holmes said.

Greenville Mayor Jeff Whitaker said, “I want to thank the commission for agreeing with the city to provide transit service throughout Darke County. I’m going to be curious to see how well received it is. I have a feeling it’s going to be a good thing. I look forward to seeing the results from it.”

Commissioners Matt Aultman and Marshall Combs joined Holmes in voting in favor of the contract.

Holmes added that he and City of Greenville Safety Service Director Ryan Delk had a meeting with Miami Valley Community Action Partnership to determine if the organization was willing to offer transportation services outside of the county. A follow-up meeting is scheduled in April.

“They are open to providing the service, but there are questions,” said Holmes. They need to figure out how to make it happen. He cited the start-up cost as one of the biggest factors, as well as the ongoing costs for the program. “All of us are exploring different avenues to see what we can do to fill in those gaps and move forward,” said Holmes. There may be a need for transportation outside of the county due to individuals having appointments with doctors outside the county. A previous report noted that GTS cannot go outside the county because of its charter.

In other business, Darke County Commissioners agreed to accept the bid of $81,100 from Kevin Homan of Silver Lake, Ind. for the 2019 Case IH 580 SN-WT backhoe (4WD) with 778 hours of use. The county had previously tried to sell the equipment on Govdeals.com but did not get the required minimum bid of $81,000. Darke County Engineer Jim Surber noted they were only offered $67,000 through the dealer for the trade-in. The county is $14,100 to the good by selling it through auction.

To contact Daily Advocate Editor Ryan Berry, email [email protected].