SMART Riders Say Bus Service Gives Them Independence

Pam Kerr rides the 330 SMART route from 9 Mile and Orchard Lake Rd. to her job at Grand River and Haggerty five days a week. 

"If they take it away, I will lose my job, and I will lose the roof over my head," the Farmington Hills resident said, "and I can't afford that." 

With a 3-1 vote Monday night, officials . Absent a reconsideration of the vote at their next meeting, the 330 and 805 routes that serve Farmington along Grand River will end on Dec. 31, 2012, along with park and ride service and transportation provided for people with disabilities. 

Service for seniors offered through the would still be available, provided Hills officials decide to remain in the system, Farmington city manager Vince Pastue said. However, the city will have to kick in a larger share of the cost. 

Farmington Hills officials are expected to discuss SMART at their Jan. 23 regular meeting. 

Kerr said she has taken the bus for 10 or 12 years, not only to work but for shopping and to visit her children on the east side of the Detroit metro area. She wasn't able to attend Monday night's Farmington city council meeting and she probably won't get to the Farmington Hills city council's Jan. 23 discussion of SMART, because she works 12-hour days. 

But she wants officials to know "I will lose everything if they take that away from me." 

Officials stressed their goal was not to eliminate public transportation, but to find a system that would better serve Farmington residents. Seniors and residents with disabilities who spoke at Monday night's city council meeting said they rely on SMART buses, but also acknowledged recent cuts in service made their lives more difficult. 

Douglas Murray maneuvered his wheelchair to the front of council chambers during public comment to let officials know he did not understand why both parties couldn't work out their differences. 

"One of the main reasons I moved to Farmington is the bus stop was 200 feet from my front door," he said, adding last year's service cuts made it more difficult for him to get to his doctor appointments. "When the bus goes, I have to go with it." 

Seniors from apartments and told officials that SMART service allowed them to remain independent, rather than having to rely on friends or family members to drive them places. Many said their children live in other states and even out of the country, and so weren't available to help. 

Karen Kloker pointed out that people use SMART buses to come from other communities to work and shop in Farmington. She said losing SMART could mean lost jobs, leaving residents unable to pay their rent or mortgages. "That means people leave," she said. 

Susan Lightner doesn't use SMART, but she also had concerns about opting out of the system, especially given the strong support for millages over the past four years. In 2010, 76 percent of voters supported the .59 mills that fund the service.

Lightner said she wants an opportunity as a voter to decide whether to continue the service and pointed out that bringing thousands of people into the community every year to shop and use local service providers could be a "boon" for the city. 

JoAnne McShane, who has served on city council since 1989, said she was concerned about riders, but also the citizens of Farmington. Among other things, she criticized SMART for a lack of information about the number of local residents who use the system.

(SMART officials did present information Monday about how many riders get on and off the bus on local routes.)

"We're paying $200,000 for service of 3.18 miles on Grand River," McShane said, pointing out that service on Orchard Lake Rd. to a park and ride lot at Oakland  had been eliminated. "I have a fiduciary responsibility ... that means I am to spend your money wisely and obtain the best value for that money." 

McShane wants to see bus service to places like Twelve Oaks Mall, which SMART doesn't serve because Novi is an opt out community. She and council members Kristin Kuiken and Greg Cowley all said they believe the city can provide a system that will better serve residents. Mayor Pro-Tem Bill Galvin, who presided over the meeting because Mayor Tom Buck was absent, cast the lone vote against opting out of the system. 

"I feel we do not have a regional transportation system," McShane said. "We have a fragmented, minimal, inconsistent, low value for the money, Grand River bus to nowhere."