Anne Arundel County is seeking federal aid to purchase three buses, which would serve the Fort Meade area and could begin the first county-owned bus system.
“These buses will be helping in linking commuters from MARC [train] stations to jobs and take cars off the road,” County Executive John Leopold said.
The grant was filed with the Federal Transit Administration, which would provide 80 percent of the funding while the county, which has put up $108,000, would pay the rest.
Leopold said he has discussed the busing plan, which also would serve Savage in Howard County, with Howard County Executive Ken Ulman.
However, operating a public bus system can costs millions of dollars, experts say.
“It is definitely not cheap by any means, given that the operating costs include fuel, insurance, salaries, etc.,” said Anne Arundel Council Chairman Ronald Dillon Jr., R-District 3, who is controller of Dillon?s Bus Service Inc., a private bus company that provides charter and commuting services for the Maryland Transit Authority. “Though, it?s still cheaper than making road improvements.”
Dillon said his company would not be part of any bid for the county?s system.
A number of different bus services operate in Anne Arundel, mostly serving the Fort Meade-Arundel Mills area and Annapolis.
Two of the Corridor Transportation Corp.?s five county routes that serve Laurel, Arundel Mills and Odenton saw nearly 22,000 passengers last year, and the numbers are steadily rising, Marketing Specialist Nancy Huggins said.
The Base Realignment and Closure program is expected tobring thousands of people to the Fort Meade area in the next five years.
It is unknown when the buses would go into service or what contractor would operate the system.
