Riders of three Johnson County bus routes serving Olathe, Gardner and Overland Park will have seven weeks to make other arrangements, as Johnson County commissioners look for ways to cut costs in the transit system. Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to suspend service indefinitely on three unpopular bus routes – the 482 Overland Park Flex, the 519 Olathe Express and the 595 Gardner-OP Express. Service on the three routes will be curtailed at 8 p.m. Dec. 31, following a public notification period. The routes were culled because of low ridership, with all three averaging less than four passengers per hour. Suspending them is expected to save the county $833,000 a year. The Overland Park Flex route offers service on request in an area that serves central Overland Park, including senior living facilities Overland Towers and Santa Fe Towers. The Olathe Express and Gardner-OP Express run between those cities and Kansas City, Missouri. There are some alternative routes, suggested by Josh Powers, director of the county transit division. The new 487 route, which runs between Overland Park and Lenexa along 87th Street, is a possibility, as is Micro Transit or Freedom On-Demand, which are both on-demand services. Freedom/Freedom On-Demand is for persons with disabilities.
Source: Prairie Village Post
