Arkansas transit system to resume routes; buses on loan after 20 burned

SPRINGDALE -- Ozark Regional Transit should be running most regular routes today, with some still combined, officials said Monday.

Bus routes back in service

Ozark Regional Transit is hoping to have buses covering every regular route this week, officials said Monday. Riders should note that many of the buses being used are on loan from other entities and may not be painted in the familiar ORT livery. Here’s a list of what routes should be in service today.

• Route 1 – Fayetteville, in a Wichita Transit bus

• Route 2 – Fayetteville, in a Pine Bluff Transit bus

• Route 3/63 combination – Fayetteville/Johnson and Springdale/ Johnson, in a Fort Smith Transit bus

• Route 4/61 combination – Fayetteville/Springdale, in ORT bus 677

• Route 11 – Bentonville, in an RTEC Transportation bus (Kentucky)

• Route 51/52 combination – Rogers, in an Open Avenues bus

• Route 62 – Springdale, in ORT bus 683

• Route 65 – Springdale, in ORT bus 669

• Route 490-1 – Interstate 49 Fayetteville/Bentonville Express Route, in ORT bus 305

• Route 490-2 – Interstate 49 Bentonville/Fayetteville Express Route, in ORT bus 303

• Commuter Express – Fayetteville/Bentonville, in ORT bus 407

Source: Ozark Regional Transit

"It has been an amazing journey the last week, and I don't know how else to describe it," said Joel Gardner, executive director. "Highs, lows, successes, failures, all of the above. It's been Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and at the same time humbling to see how many people are reaching out to help."

A fire last week destroyed 20 of the agency's 26 buses, leaving only two serviceable. Four buses undergoing repair were spared from the blaze. Gardner said fire officials were doing a follow-up investigation Monday and have not told him how they think the fire started. Insurance adjusters are, in turn, waiting on fire officials to determine the cause of the fire before they process any claims, Gardner said.

"It's hurry up and wait," he said.

Gardner said crews were trying to put the finishing touches Monday afternoon on a bus for the rural Washington County Route 620, which serves West Fork, Greenland, Farmington, Prairie Grove and Lincoln.

Gardner noted that Route 490, the express route that travels from Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, will be back in service today, the first day of the spring semester.

Eight buses from Wichita, Kan., were being put through maintenance and should be assigned to routes over the next couple of days, he said.

"We are right here on the edge of 100 percent," Gardner said.

Drivers were in Kansas City, Mo., on Monday picking up a bus, and arrangements were being made to pick up buses from Dallas; Athens, Ga.; Key West, Fla.; and Birmingham, Ala., this week, Gardner said. Razorback Transit at the University of Arkansas is making another bus available this week, he said.

"Depending on what maintenance we can get done on these buses from Wichita, we should be looking at Wednesday or Thursday," Gardner said.

Ozark Regional Transit normally runs 14 routes on weekdays, along with providing paratransit and on-demand ride services. There are no regularly scheduled weekend routes. On-demand rides are continuing as usual.

Metro on 01/17/2017

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