Without town’s $25k, service will end Dec. 31. For riders, Plan B may be parking in Davidson and taking 77x, or forming van pools.

By JOE MARUSAK
The Charlotte Observer

Citing buses less than half full, Mooresville has become the second Lake Norman community to cancel CATS commuter service to Charlotte.

Mayor Chris Montgomery broke a three-three vote among Mooresville commissioners late Monday and voted against a new $25,208 contract with CATS that would have kept three round-trip routes running weekdays through June 30.

Instead, 83X bus service will end when the current six-month contract is up Dec. 31, forcing the 61 round-trip passengers to find other ways to get uptown.

On a date to be announced, CATS will schedule a meeting over the lunch hour uptown to let 83X riders know what’s happening and to suggest alternatives, CATS spokeswoman Jean Leier said. Options include forming van pools or using the 77X bus in Davidson, Cornelius and the Northcross Park and Ride lot off Interstate 77 Exit 25 in Huntersville, Leier said.

Mooresville commissioner Chris Carney said before voting that he had trouble funding 83X buses on which only 44 percent of seats are occupied on average, “even if I agree busing to Charlotte is the right thing to do.”

Said commissioner Rhett Dusenbury: “We’re supposed to be in the watching-the-dollar business, not the convenience business.”

Town planners had recommended commissioners approve the contract, citing the environmental benefits of keeping more cars off Interstate 77.

Planners estimated the 83X saves about 808,000 annual vehicle miles, 28,250 annual gallons of fuel and a fuel cost savings of $76,204.

Commissioner Thurman Houston voted for the contract, saying people in the poor economy need a cost-effective way to get to work.

Commissioners Mitch Abraham and Mac Herring also voted in favor. Commissioner Miles Atkins joined Carney and Dusenbury in voting against.

Montgomery questioned the overall benefit to taxpayers. “$25,000 for six months, and 40 to 50 people using it, c’mon,” he told the Observer.

In March, the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted against paying the $50,804 that CATS wanted to renew the 88X service for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

“The question is what impact will 43 more commuters per day in personal vehicles have on this region’s air quality?” Lincoln County Manager George Wood told commissioners at the time. “The impact is inconsequential.”

This story is reprinted with permission from The Charlotte Observer as part of DavidsonNews.net’s local news partnership with the Observer.