Guilford County Commission Chair Skip Alston —– now a de facto PART board member with fellow Commissioner Carolyn Coleman’s illness —– floats the idea of the regional transportation agency taking over Guilford County Transportation Services, now that the private vendor now operating the service wants out because —-you guessed —– they’re not making money.

This is a more politically feasible solution than a cash donation for PART, which wouldn’t fly with Guilford’s commission. Of all people, Commissioner Billy Yow expressed concern about finding another provider “because any company the county hires will likely have to purchase vehicles and add drivers.” PART has vehicles and drivers in place, but such an arrangement still wouldn’t alleviate the agency’s financial problems. There’s just no money in public transportation.

Update: Funding for PART is a dead issue in Surry County, says Commissioner and PART board member Paul Johnson. However, Johnson added “if PART were to take over that system and run it efficiently, that could make up some of the shortfall the authority faces.”