I was less than enthusiastic, but Barbara Reeves,  Executive Director of the Creative Arts Center, more than made up for any lack of exuberance on my part. And it did sound like a fun way to spend a Friday evening: reception at the CAC, dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, the Red River Theater’s show in Windom, then back to the CAC for dessert. The hitch? We’d be traveling in the new TAPS buses.

Really? Weren’t they for the elderly and people without their own transportation and well… not me?   

 

        

Wake up and smell the coffee, Kay, public transportation has arrived in Texoma and it’s for everyone.

Executive Director Brad Underwood was only too happy to 
dispel any lingering doubts I had in my mind about what the Texoma 
Area Paratransit System is and does. TAPS buses have been here, in one form or another, since 1986 when the Area Agency on Aging helped consolidate the service from the vans and station wagons provided by thirteen separate senior centers and communities in Fannin, Grayson, and Cooke counties. Since then, TAPS, a non-profit 501(c)(3), has grown to sixty buses/vans serving six counties (the three listed plus Clay, Montague, and Wise) and making 15-16,000 trips monthly. If that weren’t impressive enough, it’s about to take another leap forward.

On August 24, the first fixed routes ever undertaken by TAPS will be inaugurated. Deriving its name from the Austin College kangaroo mascot and with the bus smartly “wrapped” in signature colors, the Roo Route will provide Monday-Saturday shuttle service between the AC campus and grocery stores, movie theater, dining and shopping. It will run from 4 pm to midnight.

The same day, the Viking Route will commence with two buses between Grayson County College, shopping, and apartments. The two campus-based routes will have an exchange point at Best Buy in Town Center, allowing riders to enjoy access to both. Viking Route hours are Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to midnight, and Saturday, 4 p.m. to midnight. The best part? Students ride free, although anyone can ride.

But let’s expand this out a bit. Say you live in Fannin County and have classes at GCC. An advance call to the TAPS line--and they field 400-500 calls per day--will get you on a schedule to be picked up here and delivered there. Need to do some shopping before you catch your TAPS bus home? Check the schedule, grab the Viking  Route, and off you go!            

So, what else is TAPS into? The TrailBlazer bus starts in Honey Grove, stops at the old Bonham Brookshire’s parking lot to pick up more riders, and then goes to the TrailBlazer office building and Grayson County College. There’s also a Peterbilt route from Grayson County to the Peterbilt plant in Denton, a one hour and 40 minute commute thirty-five  employees (it varies) take daily. I calculated it as 200 minutes of reading time per day. That would be so much better than being behind the wheel myself.            

The Tex Express connects Grayson County to the Plano DART Rail Station Monday-Friday and carries 75-80 passengers. There are currently two schedules, the Eye Opener arriving at Parker Road at 6:35 am and the Morning News arriving at 7:15. Not to worry, there 
are TAPS buses waiting to pick up, too.

However TAPS is not just for those without a vehicle, the elderly, and those seeking a better way to get to work. It is also about the children. The school year begins soon and TAPS will once again be working with latch-key programs, the Boys and Girls Clubs, and accredited after-school care. In Bonham, TAPS will be providing rides to the CAC for Wednesday after-school art programming.

It’s obvious that TAPS has not been resting on its laurels. Using stimulus money and grant funds, sixteen new buses have been purchased, a bus wash is being constructed to keep the fleet looking at its best, cameras will be installed on each bus and SHAH, 
an automated routing system, has been put in place. By the first week
in September, installation will begin on 14-inch GPS computer screens on each bus. Every 60 seconds, information will be relayed back to the main office giving the bus’s location. SHAH will track mileage, fares, passengers, and maintenance parameters set by TAPS.

Other changes include new uniforms for the drivers, navy polo shirts with khaki slacks and a name tag. With the main concern of public 
transportation that it be dependable, on time, and safe, these 
upgrades are a giant leap forward.

All of this sounds grand, but grants and stimulus money 
aside, how else is TAPS funded? Donations, United Way, TxDOT, the Federal Transit Administration, support from served cities and 
counties, and fare box revenue all contribute.

Brad’s enthusiasm for TAPS can best be described, by his own admission, as passionate. (His list of what-to-do-next is impressive.) In April 2007, he started serving on the TAPS board as one of two representatives from Fannin County. He has seen the endeavor in the doldrums and, with the help of other equally devoted board members, worked to pull it up and set it on a successful path, eventually becoming the Executive Director. He also serves as Mayor Pro-tem of Bonham and on the BISD Over Sight Committee. He and wife 
Mandy have two children, Adam, 6, and Taylor, 3.

Information on TAPS routing and fares may be found at 
http://www.tapsbus.com, by calling (800) 256-0911 or locally, (903) 893-4601. Reservations need to be made 24 hours in advance. TAPS buses are also available for special events, like the one organized by the Creative Arts Center.

And, yes, I enjoyed my ride.

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Please visit Kay Layton Sisk at her blog, http://kaysisk.blogspot.com