MOULTRIE, Ga. — During the Moultrie City Council meeting Tuesday, Sarah Adams of the University of Georgia Archway Partnership presented a proposal for a public transportation system for Moultrie.

City Councilman Cole Posey had proposed the project to Archway in the Spring of 2019, and Archway — a branch of the University of Georgia — formed a team of top students to study the issue. The project group set out to identify possible routes, costs and citizens most likely to benefit and created a survey to attempt to receive feedback from Moultrians. 

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the survey did not reach as many people as they would’ve like according to the report. About 10% of the approximately 400 responses were from residents over the age of 65.

“We are going to continue to procure the opinions of the citizens. We know there’s a need for transportation and it’s an obstacle in rural areas,” Posey said in an interview on Friday.

According to the proposal the initial investment for the project is $966,320, a sum that Posey was happy to see,

“It is doable in both budget and logistically,” Posey said. “The product was better than expected. My hope is to move to the next step but this is going to be a long journey, but it’s something we should tackle now instead of later.”

A service based at the Intermodal Transportation Facility is the only public transportation service available in Moultrie. Private companies have held contracts with certain entities such as the senior center and the hospital.

Residents can schedule a ride anywhere within the city or county. One of the companies, Mids Transportation Inc., charges $3 for those under 65 and $2 for those over 65.

In 2019 a focus group containing Moultrie, Colquitt County and Southwest Georgia Regional Commission officials urged development of an alternative form of public transportation.

The bus transportation that the UGA project group proposed would provide four routes with 17 available stops. Each route is meant to provide transportation for a specific area of the city.

The red route would serve the residential areas and the blue route would serve local industries such as Sanderson Farm and the airport. The yellow and green routes will serve the hospital, YMCA and senior living community. 

The group’s report states that to use the bus system it would cost $12 for a weekly pass and a single fare would cost $1.75.

There is no set date for another round of surveys but Posey hopes to reach out to a broader sample of the population.

“The demographics we need to hear from are unfortunately the one we had the hardest time reaching, but we know that everybody needs to be at the table for this discussion,” he said.