Texas Transit Association

Aiming to have buses running in Odessa and Midland by Oct. 1, members of the Midland-Odessa Urban Transit District Board held their first meeting, buying 19 buses and leasing a headquarters building.

Midland-Odessa transit board purchases 19 buses
By Bob Campbell
Odessa American

All members attended the 3 p.m. session at the Permian Basin Regional Planning Commission near Midland International Airport except Pat Schneider of Midland, who had an illness in her family.
Just elected chairman, Odessa College Dean Robert Muñoz proposed buying the 16-passenger, 22-foot-long El Dorado National Aerotech 240 buses from Lasseter Bus & Mobility of Lewisville for a little more than $1.6 million, or $84,913 each.
Cookie Wentendorf and Willie Ruth Adams, both of Midland, were elected vice chairman and secretary, respectively.
The panel OK’d a five-year lease for $1,700 a month of a former vehicle storage and boat repair building owned by Phil Stroud at 8007 E. Highway 80, along with $85,000 in renovations to provide better restrooms and make the building handicapped-accessible, among other improvements.
The urban transit board is taking over the project for the two cities, which have contracted with McDonald Transit Associates of Fort Worth to operate the system, funded principally by the Federal Transit Administration.
Texarkana General Manager Ken Smithson, who will be McDonald’s lead official in Odessa and Midland, and Managing Director John Wilson of Lubbock gained approval of a revenues budget for the next 3 1/2 years.
It includes $500,000 in state funds that must be spent by Aug. 31, a commitment of $1,272,169 from the two cities, none to be used before Oct. 1, and $3,548,169 from the FTA that can be expended this year and during the next three fiscal years. That’s a total of $5,320,338.
Expenditures were not specified except in the general terms of the Wednesday purchases.
Wilson said Odessa and Midland won’t have to raise taxes to meet their obligations.
The board approved installing benches, shelters and lights for passengers’ transfer centers at Fifth Street and Lincoln Avenue in Odessa, adjacent to the county library, and Texas Avenue and Baird Street in downtown Midland.
It OK’d soliciting bids from Rogers Ford in Midland and Sewell Ford in Odessa for an administrator’s car, two maintenance cars and two operations vans.
The McDonald men said Odessa will have five routes and Midland six and each operation will have two buses for handicapped people and two spare vehicles.
Other business included specifying the buses that will use diesel fuel rather than the originally planned gasoline mixed with propane. Smithson said TxDOT wanted ultra-low sulfur diesel because it’s environmentally safer, adding it will also be cheaper.
Wilson said 40 to 50 employees will be hired locally with applications to be taken in June or July.
Other MOUTD Board members are the Rev. Roy Gentry, LaDoyce Lambert, Mark Palmer, Roy Platner and Mike Rush, all of Odessa, and Darrell Benton, David Eggleston and Floyd Ivy, all of Midland.
They agreed to meet at 3 p.m. June 4 and discuss a possible logo and color scheme for the buses, the first five of which will be delivered in mid-August.
Fares will be $1 for adults, 75 cents for children and students and 50 cents for senior citizens. Children 5 and younger will ride free.