SPRINGDALE (KFSM ) -- Ozark Regional Transit is still picking up the pieces after a massive fire destroyed most of their buses.
Board members met on Thursday (Feb. 9) to discuss plans on how to keep public transportation moving during the investigation. As of now, ORT is using buses from six different states to cover their fixed routes.
”If we didn’t have these donations coming in the only thing we’d be operating right now is para-transit, so there will be no fixed routes,” executive director Joel Gardner said.
He plans to keep cycling the buses in and out of rotation to keep each route full. The board agreed to the strategy and signed resolutions to keep the buses throughout the rest of the investigation.
"This was one of many steps in getting us cleared through the Federal Transit Administration to accept buses,” Gardner said.
They can now begin paperwork to file for federal grants.
Investigators said it could be another 18-24 months before the full transit system is up and running.