On Tuesday night in Chapel Hill the Orange County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to expand bus services in Orange County over the next five years.

Orange County Planning Director Craig Benedict presented details of the five year expansion to the board.

“We will be talking about, roughly, seven routes that we’ll be able to put into operation in the spring of next year after we receive some buses,” said Benedict.

Orange Public Transportation, which serves rural areas of the county, will coordinate with Triangle Transit Authority and Chapel Hill Transit.

The county plans to add bus service from Cedar Grove to Chapel Hill and Hillsborough. Efland will also be connected to Hillsborough.

Full sized Buses cost about $450,000 each. Benedict said the county will buy small, 20-passenger buses for the expanded service. “Our buses are really only about $75,000 total a piece,” said Benedict.

The bulk of the money will come from the one-half cent sales tax increase and vehicle registration fee that voters approved in 2012. The county started collecting this money in April 2013. The county estimates the expansion will cost between $100,000 and $500,000 each year for the next five years.

Benedict said the county will gather data on how many people are using the buses. He said routes and schedules will be adjusted to ensure efficient use of the buses.

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