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NEWS RELEASE

January 9, 2008

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Howard County to Hold Public Listening Session on Local Bus Service

ELLICOTT CITY, MD – On January 22, the Howard County Public Transportation Board will host the first of several listening sessions aimed at soliciting public concerns, comments and recommendations regarding the future of Howard Transit, the County’s local bus service.

The listening sessions begin a six to nine month process to prepare a Transit Development Plan to guide the growth of Howard Transit over the next five years. The Plan will examine the existing route structure, frequency of bus service, on-time performance, condition of the vehicles, customer service and other factors. The study will also evaluate likely future demand based on projected residential and employment growth.

Since its inception in 1997, ridership on Howard Transit has more than quadrupled and is expected to exceed 900,000 trips during the current fiscal year.

“I want to build on the success we have achieved so far and correct as many system shortcomings as possible. This listening session will be a good opportunity for transit customers to share their thoughts and concerns about what works and where improvement is needed,” said County Executive Ken Ulman who recently spent an afternoon riding Howard Transit along with several of his senior staffers so they could experience the service themselves, first-hand.

The meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 22 at 7:00 p.m. in the Tyson Room of the George Howard Building, 3430 Court House Drive in Ellicott City. If you are a certified HT-Ride client, and if you wish to attend the meeting but do not have transportation available, please call 410-313-1921 at least three days in advance, to request a ride.

A sign language interpreter can be made available for the meeting when requested at least three (3) days in advance by calling the Department of Citizen Services, 410-313-6401 (TDD).

Requests should include name, date, time, place of meeting, and the name, address and TDD or voice telephone number of the hearing impaired person.