ARNOLD (First Alert 4) – Vada Rose owes her sense of freedom to the orange Oats Transportation bus line that runs through Arnold.

“I use the bus to go to the grocery store, get my medication and go to the library,” she said. “It’s about independence.”

Rose, who has no family in the area, stopped driving about five years ago when she became almost blind. The bus soon became a regular part of her daily routine.

“It’s one of those things you think you don’t need because a lot of people say, ‘I don’t need a bus, I have my car,’ but you don’t need it until you need it,” Rose said.

In 2025, however, Rose will have to make other plans to remain independent. The orange bus line will cease operations at the end of the year.

“I may have to move,” she said. “I don’t want to, but I have to get out of here somehow.”

The orange route has been funded by a federal grant for several years, but Oats Transit said the grant will expire at the end of 2024. The city of Arnold stopped funding the service in 2021.

“Unfortunately, the cost of fuel, vehicles and everything else is going up,” said Jill Stedem, Oats Transit’s administrative director. “We just have to make sure we stay within our means.”

Oats estimates that there are about 400 trips per month on the orange route and that it costs about $10,000 per month to operate.

“Given the low ridership, there were always a lot of questions about the city funding part of the service,” said Bryan Richison, Arnold’s city manager. “I think we understand that it’s incredibly important to the people who use it, but if it’s 10 or fewer people a day, is it really worth it for the city to fund half of their service?”

Stedem said Oats is helping current orange route users find other transportation options, while specialty stores, medical services and the cross-border blue and green routes will not be affected.

“When you take away a person’s independence, there’s not much left,” Rose said. “That bus will always be there.”

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