Grand Forks gets money for regional transit

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) — Grand Forks is getting federal and state grants worth $291,000 to improve public transportation for veterans and others in six northeastern North Dakota counties.

The money is to create a system to coordinate transit throughout the region. That includes upgrading the Cities Area Transit website and call center, and equipping rural transit providers with computer-assisted scheduling and dispatch software. The regional system won't replace existing rural transportation dispatchers, but instead upgrade them to the same system as Grand Forks.

The Grand Forks Herald reports (http://bit.ly/UYzP6E) the City Council must give final approval. If that happens it would take about a year to get the project running in Grand Forks, Walsh, Pembina, Nelson, Ramsey and Benson counties. It could be model for other areas of the state.

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