Legislation is pending in the state Senate that would allow Gary Public Transportation Corp. to expand service across county lines. At a Thursday public update forum, GPTC marketing director David Wright said House Bill 1390, authored by state Rep. Jim Pressel, R-Rolling Prairie, passed the House 90 -0 and is being considered in the Senate appropriations committee. The bill largely deals with Bureau of Motor Vehicle issues but it also removes the population requirement for a county to enter into an interlocal agreement with an adjacent county to provide transportation services. “If another county wanted services, they could talk to us,” Wright said, if the bill becomes law. Presently, only Tippecanoe County can enter into interlocal cross-county transportation agreements. A legislative services agency said the measure could lead to cost-sharing between participating counties to finance expanded transportation services. Wright said the Public Transit Council of Indiana lobbied for the bill because it would allow transit agencies flexibility in future planning. Wright said GPTC has no solid plans in place for cross-county service presently. He said there are concepts outlined in the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission’s regional plan, but if the bill becomes law, it would allow for specific planning. Wright and interim GPTC general manager Denise Dillard outlined changes underway in bus service routes, projects and the needs of its growing ridership that’s up 21% since the lowest point of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dillard said its customers’ main concerns are flexibility and reliability. “We are the surface transit regional unit of transportation in Northwest Indiana. Without a lot of fanfare, we’ve adjusted to the needs of the region,” she said. Denise Dillard, interim general manager of the Gary Public Transportation Corp., offered an update on operations during a public forum Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Carole Carlson/for Post-Tribune) Dillard said the demolition of two large Gary public housing developments – Delaney Community and Dorie Miller – has scrambled customers across the area. “Our question is, where are they and where are we picking them up from,” she said. The popular Broadway route starts at the Adam Benjamin Metro Center in downtown Gary and heads southward through Merrillville and Crown Point to 102nd Avenue. Wright said the Broadway Metro Express route provides more rides per hour than any other service and it will soon shift from half-hour to 20-minute service. He said hundreds of residents rely on it daily to reach jobs at two south county hospitals. “We realized people were going to Amazon workplaces and we started looking at what going east and west looks like, too,” Dillard said. Merrillville riders asked GPTC to extend its U.S. 30 shuttle service from its stopping point at Meijer further west. Wright said a new plan calls for the service to go as far as the Lake County Public Library in Merrillville. In the future, the GPTC is examining how to increase frequency in its suburban micro-transit routes in Dyer, St. John and Winfield. Wright cited other continuing initiatives including Cycle219, a bicycle rideshare program set to launch next month. Indiana University Northwest and Calumet College of St. Joseph stations have been added this year, he said. A new bus wash is being installed at the Gary Public Transportation Corp.’s maintenance facility. (Gary Public Transportation Corp./provided) For the first time in five years, officials said the GPTC has a functioning bus wash at its maintenance facility at 2101 W. 35th Ave. The improvement was made possible through a funding match from the city, officials said. Upcoming forums are scheduled for Monday at 2:30 p.m., 5233 Hohman Ave. Hammond, and on April 7 at 3:30 p.m. at the Merrillville Town Hall, 7820 Broadway. Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune. ...read more read less