Idle Poughkeepsie buses
POUGHKEEPSIE – Alderman Christopher Petsas, a staunch opponent
of selling Poughkeepsie’s idle bus fleet, is working on a new plan
to retain the buses but avoid having to pay back the federal government
since they have not been used since Dutchess County took over the city’s
routes this summer.
Petsas is looking into the legality and feasibility of leasing the buses to another transportation agency in the region.
“Whether that be Dutchess County, whether that be Putnam or Ulster County, so that our buses are back in service for the public’s use, but the main thing is that we would still own them and we would have a recall clause should something change in the future where, perhaps, bus service is brought back to the City of Poughkeepsie, there would a clause in the resolution to allow for that,” he said.
Petsas said he has been in some private conversations with county and state officials in the region where they could lease the buses for pennies on the dollar.
