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Within SCDOT's Office of Intermodal and Freight Programs is the Office of Public Transit.
This office is responsible for administrating both state and federal funds to support public transportation services throughout the state.
Public Transit is the office that moves people.
To maintain reliable transportation to over five million people requires following a technical process that requires attention to detail and following the guidelines of the Federal Transit Administration. Contracts managers Ann Solan and Wanda Livingston have been with SCDOT for several years. They spend most of their days monitoring contracts and working with grant recipients--ensuring that they have all the answers to their questions, and helping to provide technical assistance when necessary. They’re dedicated to helping them in any way that they can.
“You have to be willing to learn it all,” Livingston said. “You cannot love this job without connecting with or loving the people it involves.”
For Solan, the office of Public Transit ensures that communities across the state can have access to the services they need.
“I see the Office of Public Transit supporting the development of reliable, clean, and safe transportation to the people of South Carolina,” said Solan.
The office offers eight programs to the organizations that need them. The two most commonly applied for programs are 5310 and 5311. The 5310 program is specifically aimed at human services. There are many people around state who rely heavily on public transit for help with getting around in their daily lives. It’s how they get to doctor appointments, the grocery store, work, and other places. Recipients of those funds are usually buying vehicles that they can use in their communities.
“We’re always thinking about how we can make public transit more efficient,” said Jen Necker, Director of Intermodal and Freight Programs.
The 5311 program opens up funding for grants that make public transportation readily available to those in rural parts of the state. Transit systems provided by this program will have fixed routes and run on a schedule. In some of those rural areas, a transit vehicle may not run as often. However, the availability of “on demand” transport is there for those who need it.
“It’s important for people to understand how many people live in rural areas,” Necker said. “Many of them still don’t have access to what we think of as public transit.”
Although in a phase of revamping, the office of Public Transit remains focus on efficiently moving people around the state. One particularly prominent focus of the office is the Lowcountry Rapid Transit (LCRT) project. Aiming to serve Charleston, North Charleston, and Ladson counties, it will be a 21-mile long bus rapid transit system—one of the largest in the country. Expected to be completed by 2030, it will be another effort in the mission of Public Transit to keep the people of South Carolina moving together.
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