PLATTSBURGH — A new location for the Plattsburgh Greyhound Bus terminal has local officials concerned.
“The county’s concern is that use of that space is supposed to be for the county buses,” Clinton County Legislature Chairman Mark Henry (R-Area 3, Chazy) said.
“There’s an emergency egress and ingress right there for that building should an emergency occur, and we could have the tying up of the traffic on the street, and I don’t know how much room those big buses take up or if we can even get an emergency vehicle down through there.”
NEW STOP
Greyhound had been operating out of the Mountain Mart on Route 9 near Cumberland Head Corners in the Town of Plattsburgh, but recently moved. The new stop was at a Sunoco Gas Station on Cornelia Street in front of the Champlain South Plaza.
But after a few days, that site was no longer used and the bus company opted for the bus stop on Cornelia Street outside the Clinton County Government Center in the City of Plattsburgh.
As of Monday, the county bus stop, which is listed as 19 Cornelia St. on the Greyhound web site, was being used by the company to drop off and pick up passengers.
City of Plattsburgh Mayor Chris Rosenquest said Greyhound had approached him about finding a site for a bus transfer station within the city and even offered to pay $1,000 a month.
Rosenquest said there is nothing in the city’s codes that would prevent Greyhound from using a city street as a transfer site, but he was researching the matter further.
After the discussion, Greyhound opted for the Government Center site.
Henry said that in addition to safety, the county is concerned that their bus service, Clinton County Public Transit, may be impacted by Greyhound using the bus stop outside the government center.
“They’re (Greyhound) not stopping on a city street. They’re stopping where the Clinton County Public Transit is designated to be,” he said.
Henry said the county was not approached by Greyhound.
“There’s been no coordination, they (Greyhound) just showed up,” Henry said.
“Things like this need to be coordinated with not only the county, but with the businesses around the area and the impact it will have and plan for it.”
ACCESS
Clinton County Emergency Services Director Eric Day said having a coach bus parked at the county bus stop is a legitimate concern.
“There is an emergency egress right there and if a coach bus and the county buses were all there it could impede access if there was a major incident,” Day said.
“It would also cause some congestion with vehicle and pedestrian traffic and some confusion.”
Day also said Greyhound is using the wrong address for the site. He said the county bus stop is not 19 Cornelia St., which is actually City Hall a few blocks to the east.
Every new business that moves into a new location gets assigned an address for Emergency Services to record and pass on to first responders.
“If we had been consulted by them (Greyhound) we would have given them a different address,” Day said, adding that the county bus stop should be 51 Cornelia St. and not 19 Cornelia St.
Town of Plattsburgh Supervisor Michael Cashman said Greyhound also did not contact them before using the Sunoco station on Route 3 for the new bus stop.
“We were notified of Greyhound’s move to the new location by another agency, without any direct communication from Greyhound to the town originally,” Cashman said.
“This location necessitates a site review, and our code officers have been on site to address concerns, particularly the impact of bus traffic in such a tight and busy corridor on things from traffic to parking.”
Cashman said the town has since learned that Greyhound had stopped using that site.
AIRPORT SITE
The county has a bus terminal as part of its multi-modal transportation site on the campus of Plattsburgh International Airport that is not being utilized.
Rosenquest, a former county legislator, said that would be a good place for Greyhound.
“We have a public transportation company that doesn’t have a location for families and residents and visitors and travelers including SUNY (Plattsburgh) students and people who are traveling to and from Montreal, to pick up and drop off,” Rosenquest said.
“It’s uncertain why we can’t have a conversation with Greyhound regarding renting part of the bus station that was built for specifically that reason. I remember being on the County Legislature obtaining millions of dollars of funding to improve the County Airport which included a bus terminal. A terminal specifically for bus travel, so I’m curious to see what conversations we can have with Greyhound or other other bus providers, transportation providers, to utilize that space.”
Buses from the CCPT service park outside the government center every hour on the hour to drop off and pick up. Greyhound’s web site lists three or four stops in Plattsburgh per day, depending on the day.
On Monday, the first day of the company using the Cornelia Street location, the bus scheduled to arrive at 2:10 p.m. arrived more than an hour late. When it did arrive, it approached from the opposite side of the bus stop and parked in vacant parking spaces on the north side of the roadway.
“It’s a bit of a mess,” Henry said.
Henry said the county had offered the use of the airport bus terminal to Greyhound in the past, and are willing to talk to them again about it.
“Basically they’re looking for the cheapest deal they can get, which I understand, but it’s there if they want it,” Henry said.
Greyhound would only say that they are pleased to be able to continue service in Plattsburgh.
“We’re pleased to continue providing service in Plattsburgh at the new location outside the Clinton County Government Center and are grateful for the collaborative efforts of the mayor’s office in making this possible,” a statement from the company said.
“This is a prime example of constructive public-private collaboration that prioritizes the needs of people who rely on affordable intercity bus travel.”
DURKEE STREET
The county bus stop used to be in the Durkee Street parking lot that is owned by the city, but was moved in 2006 at the request from the city in order to free up more space in the parking lot for parking and possible development.
County Administrator Michael Zurlo said other bus companies have approached the county in the past about using the Government Center site as a transfer station, but were told no.
The county and city said they will continue to investigate the matter.
The Greyhound stop at Mountain Mart on Route 9 had become noted as a gathering site for many migrants who come into the country, many illegally, across the nearby northern border with Canada.
Most of the migrants do not stay in the area, and board a bus to New York City or other destinations where they may already have family.
Rosenquest said that regardless of who rides the bus, a proper transfer site needs to be established.
“That’s the nature of that type of transportation,” he said.
“If they were using an airplane or driving I guess it wouldn’t be a concern, but we just don’t have a dedicated bus terminal for folks traveling to and from the area regardless of why they’re traveling to and from here.”
Henry said the county’s main concerns are safety and access for county buses.
“I don’t care who’s on the bus, those are the issues,” he said.
link