Batesburg-Leesville Mayor Lancer Shull wasn’t surprised by the recent announcement by The COMET (AKA the Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority) that a bus service route to his town had been canceled.

Shull said it was a one-year pilot project that provided once-a-day bus service. He said it wasn’t extensive enough to promote usage in the town.

The mayor said bus service would probably be utilized more if more routes were made available going to various points in town.

“I would like to explore grants that might be available to provide a more expanded service,” he said.

While some of the canceled services served areas in the Town of Lexington, Assistant Town Administrator Stuart Ford said he is not currently aware of any negative feedback from the cancellation. 

Route 97 was the only route going through the Town of Lexington.

The COMET launched Route 97 as a pilot in January 2020 as part of service enhancements previously approved by the Board of Directors. The route ended July 1.

The rural route connected the West Columbia SuperStop at Williams Drive at Charleston Highway and Batesburg-Leesville via Lexington and operated three trips to West Columbia and two trips to Batesburg-Leesville every Thursday.

“We understand that there is a need for viable transportation services in this area to connect eastern Lexington County with services and opportunities in western Lexington County and Richland County,” Derrick Huggins, Interim CEO of The COMET, is quoted in a press release. “We will take this time to work with Batesburg-Leesville’s leadership and community to explore what type of service we can develop that will work best for them to meet their transportation needs cost-effectively and efficiently.”

This service was funded with rural Federal funds provided by the Federal Transit Administration through the South Carolina Department of Transportation and local funds from Lexington County.