Decatur To Start Senior Shuttle

Decatur seniors will soon have a new way to get around town.

The City of Decatur is launching a free shuttle that will run from Oakhurst to downtown on Wednesdays for residents over 60. City Commissioner Patti Garrett's blog said the pilot program will have a trial run March 6 and will officially begin March 13.

Lee Ann Harvey at city hall said the shuttle will start out making these stops in Oakhurst:

• Oakhurst Park (Feld Street entrance parking lot).

• Family Dollar parking lot.

• Brower Street at the corner of McClean Street.

In downtown Decatur, the shuttle will stop at:

• Decatur Recreation Center/Library.

• Kroger on Commerce.

• CVS.

• Post Office.

The city is paying for the shuttle service with a $5,000 grant obtained through the Georgia Department of Human Resources. Harvey said in an email,

 We had a meeting yesterday with approximately 35 seniors and gave them the opportunity to sign up (postcards about the meeting were sent to a mailing list we maintain of senior citizens in Oakhurst). Anyone age 60 plus living in Oakhurst can contact me to register. I will be putting the registration form on the website at www.decaturga.com/lifelong-community. ... For the first two weeks of the shuttle (March 6 and March 13), we will have people stationed at the stops with the registration forms, so they can register on the spot. We will probably have them available on the van itself after that.

The city also sought public opinion about a downtown-to-Oakhurst shuttle back in the spring of 2011. 

Editor's note: An earlier version of this article said the shuttle would run from Decatur to Oakhurst.