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60 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, April 29, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 29, 2005 RVTD battles set for 3 board seats By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune Six candidates are contesting three seats on the Rogue Valley Transportation District board during the May 17 election. Douglas Hewett and Stan Littrell are vying for Position 4 on the RVTD board. Challenger Ernest Garb is taking on incumbent Carol Bennett in Position 6. Incumbent Mary Wooding is facing challenger Sharon Ely for Position 7. Medford resident Winter Salsig is running unopposed for Position 5. Advertisement Hewett said RVTD’s bus system doesn’t meet the needs of local residents. "Other cities in the state have a good bus service," said the 47-year-old Ashland resident, who works at the Rogue Regency Inn. "Why doesn’t Southern Oregon?" A resident of Jackson County for 31 years and a bus rider for 16, Hewett said improving the bus system is important given the increasing number of seniors moving to the area. "Where the bus service should be going to, it isn’t," he said. Medford resident Littrell, 51, said that as a blind man he would represent a constituency that isn’t being represented on the board. "There are so many different ways that people don’t have a clear understanding of disability issues," he said. Dependent on public transportation to get around, Littrell said he has seen improvement in the operations of RVTD recently. "I think they’re getting better," he said. "I think the new GM (Peter Jacobsen) has done a lot to improve matters." Incumbent Bennett has spent eight years as a board member and, like Littrell, believes RVTD has improved partly because of Jacobsen. The 58-year-old Central Point resident is a business representative with the electrical workers union, IBEW Local No. 659. RVTD struggles to find adequate funding, but Bennett said RVTD needs to find ways to expand its service. "We need to start the Senior Shopper again," she said. Bennett, who moved to Jackson County in 1990, said RVTD also needs to expand its hours, particularly on the weekends. Garb, her challenger, is a retired attorney and labor relations executive, having worked for airlines and a railroad. "My background has always been involved in the movement of people and goods from point A to B," said the 73-year-old Medford resident. With his background in transportation, Garb said of RVTD: "It’s a system that has only a few routes and leaves so much unserved. It’s a system that doesn’t operate on Sundays at all and leaves so much unserved." He said RVTD obviously lacks the money to expand services, and he thinks more should be done to get cities to contribute financially to improve routes and their frequency. Ely, who is challenging Wooding, was born and raised in the Medford area and has been a frequent user of the bus system since 1990. The 41-year-old White City woman said, "Other board members have never used the bus system." Legally blind, Ely has been a member of transportation committees and serves on the Oregon Commission for the Blind. While she appreciates the bus service she currently receives, Ely thinks more should be done "to bring this bus system into the 21st century." Ely, a massage therapist, would like to increase the number of fixed routes and would like to explore other ways of raising money to improve service. Wooding, who has been on the board for eight years, said RVTD continues to struggle with stable funding. "Basically we’ve always run on a shoestring," she said. The 70-year-old Ashland resident would like to expand service at nights and on Saturday. She said various options have been discussed to increase funding including raising property taxes, which failed with voters. Wooding said another possibility is to have cities contribute a greater share to improve service, citing Ashland as an example of one city that pays for an extra route and offers free fares. Ballots mailed today About 120,500 ballots for the May election are being mailed out today and should be received within the next few days. Deadline for returning ballots is 8 p.m. May 17. Though the deadline for new voter registration has passed, those wanting to update an address may still do so. But they must request a ballot be mailed to them or go to the Elections Center office at 1101 W. Main St., Suite 201, Medford. Officials remind voters to remember to sign the back of the ballot envelope. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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