Stagecoach Success

If there were any doubt that state and federal transportation officials hold The Stagecoach Transportation Co. in high regard, the news from Washington late last month should make it clear.

The confirmation of federal grants for public transportation equipment, was not a surprise, as the amount had been previously announced, but it was good news nevertheless. Vermont received $1.5 million. That money paid for one bus here and one bus there for various public transportation companies around the state—but in Randolph, the Stagecoach will get four new busses.

Stagecoach manager David Palmer was quick to point out that these will be replacement busses for his fleet, not additional busses at this point. Still, it’s a huge vote of confidence for the regional bus service that was only a glimmer in the eye of a young David Palmer when he first came to live in Randolph as a VISTA volunteer in the early 1970s.

Frankly, nobody at that time had ever heard of a regional bus service in a small rural area, and most doubted the prospects. But Palmer could see a need among people, especially low-income people, living in the spread-out countryside and in villages that were too small to offer all the everyday services and products they needed. He was able to document that need in a compelling way, and he found an ally in the Randolph business community which was happy to promote Randolph as a shopping hub for surrounding towns.

So Palmer succeeded in getting his start-up funding, and the first Stagecoach rolled from Rochester to Randolph on December 1, 1976. Since then the Stagecoach has expanded modestly but steadily until now it offers four regular routes linking area towns, a "Maxi-Taxi" in Randolph, and two commuter routes for people whose jobs are in the Hanover-White River Junction area.

Today’s high gasoline prices have had a predictable and dramatic effect on The Stagecoach. Riders have lined up for the busses, especially the two commuter routes. It was a confirmation of the value of the commuter service, and the well-established Stagecoach name, that riders were so quick to climb on board.

So many people were climbing on board, in fact, that sometimes the busses filled up, requiring a second trip and a delay for some riders. But the Stagecoach was quick to move to fill the gap, announcing last month that it would add two more busses to the commuter routes. At first, those busses will be reassigned from other routes, but the Stagecoach is applying for two additional 24-passenger vehicles to serve those routes.

Money for any new busses won’t go unspent, that’s for sure. The 30-year-old glimmer in David Palmer’s eye has come in awfully handy at $4 a gallon.