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Yamhill-Carlton Volunteer Ride Service:

Yamhill-Carlton Volunteer Transit: 503-437-5231
• Call 24 hours in advance
• Fare is $2 (includes a YCTA day-pass you can use on YCTA busses all day)
• Call 503-437-5231 for info

Van Service Gives Public a Lift

By STARLA POINTER of the News-Register
Published: July 10, 2008, reprinted by permission. Visit the News-Register online

CARLTON - Planning to go into McMinnville for lunch on Tuesday, Leona Stoeber called 503-437-5231 on Monday to arrange a ride to the bus stop.

Tuesday morning, about 20 minutes before the Yamhill County Transit Area bus was due, a white van pulled up in Stoeber's driveway. Volunteer driver Becky Ward helped Stoeber buckle in; she also picked up neighbors, Marilyn and Peter Shultz, who were joining Stoeber for lunch.

Then Ward drove downtown and delivered her passengers to the bus stop on Pine Street. A little more than two hours later, when Stoeber and the Shultzes returned from McMinnville, Ward was there to meet them and ferry them home.

Stoeber, who uses a cane, said she would have had difficulty getting to the bus stop on her own. But with the new van shuttle service, she said, she just may catch the bus into town again.

That's what Peter Shultz hopes - in addition to being Stoeber's neighbor, he's also an advocate of public transportation. He said he is really pleased by the new van program, called Yamhill-Carlton Volunteer Transit.

"We're hoping people will use this, and ride the bus, rather than driving," Shultz said.

Like YCTA's Yamco buses, Yamhill-Carlton Volunteer Transit is open to all. The van is available to pick up anyone in the Carlton and Yamhill areas and deliver them to one of YCTA's regular stops, church, the grocery store or other points in the area.

Ward, who transported Stoeber on Tuesday, is one of a half dozen people who have volunteered to drive the van.

More drivers are needed, she said. They don't need a special driver's license, but they do need to go through an eight-hour training program to participate.

Ward said she signed up because she is particularly interested in increasing the transportation options for senior citizens. Being able to get to the bus stop can help them remain in their own homes, she explained.

She also hopes the van service will expand to transport a variety of people - including young people who need to get to work and grandparents who want to attend their grandchildren's athletic events.