Macon Area Transit Services (MAT) broke ground Monday,Dec. 3, for new facilities off Pannel Road next to Macon County Landfill.

According to Transit Department Director Kim Angel, MAT has a total fleet of 20 vehicles. Ten are dedicated to Macon Program for Progress and 10 are dedicated to community and human services.

Angel said the program began five years ago and she worked out of the courthouse as assistant planner/transit. The next year the transit department was created. Calls and services provided have more than doubled over the last four years.

MAT’s funding comes primarily from N.C. Department of Transportation grants and the revenue generated from contracts with human services agencies. Ninety percent of the funding for the new facility came from the Department of Transportation.

“The new building will give us some roots,” Angel said. She said the added space would be welcomed as the transit department begins incorporating new software to deal with increased scheduling and dispatch demands.

 

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The Smoky Mountain News