CANTON — An Easter Seals grant will boost St. Lawrence County's public transportation system and get seniors to the fall harvest.
The county has received $10,000 from the nonprofit's National Center on Senior Transportation. A majority of the grant will be used to promote changes to the subsidized bus routes that cross the county, and some will fund a promotion to get seniors to the downtown farmers market.
The harvest project consists of seven bus runs starting Tuesday and ending Oct. 21. It's similar to an existing experiment in which the county partnered with community agencies to get seniors to downtown shops and Ogdensburg.
"We sat down and put our heads together to see what we could do to enhance the service," said Nancy A. Robert, county transportation coordinator.
NYSARC will provide a bus to pick up riders at Senior Courts, Edwards; McBrier Manor, Hermon; Sunrise Valley, DeKalb Junction, and the Grasse River Apartments on Riverside Drive. They will be picked up between 10 a.m. and 10:55 a.m. and returned between 1:20 and 2:05 p.m. Residents get two hours to tour the farmers market and downtown.
Reservations are requested because buses carry 14 to 20 passengers. People interested in the service can call NYSARC at 379-9531. Trips are on Tuesdays.
The county Office for the Aging will make free coupon booklets available at the market to low-income seniors. Garden Share, a Potsdam nonprofit organization, will offer "NY Fresh Checks," which reward food stamp recipients for buying locally grown produce.
The harvest program will use $1,400 of the grant. The county will use $2,000 to continue its first senior transportation program. The majority, $6,600, will go toward promoting changes to the county's four subsidized bus routes. Buses now run from Ogdensburg to Potsdam and Canton to Massena. The county is considering adding a Gouverneur to Watertown trip, but nothing has been finalized.
Mrs. Robert learned of the grant program through an Easter Seals newsletter. She previously served as Franklin County's transportation coordinator.
