Opie Helps Oldham

Our new office is in LaGrange’s historic train depot on the east end of Main Street. It is also home to Oldham Chamber and Economic Development. It’s a good combination, plus we get to watch the trains pass by! Being here in this busy office brings to mind the importance of transportation in our nation’s history and to our economic future.

The trains, a scourge to some but fascinating to others, continue to help build our country. In 1830, there were only about 75 miles of track in the U.S. By 1869, only thirty years later, the golden spike signaled the completion of the transcontinental railroad connecting our East and West coasts.  

In 1829, prior to rapid railroad growth, the first municipal bus service started with a route along New York City’s famous boulevard, Broadway. The city bus concept quickly spread to other cities and now, there are few large cities without public transportation. The largest system in the U.S. is New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority with a fleet of 5,900 buses. Closer to home, Lexington’s LexTrans has 73 and Louisville’s TARC operates 383 buses.

By comparison, Oldham’s Public Bus is a miniscule part of the transportation industry. Three buses and two routes make up our little transit system. But, we are no less important in Oldham County than the behemoth systems are to huge cities. Let’s face it, our Mayberry-like place is growing and we need to be smart about preserving its home town qualities.

Oldham’s Public Bus, we’ll call it “Opie^©,” allows access to goods and services for people who couldn’t get there or who chose not to drive vehicles. Using public transit not only helps individual finances, it helps improve air quality, which is poor in our area. The local economy, in general, benefits because Opie gets people to places where they spend money or use services. All-in-all, Oldham County is better connected and preserved because little ‘ole Opie wants to keep moving people around!