City says public transit is a top priority

City’s responds to ‘Life on the lines’ story: Reliable public transit is a top priority

The city of Greenville appreciates the opportunity to showcase its forward momentum in public transit and give some background to Greenlink Director James Keel’s statement that “the transit system here sucks” [in “Life on the lines,” published in the March 6, 2020, Greenville Journal]. While the quote is textually accurate, when taken out of context it paints a negative light on director Keel, his employees and their work to ensure mobility for all citizens.

The quote was obtained during a reporter’s visit to a Citizens Transit Academy session. Director Keel’s statement was made while leading a session on Greenlink fi nance and capital. A member of the class said “transit sucks,” referencing how infrequently buses run and the number of bus routes that Greenlink operates. Keel’s response was, “The transit system here sucks. I don’t mind telling you that, but telling you this ain’t going to do a damn thing about it. We don’t have a funding problem, we have a priority problem.”

The intent of Keel’s comment was to encourage citizens to speak up. He went on to tell the group, “If we desire a good, well-funded transit system, the community must ask for it.” Recently Greenville Transit Authority received additional funding to provide longer hours because of public demand. Keel’s comments on “priority” were based on a long history of fi nancial instability, and not the current status of the Greenville Transit Authority or Greenlink. In recent years Greenville Transit Authority has been working successfully with lawmakers, city leaders and community partners to improve public transit.

RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS INCLUDE: • Implementing the Comprehensive Operations Analysis to examine routes and make improvements. This plan was completed in 2017 and was put into action in July 2019. • Ongoing planning and analysis of additional routes and hours needed. • Overhauling a portion of the bus fl eet

to improve reliability, reduce road calls and save money. • Implementing technology to provide real-time data to passengers, track on-time performance, and make datadriven decisions on routing. • Launching TouchPass, an electronic ticketing system for mobile phones and smart cards, giving passengers alternative ways to pay, and allowing a monthly fare pass for the fi rst time. This is a huge benefi t to income-conscious individuals who can now budget their monthly transit expenses. • Deploying four Proterra battery electric buses. • Installing new information-rich bus stop signs. • Increasing investments, from the city of Greenville and Greenville County, in Greenlink’s operating and capital funds. • Planning to build a new maintenance facility. • Funding to extend hours of service until 11:30 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays.

“Improving Public Transit” is one of nine priorities adopted by Greenville City Council on March 9, 2020. The city will continue to seek public input, follow best practices and offer routes and hours to make Greenlink a reliable option for citizens traveling for work and leisure.

LETTERS to the EDITOR

I dislike generalities; they very likely insult someone in the group. Along those lines, let’s make clear: The majority of our 12-member Greenville County Council lives in the world of 2020, where we realize discrimination of any kind does not best serve the interests of the community. Further, we can say with pride that Greenville is not just any commu nity. It is a thriving, prosperous community, admired both nationally and internationally, an image intentionally crafted by decades of farsighted leadership. There is a group of men, elected officials currently serving on County Council, who think their vision is superior. A vision of discrimination. A vision of second-class citi zens. A vision that says it’s appropriate for elected officials to render judgement as if on behalf of God.

Five members of the Greenville County Council believe they are in the judgement business. They believe their vision of dis crimination and second-class citizens is what Greenville wants and apparently needs. I be lieve we should let Willis Meadows, Mike Out-of-touch County Council members threaten Greenville’s prosperity

Barnes, Sid Cates, Bob Taylor and Joe Dill know that their short-sighted vision of dis crimination and their desire to return to the “good ol’ days” of the last century are embar rassing from a moral standpoint and destructive from the standpoint of the financial well-being of our community.

Greenville is better than that. We are bet ter than that.

#YeahThatGreenville

Lee Turner Greenville

I was a poll watcher during the recent presidential primary. I have done this twice — in both cases, more out of a sense of ob ligation to the party than anything else. But this time because I was less worried about whether I would miss anything (because I’m a veteran now, right?), I relaxed a bit and ob served not just the “what” but the “who.”

An elderly gentleman with a cane but still struggling to walk comes to the table. His gnarled fingers struggle to hold the pen, but he deliberately makes each letter, obviously painfully. When finished, he says, “I hope you can read that.” The poll manager responds, “You did great. That’s a beautiful signature.” Lots of parents come in with their chil dren. One has a child with a disability who picks up a juice box from the snack table where the poll workers have their drinks, snacks, lunch and personal belongings. The parent tries to take it away from the child while they’re leaving the polling place. He looks back helplessly at the poll worker who waves them on: “That’s OK,” she says.

A young black mom cuddles her sleeping Observations from a poll watcher

infant on her shoulder through the entire process and has everyone in the polling place melting.

A young couple with an infant proclaim: “This is her first election.”

A dad arrives with his wife and twin daugh ters and asks if they can all go with him to the voting station “so they can see how it works.” His wife, he explains, is Canadian (U.S. green card holder) who cannot vote. The poll man ager permits the daughters to go, but not the wife, who sighs: “Maybe someday.”

A voter comes in visibly excited. An im migrant, this is his first time voting. “I’m so excited,” he tells the poll workers. Although I have only worked two elections, I’ve voted in every general election since 1972 and, in general, everyone I saw yesterday seemed enthusiastic (at different levels, of course) to be voting. This being a Democratic primary in an open primary system, I assume the vast majority of voters were Democrats. For us, this election is a step toward change.

A young couple dressed to the nines makes time to vote on their way out to a gala.

First, let me start off by saying that I am not a normal Greenville Transit Author ity bus rider. I am, however, retired from a worldwide company, and it was my job to make certain a very demanding “transpor tation” system operated effectively and efficiently. I am now just a retired citizen of Greenville.

Since we returned to Greenville eight years ago, my wife and I have noticed (and remarked about) the noticeably empty buses moving around the city. The lack of efficiency bothered me enough to get in touch with the executives running the Greenville Transit Authority. They offered to meet with me, but I told them I needed to experience, firsthand, the bus system before we met. I did just that, then we met. I told them of my experience and offered some suggestions, but I think they are mostly focused on the money. They believe more money will solve all the ills. I disagree. In my business experience, I saw this “easy path” solution suggestion over and over again. It was rarely the true solution. We usually just ended up with a more expen sive problem! I understand that Charleston, Knoxville, etc. spend more, but are they truly more effective? Additionally, Greenville is its own city with different demographics, differ ent employment opportunities and very different economic development and housing. More money won’t fix Greenville’s mass transit

An elderly blind woman is assisted by her daughter, who gently holds her hand to posi tion it on the right line of the poll list for her to sign in.

I remark on these because they are in many ways representative of the 600 people who came to this one location to perform this simple but powerful act. Turnout in this elec tion in South Carolina was high – reportedly exceeding the turnout in the 2008 primary featuring a surging Barack Obama.

Even though there are plenty of people who don’t vote at all, and even more who don’t vote in primaries, many of those I saw could have just as easily stayed home – too busy, too tired, too sick to bother. But they chose to stand up, to speak up with their vote. And that’s worth noting.

Laura Haight, President of Portfolio, and, full disclosure, the communications coordinator of the Greenville County Democratic Party.

I think it’s time for the Greenville Transit Authority to stop and rethink this. Take the time to truly analyze the need, the economics of that need and then figure out how to best meet the majority of those goals while main taining some semblance of economic sense. In government sometimes, it’s difficult for the people in charge to understand that the historical path should be at least questioned. Times change, demographics change, needs change. To continue to run around Green ville with buses that are mostly empty is not a good thing.

photo by CDC - DANIEL DRAPEAU

As the pace of the coronavirus accelerates across the U.S., and with South Carolina now reporting its first cases, Greenville hospitals have begun to prepare for the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak. In multiple news releases, state health officials have called the coronavirus a “rapidly evolving public health event” that they’re taking seriously.

“As the state’s lead for public health, DHEC is taking proactive steps to be prepared to protect the health of South Carolina’s communities, including informing health care providers throughout the state of recommendations for testing, the availability for testing and the appropriate precautions for the general public,” a March 6 release said.

At Prisma Health Greenville Memorial Hospital, the largest hospital in the Upstate, administrators say they’re been planning for a possible epidemic since late December, when reports fi rst emerged of a fast-spreading virus in the city of Wuhan in central China.

COVER Are Greenville hospitals READY for the coronavirus

n story by ANNA LEE

C. Wendell James III, chief clinical officer for Prisma Health-Upstate, formerly Greenville Health System, said one of the first things officials looked at was the hospital’s stores of protective equipment, including N95 masks, which protect against respiratory droplets, and PAPRs, full-coverage hoods that resemble disposable space helmets.

Officials have also stockpiled ventilators, a necessity for severe cases of coronavirus, which causes high fever and pneumonia-like symptoms.

“We’re in as good a shape as any facility that I’m aware of,” James said.

Bon Secours St. Francis Health System declined requests for an interview. In an emailed statement, a spokeswoman said: “Our clinical leaders have implemented protocols that are consistent with CDC guidelines, and we’re closely monitoring the situation across our ministry.”

We need the patients to not panic. There’s nothing to panic about. We’ve managed illnesses like this before, and we’ll manage this one.” - C. Wendell James III, chief clinical offi cer, Prisma Health-Upstate

photo PROVIDED

photo by CDC - HANNAH A BULLOCK; AZAIBI TAMIN

THE CORONAVIRUS

At least 4,100 PEOPLE have died and more than 116,000 CASES reported in 118 COUNTRIES

S.C. DHEC has the ability to test 80-100 PATIENTS per day

In the U.S., more than 760 PEOPLE have been treated in 36 STATES, according to a Johns Hopkins University database tracking the virus

At least 27 PEOPLE with the virus have died in the U.S.

South Carolina has 7 PRESUMPTIVE POSITIVE cases

Sources: World Health Organization, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control

Given what we’re seeing around the country and around the world, I suspect that we will see some coronavirus in the community. We may see quite a number of cases.” - Bill Kelly, epidemiologist at Greenville Memorial Hospital

STATE AND LOCAL PREPARATIONS

DHEC says it’s been working with health providers for years to prepare and test the state’s ability to respond to public health events like COVID-19.

At least seven people have tested positive for the coronavirus at DHEC’s public health laboratory. Results are required to be confi rmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a process that typically takes 24 to 48 hours once the samples are received. The state’s fi rst two cases — an elderly woman from Kershaw County and a MUSC staffer from Charleston County — were announced late Friday, March 6.

The elderly female from Camden was transferred to Prisma Health Richland Hospital in Columbia, where she was being treated in a special isolation room, a Prisma Health spokeswoman said.

The woman from Charleston County was symptom-free and was continuing to self-monitor.

PREVENTION

DO: Wash your hands for 20 seconds DON'T: Buy masks & other protective gear that health care workers may need access to

DO: Stay home when you're sick DON'T: Visit a health care facility without calling ahead if you're showing symptoms

An additional four cases were announced on March 8, and a fi fth was announced the afternoon of March 9.

Linda Bell, state epidemiologist for DHEC, urged citizens to remain calm and follow recommendations to prevent the spread of illness.

“Public health events like this one are not new to South Carolina,” Bell said. “As a

photo PROVIDED

state, we have responded to Zika, the H1N1 infl uenza pandemic, SARS and others — including seasonal fl u outbreaks — and our medical consultants conduct more than 700 disease investigations each year for a variety of illnesses. We have trained, prepared and put systems in place to ensure that we are prepared and ready to respond to this and other events.”

Hospitals have plans to deal with a surge of patients and, in a worst-case scenario, can tap into state and federal resources to set up MASH-style hospitals, portable hospitals similar to those the military would use, James said.

“We have the ability and plans if necessary to convert entire hospitals to be able to handle these patients,” he said.

Greenville Memorial Hospital also maintains a supplemental staffi ng pool and can draw on the nursing school next door and multiple residency training programs should there be any staffi ng shortages.

And it can work with the Upstate Health Care Coalition — made up of health care providers, hospitals, emergency management, EMS, coroners and others — to access additional resources.

Meanwhile, the hospital, which regularly conducts drills and specialized training to respond to bioterrorism or other mass casualty events, has been ramping up training to familiarize staff on respirators and full coverage protective equipment.

“We need the patients to not panic. There’s nothing to panic about. We’ve managed illnesses like this before, and we’ll manage this one,” James said.

HOW BAD WILL IT BE?

Bill Kelly, epidemiologist at Greenville Memorial Hospital, said Greenville may end up seeing a number of coronavirus cases.

“Given what we’re seeing around the country and around the world, I suspect that we will see some coronavirus in the community. We may see quite a number of cases,” Kelly said.

The World Health Organization reported more than 110,000 people infected with coronavirus as of Monday, March 9. At least 4,000 people have died.

The number of cases in the U.S. had grown to at least 790 across 36 states with 27 total deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University database tracking the virus. While the outbreak is a serious public health concern, most people who contract the coronavirus do not become seriously ill, and only a small percentage require intensive care, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“At this point, most people are saying that it’s going to be like a really really bad fl u epidemic,” Kelly said.

Though COVID-19 is similar to the fl u, James said it’s also a new virus with no vaccination or medications specifi cally designed to target it.

“People fear what they don’t know,” he said. “We’re familiar with the flu. We understand the flu. We live with the flu every year. We don’t see this happening every year.”

Offi cials are asking that individuals who show symptoms of COVID-19 to call ahead before coming to a medical facility for assessment, particularly if they’ve traveled to an area with known coronavirus transmission or have come in contact with someone who’s tested positive for the disease.

For more information on the coronavirus and South Carolina’s response to the disease, visit scdhec.gov.

KEEP FOLLOWING

We realize this is a rapidly changing story. All information was correct as we went to print on Tuesday. Please check GreenvilleJournal.com for the most up to date information.