Norwich — Southeast Area Transit District officials began on Monday to hear from residents about how proposed service reductions, from eliminating nighttime bus service to cutting routes, would affect them.

With the state's Special Transportation Fund facing a deficit, the state has advised SEAT and other transit districts to expect a 15 percent cut in state funding starting July 1, said SEAT General Manager Michael Carroll. Faced with about a $640,000 cut, the SEAT Board of Directors has developed a range of options to balance the budget and is holding a series of public hearings in the area on the proposal.

Carroll told a group of 10 residents who attended the first hearing at Norwich City Hall Monday evening that SEAT understands the proposed service reductions are "painful."

Sandra Alexander, a senior who lives in an area where the Route 7 bus runs, asked if there is a way to turn the situation around.

"A lot of seniors will be affected if you take this bus away at 7 o'clock," she said. "I mean how would people get home, for the people that go to work?"

"Listening to what you say, I know it's done because you can't see any other way, but don't you feel that ridership will drop even further if people have no faith in the bus system?" she asked.

With the timing of the reductions beginning in July, some people wouldn't be able to get to nighttime events at the marina, turning Norwich into "a ghost town," she added.

Lyle Lettie, a Norwich resident, said he understands the need to balance any budget, but he said the service reductions will affect employment, people's ability to go shopping, the elderly and the disabled.

"People cannot afford cabs," he said.

During the presentation, Carroll said the service reductions are proposals and the final action rests with the General Assembly, which has the authority to add revenue to the transportation fund and is considering several proposals, including raising the gas tax, dedicating a new car tax for transportation, and potentially considering tolls.

SEAT provided the following list of services it is proposing to eliminate and their associated savings:

• The elimination of all bus service after 7 p.m. (savings of $226,000)

• The elimination of Sunday service ($80,000)

• The elimination of Run 10 in Stonington ($103,000)

• The elimination of the St. Bernard's Run 109 ($25,000)

• The elimination of the Saturday morning Route 101 bus ($11,000)

• The elimination of Run 121 ($56,000)

• The elimination of Route 108 (Foxwoods) service between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. ($46,000)

SEAT is also proposing to only have Saturday service between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. ($60,000 in savings); reduce the frequency of service on Saturdays for Runs 8/9, 4/5 or 6, and 12/14 to every two hours; raise the 31-day pass from $50 to either $60 or $68 ($10,000 in additional revenue); and decrease the price of the five-day pass from $20 to $16, for a cost to the district of $1,000.

To accommodate riders affected by some of the reductions, SEAT is planning to start service at 6 a.m. on Runs 12, 14, 2 (from Norwich), and 5, and re-align Runs 1/101 to go to St. Bernard's and Three Rivers Community College, the proposal states.

SEAT already adjusted fares in 2016, but didn't see a big increase in revenue, so SEAT didn't propose fare increases this time, Carroll said.

If the state does not end up cutting the transit district's funding by 15 percent, SEAT will likely still need to make some service reductions, though they would be less severe, since the transit district has been faced with level funding over the past years, he said.

Carroll said he will share the comments from the hearings with the SEAT Board at its April 18 meeting. 

The other hearings are scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Groton Senior Center; 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Griswold Senior Center; 6 p.m. Thursday at New London City Hall; and 6 p.m. Monday at Stonington High School.

k.drelich@theday.com