An article from West Virginia Metro News dated 1-24-2007.
"I'm worried that a national, award-winning program is in jeopardy."
So says Jennifer Douglas with the Citizens Conservation Corps, which operates
the Courtesy Patrol on 767 miles of highway in West Virginia. There are reports
at the State Capitol that funding for the Courtesy Patrol could, potentially, be
moved from the Road Fund to another source.
Douglas says it would be another blow to a program that she says has already
been cut. "Our spirits are high. We're out there 16 hours a day, but we have
been broken."
Up until last year, the Courtesy Patrol was out 24 hours a day, responding to
emergencies from motorists and assisting in any help needed along the roadways
in West Virginia. Those hours were cut back to 16 hours a day in an effort to
save money. The Courtesy Patrol is not on the roads from 7AM through 3PM
everyday, meaning State Police and other agencies are picking up some of the
roadway hazards they had handled.
"I just say the trend is where we got cut from 24 (hours) to 16 (hours) and now
reading that we could be moved, there's talks about the program could come out
of the Road Fund and, perhaps, move to another department, our number one
concern is, yes, we would like to be at 24 hours a day but, secondly, we cannot
take another hit," says Douglas.
She was a guest on Wednesday's MetroNews Talkline.
Currently, Douglas says the Road Fund costs $3 million to operate every year in
West Virginia. Most of that money is federal funding but she says about $600,000
of that comes from the Road Fund. She says $600,000 represents half a mile of
highway so she says continuing to fund the Courtesy Patrol does not take away
from large-scale roadway construction and maintenance.
"We want to protect what we have but we also want to be restored back to 24
hours a day," says Douglas
