A fleet of buses is parked at Transdev’s Norwich station in 2024. Chenango County terminated its contract with Transdev in 2024, leaving a gap in the area’s mass transit system. (Photo by Shawn Magrath)

NORWICH – An annual disbursement of state money is leading county officials to hope for a fix to the area’s mass transit problem which has burdened local residents for months.

The county is slated to receive $970,000 from the New York State Department of Health and Transitional Assistance for mass transportation throughout the area. The yearly allocation helps local officials sustain non-emergency transportation, primarily for Medicaid recipients.

Traditionally state funds have been handed over by the county to the private mobility company Transdev to manage busing routes across Chenango County townships and the City of Norwich. County legislators terminated their contract with Transdev in January, citing escalating costs upwards of $2 million per year – a roughly 8 percent increase in the local tax levy – needed to keep buses running.

Despite ending Transdev’s contract, the company is still owed money for nearly ten months worth of services that it provided in 2024. Most of the latest allocation of state funds funneled through the county will pay those dues, according to Chenango County Board Clerk Sheri Howe.

“We owe Transdev some of that funding,” Howe said. “It’s not money for a new company just yet.”