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The lawsuit was filed by Board of Legislators Chairman Ken Jenkins (D-Yonkers) after the bus route was canceled in 2012. County Executive Rob Astorino terminated the bus line citing low ridership and a $243,000 annual cost. The cut drew protests from Rye residents and county legislators, who argued that the move stranded workers and senior citizens who relied on the bus service.
"This is a victory for taxpayers. The level of subsidy wasn't affordable, sustainable or smart," Astorino said. "The $240,000 in contract savings has been put to work in stabilizing the finances of the overall Bee-Line system."
The now-defunct bus route serviced Milton Point in Rye through the Kohl's Shopping Center in Port Chester. It was the only line canceled in the 2012 budget in an effort to maintain bus fare rates. The stops on the Route 13 bus line were expanded to include several stops formerly serviced by the Route 76 line, allowing riders to travel from White Plains to Rye without switching buses.
The case to restore the line was dismissed by Acting Supreme Court Justice Robert Neary, who wrote that efforts to restore the line were "rendered moot by the passage and implementation of the 2013 budget."
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