Martinsville Bulletin, Inc.
P. O. Box 3711
204 Broad Street
Martinsville, Virginia 24115
276-638-8801
Toll Free: 800-234-6575
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| Armstrong buses full; rides still possible |
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Wednesday, November 18, 2009
By MICKEY POWELL - Bulletin Staff Writer
This is the last call for anyone wanting a ride on the “No Rate Hike Express” to Rocky Mount on Thursday.
Del. Ward Armstrong, D-Collinsville, is sponsoring the bus ride to a public hearing the State Corporation Commission (SCC) is holding on a proposed Appalachian Power rate hike. The hearing will be at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Franklin County High School auditorium on Tanyard Road in Rocky Mount.
Two buses are running.
One will leave the Henry County Administration Building on Kings Mountain Road at 4:30 p.m.
The other bus will leave Hillsville, then stop to let Patrick County residents get on board. It will leave the Patrick Henry Community College facility near DeHart Park in Stuart at 4:15 p.m., Armstrong said.
About 100 people have reserved seats on the buses, which essentially are full, he said. But anyone needing transportation to the hearing can call 632-7022, and he and his staff will try and find them a ride, he added.
“We really didn’t have any idea” how many people would sign up, Armstrong said. He indicated he is pleased with the response so far.
“It’s not easy during the week for people to get off work (early)” to go to an event, he said.
Appalachian’s proposed $150 million increase would raise base rates by about 14.5 percent for residential customers who use 1,000 kilowatts of electricity per month, according to company spokesman Todd Burns.
The rate hike would be in effect for two years, Burns has said.
Armstrong said he is opposed to the increase because Appalachian has “had so many previously.”
The current rate hike request is Appalachian’s 13th in the past three years, and the SCC has approved most of them — if not the entire increase sought, at least a portion, he said.
With economic problems in Henry County, Martinsville and the rest of the 10th House District, such as high unemployment rates, “people here just can’t stand” another rate increase, said Armstrong.
Bassett Furniture Industries and several other businesses in the district are helping Armstrong sponsor the buses.
Taxpayer money is not being spent on the trips, Armstrong emphasized.
Those riding the buses are asked to voice their opinions during the hearing, but speaking up is not required, he said.
However, “the more people who speak up ... the better chance we have” of getting the SCC to deny the rate hike, he added. |
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