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The County Commission's exploration of relocating the Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT) downtown Sarasota bus station has raised new questions, including whether such a facility is even necessary. During the Monday, June 2, Sarasota City Commission meeting, Richard Thomas, an advocate for public transit in Sarasota and Manatee counties, called the current SCAT operation in downtown Sarasota a "botched mess." He urged city officials to work with the county on a new overall plan that does not include a downtown terminal. Using an overhead projector, Thomas showed the city commissioners a 2002 plan for a "SMART System" of bus routes. "As you can see, there is no [downtown] terminal," Thomas pointed out. "You just have a bunch of transfer points. This solves the circula- tor problem." Under the SMART System, the primary 23-mile connector would provide links from north Palmetto to Sarasota Square Mall on U.S. 41, with a network of routes through downtown. Thomas thinks now is the time to imple- ment that plan instead of proceeding with Sarasota County Area Transit's downtown transfer station is at the intersection of Lemon Avenue and First Street. Photo by Norman Schimmel CRITICS QUESTION WHETHER THE COUNTY EVEN NEEDS A DOWNTOWN BUS TRANSFER STATION AND, IF SO, WHETHER ITS RELOCATION IS NECESSARY By Roger Drouin County Editor Hate for us to do this same rodeo in another decade. Kelly Kirschner Former Sarasota Mayor Alta Vista Neighborhood Leader Sarasota News Leader June 6, 2014 Page 30