CONWAY — Coast RTA wants to use some land owned by the city of Conway for its first park and ride facility.

Eventually, Coast RTA general manager Myers Rollins told the Conway City Council at a workshop Monday night, the bus company plans to have park and ride facilities in each transportation corridor, but for now its interested in Conway letting it use some land the city owns by Lake Busbee to try to get the first one going.

City Council members will take a couple of weeks to consider the proposal and likely discuss it at another work session before putting it on the agenda for a vote.

Coast RTA is looking for a consensus from council members that they support the idea, but Rollins said no commitment will need to be made until after much groundwork has been done. Included are things such as determining the facility’s impact on urban design and passenger in-vehicle travel time, feasibility of transit-oriented development and adjacent land uses and an alignment with the Coast RTA master transit plan.

Rollins said that the development of the park and ride facility could attract federal money that Councilman William Goldfinch said he’d like to see go to establishing regular bus service between downtown Conway and Coastal Carolina University.

He said in answer to another question that the company is already considering nonstop service from the facility to Myrtle Beach, Georgetown and Charleston. The facility could also serve as a transfer point for hundreds of inland residents who are bussed daily from places such as Florence and Sumter to jobs along the Grand Strand.

Councilman Tom Anderson said he has a vision for the Lake Busbee land as a soccer complex and he indicated he might not support other development that hindered his vision.

But he didn’t say he opposed Rollins’ plan either.

“We need public transportation and we all know that,” Mayor Alys Lawson said.

She said the Coast RTA proposal is a way to provide more to Conway residents without using any city money.

“It’s a win-win, to me,” she said.

Contact STEVE JONES at 444-1765.