Rocky Mount Takes Major Step Toward Regional Workforce Connectivity With $3 Million NCDOT Investment
Rocky Mount Takes Major Step Toward Regional Workforce Connectivity With $3 Million NCDOT Investment
Rocky Mount, N.C. — A growing number of employers are looking at bringing jobs to the Rocky Mount region. Now, a major transportation investment has overcome the final hurdle toward helping ensure that the people needed to fill those jobs can get there.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) awarded $3 million to launch a commuter bus service connecting Rocky Mount and Raleigh, creating a new transportation link between Eastern North Carolina and the Triangle. Monday night, the Rocky Mount City Council approved the match funds to secure this grant award to launch this service.
The project was first discussed almost five years ago by a group of community leaders recognizing the need for a qualified workforce to support current employers and attract additional ones to ensure Rocky Mount’s growth. The Mayor’s Office, Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce, Carolinas Gateway Partnership, and Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments - with the support of area employers, educational institutions, elected officials, and the City of Rocky Mount – built a coalition to research options that resulted in applying for the NCDOT grant.
“This is a great example of a group of community members seeing a need and then coming together to figure out a solution,” said Rocky Mount Mayor Sandy Roberson.
The initiative represents more than a new bus route. Regional leaders say it is an investment in workforce development, economic competitiveness, and the long-term growth of Rocky Mount as a regional employment center.
For employers, the challenge is increasingly clear: finding qualified workers is no longer limited to the communities immediately surrounding a business. Workers come from counties within a 60-mile radius.
“Companies today are recruiting from a much larger geographic area,” said Roberson. “If we want to compete for new investment and help the businesses already here grow, we must think differently about how people get to work. This commuter service expands the workforce available to Rocky Mount and gives people another option for connecting with good jobs.”
The new service will initially provide weekday transportation between Rocky Mount and Raleigh during peak commuting hours. The goal, however, is considerably larger.
The next step is to find a qualified vendor to implement the project, and that thought process has already begun. The planning group is hoping to meet with city leaders in the next few weeks to initiate the process.
Regional leaders envision Rocky Mount becoming a transportation hub connecting communities throughout Eastern North Carolina with major employment centers in the Triangle and beyond. Future routes could connect communities including Wilson, Greenville, Roanoke Rapids, Elizabeth City, and other municipalities to Rocky Mount.
The need for expanded workforce transportation has grown alongside significant economic and infrastructure investments in the region. Mayor Roberson, along with the community leadership group, envision these buses to have comfortable seating with wi-fi so that workers can begin their workday enroute.
Rocky Mount sits along the US-64 corridor and I-95, providing access between the Triangle and the coast. The area is home to major employers and industrial assets, including the CSX Carolina Connector intermodal terminal, Kingsboro Business Park, and the Rocky Mount–Wilson Regional Airport. Those investments are positioning the region for continued industrial, logistics and commercial growth.
But economic development is only successful when employers can access the workforce they need.
“Supporting the retention and expansion of our existing businesses is just as important as recruiting new companies,” Roberson said. “We have employers who need workers today, and we have people who want good jobs but may not have reliable transportation to get there. This initiative helps address both sides of that equation.”
The commuter bus concept builds on work that began several years ago. In 2020, the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce explored establishing commuter service between Raleigh and Rocky Mount following the relocation of the state DMV headquarters. While the COVID-19 pandemic brought that effort to a halt, the research and groundwork provided a foundation for the current initiative.
Norris Tolson, special projects economic development for the Rocky Mount Chamber and former president and CEO of the Carolinas Gateway Partnership, said workforce transportation has become an increasingly important economic development issue.
“We are now recruiting employees from 25 to 30 counties across the region,” Tolson said. “Transportation is becoming a bigger part of the workforce equation. This grant gives us another tool to help employers find the people they need while making employment opportunities more accessible to workers throughout the region.”
Major manufacturers and employers, including Pfizer, Cummins, Sara Lee and Kaba, have expressed support for the initiative. Area higher education institutions and regional, state, and federal elected officials have also supported the effort.
David Farris, president and CEO of the Rocky Mount Area Chamber of Commerce, said the project reflects the region's changing economic landscape.
“Reliable transportation can change what is possible for both a worker and an employer,” Farris said. “It allows people to pursue opportunities that may have been out of reach and gives businesses access to a deeper talent pool. This is about strengthening the entire region, including Rocky Mount.”
The commuter service is also expected to provide benefits beyond workforce recruitment, including helping commuters reduce transportation costs, easing traffic congestion, and providing an alternative to individual vehicle travel.
The $3 million NCDOT investment will provide startup funding for vehicles, operations and marketing as the partners move toward implementation. The Community Leadership Coalition and the City of Rocky Mount are working with transportation consultants and stakeholders to develop the service model, route, schedule, and other operational details.
For Rocky Mount, the initiative represents a shift in how the region thinks about transportation and economic development.
Rather than asking whether workers can relocate to where the jobs are, the new approach asks a different question: How can the region make it easier for people to reach the jobs that are already here - as well as the jobs still to come?
“This is about preparing Rocky Mount for the future,” Roberson said. “Our economic growth cannot be measured only by the number of companies we attract, or the number of jobs created. We also have to make sure people can connect to those opportunities. This investment moves us closer to a region where communities work together, employers have access to talent, and people have more choices about where they live and work.”
The first Raleigh-to-Rocky Mount route is expected to serve as the foundation for a larger regional transportation network, with Rocky Mount positioned as a central hub for connecting Eastern North Carolina to the Triangle and other major employment centers.
About Mayor Sandy Roberson
Elected on the strength of his leadership supporting safer neighborhoods, economic development and job creation, stronger schools, workforce development, and the community working together, Mayor Sandy Roberson continues to focus on these issues in his second term. For more information, please visit www.sandyroberson.com.
