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County leaders and about 45 residents said Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority needs to explore options to cover its financial shortfall instead of proposed bus cuts at a Monday night meeting at the First United Methodist Church in Hyattsville.

The current plan would eliminate the B27, which runs from Bowie State University to New Carrollton Metro and could transpire as early as June.

"This is an extremely difficult time for everyone in the room," said Elizabeth Hewlett, who represents Prince George's County on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Board of Directors. "None of the options are easy and each has consequences that the board of directors does not like."

WMATA General Manager John Catoe said despite an increase in ridership, operational costs are rising at a faster rate.

"Metro is faced with a significant, and I mean significant, fiscal year 2010 shortfall," Catoe said. "The ridership is up, but the cost of operations is rising quicker than revenues."

Catoe explained that WMATA began the fiscal 2010 budget with a $154 million budget deficit, which has dropped to $29 million after the elimination of 313 positions and overtime reduction.

The proposed actions to close the remaining budget deficit will affect routes in Montgomery and Prince George's counties, Washington, D.C., Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax County and the city of Fairfax, and Falls Church.

County Councilman Thomas E. Dernoga (D-Dist.1) of Laurel cited alternative proposals to cover the budget deficit while retaining the current routes.

"We can fund the ICC [Intercounty Connector], we can fund all these road projects or we can fund transit," Dernoga said. "If the line is eliminated, your options are eliminated."

County Councilman Eric Olson (D-Dist. 3) of College Park said the proposed elimination would impact 10,000 riders each day and will affect the disabled and public transportation-dependant the hardest.

"Clearly thousands of people rely on these bus routes on a daily basis and will affect their ability to get to work, shop and other destinations," he said. "These cuts will have a severe impact on people's lives."

Olson said possible avenues for funding could be to make use of a suggestion from the county's Department of Public Works and Transportation to use preventive maintenance funds on a one-time basis or possibly stimulus funds.

"Another one I thought of is there are development possibilities around some of our Metro stations which could move forward and infuse some money into WMATA, which could potentially be plugged back into the bus routes," he said.

Residents, some of them with connections to various groups, associations or employers like the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration in College Park, spoke about how the bus route cut would impact their lives and the lives of others.

"It is our firm belief that this hearing was avoidable," said James Kazinsky from the county's public works department. "These cuts do not need to be implemented. There just has not been enough time to do a thorough review."

Catherine Taggart-Ross, a Clinton resident and community activist, spoke about how the bus cuts would affect the minority and elderly riders.

"It may not be my bus. It may not be your bus, but it's somebody's bus," Taggart-Ross said.