Sunday, March 16, 2008
Editorial: The bookmobile's time has passed
Montgomery-Floyd libraries should find a cheaper alternative.
From the RoundTable blog
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The Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library doesn't have cash to throw around. State funding has dropped in recent years, and counties cannot pick up the difference indefinitely. Unless overdue fines suddenly grow exponentially, library leaders need to find some corners to cut. They might start by scaling back the bookmobile.
The bookmobile has been a wonderful community resource for decades. It brings reading material to people who could not reach the library otherwise. An old school bus has delivered books for going on 20 years.
Demand for the service isn't what it used to be, though. Over the last decade, circulation plummeted 85 percent to a paltry 8,000 books checked out from the bookmobile in 2006-07. Likewise, the number of stops it makes has slipped dramatically.
That isn't necessarily a bad thing. Some of the decline can be attributed to the Internet. People can read online. Some, also, is thanks to the spread of library services to the Shawsville area, where Meadowbrook Public Library opened in 2006.
In order to keep the bookmobile running, the library needs to buy a new vehicle, and that would cost up to $200,000 for a comparably sized one. There are other challenges, too. Fuel costs are rising; it's difficult to find someone on staff with a commercial driver's license; and driving around eats into limited staff time.
The reduced demand for the bookmobile simply does not justify those expenses, especially in a year in which Montgomery County, at least, is contemplating raising property taxes already.
That is not to say the library and counties should cut the funding entirely. They should scale it back. Officials already are discussing a van or other lower-cost alternatives.
Libraries build community and spread knowledge. Montgomery and Floyd counties have wisely invested in them. They should continue to do so, but not for a program that has run its course in its current form.
