It was third vote the charm for a bus that will run from Nesquehoning, through Lansford and Summit Hill and to Mauch Chunk Lake on Saturdays, beginning in July.

In a 2-1 vote, with Commissioner Rocky Ahner again casting the sole no vote, the board approved an agreement with LANTA to implement the Mauch Chunk Lake Park Beach Bus route on 10 Saturdays, starting July 1 and continuing through Sept. 2 at a total cost of $2,976 for the service before fare collections and other revenue generation.

The commissioners had previously voted on the matter twice, splitting 1-1, with Commissioners’ Chairman Wayne Nothstein out following surgery.

When the matter came up a third time, the board voted to table it until June 1 to allow the county’s insurance company PCoRP to review the matter after concerns were raised.

Ahner, on Thursday, again voiced his concerns over liability and children as young as 12 riding the bus without an adult.

“This is not a bus to the park. It’s a bus to anywhere,” Ahner said. “We have no way to know the child gets to the park and if they get there, and there’s no lifeguard on duty, we’re making the decision for the child to swim at their own risk.”

He added that he feels the county is putting its insurance at risk because PCoRP is a consortium of counties to get lower rates, however excessive claims would increase a county’s rate or even put a membership at risk.

“There’s provisions that are not covered under this plan,” Ahner said. “If this is for family use to the park for quality time, then make it families to the park. Then you have an adult to oversee.”

Commissioner Chris Lukasevich, who has been vocal in his support of his idea for the bus route, which would cover the three towns in the Carbon portion of the Panther Valley, as well as Jim Thorpe, said that LANTA, who manages Carbon Transit, has “proven itself extremely safe in its operations.”

He also said that the park operations on weekends is safe for all citizens and gets to enjoy outdoor recreational space, adding that if the route isn’t approved, it would “adversely impact” the residents of the four towns who may not have transportation to the lake.

“We have appropriate levels of protection to cover any potential liabilities that could be foreseen,” Lukasevich said.

He also pointed out that no one has a problem with children walking to area community pools.

Commissioners’ Chairman Wayne Nothstein, who reluctantly voted in favor of the matter, said he also had concerns over allowing children as young as 12 get on the bus without an adult.

“We are not a babysitter,” he said. “I think 12 is too young; 14 is OK, but when you talk about swimming pools in the area, we’re talking two different things. We’re talking where you can see the bottom of the pool. It’s a lot smaller area.”

Lukasevich said that the county has taken measures to ensure safety, including making sure lifeguards are certified and trained.

“We’ve taken steps to further mitigate the risk out there,” he said.

Nothstein, before voting in favor of the bus, said that the “only reason I will support this at this time, I don’t like it, but I want to see what the ridership is in the next three months, if people are going to take advantage of it or not.”