Henry County Transit will have a new home in 2013; its new location will be nearly double the size of the building it is currently in.

“The building we have, we’ve outgrown this parking area and the offices — there are 27 employees in the program — and it has grown because of the demand for people needling transportation in the county,” Transit Director David Williamson said.

The service shuttles residents throughout Henry County Monday through Friday and averages approximately 100,000 trips annually.

Williamson said the need for service has increased steadily throughout the years, as more and more people became aware of the service.

The new facility will be funded entirely with federal funds through the Federal Transit Administration.

Williamson said the county has been eligible for the grant for the past six or eight years and secured it three years ago.

While the groundbreaking occurred just recently, he said the county has been busy conducting environmental studies and requests for proposal, with each action having to be run up the Federal Transit Administration’s pole.

According to a Henry County press release, the facility will be 5,305 square feet with seven offices, a conference room and a driver training room. A drive-through portico will be constructed for drivers to vacuum and perform daily checks on the vehicles before departing.

The facility will be able to accommodate up to 30 buses and 31 regular vehicles.

The $1.18 million facility will be located at 530 Industrial Blvd. in McDonough, which is also where the new Emergency Operations Center will be.

The design of the facility was done by Moss Developments of Stockbridge and will be constructed by Mooney Construction of Woodstock. The civil engineer is Moore Bass Consulting of McDonough. The anticipated completion date is February 2013.

Williamson said the bus service charges $2 per stop for residents ages 60 and older and $4 per stop for residents under age 60.

“The service is available to anyone in Henry County from senior adults to 20-year-olds going to work,” Williamson said.

The bus runs from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Henry County Transit is funded through state, local and federal funds.

The current facility is located at 96 Workcamp Road in McDonough.