In hopes of keeping public buses running beyond this spring, local transit officials voted Friday to apply for a $500,000 state loan.

The loan from the S.C. Energy Office and a $300,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation were offered as short-term solutions by Gov. Mark Sanford to keep the Charleston Area Regional Transit Authority buses rolling until a new sales tax referendum is held in November.

The half-cent sales tax, if voters pass it, would generate money for CARTA, roads and green space.

"This additional money will take us to the end of July," Howard Chapman, CARTA's executive director. "We are very appreciative of the governor's office and his effort to help us to November."

Without the combined $800,000 in additional money, CARTA was expecting to end all services by the end of April. CARTA already has eliminated its DASH shuttles, cut the number of routes in half, eliminated weekend service and scaled back the service area of its Tel-A-Ride system.

If the loan application is approved, CARTA could receive that money in a month. The loan comes with a 3 percent interest rate and would have to be repaid in 10 years.

Charleston Mayor Joe Riley said he recently spoke with the governor, and a local match likely won't be needed for CARTA to receive the $500,000 loan. Because of the decision by the cities of Charleston and North Charleston to purchase CARTA's maintenance building on Leeds Avenue for $6.5 million early this year, local financial support already has been demonstrated for CARTA, Riley said.

"That was a huge local commitment," Riley said.

The sale of the maintenance building also gives CARTA matching funds to obtain $4 million in federal funding. It will be about three months before the federal grant application is processed.