September 2011 Service Reductions Approved by STA Board
STA Board Adopts Recommended Service Reductions
The Recommended Service Reductions were adopted by the board as presented by STA staff with no changes. The general descriptions of the upcoming changes appear in the links below. To view the FINAL RECOMMENDATION on September 2011 Service Reductions, click here. Details about the routes and schedules as they will exist in September will be made available this summer.
Original Preliminary Proposal to the STA Board of Directors
The STA Board of Directors was presented with a preliminary proposal for the September 2011 service reductions at the Board meeting held on September 15, 2010. To view the webpage with all the original preliminary proposal information, click here. Information about both the draft and final recommendations can be found in the text below.
Recommended Service Reduction Presented to the STA Board of Directors: January 2011
The STA Board of Directors was presented with a recommendation for the September 2011 service reductions at the Board meeting held on January 19, 2011. To view the complete draft recommendation, click here.
Public Hearing:
A public hearing regarding the recommended service reductions was held February 16, 2011 at the STA Board Meeting.
Descriptions by Route:
Click here to view a list of descriptions of the approved route changes.
Maps:
To view a map of the recommended service reductions click here. NOTE: this is a large (2.2 MB) pdf file.
To view and open pdf files of smaller area maps (North Spokane, South Spokane, Spokane Valley, and West Plains) showing the recommended service reductions, click here.
To view the map of the recommended changes to service in Cheney, click here.
Background:
For nearly three years, Spokane Transit’s primary source of operating revenue, a locally imposed sales tax, has been in decline, reducing the agency’s ability to maintain its current level of service to the Public Transportation Benefit Area. Although transit ridership has seen strong growth over the last several years, increased revenue from fares alone cannot make up for the budget shortfall caused by the decline in sales tax revenue. Like most of its peer agencies, STA is faced with cutting service as one response toward helping the agency realize fiscal sustainability during these challenging times. For Spokane Transit, this means returning to 2004 service levels and jeopardizing much or all of the 45% ridership increase it enjoyed over the past few years.
As part of its 2010 Budget, the STA Board of Directors identified a service reduction strategy that would allow cuts to take place over several years, helping to ensure reductions are made strategically with allowance for new revenues that could help avoid the full effect of cuts. In total, the cuts required between 2010 and 2012 approximate a 16% reduction in fixed-route operations in order to maintain a sustainable service through 2015. The graph below illustrates the gap between what was once expected and where the system must go in terms of hours of fixed-route service provided.
Paratransit Services:
Paratransit is a wheelchair-accessible shared-ride transportation service for individuals whose disability prevents them from using the regular fixed route buses. This means that a person must be unable, because of a disability, to get to or from the bus stop, get on or off a lift or ramp equipped bus, or successfully travel by bus to or from their destination.
The Paratransit service area is comparable to the area served by the regular, fixed-route bus system. Paratransit is operated in the same service area and the same service hours and conforms to the Americans with Disabilities Act. The service area is a corridor with a width that extends ¾ of a mile on each side of and around each fixed route.
Archive:
To view the original summary of the preliminary proposal as presented to the Board on September 15, 2010, click here.
