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Union County Transportation 74X Express Bus Service Update
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INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bjorn Hansen, Planning, Senior Planner, 704-283-3690; Theresa Torres, Human Services Agency, Transportation Director, 704-296-4801; Janet Payne, Human Services Agency, Executive Director, 704-296-4348
ACTION REQUESTED:
1) Receive as information an update regarding the 74X Express Bus Service and 2) direct the County Manager to coordinate with the municipality of Indian Trail to enable a cost-sharing agreement for continued 74X service over a five-year period from FY 2026-2030 at an increase of 3.5% annually.
PRIOR BOARD ACTIONS:
1) April 17, 2023, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 23-122 - Cancel service
2) June 19, 2023, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 23-387 - Add back Indian Trail stop
3) February 5, 2024, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 24-070 - Approved contract for FY2024 CATS Express Bus Service
4) July 15, 2024, Regular Meeting, Agenda Item # 24-476 - Amend contract for FY2025 CATS Express Bus Service
BACKGROUND:
In FY2004, Union County began contracting with the City of Charlotte to provide regional transit express bus service (74X) between Union County and Charlotte through the Charlotte Area Transit Authority (CATS) to reduce vehicular traffic on the roadways in Mecklenburg County. The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) provides peak hour weekday express bus service from Indian Trail to uptown Charlotte based on terms set forth in a Regional Transit Services Agreement between the City of Charlotte and Union County.
The City of Charlotte pays 50% of the operating costs after fare revenue is deducted and Union County is also obligated by this contract to pay a portion of the operating costs, including administrative expenses, which represent 50% of the net cost of service after fare revenue is deducted. In FY2024, Indian Trail began contributing funds to cover a portion of the expense and agreed to continue supporting this service through FY2025.
The FY2025 total maximum cost to Union County is $93,677, of which $19,500 is paid by Indian Trail, leaving $27,338 to be covered by budgeted County general funds, and the remaining 50% is covered by Federal Transit Administration (FTA) 5307 urban transit grant funding.
After the discontinuation of the Monroe stop in FY2024, ridership numbers remained stable and have increased slightly.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
To be determined based on the FY2026 operating costs which will be provided by the City of Charlotte in late FY2025 and based on Indian Trail’s continued agreement to participate in a cost-sharing structure.