TARTA representatives emphasized a future of smaller vehicles and more attractive service, including an option resembling ride sharing, when they pitched a proposed transit sales tax in place of property taxes to the city councils in Sylvania and Maumee.
Neither council took action after hearing the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority’s presentations Monday night. But in order for the sales tax — now proposed at 0.4 percent — to get on the Nov. 6 ballot, they and their counterparts in five other communities will need to pass resolutions admitting Lucas County as a TARTA member by early August.
Plans for around-the-clock transit operations — including a new tier of service that James Gee, TARTA’s general manager, told Sylvania’s council will “out-Uber Uber” — were outlined in a strategic plan the transit authority released last month in response to previous criticism that it was requesting more money for stale, unpopular service.
“Our goal is to provide a transportation option to everyone” in the service area, Mr. Gee said Monday night.
TARTA now receives about $13 million annually from two property levies in its seven-community service area.
A 0.4 percent sales tax, Mr. Gee said, would broaden the taxpayer base to include visitors to the area and others who don’t own local real estate. Such a tax is expected to generate about $25 million annually, of which TARTA would keep $20 million and distribute the rest to Lucas County and local municipalities for “transit-related” public works.
Sylvania City Councilman Patrick Richardson inquired at length about what the transit authority’s goals are for increasing ridership and who would be responsible if those goals are not met.
Mr. Gee said TARTA’s target is to increase its annual systemwide ridership from its current 3 million to about 4 million.
The transit authority has no way to distinguish who aboard traditional fixed-route buses has never ridden TARTA before, he said, but with reservation-based services like Call-a-Ride, TARPS, and a ride-sharing model it would be able to do that.
“Ultimately, it’s myself who’s held accountable — I’m accountable to the [TARTA] board of trustees,” he said.
Councilman Mark Luetke, meanwhile, said he hears frequently about passengers missing appointments because of unreliable Call-a-Ride and TARPS service — a problem Mr. Gee blamed on ride demand that exceeds the transit authority’s capacity.
Additional revenue from the sales tax, Mr. Gee said, “will allow us to have a capital [vehicle] replacement schedule we can live with” and transition the agency to a smaller-vehicle fleet — including one potentially with autonomous vehicles.
In Maumee, the only council feedback after the TARTA presentation came from Councilman Scott Noonan, who said he appreciated the transit authority’s having developed a “specific plan.
“As someone who advocates for people with disabilities, I like the plan of the Uber-type program,” Mr. Noonan said. “It helps not only people with disabilities who might miss a bus, but also people with disabilities who work late shifts.”
Mr. Gee told Sylvania’s council he is scheduled to discuss the plan next week with local councils in Rossford and Waterville.
But no meeting has yet been scheduled with the trustees in Sylvania Township, whose 2-1 vote last year against admitting the county as a system member — and thus keeping an 0.5 percent version of the sales tax off last year’s November ballot — thwarted the proposal at that time.
Staff writer Jay Skebba contributed to this report.
First Published June 19, 2018, 1:42 a.m.