62.8 F
Memphis
Wednesday, November 6, 2024

Join NOW!

MATA board begs off planned cuts

Newly appointed members of the MATA board of directors took a detour around planned cuts in service approved by their recent predecessors on Tuesday, October 22.

The unanimous decision was the new board’s first action since Memphis Mayor Paul Young handed the previous nine board members their walking papers on October 11.

The cuts scheduled to take on effect on November 3 will come back around on February 3.

With three months of cushion, Memphis Mayor Paul Young intends to work with Memphis City Council members to secure a funding resolution to maintain full operations into the future.

MATA interim CEO Bacarra Mauldin informed the board members of the administration’s goal prior to the vote, after being notified by Young through email.

The routes in question are:

Route 16 Southeast Circulator
Route 28 Airport
Route 34 Central & Walnut Grove
Route 37 Perkins
Route 69 Winchester
Zone 3 Cordova Ready on Demand!

The correspondence did not mention the transit authority’s looming workforce reduction. Those have not been implemented yet.

Young’s decision to relieve the former board members followed a report from Tampa-based transit consultant Transpro. The findings concluded that MATA failed in three basic areas – create satisfied customers, build community trust and optimize the investment the community makes in the agency.

Along with a “hard-reset” at MATA, the consultant recommended reversing course on the reduction of service area – along with the intervals between buses. Some routes have gaps between rides of two hours or more.

The former MATA board members’ September 24 vote to reduce service came after a $60 million deficit in FY2024 was disclosed in May. An audit requested by Mauldin discovered that the shortfall was fairly typical. Over the last ten years, shortfalls at MATA ranged from $19 million to $91 million.

Around $14 million of the $30 million the council allocated to MATA’s budget for FY2025 remains. The fiscal year began July 1.

The pause in cuts is estimated to cost $5 million.

Largely funded through federal and state grants, MATA’s budgets trended upwards as ARPA funds flowed in during the pandemic years. The $180 million fund ran out this year.

Related Articles

Stay Connected

21,507FansLike
2,634FollowersFollow
17,200SubscribersSubscribe

Latest News