An optimistic assessment of the Memphis Area Transit Authority’s (MATA’s) July operations was brushed aside by members of the Memphis City Council Transportation Committee Tuesday, Aug. 5.
MATA interim CEO John Lewis had the unfortunate assignment of delivering the first update of MATA’s operations following the release of a 40-page audit conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
“I hope that you understand when you come to us and tell us things are great, not a single person up here believes it,” said Councilmember Jerri Green.
Lewis’ presentation, which included optimistic fleet reliability numbers and the announcement of a new CFO, contrasted with the withering report released last week. The audit included years of questionable financial transactions by former transit authority leadership, backed up by shoddy recordkeeping.
The audit was ordered by Memphis Mayor Paul Young after a $60 million deficit was discovered last year. PwC auditors reviewed records from 2018 through 2024, a period during which Gary Rosenfeld served as CEO before retiring in January of last year.
“We spend millions of dollars a year to get people from point A to point B. And this document shows me that instead, we bought a Grizzlies suite; and we racked up credit card charges; and we sent people on trips; and we can’t even find the documentation to uncover what half of this stuff is,” Green said.
During his assessment, the interim transit head spoke of an agency struggling to right operations. While 100% of the morning routes are covered by running buses, reliability dwindles as the sun sets. As a result, some evening routes go unfulfilled. Ridership has also remained flat during the transition.
The age of buses is to blame for many of the problems. Most of the fleet is at least 14 years old. Most transit systems purchase new buses annually but MATA hasn’t bought a new bus in eight years. To keep the fleet running, a handful of gently used buses have been loaned by the sister agency in Louisville, Kentucky.
However, it is the planned purchase of 12 new buses that sparked Green’s commentary. At $800,000 each, the purchase will make a significant dent in the $15 million–$20 million available to MATA in capital improvement dollars. Many on the council had hoped to upgrade to a more reliable all-electric fleet in the future. However, at $1.2 million per electric bus, the price is even more prohibitive.
So are new federal policies, which once promoted clean energy but have shifted to a more conservative approach. Now, diesel-powered vehicles receive federal grant funding.
“The new administration has changed, and it has gone in the exact opposite (direction),” Lewis said.
A new facility to replace the old operations and maintenance hub on Levee Road is another capital improvement goal. A replacement at 2500 Ketchum Road has been proposed, but $54 million in federal matching dollars was originally intended to fund 250 electric buses. Lewis called that green ambition “pie-in-the-sky.”
Green felt the same way about Lewis’ presentation.
“I’ve yet to have MATA in any form of leadership come in here and be honest about the state of affairs. I continue to get glowing reports about how things are going. I can’t tell you how frustrating that is,” she said.
During his presentation, Lewis announced that the search for a new CEO — and his eventual replacement — would begin Thursday, August 7.
