Citing, 'challenging budget climate' TARC will cut 15 routes in August

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Citing "a challenging budget climate," the Transit Authority of River City (TARC) announced Thursday that it will cut 15 routes on Aug. 9.

According to a news release from TARC, the discontinued routes include: the LouLift circulators, the UofL Health campus circulator, the New Albany–Clarksville–Jeffersonville route, the Breckenridge–Shepherdsville route and 10 express routes (45X, 49X, 53X, 54X, 64X, 65X, 66X, 67X, 68X and 78X).

Eight more routes — 6, 10, 15, 18, 23, 28, 31 and 61X — will have minor schedule adjustments, TARC said.

In a statement, TARC Co-Executive Director Margaret Handmaker said the upcoming changes "will help TARC invest where its passengers are" by eliminating routes with historically low ridership.

"Half of TARC’s current routes are used by only 3% of its riders— a fact that existed prior to the current COVID-19 pandemic," Handmaker said.

"In some parts of our community, TARC’s cost per rider is approximately $2.50; on other, less frequently used routes, it nears $60 per rider," Co-Executive Director Laura Douglas added in a statement. "When TARC charges just $1.75 per trip, this is unsustainable and drains resources from where they are needed most.

"TARC does not want to merely move people around; we want a high level of service."

TARC said it took public comment into consideration by holding meetings on the changes after they were first proposed in April. For more information on the changes, visit TARC's official website.