PORT TOWNSEND — Next year will be a planning year for capital projects at Jefferson Transit, according to Finance Manager Sara Crouch.
The Jefferson County Transit Authority Board unanimously adopted a 2019 operating budget om Tuesday. Operating expenses are expected to increase by 3.32 percent to $5,341,175. Non-operating revenues (sales tax receipts and grants) are projected to be $5,884,778, an increase of 8.53 percent.
“The majority of Jefferson Transit’s revenue is generated from sales tax collected in Jefferson County,” Crouch said. “This form of funding is inherently unstable.”
Crouch said the agency is completing a feasibility study for electric vehicles, electric vehicle chargers and infrastructure.
Project in plans
“Our goal is to have a shovel-ready project so that when grant funding becomes available, we can begin work at 63 Four Corners Road and the Haines Place Transit Center,” Crouch said.
“We also have construction plans ready for a third maintenance bay.
“We are looking at the Haines Place Transit Center configuration so we can add service. We did the Wooden Boat Festival this year and the area was so full we had to stage buses outside of the bus loop. We are trying to figure out how to expand future service.”
Other projects include the Haines Place Transit Center bathroom and facilities repair, Maynard Mountain Repeater project, security camera project, server room fire protection project, and ongoing funding for shelter replacement.
Crouch said staff presented the budget in a public workshop on Nov. 6. and several changes were made based on input.
“We included adding the purchase of property at 111 Four Corners Road. The new bus stop wayfinding signs were taken out because the project was completed and two full size 30-foot fixed route buses were eliminated because they were delivered early.
“What we introduced at the budget workshop was reduced by $871,439.”
Jefferson Transit has applied for four fixed-route buses in the 2019-2021 grant biennium. The grant award will be announced in May.
Also included in the vehicle budget are two DAR cutaway vehicles and a trolley-style bus for the uptown/downtown shuttle route, ongoing funding for major component replacement and bus wraps (formerly bus painting).
Crouch said that sales tax returns from 2018 look “very promising” and that the past three years have enabled Jefferson Transit to fully fund the operating reserve, restore service lost during the last recession and make necessary capital improvement purchases.
Update plan
Also in 2019, Jefferson Transit will update its 20-year comprehensive plan.
“What is Transit going to look like in 20 years? We’ll be asking for a lot of public input,” Crouch said.
A consultant is expected to be hired to begin the process.
“They look at our service, our population, and then we develop a plan to see how we can increase service in the future,” Crouch said.
Jefferson County Commissioner David Sullivan, a member of the Transit board, said funding for Transit is often uncertain.
“It depends on the state for a consolidated grant that pays for a big portion of Transit,” he said. “The other big portion is sales tax, which is kind of fixed, but has seen record highs lately.
“It’s kind of a zero-sum game for budgeting things right now. You do something, you take something away, and you hope that will change but you don’t have control over that.
“It’s up to what the federal and state transportation systems do, Sullivan said. “It’s frustrating for our whole community. They want us to do some things and we say send us a check.”
Sullivan said the “bathroom project” came up five years ago, yet it will not be built until this year.
”It isn’t that much,” he said. “It’s just keeping up with with what we can afford.”
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Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Jeannie McMacken can be reached at 360-385-2335 or atjmcmacken@peninsuladailynews.com.
