Joint board to decide START fare hikes, service cuts to close $1.5M hole

The Town Council and Teton County commissioners, sitting as the START joint board, are set to vote Sept. 14 on a package meant to close START’s $1.5 million fiscal year 2027 budget shortfall, including both fare increases and a menu of service reductions that staff say would begin Oct. 12. In the staff report, Transit Director Michael Toronto asks the joint board to approve an additional $750,000 for the FY27 START budget, split 48% county ($360,000), 32% town ($240,000) and 20% partners ($150,000), or to instead choose a 60/40 county-town split if partner money does not materialize. Regular Joint Meeting Agenda Packet

Staff’s proposed cuts total $633,638 and include thinning late-night service after 8 p.m. on both the Town Shuttle and the Teton Village route, scaling back express bus frequency outside peak commute windows, and trimming START On-Demand service by removing the Library stop and shortening service hours by season. Separately, the board is expected to continue work on fare increases already set in motion Aug. 31; staff estimates the new fare structure would raise about $234,000 over 12 months, or about $117,000 in FY27 if implemented in January after a federal Title VI review. Regular Joint Meeting Agenda Packet