EZ Rider keeps going

MIDLAND Board members for the organization that oversees the EZ Rider bus system got to hear about a plan to keep the organization from cutting service at its monthly meeting Wednesday.

The Midland-Odessa Urban Transit District worked out a deal with the Federal Transit Administration that allows EZ Rider to now be funded by 80 percent federal dollars, said Chris Mandrell, who will take over as EZ Rider’s new executive director later this month. Previously, the organization was funded by a 50-50 federal-local split.

“We’re going to get more federal money and less local money,” he said.

The reworking was necessary after EZ Rider came up $550,000 short of the $3.3 million budget its board approved last year due to lower than anticipated revenues from the Texas Department of Transportation and the Odessa and Midland city councils, Mandrell said.

While the reworking should keep EZ Rider from cutting service during the current budget year, Mandrell said the 80-20 split would be permanent.

But Thomas Blackstone of Odessa, the board’s chairman, said the change doesn’t guarantee against service cuts in future budget years.

“The way we can make sure we have the service is to have everyone ride the bus,” he said.

EZ Rider had been scheduled to hold public hearings this week on possible cuts in service, but they were canceled after it was able to reach an agreement with the federal agency April 29.

The money that is being used for the current budget is being taken out of the construction budget, Mandrell said. But the affected projects were not ready to start this year anyway.

Midland City Councilman John James said he hopes the solution will avert dealing with longer-term issues that allowed EZ Rider to face service cuts.

“I just want to make sure that, going forward, No. 1, we’re doing everything right, and two, we capture some of the fundamental issues that got us into this mess,” he said.

Officials hope to have more to show when seeking funding for next year. They said ridership is up 28 percent for the first three months of the year, while revenue is up 11 percent.

The budget agreement will face a vote at the transit board’s next meeting, which has been moved to May 19 after the board decided to permanently change its regular meeting date from the first to the third Wednesday of the month. The change was made so that the board would be dealing with newer budget figures at its meetings.

The board also discussed ways to develop a strategic plan to address the public perception of EZ Rider. Board member Willie Barber of Midland said people often think buses are empty, when the buses they see are actually paratransit buses used to transport the disabled.

“The majority of people don’t realize we have a paratransit system,” Barber said. “They just think we have a fixed route.”