City of Wichita seeks public input on transit future

City officials are asking the public for input on Wichita’s struggling transit system through a series of meetings.

Some of the proposed changes for the transit system include adjusting fares and routes.

Recommendations from the public will be presented to the Wichita City Council in October.

The bus system faced a $2 million shortfall for next year, but the council used one-year stopgap funding to buy more time for a long-term funding solution.

In a referendum last fall, voters soundly defeated a 1-cent sales tax that would have raised $400 million over five years to fund transit, street maintenance, a new water supply and a jobs fund.

City officials could try to reduce route frequencies, eliminate underused bus routes and cut weekend hours.

But they fear lower ridership – and therefore lower fare revenue – would trigger cuts in federal and state transportation grants, leading to a “death spiral” of the entire transit system.

Here are the public meetings:

▪ Open house, 1-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wichita Transit Administration Building, 777 E. Waterman, Bldg. 200

▪ District advisory board meeting, 6:30 p.m. Oct. 5, Lionel Alford Branch Library, 3447 S. Meridian

▪ Public hearing, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Oct. 6, council chambers at City Hall, 455 N. Main

▪ City Council meeting, 9 a.m. Oct. 20, council chambers at City Hall

Residents can also e-mail questions or comments to wichitatransit@wichita.gov through Friday or visit www.wichitatransit.org.

This story was originally published September 20, 2015 at 1:32 PM with the headline "City of Wichita seeks public input on transit future."