RTC looking at bus, paratransit fare hikes to address $118M shortfall

The Regional Transportation Commission will raise bus and paratransit fares for the first time in 15 years as the public transit agency grapples with a budget shortfall of more than $118 million.

Fares on the RTC’s transit system are set to go up by varying amounts, and some fare options will be eliminated.

MJ Maynard-Carey, RTC’s CEO, said the increases are needed to address the lingering budget shortfall.

“We understand that raising fares, increasing costs for our transit riders, our paratransit riders, is a tough one,” Maynard-Carey said. “But we haven’t raised fares in over 15 years, and we are looking at a significant transit deficit.”

Maynard-Carey said RTC created a working group to address the deficit. The group reviewed fares at similarly sized transit agencies to develop potential fare increases that could be refined after the agency receives public comment. A 60-day public comment period on the proposed fare changes ends June 23 and is available on the RTC’s website.

Proposed fixed-route fare increases

Single ride: From $2 to $3, reduced fare from $1 to $1.50.

Two-hour pass: Current $3 pass to be eliminated.

24-hour pass: From $5 to $7, reduced fare from $2.50 to $3.50.

Seven-day pass: From $20 to $35, reduced fare from $10 to $12.50.

Fifteen-day pass: Current $34 pass to be eliminated.

Thirty-day pass: From $65 to $80, reduced fare pass from $32.50 to $40 as a 31-day pass.

Proposed Strip fare increases

Single ride: From $4 to $5.

Two-hour pass: Current $6 pass to be eliminated.

Twenty-four-hour pass: From $8 to $10, reduced fare from $4 to $5.

Three-day pass: Current $20 pass to be eliminated.

Paratransit fare changes

The five current paratransit fares will be reduced to two options, with the elimination of the 22-ride, 10-ride and four-ride options. The RTC has the seventh-busiest paratransit system in the country, with almost 5,000 daily trips.

Paratransit single ride: From $3 to $4.

Paratransit 46-ride pass: From $80 to $90.

Any fare increases won’t kick in until January 2027.

Game Day Express

Fare increases are also being considered for the RTC’s popular Game Day Express service to Raiders and UNLV football games at Allegiant Stadium and Golden Knights games at T-Mobile Arena, which are currently a $4 round trip from various pick-up locations. Any increases to the Game Day Express service would be determined after the residential/Strip bus and paratransit service increases are finalized, according to Maynard-Carey. It is possible such changes could begin in January with the rest of the fare increases.

Although no service reductions are being considered at this time, Maynard-Carey said cuts to bus and paratransit services could occur in 2028.

“If not for the stimulus funds that we received because of the pandemic, we would be looking at transit cuts much, much earlier than 2028,” she said. “We are looking at being as fiscally constrained as we can; that’s our job. The public expects us to, before we go out and raise fares and cut service.”

RTC’s functions

The RTC wears several hats outside of public transportation; the agency also oversees traffic management, roadway design and construction funding, transportation planning, including regional planning efforts.

Of the RTC’s fiscal year 2026 budget, transit fares make up only 5.6 percent ($62.7 million) of the agency’s total $1.3 billion in funding sources. The RTC spends $419 million per year on its transit operations. That money includes the cost of contracts with transit and security workers from private-sector companies.

The RTC is receiving nearly $246 million from fuel revenue indexing and motor vehicle fuel taxes this fiscal year. That money may only be used for road projects and cannot be used to subsidize transit operations.

“We’re constitutionally prohibited from doing that,” Maynard-Carey said.

Security cuts possible

The RTC has seen a significant investment in increasing safety on its buses and at transit centers in the Las Vegas Valley. It is possible that some of the security budget will eventually be cut as well, according to Maynard-Carey.

“We have invested in security. We know how important it is for not only for the operators, but for our riders,” Maynard-Carey said. “As we look to having to potentially reduce services in 2028, there may be some reduction in safety and security based, again, in tandem with the reduction of fixed-route (bus system), but safety and security are top of mind for us and for our customers.”

Public transportation implications

Even if a person does not use public transportation themselves, they probably rely on someone who does. About 80 percent of the million weekly trips on RTC’s bus and paratransit system are people traveling to and from work. The paratransit system connects seniors to jobs and services.

“I think sometimes there’s a deep misunderstanding of just how significant a role public transit plays,” Maynard-Carey said. “Paratransit, we’re connecting the disabled community to jobs. The seniors we’re connecting those folks to services they need as well as veterans. So, it is an ecosystem that impacts every part of this community.”