Oliver Flanagan has been using the regional transit system since he was in eighth grade, but he may not have a way to get to work by the end of this month.
“I can’t personally drive,” he said. “I am not able to get a car.”
The 17-year-old Florida resident relies on RTS buses to get to work and extracurricular activities.
He may not have that to rely on soon.
Changes to bus routes will take effect June 30, as the University of Florida begins its Summer B term.
Major route changes include Routes 1, 13, and 75, according to the city of Gainesville.
The cuts are a result of a UF funding decrease and a reallocation of resources to the Campus Connector transportation service, according to the Gainesville City Commission in a meeting earlier this month.
The Campus Connector is the university’s private shuttle service offered to students and staff across campus.
The resulting loss is about 22% of the current budget, dropping from about $12.7 million to $9.8 million, according to The Independent Florida Alligator.
“It doesn’t just affect UF students,” Flanagan said during the public comment portion of the meeting. “A lot of these routes are used very heavily by people across the city.”
Mayor Harvey Ward said in an interview that the Commission is disheartened by the funding cuts.
“We’re not gonna be able to serve the people of Gainesville as well as we would like to,” Ward said.
He said the university operates on a different fiscal year than the city, which makes it difficult to make “changes on the fly to maintain service.”
“We’re not getting the money we expected to get,” Ward said. “And that has repercussions.”
He said the judgment of campus officials has been poor regarding RTS buses.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, RTS driver Hunter Holtsworth said cutting transportation funding will only increase Gainesville’s homelessness problem.
“The resources we allocate to help our growing homeless population are woefully inadequate,” he said. Holtsworth said homelessness continues to rise because of increasing housing, food, and transportation costs.
“When has a growing city ever benefited from cutting transportation funding?” he asked the City Commissioners at the meeting. Holtsworth urged the Commission to work with UF to continue funding RTS buses.
He said he sees firsthand how helpful public transportation can be in closing the homelessness gap in Gainesville, which is why he finds it strange that funding is now being cut from those programs.
Ward said at the meeting that people who oppose the bus route changes should contact UF’s Tigert Hall. Tigert Hall is home to some of the university’s administrative departments, which are responsible for budget cuts and fund reallocations.
City Commissioner James Ingle said at the meeting that the university responds to “pressure from students and parents much better.” He said reaching out to officials from UF with complaints could help lessen the route changes in the future.
Until then, it looks like community members like Oliver Flanagan will have to make alternative plans to get to work.
Changes to routes will come June 30. There is still consideration for service changes in the fall.