After five previous attempts, the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA) will include a new funding issue on the November ballot for Lucas County residents to consider. If it passes, the ballot measure would:

• Add Lucas County to the TARTA Board of Trustees

• Approve a 0.5% sales tax to fund transit

• Repeal the current 2.5 mills of property taxes currently being collected in TARTA service areas

In order to get the initiative on the November 3rd ballot, the majority of TARTA member communities – Toledo, Ottawa Hills, Maumee, Rossford, Waterville, Sylvania, and Sylvania Township – plus the Lucas County Board of Commissioners, had to pass necessary resolutions approving the proposal to bring the issue to voters. Six of the seven member regions passed the resolution, with Maumee agreeing with the measure under its own resolution. On July 22, the TARTA Board of Trustees voted unanimously to include the sales tax measure on the November ballot, meaning that after 11 years of trying, Lucas County voters will finally get a say in TARTA’s funding model.

TARTA seeks to improve its long-term financial stability with the ballot initiative, with a switch to sales tax funding projected to bring in enough revenue to restore service on Sundays, match federal grants to replace rolling stock, and establish countywide bus service. TARTA is also currently engaging in a comprehensive operational analysis, TARTA Next, using community input to inform a system redesign to better serve county residents. All of these changes, including a newly completed agency strategic plan which outlines goals for financial sustainability, customer experience, and community value, have been underseen by Kimberly Dunham, who started as the new TARTA General Manager in December, 2019.

The TARTA ballot initiative may be the next in a series of local efforts to increase transit funding. In May 2020, residents of the City of Cincinnati approved a ballot measure providing a generational investment in public transit, and in May 2019, residents of Allen County approved a sales tax levy to raise $1.4 million annually for the Allen County Regional Transit Authority.