Overview
- Officials cite fare evasion as a major factor in an almost $11 million MCTS deficit, with 2024 data estimating roughly $4 million in lost revenue and a 33% evasion rate.
- Supervisor Shawn Rolland’s amendment would deploy uniformed, trained, unarmed security on buses and at high‑evasion stops to enforce fare payment.
- The County Committee on Finance is slated to take up the proposal on Oct. 24 as part of ongoing budget deliberations.
- The plan would be financed by delaying roughly $620,000 in jail camera replacements, a shift the Sheriff’s Office opposes while noting the cameras use object identification, not facial recognition, and that it was not consulted.
- Key details remain unresolved, including which agency would staff the pilot and which stops would be targeted, while a separate federal bill on fare‑free policies would not apply to MCTS, according to Rolland.