UF, City of Gainesville agree to extend current RTS contract for six months

Nora O'Neill, Gainesville Sun
·2 min read

The University of Florida has agreed to extend its contract with the City of Gainesville’s Regional Transit System for six months, ensuring existing service continues until January.

According to a UF news release, a Wednesday meeting between the university and the city was cordial and productive, with City Manager Cynthia Curry and Dave Kratzer, UF’s senior vice president of construction, facilities and auxiliary, spearheading the discussions.

“During the extended timeframe, the City of Gainesville, working together with the university, will explore long-term methods of maintaining RTS bus service across the broader community while addressing the university’s specific needs,” the release said.

A woman who said her name is J.J. gets on an RTS bus off NW 43rd Street in Gainesville Fla. Feb. 23, 2021. The City of Gainesville is considering giving individuals over 65 and under 18 free RTS bus passes.
A woman who said her name is J.J. gets on an RTS bus off NW 43rd Street in Gainesville Fla. Feb. 23, 2021. The City of Gainesville is considering giving individuals over 65 and under 18 free RTS bus passes.

More: UF, Gainesville leaders discuss RTS negotiations, say they will reach deal before June 30

More: UF, City say appropriate RTS deal can be reached, return to negotiating table

In April, city leaders announced at a press conference that half of its RTS budget was at risk of being lost if UF were to move forward with a proposal to scale back its prepaid bus fare program. The program, responsible for nearly $13.7 million of RTS’ $28 million budget this year, would have been greatly reduced at the beginning of July, according to a news release from the city.

At the conference, Mayor Harvey Ward shared that the changes would have forced RTS to eliminate Routes 17, 25, 28, 34, 46 and 150 in July and reduce Routes 1, 5, 8, 9, 12, 16, 20, 21, 33, 35 and 38.

After the press conference, Kratzer penned a letter to Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward asking the city to provide data about RTS costs and return to the negotiating table rather than making “threats.”

“The university will always take a data-driven approach to ensure that we are correctly serving our students. Press conferences and threats of closures are unnecessary and unhelpful,” he wrote. “We would welcome you back to the table and hope that you will direct your team to provide this crucial data that we have not yet received.”

Both parties over the past month have maintained they wanted to work together in good faith to reach an appropriate deal. Meanwhile, dozens of UF students, RTS employees and community members spoke out against UF’s proposal.

Much of the back-and-forth on the issue centered around the cost UF was paying per RTS rider, and a portion of Kratzer’s letter insinuated UF was being unfairly charged for bus fare, stating that RTS charges non-UF riders $1.50 per ride and UF students $2.86 per ride.

The contract, which was set to end June 30, will now last through Jan. 1, 2025, at which point a newly negotiated agreement could go into effect.

“All involved agree on the importance of sustained access to bus service across the Gainesville Urbanized Area while talks continue,” the release said.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: University of Florida, Gainesville agree to extend RTS contract