Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Dubuque transportation staff outlines electric bus, ridership gains and smart-parking plans
Summary
Transportation Services presented FY 2026 budget highlights including one incoming electric bus, federal grants for two additional buses, a smart-parking RFP, rising ridership and continued partnership with volunteer transit provider DoRide.
DUBUQUE, Iowa — Transportation Services presented its FY 2026 budget Thursday, telling the Dubuque City Council the department plans to put its first full-size electric bus into service next winter, continue smart-parking and mobility planning, and pursue federal funds to add buses while the system’s ridership recovers.
Why it matters: Transit and parking are revenue-supported services that help residents access jobs and services and influence economic development downtown. Staff asked the council to continue modest property-tax support for transit while the department advances capital lifecycle work and parking-system modernization.
Ryan Nucky, director of transportation services, outlined department priorities and a multi-year capital program. “Our buses run 6 days a week,” Nucky said, noting that the city’s fixed-route and paratransit services cover the city, run transfer locations and maintain shelters and stops. He said the department operates 13 light- and 16 heavy-duty buses, 15 bus shelters and roughly 280 bus stops.
Ridership trends and partnerships: Nucky reported ridership gains of roughly 60,000 rides when comparing FY 2022 to FY 2024 and said paratransit ridership had dipped in recent years but shows signs of rebound. He noted continued partnership with DuRide, a volunteer-based transportation nonprofit; Greg Orwell, DuRide’s executive director, told the council the nonprofit expects about 10,700 rides in the current month and said DuRide’s volunteers have driven nearly 1.5 million miles since their start.
Transit capital and grants: Transportation staff reported a received federal award to add electric buses and said one fully electric bus is on order and expected to arrive in late 2025 or early 2026, with charging infrastructure scheduled for installation. Nucky said two more buses were funded through FTA awards, and he described planning grants the department is pursuing for mobility management.
Smart parking and on-street modernization: Staff described moving to modern pay systems downtown and deploying an RFP for on-street meters, kiosk systems and mobile app options. Nucky said only two of six revenue-producing ramps currently have fully functioning pay equipment and that the city will begin staging upgrades and communications to ramp users. He estimated a parking-rates capital-maintenance package of about $2.8 million for ramp upkeep in FY 2026 and said parking operations are funded largely from TIF and enterprise revenues rather than property tax.
Safety and operations: Nucky said the department is investing in training, de-escalation and camera coverage on buses and in ramps. He highlighted ongoing work to coordinate with schools on bus safety and said the transit team is evaluating adding part-time bus attendants for high-volume periods; a proposed improvement package was not funded this year.
Council questions covered Medicaid-funded rides on minibuses (staff said the city processes eligibility paperwork and that Medicaid can cover qualifying medical rides), credit-card convenience fees for on-street payments, and how transit planning will engage planning and housing departments on new residential developments. Nucky said those conversations are ongoing and that the department plans to use a forthcoming mobility-management plan alongside the East–West Corridor and other infrastructure projects.
No votes on the Transportation Services budget were recorded in the transcript. Staff said they will bring RFPs and specific capital projects back to the council as they develop.
