Metro Transit asks St. Louis committee for $47.6 million appropriation, outlines budget, ridership and security plans

Metro Transit officials told the St. Louis City Board of Aldermen Transportation and Commerce Committee on June 11 that they are seeking $47.6 million in local appropriations for 2026 and outlined an operating plan that relies on local sales taxes, state grants and federal capital funding.

The agency presented a 2026 revenue projection of roughly $344.2 million and said passenger fares are budgeted at about $19.5 million. Tammy Fulbright, identified in the meeting as Metro’s chief financial officer, told the committee the 2026 passenger-revenue projection is lower than 2025 actuals as the agency is being “realistic” about fare revenue while it implements a new fare system.

Why it matters: Metro’s budget affects the region’s transit frequency, paratransit service and capital projects such as light-rail vehicle replacements and charging infrastructure for electric buses. Committee members pressed Metro on reserve levels, service frequency, bus-stop amenities and the agency’s security strategy tied to a new fare collection project.

Officials told the committee the largest revenue sources are sales tax receipts and negotiated contracts with St. Clair County, St. Louis County and St. Louis City, plus federal vehicle-maintenance and some state funds. Fulbright said the agency expects sales-tax and contractual revenue to rise versus 2025 and asked the committee for local appropriations that include operating needs, a $4 million local capital match and $2 million for bond debt service.

Metro said total operating expenses are about $334 million, with wages and benefits representing roughly 60 percent of the operating budget. Fulbright identified wage adjustments tied to union agreements and higher medical and workers-comp costs as primary drivers of the increase in personnel expenses.

Chuck Stewart, Metro’s chief operating officer (who announced his upcoming retirement), said ridership has recovered to roughly 75–80 percent of pre-COVID levels and that the agency has added service where demand has changed. He said Metro has hired more than 100 bus operators in the past 12 months and that quarterly service changes have focused on reliability and frequency.

On paratransit, Stewart said the agency reduced a prior denial rate and now has had a 0 percent denial rate for the last seven months after altering service boundaries and rebuilding capacity. He told the committee paratransit rides per week rose from roughly 5,000 to over 8,000 in a smaller, more reliable service area.

Security and fare-recovery were a central point of debate. Talby Roach, Metro’s president and chief executive, described the Secure Platform Program (SPP) — a project that pairs new fare gates and an overhauled fare-media system with an expanded camera network and law-enforcement access. Roach said the agency and local stakeholders view perception of safety as central to encouraging ridership and attracting riders who do not currently take transit.

Roach acknowledged the SPP has been controversial and noted a consultant report (WSP USA Inc.) found “no correlation between serious crime and fare evasion.” He said the consultant’s findings were accurate but argued perception of safety and the ability to sell fare products are both important to long-term ridership and revenue. He added that Metro has installed about 1,600 cameras across the system and has made the camera feed available to local law enforcement under formal request procedures.

Aldermen raised operational concerns about the gates during transition and about the program’s cost. Roach said the system rollout is phased and that some gates were staffed initially to help customers adapt; full system integration is expected after the new fare media is completed in early 2026. He told the committee the project’s construction cost estimate rose from an initial $52 million to about $61 million, reflecting market conditions.

Other capital items; electrification and LRVs: Roach and staff said Metro has started deploying battery-electric buses and is expanding charging infrastructure with public–private partnerships on some sites. Stewart said 14 electric buses are in service on a prominent route and more charging capacity is under construction. The agency also described a light-rail vehicle (LRV) replacement program that will bring a new Metrorail vehicle fleet; the presenter described the procurement as very large and noted the first vehicles are expected to arrive in 2027.

Budget shortfall and management: Fulbright said the 2026 operating plan shows an approximately $4.8 million operating deficit that the agency intends to manage internally through efficiencies and cost control instead of raising additional local appropriations. She also said larger depreciation and capital projects funded by the Federal Transit Administration explain a materially larger “deficit” figure tied to capital accounting that is not a cash shortfall.

Committee action: The committee advanced three Metro-related board bills for appropriations — a $26.3 million transportation-sales-tax appropriation tied to a 1974 tax, a roughly $13.6 million transit-sales-tax appropriation (referred to as Prop 1), and a second transit-sales-tax appropriation (referred to as Prop M2). Each bill passed the committee with a due-pass recommendation by voice or roll call.

What’s next: Committee members requested follow-up briefings on shelters and bus-stop improvements, the green-line status and more granular 2025 year-to-date financials. Metro agreed to provide additional data, and members discussed the possibility of a future committee meeting to review progress on shelters, security and the fare-system rollout.