Valley Regional Transit urges Nampa to maintain funding as on‑demand rides hit capacity

Valley Regional Transit officials told the Nampa City Council on Wednesday that system ridership in Canyon County has grown after last year’s service changes, but the on‑demand (microtransit) network is over capacity and the agency needs stable local funding to avoid cutting service.

The agency reported a 27% increase in rides in Canyon County comparing 10 months before and 10 months after a June service change, and said it turned down “almost 800 rides a month” on the on‑demand system because seats were not available at the needed times. Officials said 82% of on‑demand trips either start, end or are fully within Nampa.

Valley Regional Transit (VRT) presented four budget/service scenarios for Nampa: maintain current service; keep on‑demand but cut fixed routes; keep fixed routes but cut on‑demand; expand service (Valley Connect 3); and eliminate transit service. The agency estimated the city’s share of keeping current service at about $747,000 and showed an expansion scenario that would cost roughly $2.6 million and add frequent (15‑minute) service on multiple corridors.

Why it matters: Council members were told cutting on‑demand service would reduce access to grocery stores, medical…