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FAX prepares July service changes, expands Crosstown route; council seeks data on riders and funding
Summary
Fresno Area Express staff briefed council on a new Church Avenue Crosstown route launching in August, ridership figures for top routes, student pass programs and the agency's funding reliance on Measure C and state/federal grants.
Fresno Area Express (FAX) staff updated the council on a set of service changes and new routes at the FY26 budget hearing, including a Church Avenue Crosstown service scheduled to start the first week of August.
Director Barfield said the new route will extend an existing corridor to include distribution centers in eastern Fresno; early morning trips on the extension are reported full. City staff said total annual ridership for FAX is projected at roughly 10.5 million trips in the current fiscal year. The council heard route-level counts: the BRT (Route 1) posted roughly 2.2 million rides year to date and Route 38 about 1.1 million.
Barfield described fare structures and student pass partnerships: general adult fare is $1 per trip; seniors and veterans ride at a reduced fare; several school districts, Fresno State and State Center Community College have agreements that pre-pay or subsidize student ridership. Staff said outreach was underway for the expanded lawn-to-garden, and contractors are preparing public notice materials for the July 1 rollout of the annual bulky-item program in the solid-waste schedule.
Councilors asked how heavily FAX depends on Measure C funding and what service reductions would look like if that flexible revenue were removed. Staff said Measure C funds are critical (staff estimated roughly $15 million of flexible Measure C-derived funding annually) and that loss would force reductions in evening and weekend frequency and possibly service spans. Councilmembers also requested demographic ridership breakdowns (students vs. non-students) and stop-level information for service planning; staff said requested data would be delivered as RFIs.
