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Yuba Sutter Transit reports stable finances, cautious service levels amid post‑pandemic recovery
Summary
Yuba Sutter Transit Director Matt Mach told the Yuba City Council the agency is financially stable, relying on formula funding, operating about 20% less service than before COVID and seeing ridership recover to about 65–75% of pre‑pandemic levels; no council action was required.
Yuba Sutter Transit Executive Director Matt Mach told the Yuba City Council that, despite statewide concerns about a possible transit “fiscal cliff,” the local agency is in a solid financial position and is managing service conservatively.
"I think here locally, we're in a — we're in a good strong position," Mach said during a presentation to the council, noting the agency's reliance on formula funding and a conservative, cash‑management approach.
The transit system is organized as a joint powers authority that employs six people for administration and contracts operations to a private provider that currently employs about 86 operational staff. Mach said about 87% of the agency's expenses go to the operations contractor and related on‑street costs. The fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30 and the agency is required to adopt a balanced budget.
Mach reported that ridership has increased about 75% since the depths of the pandemic and that vehicle service hours for the last fiscal year were about 75,500. He said the agency is operating roughly 20% fewer service hours than before COVID as a deliberate rightsizing measure to match demand and control costs.
On revenue, Mach said the agency depends primarily on formula state and federal funds. State Transportation Development Act (TDA) funds make up roughly half of the planned FY26 revenues the agency expects to draw; federal formula funds comprise about 30%. Fares represent an estimated 10–11% of revenue in the current budget, a share Mach said the agency expects to meet or exceed as ridership recovers.
Council members who serve on the regional transit board praised Mach's management. Council member Wade Kirschner, chair of the transit board, said Mach "absolutely has exceeded my expectations" for responsiveness and stewardship. Other council members thanked Mach for clear reporting and for keeping service aligned with resources.
The presentation ended with no formal action required of the council. Mach said he was available to return for follow‑up and to answer questions about service initiatives, pilot projects and the short‑range transit plan.
Notes: The presentation emphasized formula funding vulnerability in other regions (for example, transit systems that relied heavily on farebox revenue) but said Yuba Sutter Transit's dependence on stable, allocated formula funds gives it greater predictability. No specific service expansions or contractions were approved at the council meeting.
