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Glacier County approves $30,000 annually to support local and regional transit
Summary
After a presentation by transit officials, the Board of Commissioners voted to commit $25,000 annually to Glacier County Transit and $5,000 to Northern Transit; the director cited rising, more-consistent ridership and offered to manage an auction of an aging county bus.
Glacier County commissioners voted Nov. 6 to provide $25,000 a year to Glacier County Transit and $5,000 a year to the Northern Transit interlocal after a staff presentation on ridership and service changes.
David Erwin, transit director, told the board Northern Transit provided 11,034 rides last year and Glacier County Transit recorded 4,631 rides (down from 4,966 the prior year) but said the county’s ridership is showing steadier, year‑round use. “In fact, I had to calculate it twice because I was surprised how much it had gone up. We’re ahead 32% in Glacier County right now for January, February and March,” Erwin said.
Erwin outlined service expansions that officials say have driven demand: an on‑demand in‑town day in Cut Bank that runs weekly, additional Kalispell service now operating two days a week (previously Fridays only) and coordinated schedules with neighboring providers including Blackfeet Transit. He said the transit partnership earned a regional honor for route reliability, safety and customer service.
On financing, Erwin summarized how member jurisdictions contribute: most participating cities and counties pay $5,000 annually to Northern Transit; Glacier County’s larger $25,000 commitment reflects the county’s additional routes and ridership. He said Northern Transit will try to send invoices and process payments monthly where possible but warned grant timing may cause some payments to be quarterly; staff agreed to work with county finance to avoid audit problems.
Erwin also recommended selling an older Glacier County bus at public auction and explained Montana Department of Transportation rules on proceeds from state‑funded vehicles. He offered to manage the auction process and copy commissioners on correspondence if the board places the item on a future agenda.
Commissioner (speaker 1) moved to approve the two contributions; the chair (speaker 2) seconded and the commissioners voted in favor.
The board directed staff to add the auction item to the next meeting agenda and requested quarterly updates and meeting links so commissioners can monitor Northern Transit activity even when they cannot attend in person.
Next steps: the county will receive updated quarterly reports from Northern Transit and consider the auction of the surplus vehicle at a subsequent meeting.
