Council tables vote on Freebee microtransit expansion amid coverage and cost concerns

Council members on April 15 temporarily postponed consideration of a third amendment to the city’s microtransit agreement with Freebee after a lengthy debate over which neighborhoods the service should cover, how many vehicles are needed and what the surtax allocation should fund.

Miss Morris, the staff member overseeing the microtransit pilot, told the council the city requested $200,000 this year for microtransit and had rolled additional surtax allocation forward to fund a larger paving project, and that the current amendment would permit up to three vehicles in an expanded service area. "So what we did this year was we requested $200,000 for micro transit and we rolled the additional dollars so that they will be available for a larger paving project that is anticipated for next year," she said.

Councilmembers urged staff to make sure senior living communities would be included and to consider expanding east to reach medical facilities. Several members warned that enlarging the zone without adding vehicles could lengthen wait times and reduce ridership. "If we expand further and the wait times go longer, we could be counteracting what we’re trying to do," one councilmember said during the discussion.

After discussion, the council voted to table the amendment and asked staff to return with revised boundaries and cost estimates and to consult Freebee about the number of vehicles required to maintain acceptable wait times. The motion to table was approved by roll call vote (Reinstein: yes; Anderson: yes; Andrew Ayew: yes; Fagin: yes; Horland: yes).

Staff said they expect to bring a revised proposal back to council at a future meeting for further action.