[DSM-Iowa] Fwd: Reimagine DART Update: Budget and Priorities

[Helen Mejia]

FYI, see below. The next time for us to pay attention is in September. 
I’m concerned about the 10% service cut, but DARt needs money to be able to do anything. In addition to the property tax reform, I heard discussions about cutting public transit funding from the state in the legislature this year as they try to cut spending. We’ll want to continue to watch that next year as well.
Helen
Helen Mejia, President
National Federation of the Blind of Iowa
hmejia at nfbi.org
(570) 983-7867

Begin forwarded message:

From: DART <dart at ridedart.ccsend.com>
Subject: Reimagine DART Update: Budget and Priorities
Date: June 4, 2025 at 9:13:43 AM CDT
To: hstevensnfb at gmail.com
Reply-To: dart at ridedart.com

 <https://sqijm7dab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001CRxCXihEa3cxXv8_8WsjyyfoG0erJf4k1FcKLCQqC6ikHeuitmquCT7Sm_kuFH5aoXUbhAQutJdEVE7cUFJTif-g20CKzYneLI54kQb18EKYzsRkdhzPHPlnq9jRJK5iWMzhZc9Ee0csNZP4UZkuUwJUK2StRAWF&c=oBqh3tO5z1vSXLIdVEusfgHP0vFulTVKSdgt9QK6sGoZUQAbXgoCWQ==&ch=H5F_fEgJVF8qMRUxGMfYN7cy5yf5fGWFJWCBZx82lPszw1S0NkJaBg==>
 
Greetings!

We reached a major milestone for Reimagine DART on Tuesday. Here is an overview of the decisions DART’s governing board made and how those decisions will shape the draft bus network we will present for your feedback in September.

You can also view comments from our DART Commission Chair and DART CEO on our website <https://sqijm7dab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001CRxCXihEa3cxXv8_8WsjyyfoG0erJf4k1FcKLCQqC6ikHeuitmquCYC_3tzdmjvlq1XY7KBhxPw6wjvQnJwAbkQv67xV_dhEp0qTByo6BYDNTEk8vtZ2_3trCaV9aICRbY6R9cRdIzh75fzUH1qcho8uJu9WyZUFB8kV9rZh61WR1btYZz__kg1VaerTXuANU7I2JLpKvBC80T86bUXQKL0b5o2eweStKvRx9EcF44katO-tTCfjhydtInx_6V49&c=oBqh3tO5z1vSXLIdVEusfgHP0vFulTVKSdgt9QK6sGoZUQAbXgoCWQ==&ch=H5F_fEgJVF8qMRUxGMfYN7cy5yf5fGWFJWCBZx82lPszw1S0NkJaBg==>.
Decisions

The DART Commission voted today to have DART draft a new bus network based on the following:

We will prioritize a ridership model that has fewer total bus routes with buses running more often in the busiest areas of our region. We will consider options, such as microtransit <https://sqijm7dab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001CRxCXihEa3cxXv8_8WsjyyfoG0erJf4k1FcKLCQqC6ikHeuitmquCWurhZ_pFvtTfOCUfn3j7GE1GD8Yj5qIdaPEVcZW14R2J8pLYi8DuF9spBahndfCeuEhTnTsUF5LgzUZX5HqohdrFNVkoSrjgqoOxVtot02f_q4HfXjHs-Sgd1vQfX18V7qAw2VKiVbfOafl6kGLK5U=&c=oBqh3tO5z1vSXLIdVEusfgHP0vFulTVKSdgt9QK6sGoZUQAbXgoCWQ==&ch=H5F_fEgJVF8qMRUxGMfYN7cy5yf5fGWFJWCBZx82lPszw1S0NkJaBg==>, in Ankeny, Altoona and Clive based on their preference to have greater transit coverage. This decision aligns with what we heard from you during public input <https://sqijm7dab.cc.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001CRxCXihEa3cxXv8_8WsjyyfoG0erJf4k1FcKLCQqC6ikHeuitmquCTGHOy4z1s-yS-m-l2yHXAfvwdgJDEKkmjFdcuD05ueNk1RTnoFa1Lyhu-V_E0JHpatrUJMoTO6mV01IRyyPFnFtUjLsOYSOCWkA5lcNFNVZmg7CtTRiyuWSlL_1bHnWBA==&c=oBqh3tO5z1vSXLIdVEusfgHP0vFulTVKSdgt9QK6sGoZUQAbXgoCWQ==&ch=H5F_fEgJVF8qMRUxGMfYN7cy5yf5fGWFJWCBZx82lPszw1S0NkJaBg==>.

We will design a bus network with about 10% less service than we provide today. At a time when communities are facing significant budget pressures, this decision allows us to maintain closer to existing service levels than some budget scenarios the DART Commission considered this spring. 

The property tax bill being considered by the Iowa Legislature did not pass this session, but we anticipate it could be considered next session. We will continue to educate lawmakers over the next year about possible solutions that would minimize any impacts to DART.  

Next Steps

We will share a proposed bus network for public input this September. The feedback we receive will help us finalize a plan that the DART Commission should vote on in January 2026. 

We have a balanced budget and will continue to operate our current bus network until summer 2026. We will communicate all changes to services several weeks in advance.

Thank you for your participation in public input in April and we look forward to keeping you informed of key information and decisions related to Reimagine DART as we continue this process.
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Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority | 620 Cherry St | Des Moines, IA 50309 US
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