| ITEM #: 2. DATE: 09/08/2025 AI #:2775 |
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CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT
| SUBJECT: | FY2026 STRATEGIC PLAN – PUBLIC TRANSIT FUNDING AND SERVICE LEVELS UPDATE |
| STAFF PRESENTER(S): | Christine McMurdy, Project Management Coordinator |
Summary
Council will receive an update on the Engineering Department’s (Engineering) Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Strategic Plan action item within the Safe & Vibrant Community focus area. The Public Transit action item is intended to evaluate funding and service levels for all transit services in Goodyear, including ridership. The update also focuses on Goodyear’s Microtransit service, WeRIDE. (Christine McMurdy, Project Management Coordinator)
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no direct fiscal impact related to this item. However, the information provided is intended to inform the Mayor and Council on potential budget impacts related to any changes in current transit service levels.
BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS
On November 13, 2023, Council adopted Resolution No. 2023-2363 Adopting the City of Goodyear FY2025-2027 Strategic Plan. In the adopted Strategic Plan under the Fiscal & Resource Management Focus Area, Engineering has a Public Transit action item to evaluate funding and service levels, which is to be completed in FY2026.
The Public Transit action item is included in the updated FY2025-2028 Strategic Plan, which Council adopted at its November 18, 2024 meeting through Resolution No. 2024-2434.
Goodyear Transit Services
Over the last twenty years, city staff have worked closely with Valley Metro (the regional public transit agency), the City of Phoenix, and other west valley cities to plan, implement, and fund the transit service that operates within Goodyear. Currently there are three primary types of transit service operating within the city: Fixed Route Bus, Paratransit, and Microtransit.
Fixed Route Bus
Microtransit / WeRide
WeRIDE is an on-demand ride-share service, offering trips to and from fixed points within a specific 17 square-mile service area and stops at shopping centers, recreation facilities, businesses, and community spaces. The service area is bounded by McDowell Road on the north, Cotton Lane on the west, MC85 on the south and the city limits on the east. WeRide operates on weekdays from 6:00 am to 8:00 pm. Fares are two dollars for the general public, and one dollar for seniors, veterans, persons with a disability, students, and children 12 years-old and younger. An account is required to book a trip, which can be set up through the mobile app or by contacting the WeRIDE Dispatch Center. Trips can be booked by calling a dispatcher and the fare can be paid in the app using a credit/debit card or with cash when the customer boards (exact change required). WeRide is operated by a third-party operator contracted by the cities of Goodyear, Peoria, and Avondale. A map of the WeRIDE service area is provided in Attachment C.
Goodyear Transit Facilities and Assets
There are number of transit facilities and assets used to operate transit services in Goodyear. Some are owned and maintained by the city, while others are owned by other entities and maintained through contractual agreements.
Transit services in Goodyear are typically funded through regional transportation sales tax revenues (Proposition 400/479), federal grant funding, city general fund revenues, and digital marquee advertising revenues.
The Public Transit action item is included in the updated FY2025-2028 Strategic Plan, which Council adopted at its November 18, 2024 meeting through Resolution No. 2024-2434.
Goodyear Transit Services
Over the last twenty years, city staff have worked closely with Valley Metro (the regional public transit agency), the City of Phoenix, and other west valley cities to plan, implement, and fund the transit service that operates within Goodyear. Currently there are three primary types of transit service operating within the city: Fixed Route Bus, Paratransit, and Microtransit.
Fixed Route Bus
- Route 17 – McDowell Road: Route 17 is a local fixed route bus service that operates on McDowell Road from Pebblecreek Parkway to Pima Road. The service operates on weekdays every 20-40 minutes during peak service hours and every 40 minutes during off-peak service hours. On Saturdays, the service operates every 60 minutes. There is no Sunday service. The one-way fare is two dollars. Route 17 is operated by the City of Phoenix.
- Route 3 – Van Buren Street: Route 3 is a local fixed route bus service that operates on Van Buren Street from 4th Street/La Canada Boulevard to the Phoenix Zoo. The service operates on weekdays every 30 minutes. On Saturdays, the service operates every 60 minutes. There is no Sunday service. The one-way fare is two dollars. Route 3 is operated by the City of Phoenix.
- Express Route 562: Route 562 is a limited stop express commuter bus service that operates on weekdays only from the Goodyear Park-and-Ride (located at the intersection of Dysart Road and Cornerstone Boulevard) to 17th Avenue/Jefferson Street in downtown Phoenix. The express service operates three trips in the eastbound direction in the morning and three trips in the westbound direction in the afternoon. The fare is three dollars and twenty-five cents per trip. Route 562 is operated by Valley Metro.
- Dial-a-Ride: Dial-a-Ride (DAR) is a paratransit service that provides a curb-to-curb shared-ride service for people with a disability who are unable to access the fixed route bus system. It is federally required to provide DAR services within ¾ mile of local fixed route bus service (Routes 3 and 17). A one-way trip on DAR is four dollars and a monthly pass is $65. Service hours are Monday through Saturday from 4:40 am to 11:00 pm, and on Sundays and holidays from 5:00 am to 11:00 pm. The use of DAR requires ADA certification, which is processed by Valley Metro. The reservation call center for DAR is open seven days a week from 6:00 am to 7:00 pm, with a new option for customers to reserve trips online. Trip reservations are required. A map of the Goodyear DAR service area is provided in Attachment B. DAR service is operated by Valley Metro.
- RideChoice: RideChoice is a service offered to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-certified residents as an alternative to DAR. The service is offered citywide and provides curb-to-curb service 24 hours per day for rides to work, school, or medical appointments. The fare for RideChoice trips is three dollars for up to eight miles with any additional mile’s costing two dollars per mile. Users of the service may take up to 20 trips per month. If customers need to take longer trips, they can receive their service as a monthly allocation of 400 miles for trips of no more than 50 miles in length within Maricopa County. When the customer reaches their 400 mile allotment, service is discontinued until the start of the next month. The RideChoice Call Center accepts reservations 24 hours per day, every day of the year, including holidays. Rides can be scheduled on the same day of service if available. RideChoice is operated by Valley Metro.
Microtransit / WeRide
WeRIDE is an on-demand ride-share service, offering trips to and from fixed points within a specific 17 square-mile service area and stops at shopping centers, recreation facilities, businesses, and community spaces. The service area is bounded by McDowell Road on the north, Cotton Lane on the west, MC85 on the south and the city limits on the east. WeRide operates on weekdays from 6:00 am to 8:00 pm. Fares are two dollars for the general public, and one dollar for seniors, veterans, persons with a disability, students, and children 12 years-old and younger. An account is required to book a trip, which can be set up through the mobile app or by contacting the WeRIDE Dispatch Center. Trips can be booked by calling a dispatcher and the fare can be paid in the app using a credit/debit card or with cash when the customer boards (exact change required). WeRide is operated by a third-party operator contracted by the cities of Goodyear, Peoria, and Avondale. A map of the WeRIDE service area is provided in Attachment C.
Goodyear Transit Facilities and Assets
There are number of transit facilities and assets used to operate transit services in Goodyear. Some are owned and maintained by the city, while others are owned by other entities and maintained through contractual agreements.
- Goodyear Park-and-Ride: The city owns and operates the Goodyear Park and Ride, located at 13183 W. Cornerstone Boulevard. Built in 2010, the park-and-ride sits on a 12.4-acre site and provides parking for approximately 420 vehicles. In addition to express bus route 562 riders, the park-and-ride is open to carpools and vanpools and serves as a transfer point between WeRIDE Microtransit Avondale and Goodyear zones. The park-and-ride was built using Federal Transit Administration funding but is maintained by the city.
- Bus Shelters: Bus shelters are used to support the local fixed route bus service (Routes 3 and 17) in the city. The bus shelters (25 in total) are owned and maintained by Outfront Media, who also advertise on the shelters. The advertising generates approximately $15,000 in annual revenue to the city. Outfront Media cleans the bus shelters twice per week.
- Digital Marquees: Clear Channel owns, operates, and maintains two digital marquees located on city property. Built in 2011, the digital marquees display off-premises advertising and provides a critical revenue source (approximately $125,000 annually) to the city to support transit and other city operations.
Transit services in Goodyear are typically funded through regional transportation sales tax revenues (Proposition 400/479), federal grant funding, city general fund revenues, and digital marquee advertising revenues.
- Fixed Route Bus: Local (Routes 3 and 17) and express (Route 562) bus service is fully funded by regional transportation sales tax revenues (Proposition 400/479).
- Paratransit: Paratransit services (DAR and RideChoice) are funded by a combination of regional transportation sales tax revenues (Proposition 400/479), federal grant funding, Arizona Lottery funds, and city general fund revenues. Valley Metro charges local member agencies for paratransit services based on ridership. At the beginning of each fiscal year, Valley Metro provides estimated Goodyear paratransit ridership with its annual local member agency intergovernmental agreement. At the end of the fiscal year, Valley Metro performs a reconciliation and provides either an invoice or a refund to the city based on actual ridership in comparison to the estimated ridership. After accounting for regional transportation sales tax revenues (Proposition 400/479) and federal grant funding, the city’s estimated FY2026 costs to provide DAR service is $60,331, while its costs to provide RideChoice service is $321,028.
- Microtransit / WeRide: WeRide service is funded by the city general fund revenues and revenues from the city’s digital marquees. There are currently no external revenue sources available to support microtransit service. In the first two years of WeRide operations, the city was able to take advantage of Federal Transit Administration grant funding to offset the city’s costs. The city is currently in the fourth year of a five-year contract with TransDev for the operation of WeRide service. Goodyear and Avondale staff are discussing a potential future contractual arrangement with Valley Metro that could result in reduced WeRide operational costs following the conclusion of the current TransDev contract in June 2027. The City’s estimated FY2026 WeRide cost is $1,614,340, and the estimated FY2027 cost is $1,644,522.
- Facilities and Assets: The ongoing maintenance costs for the park-and-ride facility include janitorial services, landscape maintenance services, and utilities costs. The annual operating and maintenance costs for the park-and-ride are paid for with the city general fund revenue and Arizona Lottery funds.
STAFF ANALYSIS
The WeRIDE zone was selected based on multiple criteria, including demographics (population density, age distribution, income levels), travel patterns (trip generators like schools, healthcare, employment hubs, retail) and geographic barriers (physical separation from activity centers). Activity centers such as shopping centers and grocery stores generate relatively consistent demand for transit.
Feedback from the passengers currently using WeRIDE continues to indicate high satisfaction with the service. Out of 166 responses to an October 2024 survey, the top two reasons passengers use WeRIDE is to get to work and shopping. Over 53% of the respondents stated the main reason they use WeRIDE is they do not own a personal vehicle or have limited access to a personal vehicle and 84% stated that without WeRIDE, they would have to use a private rideshare service (i.e. Uber, Lyft, taxi).
As we near the end of the five-year WeRIDE contract, staff will be working with Avondale and Valley Metro to consider opportunities to transition the service. Valley Metro’s RideChoice service bears a very close resemblance microtransit service; both services are on-demand, require routing technology, feature smaller vehicles that are ADA accessible, and require a higher level of interaction between the customer and the driver. Staff in Goodyear and Avondale will be working with a Valley Metro consultant to explore whether WeRIDE can be transitioned over to Valley Metro at the end of the city’s contract (FY27) at a lower cost. Staff expects to know more about this opportunity by Spring 2026. Until we have more information on whether and how Valley Metro can operate WeRIDE in the west valley, we will work to refine potential expansion scenarios that have the highest probability of success similar to the current zone.
Feedback from the passengers currently using WeRIDE continues to indicate high satisfaction with the service. Out of 166 responses to an October 2024 survey, the top two reasons passengers use WeRIDE is to get to work and shopping. Over 53% of the respondents stated the main reason they use WeRIDE is they do not own a personal vehicle or have limited access to a personal vehicle and 84% stated that without WeRIDE, they would have to use a private rideshare service (i.e. Uber, Lyft, taxi).
As we near the end of the five-year WeRIDE contract, staff will be working with Avondale and Valley Metro to consider opportunities to transition the service. Valley Metro’s RideChoice service bears a very close resemblance microtransit service; both services are on-demand, require routing technology, feature smaller vehicles that are ADA accessible, and require a higher level of interaction between the customer and the driver. Staff in Goodyear and Avondale will be working with a Valley Metro consultant to explore whether WeRIDE can be transitioned over to Valley Metro at the end of the city’s contract (FY27) at a lower cost. Staff expects to know more about this opportunity by Spring 2026. Until we have more information on whether and how Valley Metro can operate WeRIDE in the west valley, we will work to refine potential expansion scenarios that have the highest probability of success similar to the current zone.
Attachments
- Attachment A - FY2025 Transit Ridership Information
- Attachment B - Map of Goodyear DAR Service Area
- Attachment C - Map of Goodyear WeRide Service Area
- Staff Presentation