TARC 2025 Accessible Materials
TARC has released draft proposals for a new TARC at different price points, including both short- and longer-term options for the community to consider.
The release of the proposals kicks off a two-month period of public engagement until April 30. Community feedback during the draft plan will help to guide TARC in making any changes to each proposal. After April 30, the TARC board will consider community feedback as they finalize proposals. The earliest that any redesigned network could be fully implemented is summer 2026.
Limited Plan
The Limited Plan would provide significantly reduced service compared to today, but at a level TARC is confident existing revenues can support. This is a barebones plan that TARC hopes to not have to implement. Fortunately, thanks to the recent cost cutting measures, TARC projects that this plan would only have to be implemented as a last resort if no additional funding is identified by 2030.
For a text description of the Limited Plan including major roads and destinations, please click here.
For a voice over reading of the Limited Plan, please click here.
For a PDF of the Limited Plan map, please click here.
Enhanced Plan
The Enhanced Plan would see slightly reduced service levels from today but with a redesigned network that would provide better access to jobs than the current network – as well as better coverage and connectivity than the Limited Plan. It will also provide service to all JCPS magnet high schools. While the Enhanced Plan provides better service than the Limited Plan, TARC could not maintain it indefinitely without additional funding. If TARC were to implement the Enhanced Plan in the summer of 2026, it would buy the region time until 2030 to determine if more investment is needed in transit. After that, if no more funding were available, TARC would need to cut service again.
For a text description of the Enhanced Plan including major roads and destinations, please click here.
For a voice over reading of the Enhanced Plan, please click here.
For a PDF of the Enhanced Plan map, please click here.
Growth Plan
If the region determines to prioritize significant new investment in transit, TARC could implement the Growth Plan – which would see a sizeable increase in service levels, access to jobs, frequency and coverage. The Growth Plan is intended to be more of a long-term vision for regional transit and shows what the region would be able to achieve with ample new investment in transit.
For a text description of the Growth Plan including major roads and destinations, please click here.
For a voice reading of the Growth Plan, please click here.
For a PDF of the Growth Plan map, please click here.
JCPS Plan
Another option the Louisville community could consider is the JCPS Plan. The JCPS plan builds off of the Enhanced Plan network to provide morning and afternoon service to all JCPS high schools – magnet or otherwise. It would provide an additional option for parents and students throughout the school system as well as additional transit coverage to areas like Middletown and areas of southern Jefferson County that would not be served in the Limited or Enhanced plans. The JCPS plan would require some additional investment in order to implement, but much less than the Growth Plan.
For a text description of the JCPS Plan including major roads and destinations, please click here.
For a voice reading of the JCPS Plan, please click here.
For a PDF of the JCPS Plan map, please click here.
TARC3 Service and the Concepts
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, TARC is required to provide complementary paratransit service for any eligible customer with a disability for any trip that is within three-fourths of a mile of fixed route bus service. When TARC’s only dedicated local revenue source was established by Jefferson County voters in 1974, paratransit was not part of TARC’s service offerings. The federal government mandated the provision of paratransit service in 1990 but neither the federal, state, or local governments established any additional revenue to help TARC pay for the service.
In both the Enhanced and Limited Networks, the area covered by TARC routes would decline, which would reduce the minimum required service area where TARC must provide paratransit service to people with disabilities. In the Limited and Enhanced Networks, TARC plans to continue serving currently eligible customers even in areas beyond the three-fourths of a mile zone around its routes.
TARC’s paratransit service is branded as “TARC3” and serves about 1,300 trips per weekday today.
- In the Enhanced Network, about 34% of current paratransit trips would no longer be within the three-fourths of a mile zone. TARC would not be required to serve these trips anymore.
- In the Limited Network, about 44% of trips would no longer be within the three-fourths of a mile zone. TARC would not be required to serve these trips anymore.
The cost to maintaining paratransit service in areas beyond the three-fourths of a mile minimum coverage zone is about $5 to $7 million per year. Local, regional, or state funding partners could provide TARC with this funding to ensure that currently eligible paratransit customers would be served for the long-term.
Additionally, TARC could change its fares for TARC3 trips outside the three-fourths of a mile minimum ADA service area. The current standard fare for paratransit trips is $3.00, whereas the average paratransit trip costs TARC about $46. Under federal rules, TARC cannot charge more than double the fixed-route fare for paratransit trips inside the three-fourths of a mile zone. TARC could charge a higher fare for trips outside that zone to help support the cost of continued paratransit service to those areas. TARC is asking the public to consider these options, we encourage you to voice your opinion in the Draft Plan Survey.