Tackling the Transit Funding Crisis at the Grassroots Level

For nearly a year, SMART-TD has examined the nationwide transit funding crisis in-depth.

Whether it’s cities from Philadelphia to San Francisco facing devastating service cuts because of looming fiscal cliffs or legislative impasses preventing additional funding boosts, both riders and operators are suffering from an often-avoidable problem that they did not cause.

The Key to a Thriving Community: Fast, Reliable Public Transit

In California, one group is taking a proactive approach to ensure that public transit stays fully funded after a service expansion that was rolled out in recent years led to considerable improvements systemwide.

Friends of Santa Cruz Metro is spearheading the effort to put a half-cent sales tax referendum on the November 3 ballot in Santa Cruz County that would maintain fast, frequent service and make the bus free for most people. If passed, the tax would remain in effect unless voters chose to repeal it later.

Voters in Charlotte, North Carolina approved a similar measure in November of 2025 that’s expected to raise $19 billion over 30 years for transit projects.

SMART-TD Bus Department Vice President James Sandoval, who started his career as a bus operator for Santa Cruz METRO, emphasizes the impact of quality public transportation on communities nationwide.

“SMART-TD Local 23 members move Santa Cruz County every single day, and SMART members across the country are doing the same in their communities,” he said. “When service is frequent, affordable, and dependable, people don’t just ride because they have to: they choose to. If we want reliable service, strong ridership, and real opportunity, we must invest in it and stand up for the workers who make it all possible.”

Since Metro expanded service, there’s been a notable 33% increase in ridership and a 400% increase in ridership for students, thanks to the agency’s Youth Cruz Free Program, which allows K-12 students to get on a bus just by showing their student ID.

Several significant investments are also in progress, including a bus on shoulder lane in the Highway 1 expansion project and zero emission fleet upgrades made possible because of dedicated investment in the critical services that residents rely on every day.

Locally Controlled Funding Source is a Non-Negotiable

Friends of Santa Cruz Metro makes it clear: without dedicated local funding, the world class service that Santa Cruz County residents have come to know would be a thing of the past.

On the chopping block…

• 40% service reduction
• 100+ employees risk losing their jobs
• Youth Cruz Free Program ends
• Frequent service (every 15-20 minutes) increased to every 30 minutes

This is an avoidable problem, but only if the sales tax measure makes it onto the November 3 ballot and is ultimately approved by voters.

Live in Santa Cruz County? Act Now!

To qualify, 12,500 signatures from voters across the county are needed by May 11, 2026.

You can join the volunteer list to help collect signatures in Santa Cruz County or donate to help support the campaign.

“If we want reliable service, strong ridership, and real opportunity, we have to invest in it and stand up for the workers who make it all possible,” explained VP Sandoval. “The choice is simple: move forward together or fall behind.”