The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will lay off up to 194 employees and shut down the Downtown Skyway to close a $39 million budget gap, the agency announced Sept. 17.

Weekday bus service will also drop to Saturday levels on many routes. News4JAX reported those reductions begin Nov. 2, the same day the Skyway stops running indefinitely. Beaches-area commuters who ride JTA buses to downtown Jacksonville will see less frequent service.

JTA's board approved a $139 million operating budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, down from $178 million in the current year. The layoffs include up to 44 administrative staff and 150 frontline operations workers, more than one-fifth of JTA's 846-person workforce.

Interim CEO Cleveland Ferguson III, appointed by the board in August, said the moves were necessary to stabilize the authority's finances. At a Sept. 17 news briefing reported by the Florida Times-Union, Ferguson said, "We are going to make the tough decisions now, protect our core mission and stabilize today to restore tomorrow."

Employees in the latest round were to be notified Sept. 18.

What changes for bus riders

First Coast Flyer bus rapid transit lines will keep running every 20 minutes on weekdays. Routes 1, 3, 8, 10 and 19 will operate every 30 minutes. The remaining 12 routes will continue running at their current 60-minute intervals.

JTA's Downtown Neighborhood Autonomous Vehicle Innovation (NAVI) shuttle service will pause Jan. 1, 2027, saving about $487,000 per month. Both the Skyway and NAVI suspensions are indefinite.

How JTA got here

A City Council auditor report in August found JTA was on track to finish its current fiscal year with a $31.8 million deficit. That figure had ballooned from a projected $2.25 million shortfall six months earlier, the Jacksonville Daily Record reported.

Auditors attributed the gap to $17.4 million in revenue shortfalls and $14.4 million in spending overruns. Sales and gas tax collections alone fell $10.5 million below projections.

Among the overruns: $8.4 million under JTA's Connexion paratransit program because the service provider's contract was not budgeted for the full year, and $7.4 million in fringe benefits that were not budgeted accurately, auditors found.

A fare reduction pilot program meant to boost ridership cost JTA $1.8 million in lost passenger revenue. JTA later reversed course, raising fares and cutting routes. In June, the board voted to trim five bus routes, five ReadiRide zones and reduce frequency on four other routes. The Sept. 17 cuts came on top of those and on top of 31 layoffs and 88 furloughs over the past year.

By July, JTA carried $15.06 million in delinquent bills, some dating to 2014, with one company owed $3.48 million.

What comes next

City Council President Nick Howland said he would direct the council's Financial Audit and Oversight Select Committee to review JTA projects funded by the Local Option Gas Tax. City Council member Rory Diamond, the council's liaison to JTA, commended Ferguson for "doing what needed to be done."

Phil Perry, a spokesperson for Mayor Donna Deegan, said in a written statement that the JTA board had not previously known the full scope of the financial problems. The mayor's administration said it would help departing employees find jobs with the city and partner agencies.

A longer-term fix could involve redirecting some of the $247 million Local Option Gas Tax earmarked for JTA's autonomous Ultimate Urban Circulator (U2C) system. Ferguson floated the idea of private-sector involvement, including allowing a company to operate the Skyway as a toll road. JTA has already received an unsolicited bid from a construction company to convert the Skyway into a roadway.

Perry said any changes to the gas tax agreement must be negotiated with the mayor's office and that Emerald Trail funding must be protected.

Former CEO Nat Ford resigned July 3 and was hired by Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Ford had led JTA since 2014. JTA's attorney, Richard Milian, told board members they should not expect to hire a permanent CEO before December, and possibly not until March 2027. The Financial Audit and Oversight Select Committee review has no announced date.