Volusia County public transportation fares could increase

The charge to ride a bus or use Volusia County's ridesharing service could increase soon.

The Volsuia County Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to begin exploring the possibility of rate increases. The next steps include public meetings to get feedback.

The proposed rate changes include increasing the cost of a single bus ride from $1.75 to $2 and increasing the cost of a paratransit ride from $3 to $4.

The county recently launched VoRide in part of West Volusia , which is an on-demand ridesharing service similar to Uber or Lyft. Users pay $2 per one-way ride unless they qualify for a discount.

Under the proposed rate changes, people would pay $2 per ride for up to eight miles. The cost would increase by $1 for an 8-15 mile trip. Another dollar would be added for trips of 15-20 miles. No trips would be allowed to go over 20 miles.

Bobbie King, Volusia County Transit Services director, said the county's public transportation is regulated by the Federal Transit Administration and has to go through a federal process for rate increases.

That process will include at least six in-person meetings across the county and at least one virtual meeting, and the county has to deliver an analysis of the rate changes.

The information could come back to the County Council in August. If approved, fare increases could go into effect on Jan. 1, King said.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Volusia County public transportation fares could increase