TARC 2025 STUDY PROCESS
TARC 2025: Moving Forward Together is a year-long collaborative process with our community designed to meet three key goals:
- Engage the Community: Actively engage the community in comprehensive discussions about public transit priorities and the overall transit network, ensuring diverse and inclusive participation.
- Alternative Concepts: Create and evaluate alternative concepts for TARC service that effectively balance the community’s transit goals with available financial resources.
- Workable Solutions: Set a clear path forward for the TARC’s transit services that aligns with the community’s needs and preferences and can be implemented within expected funding. One proposal will assume a significant reduction in available operating revenue, as is currently projected by TARC. The other proposal will show how TARC could be more reliable and useful for Louisville residents if additional dedicated operating revenue is secured.
We are using a four-phase process to find the answers to these questions:
Phase 1:
MARKET NEEDS & ASSESSMENT
Phase 2:
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
Phase 3:
DRAFT PLAN
Phase 4:
FINAL PLAN
Phase 1: MARKET & NEEDS ASSESSMENT
This phase of the study focuses on:
- Collecting data about the local population, jobs, travel patterns, local and regional growth, future transit potential and more
- Gathering input on transportation needs and priorities from the community, with special emphasis on Areas of Persistent Poverty (AoPP).
- Talking with TARC’s existing and potential riders, TARC employees, and other system stakeholders including small and large businesses, key regional employers, educational institutions, local leaders and elected officials
Examples of the maps and analysis of Existing Conditions for the TARC 2025 study.
Phase 2: CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
Phase 2 focuses on:
- Developing several conceptual options for restructuring TARC’s current service and network structure using information and data from the Markets & Needs Assessment
- Sharing concepts with stakeholders and the public to prompt discussion about trade-offs, priorities, and goals
- Using input received to refine the concepts and identify a preferred plan for implementation
Phase 3: DRAFT PLAN
This phase of development will focus on:
- More detailed development of the preferred system plan
- Sharing the draft plan with stakeholders and the public for review and comment – particularly from those who will be most directly impacted by the plan’s recommendations
Phase 4: FINAL PLAN
In Phase 4:
- The final plan will be widely shared throughout the community
- An implementation plan will also be developed to allow customers and other stakeholders to begin preparing for the upcoming changes
STUDY TIMELINE
The TARC 2025: Moving Forward Together study began in February 2024. The release of the proposals on March 5, 2025 kick 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.
