City commits $250,000 to keep Via LC service in Elyria

Elyria City Council voted on Monday to commit $250,000 in funding to continue the popular Via LC microtransit program in the city. The unanimous vote will keep Via LC in operation in Elyria through July 2026. The service provides on-demand vans to transport residents within either Elyria or Lorain, and between the two in a limited capacity. Lorain passed a similar ordinance in early June, also committing $250,000 to continue the microtransit service. Via LC was launched in July 2024 and with funding from the federal government to run as a one-year pilot program. The money was given to Via Transportation, a software company based in New York that had launched similar app-based microtransit programs in parts of the Midwest. Riders can use an app to request a ride between any two locations in either Lorain or Elyria for the cost of just $2. The service is $1 for those over the age of 65, disabled persons, Medicare cardholders, children ages 3-12 and students. Veterans and infants ride for free. The service is available Monday through Friday, from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Assistant Lorain County Administrator Karen Perkins said at a public meeting in March that the program had been hugely successful, but with the federal funding for the pilot program expiring in June the county would have to turn to local governments and institutions to help fund it. The commitment of $500,000 from the two cities that Via LC serves will keep the program running for another year. Perkins also said in March that the county would look for additional funding to help expand the program into other Lorain County communities. Lorain County Commissioner Dave Moore went before a meeting of Elyria's Finance Committee on June 9 to request the additional funding, saying, "We don't know what the future holds, but we don't want to lose Via." Before City Council voted on the proposal on Monday, Councilman Kenny Oswald, D-4th Ward, asked Mayor Kevin Brubaker if the money from the city would be used to combine the Via LC services in Elyria and Lorain, which currently run separately. Brubaker said that the programs would remain separate, but Via LC currently has options for riders to be dropped off at the border of Elyria and then picked up by a Via LC van from Lorain to complete trips there. He added that he believed Lorain County Community College had expressed interest in serving as a physical transfer station for Via LC riders. "We are working with the college to make the college that meeting point," Brubaker said on Monday. "For multiple reasons including that they are open, they have food, they have rest rooms while (Via LC riders) wait for that transfer." In an email response to an inquiry about the mayor's comments at Council, LCCC Director of School, Workforce and Community Partnerships Cindy Kushner did not directly address plans to serve as a transfer station, but said the college was exploring how it could help the program expand its transportation services. "We know that the lack of reliable transportation can be a real barrier for students and for those looking to grow their career through education," Kushner said. "The new Via LC public transportation service broadens access for our community, and we're excited to see it open more pathways to education and opportunity. Lorain County Community College continues to explore avenues for further collaborations that enhance transportation options." During the public meeting on transportation in March, county officials and Via LC employees said that the service was very popular among students, especially those going to and from Elyria High School and LCCC. As of March, Perkins said the service had seen about 38,000 separate riders take more than 50,000 rides since Via LC launched in July 2024. Perkins said that 45 percent of riders used Via LC to get to work, while 17 percent used it to get to school. At that same meeting, Via LC General Manager Jesse Ozdamar said that Via LC had caught on much faster than in most of Via's other Midwest ventures, and that the service was seeing around 7,000 rides per month. In early July, the county commissioners voted to enter into a $2.2 million contract with Via Transportation to continue the program. With the investment of $250,000 each from Lorain and Elyria, the county is still facing a bill of $1.7 million for Via LC's operation. County officials have said they will continue to seek additional Via LC funding commitments from other local institutions such as school and hospital systems and large employers. Contact Owen MacMillan at (440) 329-7123 or omacmillan@chroniclet.com.