You watch the bus go by and take it for granted. Most people do, most of the time, whether we use it at the moment or not.
In Nampa, in the year to come, maybe less so. And for some people, the presence or absence of that bus could be a matter of crisis.
Start with the point that bus transit in the Boise region is well short of comprehensive, and always has been. Most large population centers have large mass transit operations, such as those in the metro areas on the West Coast. Idaho, Washington and Oregon between them have 157 transit systems of various types - urban, rural, small urban and tribal. Regionally, though, Idaho hasn’t kept up.
This isn’t because nobody noticed. It’s because many people in the state are oriented to a car (or truck) method of moving around, and large transit systems smack of government service (ick, for many Idahoans) and are reminiscent of the kind of large-population places many recent Idaho newcomers had fled.
So consider Nampa, one of Idaho’s fast-growing cities at well over 100,000 people, and home to many of those newcomers, whose vision of the Idaho they were coming to did not include extensive urban services.
Nampa has been a part of the Valley Regional Transit service, a free-standing organization led by local government officials which manages “public bus transit, specialized van services, paratransit, Park & Ride, and more,” and while centered in Boise, it reaches parts of Caldwell, Meridian and Nampa. The local governments kick in to the system to help keep it running, but the Transit system has no taxing authority.
On July 15, the Nampa City Council decided to end its share of funding for the transit program, effectively ending it within city limits. Did the council members understand what that meant?
The transit system soon brought the receipts. Examples: Valley Transit runs an on-demand service, which in the last fiscal year served 18,000 Nampa boarders headed to various places in Boise for people who had no other practical transport option. Route 42, which connects a Nampa transit center to key stops in Boise, serves about 13,000 a year. Route 40, serving the Nampa-Caldwell area and also connecting to many places in Boise, served 3,250 Nampa boarders.
On August 4, Transit held a public hearing on the Nampa decision and heard from dozens of people. The agency summarized some of the comments:
“Many riders shared they do not drive due to disability, age, or income. Some said that without transit, they would lose their ability to work, attend medical appointments, or remain self‑sufficient. Others described past experiences losing mobility when Access services were reduced and expressed concern for that to happen again.
“CWI students and parents emphasized that cutting service would make it harder — or impossible — for some students to reach campus. Some said it could affect their ability to maintain enrollment or continue degree programs.
“Riders explained that they depend on the early‑morning or evening connections to get to work in Boise, Meridian, Caldwell, and Nampa. Several testified that losing transit would threaten their jobs or force their families to purchase second vehicles they cannot afford.”
For these people, bus service is more a necessity than convenience.
Maybe some of that got through at Nampa City Hall. On August 17, the council voted to reinstate a slice of the city’s Transit funding (about a third of it, though that depends on how you count), continuing some services, but eliminating others.
They may not be able to stand still with that. Nampa is continuing to grow, and as it does, the number of people who need public transit will grow too. That’s the nature of a growing urban area, which - like it or not - is what Nampa is in the process of becoming.
The day is likely to come, maybe not soon but eventually, when the need for such services becomes too obvious to deny. When it does, more than just bus traffic may change in Nampa and other places nearby.
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