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Rail News Home Passenger Rail

9/15/2026



Rail News: Passenger Rail

GCRTA delays proposed service cuts until 2027


The GCRTA will request a tax increase in the May 2027 special election to boost its funding; the last such ballot initiative passed in 1975.
Photo – Shutterstock / Tupungato

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The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) will delay a series of proposed service cuts until after a planned special election in May 2027.

GCRTA’s General Manager and CEO, India Birdsong Terry, accepted the recommendation from GCRTA’s staff to delay the cuts following a series of public meetings held in July, authority officials announced in a press release. 

"My decision was aligned with the expressed views of our riders and GCRTA board members who attended our public hearings, and who also shared their daily reliance on existing GCRTA service," Terry said.

GCRTA’s largest source of income comes from Cuyahoga County’s sales tax. GCRTA’s board voted to ask for a tax increase in the May 2027 election; the size of the requested increase is expected to be debated at the board’s Sept. 22 meeting. The last requested tax levy to fund the GCRTA passed in 1975 by 71%. 

“If the upcoming 2027 ballot initiative fails, GCRTA will need to make deeper cuts,” said Terry.

The proposed cuts include weekday frequency reductions on five routes; weekend frequency reductions on three routes and the discontinuation of one route. A previous round of service reductions on trolley, light-rail and bus lines was implemented in August.



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