Clay County commissioners have voted to pull the plug on the county's funding contract with the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, cutting the agency's budget by $500,000 and setting a hard deadline of December 31, 2026, for the deal to end. The move throws the future of Clay Community Transportation and Clay Express Select, the shuttle and commuter services that carried nearly 29,000 riders last year, into question just as county staff scramble to find a cheaper replacement.
A Contract Cut Short by Years
The county had been funding Jacksonville Transportation Authority services through a current agreement that was renewed just last year and was originally supposed to run through September 2028, according to First Coast News. That deal had been providing JTA roughly $1.4 million a year. Instead of riding out those final two years, commissioners chose what's known as the termination for convenience path, a provision that lets either party walk away without cause as long as they give 90 days' written notice.
JTA became Clay County's community transportation coordinator back in 2019, taking over operation of Clay Community Transportation, Clay Express Select and the transportation disadvantaged program. Clay Community Transportation runs shuttle service every regular weekday for a standard fare of $1, with red, magenta, blue and green service lines covering Middleburg, Orange Park and Keystone Heights, plus certain out-of-county stops. Riders can even request pickup from locations outside the designated bus stops when scheduling allows.
Service Schedule and Earlier JTA Transition
Clay County lists CCT bus service as operating Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., with no service on weekends or holidays, according to the county.
The current funding decision follows an earlier service transition: Jacksonville.com reported in March 2019 that JTA had become Clay County’s community transportation coordinator on Jan. 1. That handoff is distinct from the county’s current decision to terminate a funding contract.
Commuters Rely on Express Route Into Jacksonville
Clay Express Select serves a different purpose, ferrying commuters to and from the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla, which gives riders access to routes throughout Jacksonville. Ridership numbers underscore how much is riding on the decision: the program logged nearly 29,000 riders in 2025 alone, a scale that makes the looming funding gap more than a bureaucratic footnote for the households who depend on the $1 rides to get to work, school or appointments.
County officials framed the cut as a budget necessity rather than a rejection of the service itself. Karen Smith said the county reduced funding in order to reduce spending, and added that Clay County will spend the next 90 days working either to renegotiate with JTA or to pursue other options that fit within the county's budget. Staff have said they plan to explore cheaper transportation alternatives while also keeping the door open to a renegotiated deal with JTA, and they intend to bring another transportation funding agreement to the board before the December 31 termination date arrives.
A Commissioner's Warning
Not every commissioner is comfortable with the gamble. Jim Renninger raised concerns about ending the contract without a replacement alternative already lined up, a worry that speaks to the uncertainty now hanging over thousands of riders. JTA, for its part, operates under its own state funding and obligations, meaning any renegotiated Clay County deal will have to work within constraints the transit authority doesn't fully control.
With the clock now running on the 90-day notice window, the coming weeks will determine whether Clay County can secure a lower-cost transportation deal in time, whether JTA agrees to renegotiate, or whether riders face a gap in service when the current contract expires at the end of the year.
