St. Johns County Holds a Nov. 17 Open House on Sunshine Bus's Next 10 Years as Ridership Sits at 95,837, Down 34% Since 2020

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - St. Johns County is asking residents what public transit should look like for the next decade, and the next chance to weigh in comes Tuesday, Nov. 17. The county and the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization will hold an open house from 5 to 6 p.m. at the Council on Aging's Coastal Community Center, 180 Marine St. in St. Augustine, according to a county news release dated Nov. 5. A brief presentation is scheduled at the start of the hour, the county said.

The meeting is part of a rewrite of the St. Johns County Transit Development Plan, the 10-year document that guides the Sunshine Bus system. The plan will identify the community's public transportation needs and evaluate possible changes, the planning organization said on its meetings page. Those could include expanded service, better connections to key destinations, improved accessibility, upgraded passenger amenities and investments in transit facilities.

Why the plan matters

The plan is a state requirement tied to money. The Florida Department of Transportation requires a major update every five years, with annual updates in between, according to the county's 2026 annual update, dated March 2026. That document says the process establishes eligibility for the State Transit Block Grant Program, which it calls a key source of operating assistance.

The county's last major update was adopted Aug. 17, 2021, according to the county's public transit page. To prepare the new one, the planning organization ran an online survey this spring with the consulting firm England-Thims & Miller, Jacksonville Today reported May 15. The survey sought answers from current riders and from people who do not ride the bus, and the survey page now says it is closed.

Ridership by the numbers

Sunshine Bus is operated day to day by the St. Johns County Council on Aging under a contract with the county, which remains responsible for oversight, the county says. Its fixed routes carried 95,837 riders in 2024, down from 144,874 in 2020, a drop of about 34%, according to National Transit Database figures in the annual update. Over the same five years the amount of service grew, with revenue miles up 51% and revenue hours up 77%.

Fares cover a small share of the bill. Farebox revenue was $63,741 in 2024, or 3.47% of operating cost, and the average fare collected per rider was 67 cents, the annual update shows. Jacksonville Today, citing a 2023 report, said annual ridership was about 300,000 in 2018.

What riders said last time

The annual update includes an on-board survey taken May 19 to 22, 2025, that collected 115 responses from riders on nine routes. It found 86% were very satisfied or satisfied with the bus routes. It also found that 77.9% of those surveyed ride three or more days a week, which the report called a strong reliance on the system.

Asked what would make the service better, riders most often said more frequent trips, with 11 responses, and more buses, with nine. At least six asked for shaded shelters or benches at stops, three asked for Sunday service and two asked for buses to run until 9 at night. The system operates Monday through Saturday except certain holidays, according to the Sunshine Bus website.

Routes and fares today

The annual update lists nine lines, most of them named for colors. An email dated Jan. 7 and included in the update's appendix on service changes said planners intended to replace the Conn-Ex 2 route with one running to the Avenues mall at 10300 Southside Blvd. in Jacksonville, and were considering renaming routes after places such as Vilano Beach, Old Town and World Golf Village. The county's Nov. 5 release did not say whether those changes will be discussed at the open house.

• Orange Line: West St. Augustine, U.S. 1 at State Road 312 and A1A at State Road 312
• Blue Line: U.S. 1, parts of downtown St. Augustine and Vilano Beach
• Red Line: Anastasia Boulevard, the Bridge of Lions, downtown, San Marco Avenue and the county government center and courthouse
• Green Line: St. Augustine Beach along A1A Beach Boulevard, State Road 206, south U.S. 1 and St. Augustine Shores
• Teal Line: parts of U.S. 1 and State Road 312, plus State Road 207, Elkton, Hastings and Flagler Estates
• Purple Line: the outlet mall, Murabella and World Golf Village, and Palencia
• Conn-Ex 1: U.S. 1 from south of State Road 206 to Palencia, including the Northeast Florida Regional Airport
• Conn-Ex 2, to become the Avenues Line: U.S. 1 north to the Avenues mall in Jacksonville
• Circulator: Hastings, Flagler Estates and East Palatka

A one-way ride costs $2, a daily pass is $4 and a monthly pass is $30, according to the Sunshine Bus fare page. Seniors 60 and older, people with disabilities, Medicare or Medicaid card holders and students pay half, and children 6 and under ride free. Riders need exact change because drivers cannot make it, and anyone who shows a St. Johns County library card rides free on the first Wednesday of each month.

If you go

The open house is Tuesday, Nov. 17, from 5 to 6 p.m. at 180 Marine St., St. Augustine. More information is posted at northfloridatpo.com/about/meetings, and the planning organization's main number is 904-306-7500. Sunshine Bus customer service, for route and schedule questions, is 904-209-3716.

The county's release did not give a deadline for written comments or a date when the finished plan will go to the County Commission. It also did not say whether the results of this spring's survey will be presented. Residents who cannot attend can watch the planning organization's meetings page, where the county's 2026 annual update and the meeting flyer are posted.