The Metropolitan Transit System board of directors on Thursday failed to agree on how to prepare for a looming budget deficit that could force deep service cuts in as little as three years.

While MTS has seen industry-leading since the COVID-19 pandemic, fare revenues and government subsidies have not kept pace with the rising cost of operating the system. The agency is currently on track to virtually run out of reserves in the fall of 2028.

Agency staff on Thursday proposed a set of mitigation measures that would stretch out those reserves until 2030, giving more time to find new revenue sources, such as additional state or federal subsidies or a local ballot measure.

After several attempts to reach consensus on a plan failed, MTS board members ultimately voted to kick the issue back t

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