No Director, No Department, No Direction: Monroe County’s Transit Collapse

Transit Decapitated in the New Budget

September 21, 2025. Monroe County’s new budget year begins October 1, and with it comes a stunning decision: the complete elimination of the county’s transit department and the departure of its director, Richard Clark. This isn’t just a bureaucratic reshuffle—it’s a declaration that transit is no longer a priority in the Keys. Clark’s exit, along with the decision to end Conch Connect—the County’s short-lived micro-transit pilot—in August, marks the end of a brief but ambitious era of trying to build real mobility options for residents, workers, and visitors alike.

Clark was hired in September 2022 to help Monroe County “solve one of our largest challenges with transportation,” according to then–County Administrator Roman Gastesi. At the time Commissioner Cates called the new transit director position an “investment” in public transportation and Commissioner Lincoln said the county needs a person whose “sole job is transportation.” With a background in economic development and public transit leadership, Clark was brought in to develop cost-effective, high-quality, innovative public transportation options. The County recognized the problem and invested in leadership. Now, they’ve abandoned the effort—even though the underlying problems haven’t improved.

County Administrator Christine Hurley confirmed the cuts in a recent email: “We did not fund the Transit Director position, nor Conch Connect.”

This decision doesn’t just eliminate a department—it erases a vision. It signals a retreat from solving the very problems Monroe County once committed to tackling: congestion, worker mobility, tourism, affordability, and environmental sustainability.

The City of Key West recently eliminated its Duval Loop service—a painful cut, but one that sparked public outcry and perhaps a willingness to finally address funding, leaving room for future reconsideration. Monroe County’s decision is different. It doesn’t just reduce service—it erases the department, the director, and the vision. There’s no flicker of hope here. Not yet. Only a void where leadership should be.

The sections that follow will show how transit in Monroe County was beginning to show signs of promise on an ambitious plan, why transit and that plan remains essential, and what’s at stake when leadership fails to act. From the collapse of Conch Connect to the worsening conditions on U.S. 1, the story is one of regression, not reform.

Conch Connect and the Vision It Served

Conch Connect, the county’s micro-transit service, was launched last summer to help workers—especially those on Stock Island—access jobs and services more reliably. It was just a start, an early piece of a broader plan: a quick-launch pilot using outside contractors, designed to address unmet demand where Key West Transit was struggling (and still is). While the County later claimed it wasn’t meeting expectations, the service had gained a small but loyal ridership (65,000 annual rides—far more than the City’s Workforce Express at 12,000) and was showing signs of promise. Feedback was positive, and demand was beginning to outpace supply.

Our May 2024 article laid out Richard Clark’s vision in detail—a layered, scalable system tailored to the Keys. It called for frequent 30-minute coach bus service from Key Largo to Key West along the Overseas Highway, supported by fixed-route circulators in 14-passenger vans and on-demand micro-transit to fill gaps in the many villages up and down the island chain. With up to 30 coaches serving long haul travel on U.S. 1 and the vans and micro-transit serving as first/last mile connectors to that service AND helping people in the Lower Keys, Marathon, Islamorada, Key Colony and Key Largo to get around those villages without a car. The goal: connect workers to jobs, reduce congestion, and give visitors seamless access to destinations. As Clark put it, the plan was for “a system that’s frequent, easy-to-use, and connects the entire island chain—from Homestead to Key West.”

The vision was articulated in part because there is currently no viable regional transit service, and less than half of one percent of Monroe County workers use the bus to get to work. Even the City’s Lower Keys Shuttle between Marathon and downtown Key West offers just 10 trips in and 10 trips out per day—not much help. Growing that number through a layered, responsive system would directly address congestion and worker mobility.

This vision was repeated in County communications and featured in a promotional video produced by the County:

The “Looking Ahead to the Future” section of our January article on the success of Conch Connect painted a hopeful picture—one now rendered moot. Monroe County is dismantling a system before it could even get off the ground.

Why Transit Is Still Essential

The need for transit in the Keys hasn’t gone away—if anything, it’s grown more urgent. As outlined in the County’s own vision, transit is the only scalable solution to a host of interlocking challenges:

• No Room to Widen: Monroe County recently rejected FDOT’s request to reserve the ability to widen the Overseas Highway in the future. That decision effectively locks in the current footprint, making transit the only scalable alternative – because you can’t add more cars.
• Congestion on U.S. 1: The Overseas Highway is over capacity. Level of Service studies show the road is failing. Daily backups, long travel times, and resident frustration are now routine. In surveys over the years, congestion ranks just behind housing as the top concern for Keys residents.
• Worker Mobility: Thousands of workers commute from the Lower Keys to Key West daily. Others travel from Marathon, Islamorada, and even Homestead. Without transit, they face long, costly, and unreliable commutes.
• Visitor Experience: Tourism is the lifeblood of the Keys, but gridlock and parking scarcity degrade the experience—especially in the evening when workers are heading home and visitors are trying to get from resorts to dinner.
• Affordability and Fairness: Many families are forced to own a car for every adult just to survive here. Transit reduces the high cost of car ownership and expands access to jobs, services, and opportunity.
• Environmental Impact: More cars mean more emissions, more noise, and more wear on fragile infrastructure. Transit is a cleaner, smarter alternative.

With the Highway Failing, Transit Is the Only Fix

U.S. Route 1, operates at or exceeds its capacity. The most recent Level of Service study (LOS), the 2023 U.S. 1 Arterial Travel Time and Delay study downgraded the overall LOS for the highway from C to D – a failing grade by Monroe County standards. The study concluded there is “no reserve capacity for additional trips.”

FDOT’s proposal to widen the highway was recently rejected by the county, leaving transit as the only scalable solution. Without it, families are forced into car dependency, workers face impossible commutes, and the visitor experience continues to degrade.

Richard Clark’s vision, as laid out in the County’s own communications, was to build a system that addressed these issues head-on. The May 2024 article described a future with “frequent, easy-to-use transit up and down US1 and within each of the villages”—a future that’s now been shelved, even though the problems remain.

If the highway is failing and transit is the only fix, how did it come to this? If the County was serious about solving the problem—even if they didn’t yet have the money to launch service—why did they let go of the only person working on the plan?

Leadership Without a Plan

There is no replacement plan. No continuity. No vision. This isn’t just a budget cut—it’s a retreat from responsibility. County Administrator Christine Hurley stated that the County is “monitoring ridership with the City of Key West to determine whether need exceeds available seats”—a reactive posture that waits for failure rather than planning for success.

Hurley’s full email response to our request for information reveals a deeper problem: the County seems to have given up. She wrote, “I know you were focused on possible funding solutions; but most of the funding ideas were not something we can easily utilize.” She cited the failed charter county referendum and the State’s resistance to transit authorities, concluding, “Without the tax in place we could not venture into a new transit system.”

She added, “The thing about these funding ideas, is many of them have state or federal laws that don’t allow us to use them for transit.” Parking fees, TDC funds, and tolls were all dismissed as legally or politically unworkable. But as we explored in our August 31 article Could Tourist Dollars Be the Answer to Our Transit Funding Problem?, there are alternative legal interpretations and untapped possibilities. The County’s posture feels prematurely defeatist.

Hurley also wrote, “We believe having two separate government agencies providing transit doesn’t make sense—as you end up paying for two directors and support staff.” What, NOW this is a concern? If that’s the case, why did the County pursue a new transit system before resolving this question? And now that Clark is gone, who from the County will work with the City to figure it out?

If the County truly believed in the need for transit—regardless of which agency runs it—they would have kept someone in place to pursue alternatives, build partnerships, and fight for funding. Instead, they let go of the one person with the knowledge to do it.

Commissioner Michelle Lincoln has expressed openness to further discussion and acknowledged the need for more reliable transit routes. Her willingness to meet and explore ideas offers a glimmer of hope—but no clear commitments have been made. And where are her colleagues? Missing in action.

Two years ago, the County saw the need and invested in leadership. Now, they’ve retreated, offering reasons why things can’t be done instead of a vision for what should be.

The Road Ahead Seems Empty

Monroe County has walked away from transit—not just from a department, but from a responsibility. The Overseas Highway is our only road, and it’s failing. The County knew this. They hired a director, built a plan, and acknowledged the urgency. Then they retreated.

There is no interim strategy, no transition, no leadership. The County’s own statements show a pattern of excuse-making and legal deflection, not problem-solving. They shelved a solution that was already underway, leaving workers, visitors, and residents to fend for themselves.

This isn’t just a missed opportunity—it’s a dereliction of duty. The need for transit remains. The problems are worsening. And the only entity with the power to act has chosen not to.

Unlike the City’s recent transit cuts, there is no flicker of hope here. Not yet. Only a void where leadership should be.

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Chris Hamilton is the founder of Friends of Car-Free Key West & Duval Street/Historic Downtown, a local advocacy group championing sustainable mobility and vibrant public spaces. Subscribe to the blog and follow on Facebook, Twitter, and Substack for updates. All stories are cross posted at KONK Life News. Originally from Washington, D.C., Chris spent over two decades leading nationally acclaimed initiatives in transit, biking, walking, and smart growth for Arlington County, VA’s DOT. Since moving to Key West in 2015, he has embraced a car-free lifestyle downtown, dedicating his time to non-profits and community projects. Explore all Streets for People column articles here.