Without a word of discussion, the Sacramento Regional Transit District board Monday evening unanimously approved a staff request to start the process required to cut bus service. Thirty-six weekday, Saturday and Sunday routes face reduction, realignment or elimination. Bus service cuts could begin as soon as Sept. 6.

"State funding in the Public Transportation Account (PTA) has been reduced, and RT's State Transit Assistance (STA) share of funding has declined to zero beginning in Fiscal Year 2010," according to the RT staff agenda background document. "This will continue into future years. At the same time, Local Transportation Funds and Measure A funding have also declined due to the reduction in sales tax receipts. RT's revenues have therefore been reduced substantially in the Fiscal Year 2009 and Fiscal Year 2010 preliminary budgets, meaning that RT may no longer be able to provide the same level of service as in Fiscal Year 2008."

On the block are 18 weekday routes, 12 Saturday routes, six Sunday and holiday routes and four supplemental routes.

These routes do not meet productivity standards. The standards are based on boardings per revenue hour. A route that's below 70 percent of peer routes is considered failing.

And that's not the worst of it:

"Due to the severity of the budget situation, staff is preparing to make an additional service reduction in January 2010 as well," the staff reported.

Weekday routes on the chopping block this year: 6,9,10,18,20,36,37,63,73,75,83,94,95,106,107,140,141,142

Saturday routes: 6,16,24,28,34,47,54,61,62,65,73,74

Sunday routes: 5,8,13,34,82,75

Supplemental routes: 205,249,251,261

After the first hearing, June 8, the board will be asked to adopt specific changes on June 22. At that same meeting, the board will be asked to set a hearing for the January 2010 changes. That hearing would be held July 27 and the changes would go to the board for adoption on Aug. 24.

On July 10, the district expects to take the September changes to its union, the Amalgamated Transit Union. On Oct. 2, the January changes would be delivered to the ATU.

The first cuts would take effect Sept. 6 and the second round on Jan. 3.

The agenda item from tonight's meeting is available here.