Intercity Transit's board convened a seven-hour planning retreat on June 12 at the Lacey Community Center.

The session included the agency's Phase 3 bus route redesign, a $2.35 million technology overhaul, and federal funding pressures on the agenda.

The retreat, designated a special meeting of the Authority, ran from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 6729 Pacific Ave. SE. The agenda also included a "Chief of Staff Introduction," indicating a new hire or position the agency has not yet publicly identified.

The route changes discussed at the retreat were first detailed publicly in October 2025. Planning Deputy Director Rob LaFontaine told the board that Phase 3 would cut service along parts of Martin Way from as many as 12 buses per hour down to 4 to 8, redistributing capacity to College Street, portions of Yelm Highway, and West Olympia. The phase also introduces a 9X "Bus Rapid Transit Lite" line.

The board adopted the Major Service Change Summary in December 2025, green-lighting a five-month implementation process targeting a May 2026 launch.

The retreat covered progress on "OneIT," a capital project bundling an Enterprise Resource Planning system, an Equipment and Asset Management system, and a Transit Operations Management system. The agency's 2026 budget, adopted December 3, 2025, under Board Chair Carolyn Cox, allocated $2 million for the ERP software and $350,000 for consulting.

General Manager Emily Bergkamp warned in the 2026 budget message that a federal proposal to shift Bus and Bus Facilities program funding from competitive grants to formula distribution "would dramatically reduce the share of funds available through competitive grants — a critical source of capital for mid-sized and smaller transit systems like Intercity Transit."

Separately, two unspecified Intercity Transit capital projects were left unfunded by Washington's 2025–2027 biennium budget shortfall.

Intercity Transit holds regular public board meetings at 510 Pattison St. SE, Olympia, in a hybrid format.

Residents can submit public comment by contacting Clerk of the Board Pat Messmer at (360) 705-5860 or [email protected] by noon on meeting days. Retreat minutes are expected to appear in a future board packet.