Medford's Buses Get Their Saturdays Back in December. Here's What Comes Back and What Doesn't.

Starting Monday, Dec. 7, Rogue Valley Transportation District buses will run later on weeknights, with some routes going until 8 p.m. Starting Saturday, Dec. 12, buses will run on Saturdays for the first time since September 2025. RVTD's board approved the change on Sept. 23, after a public hearing where more than 20 community members spoke in support. The district also got written comments from seven members of the public, verbal support from the cities of Medford and Ashland, and a letter from the Housing Authority of Jackson County.

Most of the restoration is added time, not added places. Inside Medford, the buses will cover the same streets they cover today. The schedule just gets longer, and one route comes back to the network: Route 30 to Jacksonville. If you know which route you ride, the details below tell you what December will look like for you.

How the 2025 cuts set up this change

On Sept. 2, 2025, RVTD dropped 10 routes, ended Saturday service and cut weekday hours to 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The district pointed to delayed federal grants, which made up about half of its operating revenue, and to a 2025 legislative session that ended without a state transportation funding bill. It also cited a 59% rise in bus operating cost per mile and a projected $10.2 million deficit for 2026–27. The Rogue Valley Times reported that the system went from 16 routes to six.

The money for December comes from Measure 15-240. It renews RVTD's five-year operating levy at the existing rate of 13 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, starting July 1, 2026. Jackson County voters passed it on May 19 with 63.06% voting yes, according to the county's official results.

RVTD General Manager Julie Brown told the Rogue Valley Times why the district is adding service slowly. "We need to be careful how we bring service back, and if additional money is saved, we can bring some back," she said. "At this time, we know we can sustain this." She also said, "It's a big responsibility to make sure we don't have to cut again." That caution explains the schedule below. The district is spending its money on more hours for the routes it already runs, not on bringing back the routes it dropped.

The December schedule, route by route

RVTD lists these as departure hours, so the last bus leaves around the closing time shown. The destinations come from RVTD's current route cards.

Saturday buses run half as often on most routes

On Saturdays, four of the seven routes will run every 60 minutes instead of every 30: Route 4 to West Medford, Route 24 along Barnett Road, Route 40 to the mall and Central Point, and Route 60 to White City. If you miss a Saturday bus to Rogue Valley Mall, you wait an hour for the next one. If you miss a weekday bus, you wait half an hour.

Two routes keep their weekday frequency on Saturdays. Route 10 to Ashland still runs every 30 minutes, and Route 21 to Medford Center and Poplar Square still runs every 40. Route 10 is the one the Rogue Valley Times calls the popular Medford-to-Ashland route, so on a Saturday the trip south through Phoenix and Talent to Ashland Plaza will be the easiest ride in the system.

Saturday hours are also short. Most routes start between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m. and finish around 5 p.m. Route 24 stops earliest, at 4:30 p.m. That makes Saturday a daytime-only option for errands or a visit to the medical center campus on Barnett. There is still no bus service on Sundays.

Weeknights get the biggest change

Today, buses stop at 6:30 p.m. on weekdays. From Dec. 7, Routes 40 and 60 will run until 8 p.m., 90 minutes later than now and still every 30 minutes. Route 10 will run until 7:30 p.m. Routes 4, 21 and 24 will end between 7 and 7:10 p.m.

Mornings stay early on two routes. In the new timetable, departures on Routes 10 and 60 begin at 5 a.m. Both routes already run a single 5 a.m. trip today, before regular service picks up at 6. On Route 60, that means a full 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. day between downtown Medford, North Medford and White City. On Route 40, the latest weeknight bus between Rogue Valley Mall and Central Point will leave at 8 p.m. instead of 6:30. In December, it's dark well before either of those times.

RVTD cautions that the new hours are "slightly different" from what the system ran before the cuts. Check the published schedule before you count on a departure time you remember from 2024.

Jacksonville is the one place the network grows

Route 30 is the only route coming back, and it won't follow its old path. It will run along West Main Street instead of West Jackson Street and turn around at Ray's Food Place. It starts Dec. 7 with six trips on weekdays and five on Saturdays. Buses come every two hours, from 9:10 a.m. to 5:10 p.m. on both days. With only five Saturday trips, it works best if you plan around set times.

The Rogue Valley Times explained why Jacksonville made the cut and other dropped routes didn't. Brown said RVTD is legally required to serve Jacksonville, because the city is inside the district and part of the Rogue Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization.

RVTD's own Route 30 page still says "Suspended" and links to an older route card. Use the September announcement for the new routing until RVTD updates that page.

What isn't coming back

The Ashland Circulator, which ran from June 2023 to early September 2025, is not part of this change. Neither is the Medford-Ashland Express, Route 1X. Route 10 is the only bus between Medford and Ashland. The other dropped routes stay off the map. Brown said more service could come back "if additional money is saved."

Staffing is part of the plan. RVTD is bringing back eight part-time driver positions, plus a fueler and a part-time field supervisor. Applications open in October, and hiring and training happen in November, ahead of the December start. Former drivers who were laid off can apply, and so can anyone with a commercial driver license.

Before the first Saturday bus on Dec. 12

• Fares: RVTD's fare page lists $2 for a single ride, $6 for a day pass, $32 for a 20-ride pass and $56 for a monthly pass. Reduced and youth fares are $1, $6, $16 and $28. RVTD's December service announcement doesn't mention fares.
• Trip planning: RVTD says the Google Trip Planner on its homepage is the best way to get current schedule information. Its interactive system map, launched June 29, 2026, shows real-time bus locations.
• Apps: RVTD's apps page lists Transit, Umo Mobility and Google Maps.
• Printed schedules: You can pick up maps and schedules at RVTD's customer service office, 200 S. Front St. in Medford. RVTD says an updated Ride Guide is coming.
• Two start dates: Later weekday hours and Route 30 start Monday, Dec. 7. Saturday service starts Saturday, Dec. 12.

These are approved schedules that haven't started yet. Check rvtd.org the week before Dec. 7 to confirm the hours for your route.

For a lot of Medford households, bus access shapes daily life: getting to work at night, to Saturday appointments or to Central Point after the workday. If you're thinking about where to live in the Rogue Valley and transit matters to your family, I'm glad to look at it with you, in English or Spanish. Reach out to Mayra Valencia. Let's Connect.