# Bay County FL Transit: Bayway On Demand, the Transdev Contract and Where Ride Companies Fit

Canonical URL: https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/bay-county/ · Updated 2026-09-30

Bay County FL transit is Bayway, run by the county commission, which also coordinates the state's Transportation Disadvantaged program. Approved older, disabled, and low-income riders book Bayway On Demand at 850-769-0557. First Transit/Transdev drives those trips under a contract that began January 1, 2025, Uber carries some same-day rides, and the county's plan says costs keep other private providers out.

- Bay County runs Bayway and coordinates TD rides itself, buying every trip from First Transit/Transdev and, through state grants, Uber.
- TD trips jumped from 61,983 to 104,920 in one year while cost per trip fell from $46.35 to $28.82.
- The county's service plan says insurance, standards and training costs keep other private providers out, and it has no coordination contracts.
- For a small company, the realistic Bay County work is Medicaid plan trips, subcontracting, and long-distance trips the county carries only as vehicles allow.

## Bay County NEMT at a glance

| Fact | Details |
| --- | --- |
| TD coordinator | Bay County Board of County Commissioners, since January 1, 2014. Current term July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2030. |
| Contract operators | First Transit/Transdev, current contract from January 1, 2025 after a 2024 request for proposals, and Uber for same-day rides since September 2023 |
| TD rate | $2.79 per passenger mile for ambulatory and wheelchair trips in FY 2026/27. No stretcher rate. |
| Rider co-pay | $1.50 per Bayway On Demand ride, Monday to Saturday (Bayway, September 2026) |
| Trips in FY 2024-25 | 104,920, up from 61,983 the year before. 12,643 went by Uber and 14,745 were medical. |
| Fleet in FY 2024-25 | 25 vehicles and 48 drivers, at $28.82 a trip |
| Operator insurance | $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident in operator contracts, and Transdev carries $5,000,000 per occurrence (FY 2024-25 review) |
| Coordination contracts | None. The last one carried 12,248 trips in FY 2022-23. |
| Medicaid | Region A. 25,423 residents were in the four main Medicaid health plans on August 31, 2026. Members outside a plan ride with Modivcare. |
| Next TD board meeting | November 5, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. (date to be confirmed) |

## Who arranges rides here

- [Bayway On Demand](https://www.baywaytransit.org/on-demand/): Books TD and On Demand rides for approved riders; extension 2 schedules TD trips. (850) 769-0557
- [Bay County Transit Program Administrator](https://www.fdot.gov/ctd/community-transportation-coordinators): Runs Bayway and the county's Transportation Disadvantaged coordinator role. (850) 248-8161
- [Emerald Coast Regional Council, Transportation Disadvantaged program](https://www.ecrc.org/programs/transportation_planning/transportation_disadvantaged_(td)/bay_td.php): Staffs the Bay County TD board, which approves the service plan and rates. (850) 332-7976
- [Florida Commission for the Transportation Disadvantaged, TD Helpline](https://www.fdot.gov/ctd/contact-us): Designates the county coordinator and hears complaints the county cannot resolve. (800) 983-2435

In Bay County, one county department runs the buses and the rides for people who cannot use them. The county commission has coordinated the state's Transportation Disadvantaged (TD) program since January 1, 2014, and the state has designated it through June 30, 2030. It drives nothing itself. First Transit/Transdev operates the wheelchair-accessible Bayway vans, and Uber carries a share of the trips under state grants.

Florida's TD program buys rides for residents who cannot drive or pay for a ride because of age, disability, or income, through one [Community Transportation Coordinator](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/community-transportation-coordinator/) per county. The statewide rules, Medicaid enrollment, and broker list are on the [Florida guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/).

## The Bayway services and who rides them

| Service | Who can ride | When | Rider cost | How to book |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed-route bus | Anyone | 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., with Sundays from March through November | Bus fare | No booking |
| Bayway On Demand | Approved riders with no other ride: 60 or older, income below the federal poverty guidelines, or a disability that keeps them off the bus | Monday to Saturday, from 6 a.m. | $1.50 | App or 850-769-0557, extension 2 |
| On Demand+ | The same approved riders, same day, anywhere in Bay County, in a Bayway van or a standard Uber | Monday to Saturday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. | $1.50 | App or 850-769-0557 |
| Flex and UberX Share | Anyone inside a Flex zone. UberX Share covers zones 1 and 2, from the Hathaway Bridge to Bunkers Cove and north to Lynn Haven | Shown in the app | $1.50 | Bayway app |

On October 1, 2026, a new Bayway Transit app replaces the Flex app, and riders must open new accounts. TD rides follow the county's service plan, adopted May 14, 2026. Every trip is authorized in advance and booked by 1 p.m. the working day before, no more than a month ahead. Service is curb to curb, and drivers stay within sight of the van. A rider who does not cancel by 5 p.m. the working day before and then misses the ride is a no-show, and three no-shows in 60 days bring a 30-day suspension. Riders recertify every three years.

## Who drives Bay County's TD trips

| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1983 | Bay County Council on Aging becomes coordinator and operator |
| November 2003 | Tri-County Community Council takes over on an emergency basis, then wins a request for proposals in April 2004 |
| January 1, 2014 | The county commission becomes coordinator on an emergency basis and hires Pensacola Bay Transportation to drive |
| June 1, 2014 | First Transit replaces Pensacola Bay Transportation on an emergency contract |
| January 2021 | First Transit wins the operator request for proposals issued in January 2020 |
| January 1, 2025 | The current First Transit/Transdev contract starts, after a 2024 request for proposals |
| July 1, 2025 | The county begins a new five-year term as coordinator, through June 30, 2030 |

The county's review of FY 2024-25 counts two operators: First Transit/Transdev with 92,277 trips, or 88%, and Uber with 12,643, or 12%. The operator contracts require the state floor of $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident, and Transdev carries $5,000,000 per occurrence at no extra cost to the program. The 2024 request went out locally, statewide, and nationally, and the county weighed 23 items in choosing, including financial strength, a performance bond, accident history, and price. The county also pays for the operator's fuel, bought at the county's lower rate, which is why rising gas prices had not touched operations by the May 14, 2026 board meeting.

Uber came in through the Commission's Innovative Service Development grants. Service began in September 2023, and the $668,793 FY 2023-24 grant provided 7,724 trips to 96 riders. A $179,438 grant in FY 2024-25 provided 12,641 trips to 152 riders, and the $675,000 FY 2025-26 grant had provided 18,358 trips to 191 riders through March 2026. For FY 2026-27, the county asked for $675,000 to add UberX Share and Sunday service. Commission staff left it out of one funding option and offered $337,500 in the other, and on June 11, 2026 the Commission postponed all of those grants until its budget was final. The TD board's August 5, 2026 agenda lists the grant program as not funded statewide.

## The numbers behind Bay County's program

The state's 2025 Annual Operating Report shows how fast the program grew:

| Measure | FY 2022-23 | FY 2023-24 | FY 2024-25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total trips | 60,961 | 61,983 | 104,920 |
| Trips by Uber | 0 | 7,724 | 12,643 |
| Medical trips | 11,729 | 15,155 | 14,745 |
| Trips paid by the Agency for Persons with Disabilities | 13,748 | 13,662 | 13,206 |
| Trips paid by the Department of Elder Affairs | 6,211 | 4,844 | 5,813 |
| Trips by coordination contractors | 12,248 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicles | 29 | 24 | 25 |
| Drivers | 26 | 23 | 48 |
| Cost per trip | $36.91 | $46.35 | $28.82 |
| Unmet trip requests | 0 | 54 | 115 |

Trips billed as microtransit made up 48% of the FY 2024-25 total, the review says, and none were paid by Medicaid. The growth kept going: at the May 14, 2026 board meeting, the coordinator reported 42,130 trips in January to March 2026 alone, at $22.74 a trip.

The program bills by the passenger mile:

| Service | FY 2024/25 | FY 2025/26 | FY 2026/27 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ambulatory | $2.67 | $2.77 | $2.79 |
| Wheelchair | $4.58 | $2.77 | $2.79 |
| Stretcher | None | None | None |

The county's review adds that the best hours to add capacity are the off-peak hours from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The state money behind the non-sponsored trips is the Commission's trip and equipment grant, drafted for FY 2026-27 at $628,499 for Bay, plus a $69,833 local match.

## Can a small ride company get Bay County trips

Mostly not through the county. The service plan says it plainly: the costs of insurance requirements, standards, training, and other safety features keep private providers from being brought into the coordinated system. There are no coordination contracts, and since 2014 the county has hired one operator at a time, plus Uber since 2023. One gap shows in the county's own FY 2024-25 review: the system provides every trip except stretcher, and the plan lists offering more stretcher service among its strategies.

If you do work in the system, as an operator or a subcontractor, these rules apply:

- **Drivers.** A clear Level 2 background screening before hire and every five years after, a DOT physical, a safe driving record, and training in defensive driving and passenger sensitivity. Drivers wear a uniform and a visible photo ID.
- **Drug and alcohol testing.** Pre-employment, random, post-accident, and reasonable suspicion testing under FHWA and FTA rules. The county takes part in a state testing consortium.
- **Vehicles.** Two-way radios in every van, and cell phones in vans that leave the county. Riders wear seat belts, and no more riders than seats.
- **Limits.** Drivers do not enter buildings or carry parcels, and they need not take a wheelchair up or down more than one step.
- **Payment.** The county pays operators within seven calendar days after its funding sources pay it.

Three other doors are open. The county coordinates out-of-area medical trips and local discharges with Holmes, Walton, and Washington counties when vehicles are available, and it uses Greyhound, airlines, and gas cards as alternatives, so long-distance medical trips are a service to offer. See [long-distance medical transport](https://nemtguide.com/guides/long-distance-medical-transport/). Subcontracting is another: ask the contract operator whether it uses subcontractors, and read [subcontracting NEMT trips](https://nemtguide.com/guides/subcontract-nemt-trips/) before you sign. The third is a seat at the table. The TD board's seat for the private transportation industry was empty at every meeting from August 2025 through May 2026.

## Medicaid rides in Bay County

Bay is in Region A of Statewide Medicaid Managed Care, where plans hire their own brokers and members outside a plan ride with [Modivcare](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/modivcare/). For a private company, this is the larger door in Bay County. Members in the four main plans on August 31, 2026:

| Health plan | Members | Broker for its rides |
|---|---|---|
| [Sunshine Health](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/sunshine-health-florida/) | 14,349 | [Alivi](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/alivi/) |
| [Simply Healthcare](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/simply-healthcare-florida/) | 5,611 | Ride2MD |
| [Humana](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/humana-healthy-horizons-florida/) | 4,778 | Modivcare |
| [Florida Community Care](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/florida-community-care/) | 685 | Ride2MD |

Sunshine alone has more than half of those members, which makes Alivi the broker to apply to first in Bay County.

## What to do first

1. **Apply to Alivi, Ride2MD, and Modivcare** for Medicaid plan trips.
2. **Call the transit program at 850-248-8161.** Ask when the operator contract is next bid and whether the county would contract for a service it lacks, such as stretcher trips.
3. **Offer long-distance and discharge trips** to hospitals and dialysis centers, since the county carries those only as vehicles allow. See [hospital discharge transportation](https://nemtguide.com/guides/hospital-discharge-transportation/).
4. **Take the empty board seat.** Call the regional council at 850-332-7976, and attend the next board meeting, set for November 5, 2026.

Compare Walton County, one of the counties Bay coordinates long trips with, and [Okaloosa County](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/okaloosa-county/), which also hires one operator for its whole county system.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is Bayway On Demand?

Bayway On Demand is Bay County's ride service for approved riders who cannot use the bus: people 60 or older, with income below the federal poverty guidelines, or with a disability that keeps them off Bayway routes, and with no other ride. It runs Monday to Saturday from 6 a.m. for a $1.50 co-pay. Book in the app or at 850-769-0557, where extension 2 schedules TD trips.

### Who is the Community Transportation Coordinator for Bay County, Florida?

The Bay County Board of County Commissioners, through its transit program at 1010 Cone Avenue in Panama City. It has held the role since January 1, 2014 and is designated through June 30, 2030. Before that, the Bay County Council on Aging and then Tri-County Community Council were coordinator.

### How do I become a Bayway transportation provider?

Bay County buys its trips through a competitive request for proposals, most recently in 2024, and has no coordination contracts. Its service plan says insurance, standards, training and safety costs keep other private providers out. Call the transit program at 850-248-8161 to ask when the next operator procurement opens, and ask the contract operator whether it uses subcontractors.

### What is the Bay County TD rate per mile?

The service plan adopted May 14, 2026 sets $2.79 per passenger mile for ambulatory and wheelchair trips in FY 2026/27, up from $2.77 in FY 2025/26. There is no stretcher rate. That is the rate billed to the program. What the county pays its contract operator is set in the operator contract.

### Does Bayway use Uber?

Yes. Approved On Demand+ riders can pick a standard Uber for same-day trips anywhere in Bay County for the same $1.50 co-pay, and the public can book UberX Share rides inside Flex zones 1 and 2. Uber carried 12,643 of the 104,920 trips in the county's coordinated system in FY 2024-25, a service the Commission's Innovative Service Development grants paid for.

### What is the Bayway phone number?

Bayway lists 850-769-0557 for On Demand booking and rider help, and its offices are at 920 Wilson Avenue in Panama City. The transit program administrator is at 850-248-8161. The state coordinator directory and the regional council also list 850-785-0808 for TD reservations and information.

## Official resources

- [Bayway On Demand: booking and application](https://www.baywaytransit.org/on-demand/)
- [Emerald Coast Regional Council: Bay County TD board agendas and service plan](https://www.ecrc.org/programs/transportation_planning/transportation_disadvantaged_(td)/bay_td.php)
- [Florida CTD: Community Transportation Coordinators by county](https://www.fdot.gov/ctd/community-transportation-coordinators)