# Collier County Paratransit: How CAT Connect Buys Its Trips and Where NEMT Companies Fit

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

Collier County paratransit is CAT Connect, run by the county's Public Transit and Neighborhood Enhancement Division in Naples as the state's transportation disadvantaged coordinator. The county drives none of the trips itself. One contractor operates CAT Connect, WeDriveU from October 1, 2026 after MV Transportation, and three agencies carry their own clients. Medicaid rides go through MTM Health and the plans' brokers.

- Collier buys every CAT Connect trip from one operator, and that operator changes from MV Transportation to WeDriveU on October 1, 2026.
- CAT Connect carried 165,134 trips in the county's draft fiscal 2025-26 report, and its cost per trip rose from $51.38 to $72.51.
- On-time performance fell to 72.4% in fiscal 2024-25, then CAT reported 91.68% for March to July 2026.
- A small company gets Collier paratransit work as a subcontractor to the operator, a partner to the three agencies, or through Medicaid brokers.

## Collier County NEMT at a glance

| Fact | Details |
| --- | --- |
| Coordinator | Collier County Board of County Commissioners, through its Public Transit and Neighborhood Enhancement Division, 3299 East Tamiami Trail, Suite 103, Naples 34112 |
| Ride line | CAT Connect at 239-252-7272. Trips are booked by 5 p.m. the business day before, up to two weeks ahead. |
| Network type | Complete brokerage: one transportation operator and three coordination contractors, and no trips driven by the county |
| Operator | WeDriveU from October 1, 2026, under a contract of up to five years ratified in August 2026. MV Transportation ran the service through September 30, 2026. |
| Trips in fiscal 2025-26 | 165,134 in the county's draft report: 135,892 by the operator and 29,242 by coordination contractors |
| Rates for 2026-27 | $35.05 ambulatory, $60.09 wheelchair, $39.29 group, and $22.60 per person in a group, approved by the Local Coordinating Board on March 4, 2026 |
| Insurance in contracts | $1,000,000 per occurrence, combined single limit, covering owned, hired, and non-owned vehicles |
| On-time performance | 72.4% in fiscal 2024-25 against a 90% goal. CAT's report for March to July 2026 shows 91.68%. |
| Medicaid | Region F. Members outside a plan ride with MTM Health at 1-844-239-5974. CAT Connect does not provide Medicaid rides. |
| TD fares from October 1, 2026 | $2.00, $4.00, or $5.00 a trip by household income. Riders above 350% of the poverty level no longer qualify for TD fares. |

## Who arranges rides here

- [CAT Connect](https://www.ridecat.com/paratransit/about-catconnect): Takes paratransit applications and books CAT Connect rides for Collier County riders. (239) 252-7272
- [Collier County Public Transit and Neighborhood Enhancement](https://www.ridecat.com/paratransit/about-catconnect): Acts as the county's TD coordinator and manages the transit operator contract. (239) 252-8137
- [Collier Metropolitan Planning Organization](https://colliermpo.org/lcb/): Staffs the Local Coordinating Board that evaluates CAT Connect and its contracts. (239) 252-5814
- [MTM Health, Florida fee-for-service](https://www.mtm-inc.net/floridaffs/): Books Medicaid rides for Collier members who are not in a health plan (Region F). (844) 239-5974
- [Collier County Tax Collector](https://www.colliertaxcollector.com/business-tax): Issues the county business tax receipt, renewed each year from July 1 to September 30.

Collier County owns its paratransit system but hires a company to run it. CAT Connect, the county's door-to-door shared ride service, changes operators on October 1, 2026: WeDriveU takes over operations, staffing, and dispatch from MV Transportation, which ran the service through September 30. Three agencies carry their own clients beside it. For a small NEMT company, Collier paratransit work runs through that one operator, three agencies, and the Medicaid brokers, not a county bid list.

Under Florida's Transportation Disadvantaged (TD) program, the state trust fund and partner agencies pay for rides for people whose age, disability, or income leaves them no way to travel, and each county names one [community transportation coordinator](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/community-transportation-coordinator/) to arrange them. Statewide Medicaid enrollment and the vehicle and driver rules are in the [Florida guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/).

## How Collier County paratransit is set up

The Collier County Board of County Commissioners is the coordinator, and its Public Transit and Neighborhood Enhancement Division does the work. That division runs Collier Area Transit (CAT), the bus system, and CAT Connect, the paratransit service. The Collier Metropolitan Planning Organization is the planning agency and staffs the Local Coordinating Board.

The county was last re-designated through a chain of votes: the commission's Resolution 2022-161, the board's recommendation on December 9, 2022, the MPO's Resolution 2022-10, and approval by the Commission for the Transportation Disadvantaged on March 15, 2023. The state's reports call Collier a complete brokerage, meaning the county buys every trip and drives none.

### How riders use CAT Connect

- **Who rides.** ADA riders whose trip starts and ends within three quarters of a mile of a CAT route. Outside that corridor, TD riders with no other funding who have a disability, are children at risk, or have household income at or below 150% of the federal poverty level, per the May 2026 plan update.
- **Booking.** At 239-252-7272 or the county's rider app, by 5 p.m. the business day before, up to two weeks ahead. Same-day trips are not offered.
- **Pickup window.** Because the county is so large, TD pickups may fall within two hours of the requested time, against one hour for ADA trips.
- **Ride time.** About 60 minutes for trips of 9 miles or less, 75 minutes for 9 to 18 miles, and 120 minutes beyond that. Medical and work trips count as on time from 30 minutes early to zero minutes late.
- **Door help.** Drivers help riders to and from the vehicle but do not enter homes or rooms, or go above the first floor of an apartment building.
- **Fares.** From October 1, 2026, a TD trip costs $2.00 at or below the poverty level, $4.00 from 101% to 150%, and $5.00 from 151% to 350%. Above 350%, riders no longer qualify for TD fares.

## Who operates CAT Connect

MV Transportation ran CAT's fixed route and paratransit operations, scheduling, and dispatch under a contract the county's 2026 evaluation lists as expiring September 30, 2026. The Local Coordinating Board's September 2, 2026 agenda set aside time to introduce the new contractor for CAT and CAT Connect. That contractor, WeDriveU, says the Board of County Commissioners ratified its contract of up to five years in late August 2026. From October 1 it runs operations management, staffing, dispatching, and community engagement for the fixed route buses, CAT Connect, and the TD demand response service, from a new customer service center in Naples.

The county picks its operator by request for proposals. The 2026 evaluation says the most recent solicitation went to 3,196 potential operators locally, statewide, and nationally, and 7 responded. The county scores capabilities, age of company, experience, management, staff qualifications, safety and training programs, capacity, insurance, accident history, community knowledge, financial strength, a performance bond, and price.

| CAT Connect | Fiscal 2024-25 (state report) | Fiscal 2025-26 (county draft) |
|---|---|---|
| Total trips | 165,444 | 165,134 |
| ADA trips | 96,052 | 106,145 |
| Trips by the operator | 120,925 | 135,892 |
| Trips by coordination contractors | 44,519 | 29,242 |
| Trips paid by AHCA | 21,271 | 15,682 |
| Vehicles | 46 | 58 |
| Drivers | 73 | 77 |
| Cost per trip | $51.38 | $72.51 |
| Unmet trip requests | 118 | 90 |

The draft column comes from the county's report shown to the board on September 2, 2026; the state reviews it before the board signs it in December. Every trip the Medicaid agency paid for in both years ran on a coordination contractor's vehicle.

The three coordination contractors, with the office, phone, and fiscal 2024-25 cost per trip that the county's 2026 evaluation lists:

| Agency | Office | Phone | Cost per trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunrise Community of Southwest Florida | 4227 Exchange Avenue, Naples | 239-643-5338 | $19.51 |
| Easter Seals Florida | 8793 Tamiami Trail East, Unit 111, Naples | 407-629-7881 | $78.10 |
| Hope Hospice | 2668 Winkler Avenue, Fort Myers | 239-980-2965 | $15.39 |

## Collier's on-time record

The board's 2026 evaluation found CAT Connect on time for 72.4% of trips in fiscal 2024-25, against a 90% goal, down from about 74% the year before and about 80% before that. The January to May season was worst, at 68.6%. In January 2026, 75% of weekday trips were on time, against 99% on Saturdays and 95% on Sundays, and CAT had told the board in December 2025 that trips were up 20% since July.

At the board's public workshop on March 4, 2026, riders described long pickup windows and routes that backtrack, and one board member said some rides had taken up to four hours. The evaluation asked the county to review its travel time and pickup window rules. CAT's report for March to July 2026 then showed 91.68% of trips on time overall, with 95.41% of pickups and 87.26% of drop-offs on time, on 11,753 to 12,311 completed trips a month from April to July.

## What the county asks of its operator and agencies

- **Insurance.** $1,000,000 per occurrence, combined single limit, for bodily injury and property damage, covering owned, hired, and non-owned vehicles and employee non-ownership. The operator and the coordination contracts carry the same minimum, well above the state's TD floor. See [NEMT insurance requirements](https://nemtguide.com/guides/nemt-insurance-requirements/).
- **Monitoring.** Monthly operations meetings with fleet, paratransit, and transit staff, and operator reports on accidents, drug and alcohol testing, ridership, and on-time performance. County staff also review driver training and pre-trip inspections. Coordination contractors file quarterly reports and face a yearly compliance review.
- **Drivers.** First aid certification every year, CPR every two years, and a favorable FDLE background check under the Department of Children and Families' standards.
- **Money.** The county's draft state trip grant for fiscal 2026-27 is $794,618, with an $88,290 local match.

Fleet growth depends on grants. In December 2025 the county told the board that nine new paratransit vehicles were coming to replace ones past their useful life, and that no grant was in place to add vehicles.

## Medicaid rides in Collier County

CAT says plainly that it is not the Medicaid transportation provider for Collier. Collier is in Medicaid Region F, where the state's NEMT waiver for July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2027 gives fee-for-service members to [MTM Health](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/mtm-health/). MTM's 2025 capacity analysis listed 20 vehicles in Collier: 12 cab, 7 lift, and 1 stretcher vehicle.

Plan members book with their plan's broker. Collier had 32,414 members in Managed Medical Assistance on August 31, 2026, under a third of Lee's count next door:

| Plan | Collier members | Broker for its rides |
|---|---|---|
| [Sunshine Health](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/sunshine-health-florida/) | 14,137 | [Alivi](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/alivi/) |
| [Humana](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/humana-healthy-horizons-florida/) | 7,126 | [Modivcare](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/modivcare/) |
| [Simply Healthcare](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/simply-healthcare-florida/) | 6,774 | Ride2MD |
| [Community Care Plan](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/community-care-plan-florida/) | 2,447 | Modivcare |

## What to do first in Collier County

1. **Get your business tax receipt.** In Naples, buy the city license first (239-213-1800), then the county receipt from the Tax Collector at 3291 Tamiami Trail East. A commercial location needs a $125 zoning certificate and a $75 fire inspection, and a home base needs a $50 home zoning certificate. Receipts renew from July 1 to September 30.
2. **Ask WeDriveU about overflow runs** as it takes over on October 1, especially weekdays in the January to May season, when CAT Connect has run furthest behind. Read [how to subcontract NEMT trips](https://nemtguide.com/guides/subcontract-nemt-trips/) first.
3. **Call the three coordination contractors.** Easter Seals of Naples and Sunrise both had transit grant applications under review at FDOT in March 2026.
4. **Ask the coordinator office at 239-252-8137** how the next operator solicitation will be advertised, so you can bid as a subcontractor or partner.
5. **Enroll with Florida Medicaid and apply to MTM Health, Alivi, Modivcare, and Ride2MD.**
6. **Ask the MPO at 239-252-5814 about the private transportation industry seat** on the Local Coordinating Board, vacant on the roster of July 13, 2026. The board next meets December 2, 2026 at 1:30 p.m. Its 2026 meetings have been held at the Collier County Government Center, 3299 Tamiami Trail East.

Across the county line, [Lee County](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/lee-county/) runs its own paratransit through LeeTran, and Hendry County lies to the north.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the phone number for Collier County paratransit?

CAT Connect takes applications and trip requests at 239-252-7272, and the Collier Area Transit office answers at 239-252-7777. Riders book by 5 p.m. the business day before a trip, up to two weeks ahead. The county's coordinator office at 3299 East Tamiami Trail in Naples answers at 239-252-8137.

### Who operates CAT Connect?

From October 1, 2026, WeDriveU runs CAT Connect, the fixed route buses, and the TD demand response service for the county, including staffing and dispatch. MV Transportation held the contract through September 30, 2026. Easter Seals Florida, Sunrise Community of Southwest Florida, and Hope Hospice carry their own clients under coordination contracts.

### Does CAT Connect provide Medicaid rides?

No. Collier Area Transit says it is not the Medicaid transportation provider for the county. Members outside a health plan book through MTM Health at 1-844-239-5974. Members in a plan, such as Sunshine Health or Humana, book through that plan's broker.

### How much does Collier County pay per paratransit trip?

The Local Coordinating Board approved these rates for fiscal 2026-27 on March 4, 2026: $35.05 per ambulatory trip, $60.09 per wheelchair trip, $39.29 per group trip, and $22.60 per person in a group. They are what the state's trip grant pays the county. The county's draft report for fiscal 2025-26 puts its full cost at $72.51 a trip.

### What insurance does Collier County require for paratransit contracts?

The county's 2026 evaluation lists $1,000,000 per occurrence, combined single limit, for bodily injury and property damage, covering owned, hired, and non-owned vehicles and employee non-ownership. Its operator and coordination contracts carry the same minimum, which is well above the state's TD floor.

### Can a small NEMT company get Collier County paratransit work?

Not directly from the county today, because one operator holds the contract through its new term. The openings are subcontract work from the operator, trips for the three coordination contractors, the next operator solicitation, and Medicaid work through MTM Health and the plan brokers.

## Official resources

- [Collier Area Transit: CAT Connect paratransit](https://www.ridecat.com/paratransit/about-catconnect)
- [Collier MPO: Local Coordinating Board agendas and minutes](https://colliermpo.org/lcb/)
- [Collier MPO: Transportation Disadvantaged Service Plan annual update FY 2026](https://colliermpo.org/wp-content/uploads/TDSP-2026-Minor-Update-FINAL.pdf)
- [MTM Health: Florida fee-for-service rides](https://www.mtm-inc.net/floridaffs/)