# Tri-County Transportation in Walton County, FL: How the County Ride Program Works for Operators

Canonical URL: https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/walton-county/ · Updated 2026-10-06

Tri-County transportation in Walton County, Florida, is the Tri-County Community Council of Bonifay, the county's Community Transportation Coordinator since January 1983. It books rides at 850-892-2422 from its DeFuniak Springs office and drives every trip itself. The one service it buys from outside is stretcher transport, through a request for proposals, and Medicaid members ride through their health plans' brokers instead.

- Tri-County Community Council has coordinated Walton County rides since 1983 and has won every request for proposals since 2003.
- The council drives every Walton trip itself, and its own plan says insurance and training costs keep private providers out.
- Stretcher transport is the one service the council buys from outside, and Walton's FY 2026/27 rate sheet has no stretcher rate.
- The Walton board's seat for the private transportation industry sat empty at all four meetings from August 2025 to May 2026.
- Humana is the largest Medicaid plan in Walton, so Modivcare books rides for the most plan members as well as everyone outside a plan.

## Walton County NEMT at a glance

| Fact | Details |
| --- | --- |
| TD coordinator | Tri-County Community Council, Inc., Bonifay, since January 1983. Current agreement TD-2360, July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2028. |
| Booking | 194 N. 6th Street, DeFuniak Springs, 850-892-2422. Weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., by noon the working day before. |
| Outside operators | None in Walton, and no coordination contracts, per the plan updated May 20, 2026. Stretcher service is bought by proposal. |
| Stretcher carrier | Holmes County EMS, for riders with no other sponsor, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. or around the clock with notice |
| TD rates, FY 2026/27 | $2.41 ambulatory and $4.13 wheelchair per passenger mile. No stretcher rate, down from $7.70 in FY 2025/26. |
| Trips in FY 2024-25 | 21,344, of which 8,280 were medical, with 11 vehicles and 8 drivers at $48.38 a trip |
| Trips in FY 2025-26 | 23,219 in the coordinator's quarterly reports, with 12 vehicles in service from April to June 2026 |
| Same coordinator | Holmes, Washington, and Santa Rosa counties |
| Medicaid | Region A. 8,049 Walton residents in the four main Medicaid health plans on August 31, 2026. Members outside a plan ride with Modivcare. |
| TD board | Private transportation industry seat vacant at every meeting from August 2025 to May 2026. Next meeting November 18, 2026, 2:00 p.m. |

## Who arranges rides here

- [Tri-County Community Council, Walton Transportation](https://tricountycommunitycouncil.com/?page_id=667): Books Transportation Disadvantaged rides in Walton County. (850) 892-2422
- [Tri-County Community Council, administration](https://tricountycommunitycouncil.com/): Coordinator for Walton, Holmes, and Washington; buys stretcher service by proposal. (850) 547-3689
- [Tri-County Community Council, Transportation Operations](https://tricountycommunitycouncil.com/?page_id=680): Books rides in Holmes and Washington counties from Bonifay. (850) 547-3688
- [Emerald Coast Regional Council, Walton TD program](https://www.ecrc.org/programs/transportation_planning/transportation_disadvantaged_(td)/walton_td.php): Staffs the Walton County TD board, its service plan, and board seats. (850) 332-7976
- [Modivcare, Florida Medicaid fee-for-service](https://www.modivcare.com/transportation-providers-contact-us/): Arranges rides for Medicaid members outside a health plan in Region A.

Walton County does not run its own ride program. Since January 1983 the county commission's pick, Tri-County Community Council, Inc., a Bonifay nonprofit that also runs Head Start, has coordinated and driven the county's Transportation Disadvantaged rides. The program pays for rides for people who cannot drive or buy a ride because of age, disability, or income, through one [Community Transportation Coordinator](https://nemtguide.com/glossary/community-transportation-coordinator/) per county; statewide rules and Medicaid enrollment are on the [Florida guide](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/).

The same council coordinates Holmes and Washington counties, covered below, and [Santa Rosa County](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/santa-rosa-county/), where, unlike Walton, the county itself licenses wheelchair and stretcher vans.

## Who runs Tri-County transportation in Walton County

The council's Walton office is at 194 N. 6th Street in DeFuniak Springs, and riders book at 850-892-2422 on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Trips are requested by noon the working day before, are curb to curb, and run around the clock when arranged ahead. Riders qualify at age 60 or older or 17 or younger, below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines, or with a disability a medical professional verifies. The co-pay was $2 a trip in May 2026.

The county has no bus system. The council's FY 2024-25 evaluation notes that the GoWal fixed route no longer runs, and the service plan calls the council Walton County's public transit system. Its pickup window is 60 minutes, 30 minutes either side of the scheduled time, and drivers wait only 5 minutes. On-time performance averaged 96% in FY 2024-25 against a 90% standard.

Long medical trips go to the areas the local board approved: Pensacola and Mobile to the west, Birmingham to the north, Gainesville to the south, and Jacksonville to the east. The council schedules long trips across its four counties together, so several drivers and vans are not sent to the same place at the same time.

### How the council keeps the contract

The council has faced a request for proposals every five years and won each one: 2003, 2008, 2013, 2018, and 2023, when it was the only proposer to submit a complete response. It was then recommended to the state commission, and its memorandum of agreement, TD-2360, runs from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2028. The Okaloosa-Walton TPO is the planning agency, and the Emerald Coast Regional Council staffs it and the local board.

## How much of the work goes to outside companies

Almost none today. The state's 2025 operating report counts every one of Walton's FY 2024-25 trips as the coordinator's own, with none by an operator or a coordination contractor. The service plan updated May 20, 2026 names no transportation operators and no coordination contracts in Walton County, and the council's quarterly reports to the board show $0 in operator payments in every quarter of FY 2025-26. The plan's own explanation is cost: insurance, standards, training, and safety features price private providers out of the coordinated system.

Stretcher service is the exception. The council issues a request for proposals and negotiates for stretcher trips, and Holmes County Emergency Medical Service carries stretcher riders who have no other sponsor, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. or around the clock with notice. After hours, hospital discharge planners call the contracted EMS provider directly and send the council the details the next business day. Walton's rate sheet for FY 2026/27 has no stretcher rate at all, where FY 2025/26 paid $7.70 per passenger mile, and the council's fourth-quarter report for FY 2025-26 counted no stretcher trips. See [starting a stretcher transportation business](https://nemtguide.com/guides/start-a-stretcher-transportation-business/) if that is the work you want.

Two terms in the plan matter if you do contract here. The council's own liability coverage is $1,000,000 per person and $1,000,000 per incident, five times the $200,000 per person minimum its yearly evaluation checks against. And the council pays operators within 7 calendar days after the funding source pays it, so your cash waits on whichever agency funds the trip.

The local board also holds a seat for the private transportation industry. It sat empty at each of the board's four meetings from August 2025 to May 2026, while the same seat on the Holmes and Washington board is filled for 2025 to 2028. Holding it puts you in the room when the board reviews the service plan, the rates, and the coordinator's yearly evaluation. Ask the Emerald Coast Regional Council at 850-332-7976 how to be appointed.

## Trips, rates, and a growing county

The state's 2025 Annual Operating Report counted 21,344 trips in Walton County for FY 2024-25: 8,280 medical, 3,152 for work, and the rest for school, day care, and other daily needs. The state program paid for 13,783 of them, the Agency for Persons with Disabilities for 1,130, and other sources, Head Start and FDOT, for 6,431. The fleet shrank from 17 vehicles and 13 drivers in FY 2022-23 to 11 vehicles and 8 drivers, and cost per trip rose from $35.25 in FY 2023-24 to $48.38.

The council's quarterly reports add up to 23,219 trips in FY 2025-26, against 21,345 in the same reports for FY 2024-25, with 12 vehicles in service from April to June 2026. The service plan puts Walton's population at 90,547 on April 1, 2025, against 75,305 in the 2020 census, and Freeport nearly doubled, from 5,861 to 11,440.

Rates jumped for FY 2026/27, to $2.41 per passenger mile for ambulatory riders and $4.13 for wheelchair riders, from $2.16 and $3.70. The draft minutes of the May 20, 2026 meeting record a board member's concern about the increase and its effect on trip availability. The state commission's June 11, 2026 draft of its FY 2026-27 trip and equipment grants set Walton's at $508,590, plus a $56,510 local match. At the public workshop the same day as the May meeting, an advocate described a Walton resident who needs trips from Pensacola to Tampa, and representatives explained that driver hour limits, service area lines, and contract terms keep some medical trips out of reach.

## Holmes and Washington counties

Tri-County Community Council is also the coordinator in Holmes and Washington counties, which share one service plan, updated on the same day. There, Holmes County EMS is the one operator under contract, for stretcher service, and the FY 2026/27 rates include $9.56 per passenger mile for stretcher trips. Riders in both counties book at 850-547-3688.

Walton carries the most trips at the lowest cost per trip, and it alone has no stretcher rate:

| County | Trips, FY 2024-25 | Cost per trip | FY 2026/27 rates per passenger mile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walton | 21,344 | $48.38 | $2.41 ambulatory, $4.13 wheelchair, no stretcher |
| Holmes | 6,133 | $87.57 | $2.68, $4.59, and $9.56 stretcher |
| Washington | 8,113 | $66.70 | $2.68, $4.59, and $9.56 stretcher |

Holmes County EMS carried 87 trips in Holmes and 13 in Washington in FY 2024-25, the only operator trips in the council's three-county area.

## Medicaid rides in Walton County

Walton sits in Medicaid Region A under section 409.966 of the Florida Statutes, and members outside a health plan ride with [Modivcare](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/modivcare/). The Tri-County system carried no Medicaid-paid trips in FY 2024-25, so the Medicaid work in Walton runs through the plans' brokers. Plan membership on August 31, 2026, with the broker AHCA's second quarter 2026 report lists for each plan:

| Health plan | Walton members | Who books its rides |
|---|---|---|
| [Humana](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/humana-healthy-horizons-florida/) | 3,125 | Modivcare |
| [Sunshine Health](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/sunshine-health-florida/) | 2,858 | [Alivi](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/alivi/) |
| [Simply Healthcare](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/simply-healthcare-florida/) | 1,789 | [Ride2MD](https://nemtguide.com/brokers/ride2md/) |
| [Florida Community Care](https://nemtguide.com/health-plans/florida-community-care/) | 277 | Ride2MD |

Walton is one of three Florida counties, with Escambia and Santa Rosa, where Humana is the largest plan, at 39% of the 8,049 members. That makes Modivcare the broker for the largest share of Walton's plan members as well as for everyone outside a plan. The 2025 capacity table in the state's NEMT waiver lists 24 Modivcare vehicles under Walton County: 11 ambulatory, 10 wheelchair, and 3 stretcher.

Walton County's own code of ordinances, codified through March 2026, sets no county permit for wheelchair or stretcher companies, so a new company here starts with the state steps.

## What to do first

1. **Call the council's administration at 850-547-3689.** Ask when it next seeks stretcher proposals and what the proposal will require.
2. **Ask about the board seat.** The Walton board next meets November 18, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. It recommends new members, the Okaloosa-Walton TPO confirms them, and the Emerald Coast Regional Council staffs both.
3. **Join Modivcare and Alivi.** Between them they cover Humana, Sunshine, and every Medicaid member outside a plan.
4. **Price insurance at $1,000,000 per person and per incident.** That is the coverage the council carries itself.
5. **Watch for the next coordinator search.** The council's agreement ends June 30, 2028, and the last five requests for proposals came in 2003, 2008, 2013, 2018, and 2023.

Compare the county-run system next door in [Okaloosa County](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/okaloosa-county/) and the program in [Bay County](https://nemtguide.com/states/florida/bay-county/).

## Frequently asked questions

### What is Tri-County transportation in Walton County, Florida?

It is the ride service of Tri-County Community Council, Inc., a Bonifay nonprofit that also runs Head Start. The council has been Walton County's Community Transportation Coordinator since January 1983 and drives older, disabled, and low-income residents to medical care, work, school, and shopping from its office at 194 N. 6th Street in DeFuniak Springs.

### How do riders book a Tri-County ride in Walton County?

Call 850-892-2422 or visit 194 N. 6th Street, DeFuniak Springs, weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., by noon the working day before the trip. Riders qualify at 60 or older or 17 or younger, below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines, or with a disability a medical professional verifies. Trips are curb to curb, and the co-pay was $2 in May 2026.

### Does Tri-County Community Council hire outside transportation companies?

Not in Walton County today. Its May 2026 service plan lists no contracted operators and no coordination contracts, and its quarterly reports show no operator payments in FY 2025-26. The one exception the plan describes is stretcher service, which the council buys through a request for proposals and negotiation.

### Who provides stretcher rides in the Walton County program?

Holmes County Emergency Medical Service, for riders with no other sponsor. Its hours are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., or around the clock with advance notice. After hours, hospital discharge planners call the contracted EMS provider directly and send the council the trip details the next business day.

### Does Tri-County carry Medicaid trips in Walton County?

No. The state's 2025 report counted no Medicaid-paid trips in the Walton system for FY 2024-25, and the minutes of the May 20, 2026 public workshop note that Medicaid members generally must use their assigned broker or plan. Those trips go through Modivcare, Alivi, and Ride2MD, so a ride company reaches them by joining the broker networks.

### What other counties does Tri-County Community Council serve?

It is also the coordinator for Holmes and Washington counties, which share one service plan, and for Santa Rosa County. Holmes and Washington riders book at 850-547-3688. The council plans long out-of-area medical trips across all four counties together to cut costs.

## Official resources

- [Emerald Coast Regional Council: Walton County TD board agendas and service plan](https://www.ecrc.org/programs/transportation_planning/transportation_disadvantaged_(td)/walton_td.php)
- [Walton County Transportation Disadvantaged Service Plan (approved May 20, 2026)](https://www.ecrc.org/document_center/Programs/Transportation%20Disadvantaged/Walton%20TD/Walton%20County%20Transportation%20Disadvantaged%20Service%20Plan%20%28Approved%20May%2020%2C%202026%29.pdf)
- [Holmes-Washington County Transportation Disadvantaged Service Plan (approved May 20, 2026)](https://www.ecrc.org/document_center/Programs/Transportation%20Disadvantaged/Holmes-Washington%20TD/Holmes-Washington%20County%20Transportation%20Disadvantaged%20Service%20Plan%20%28Approved%20May%2020%2C%202026%29.pdf)
- [Tri-County Community Council: Transportation](https://tricountycommunitycouncil.com/?page_id=82)
- [AHCA: Fee-for-service NEMT brokers and provider contacts](https://ahca.myflorida.com/medicaid/medicaid-policy-quality-and-operations/medicaid-policy-and-quality/medicaid-policy/federal-authorities/federal-waivers/fl-1915-b-managed-care-waiver.html)