DES MOINES, Iowa — Last week the Des Moines City Council approved a hike to the franchise fee to help keep DART buses running. Despite the additional expense to utility bills, DART still plans to cut some services to balance its budget.

The plan to reimagine DART could determine the organization’s cut of the increased franchise fee. So far we know that if you have a $100 a month utility bill you’ll likely pay about $30 more annually but when that will hit and how much of it will go toward public transit is unclear.

WHO 13’s Katie Kaplan spoke with Mayor Connie Boesen Monday evening and she says there’s still a lot to get worked out. The first step is coming next week when DART issues its rough draft of its reimagine plan.

Erin Hockman, DART’s chief strategy officer, said the plan will be an all-new bus network with fewer routes that operate more frequently, all day and all week long.

“It’s possible that someone might have to walk a little bit further but some of the benefits of that is that when you walk a little bit further the bus isn’t stopping as often. And so we’re hoping with some of the changes that we’re proposing to really increase overall travel times so people can get where they need to go faster and they can also reach more places,” Hockman said.

Big changes are coming with the new design. Public input will be solicited on it during September. The goal is to have it finalized toward the end of the year. So, the mayor says that extra bump on your bill could come as soon as November.

That’s also when we’ll have a better idea of how much of the franchise fee will be allocated to DART. The other avenue is to put some of the money toward paying down the levy. Whatever the end result, the route changes won’t be made until early next summer