Miami University and the Butler County Regional Transit Authority will expand their existing public transportation partnership in August.

Under a new 10-year agreement, Miami will pay approximately $1.6 million into BCRTA’s transit development fund and BCRTA will provide public transit services on Miami’s Oxford campus during the academic school year.

Routes and service areas will remain very similar to those developed for the university’s privately operated Miami Metro system. Specifics of the routes will be discussed at forums later in the spring.

“BCRTA is proud to partner with Miami University,” said Carla Lakatos, BCRTA executive director. “Operation of the Oxford campus service is a critical element in building an affordable, convenient and reliable network of local public transit services in Butler County.”

BCRTA, which operates without county or tax levy funding, has established partnerships with other entities and receives grant funds to put about 25 buses on county roads. It receives approximately $1.4 million annually via federal funding, according to Lakatos.

BCRTA ridership surged from 53,131 rides in 2011 to 77,672 in 2012, a 46.2 percent boost that includes its “on-demand” service and regional route service between Hamilton, Middletown and Oxford.

A large portion of the increase was the result of the Hamilton-Oxford Shuttle, a collaboration with Miami University introduced last August. The general public rides the shuttle at a cost of $2 per trip, while Miami University students, faculty and staff members ride the route for free. Thanks to the partnership, the same holds true for BCRTA’s Hamilton-Middletown and Middletown-Oxford routes.

The shuttle garnered nearly 17,000 rides in just five months, according to BCRTA ridership statistics.

Ridership on the R2/Middletown-Oxford Shuttle established in May 2010 saw a 122 percent increase last year, according to BCRTA.

“The partnership with BCRTA fits directly into Miami’s commitments to a sustainable transportation network,” said Ben Spilman, Miami’s director of parking and transportation services. “This partnership will provide benefits to the Miami community as well as the greater Butler County community.”

Staff Writer Eric Schwartzberg contributed to this report.