Public transit is a lifeline for low-income residents. They will bear the brunt of service cuts.

As transit agencies plan for months, at least, of lower ridership, they are on the brink of what some are calling a budgetary doomsday. Nine months of fare-revenue losses have taken a toll amid a shift in commuter habits. Federal aid stanched the bleeding for a stretch, but the $25 billion that public transportation received from the Cares Act in the spring has dwindled.

Without another injection of federal money, transit agencies say, they are left with one option: reduce service. That move disproportionately hurts riders like Howell who have few transportation alternatives.