Officials are considering changes to Georgetown’s ride-hailing program, rideGTX, to cut down on costs following the council guidance to start phasing out the GoGeo program.

Council members directed staff to increase the base fare, reduce overnight service hours and remove service in the extraterritorial jurisdiction.

The current situation: At an Aug. 11 City Council workshop, Transportation Manager Lua Saluone presented an update on the rideGTX program in order to determine what cost-saving measures council members preferred.

Because of the growing popularity of the service, the program could cost the city $795,000 to $865,000 per year, according to city documents.

The update: To keep the program financially sustainable, council members supported:

• Eliminating ETJ service, which will affect about 55 trips per month, or around 16 to 20 regular users
• Reducing hours from 24/7 to 6 a.m. to midnight, expected to save the city between $40,000 and $50,000 per year
• Increasing the base fare for standard voucher rides from $4 to $5

Hannah Banana Breads & More, owned by Hannah Tompson, celebrated five years in business in Georgetown. 

About the business: Tompson began her business in July 2021, “starting off small,” selling a variety of bread and rolls, she said. She later learned how to make custom cakes and pies, which increased a lot of her sales. 

Going forward: For now, it is still a “side hustle,” Tompson said. Eventually, she said she hopes to open a storefront to sell her baked goods and custom designs.

Check out some of the most-read stories about the Austin area from Aug. 10-13. 

1. Franklin Barbecue to temporarily close in East Austin

2. Cedar Park officials approve $5.6M for transportation, community projects

3. New running shoe store to open in San Marcos outlets

4. Claw machine arcade coming soon to New Braunfels

5. Discount Tire opens second location in Georgetown

6. H-E-B plans store upgrades in Pflugerville

The Texas Education Agency released public school accountability ratings for the 2025-26 school year on Aug. 14.

"We use [A-F ratings] as a way to evaluate our own performance as adults, and then build action plans so that the way that we run our schools next year can be even better than last year," Education Commissioner Mike Morath said during an Aug. 14 news conference.

The overview: Across the state, 85% of campuses received a C rating or higher, which is considered “acceptable" academic performance.

Schools are rated based on three criteria: student achievement, school progress and closing the gaps.

Zooming in: At least one district, Austin ISD, is at risk of being taken over by the TEA after two of its middle school campuses received their fifth consecutive failing grades this year. State law requires the agency to shutter those campuses or take control of the district.

Any potential state-mandated closures or takeovers will not happen immediately, as districts with concerns about their ratings have through Sept. 11 to appeal scores to the TEA.