Minutes

Public Transit Advisory Committee Meeting: February 21, 2006

4:10 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Public Transit Division Office
933 New Hampshire Street

Members present: Chairman Danny Kaiser, Richard Heckler, Alan Black, Marc Epard, Marian Hukle, and Darlene Mortell

Members absent: Jessica Mortinger

Staff present: Public Transit Administrator (PTA) Cliff Galante, Mike Sweeten, and Wendy Koerner

Public present: Marion Babb

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Call to Order

Chairman Danny Kaiser called the meeting to order at 4:10 p.m.

Public Comment

No public comment was presented.

Agenda Review

No revisions or additions were made to the agenda.

Public Transit Administrator Update

Welcome New PTAC Board Member

PTA introduced new board member Darlene Mortell to the group. Introductions were made around the table.

Ridership and Other Performance Statistics

PTA went over the monthly ridership reports for December and January. Fixed route ridership in January, 2005 was 26% higher than January, 2004. The number of passengers per hour on the fixed route has risen to 10 passengers, even though gas prices have been going down. The last time this number hit 10 was back in September and October when gas prices jumped to $3.00 per gallon. Paratransit service rose 15% over January of 2005. In addition, PTA pointed out that total ridership more than doubled in the first 5 years of operation from 200,145 rides in 2001 to 439,131 rides provided in 2005.

Danny Kaiser noted the on-time performance has dipped. PTA attributed this to increased demand on the system. Mike Sweeten added that as productivity goes up, on-time performance and the quality of the ride tends to decrease. Denials are another way to measure our service. Service was added in 2005, when denials started to rise, and they are once again on the rise.

Participation in St. Patrick's Day Parade

PTA updated PTAC on LTS participation in the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Board members are welcome to ride the bus in the parade or walk along side the bus to hand out goodies.

Public Outreach/Marketing Activities

At the suggestion of a passenger, route maps will be included in the new phone directories. PTA explained that while it is easy to misplace or lose an individual route map, most people do not misplace their phone books. Other outreach activities include the development of the 2006 travel training workshop schedule and presentations in the schools.

Transit Amenities Update

Waste receptacles have been ordered which will be installed in all the passenger waiting shelters. Also, we are in the process of ordering route map decals which will also be placed in all the transit shelters. PTA passed around a sample of the type of decal that will be used.

Public Works has applied for a downtown improvement grant, a portion of which will be used to update/replace the passenger waiting shelters and improve the bus stops at 9th & Massachusetts.

Staff is still working on the bus stop inventory and determining where additional signs are needed along the routes. Marian commented it is difficult for the drivers to pick up students in front of CJHS when parents park in front of the bus stop. Staff will look into either relocating the sign a little farther north of 14th Street or will work with the school to educate parents not to park in front of the stop.

Ridesharing Program Update

Pending approval from the KC Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) the City will be entering into an intergovernmental agreement with the Lawrence/Douglas County MPO and Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) in obtaining ridesharing software to facilitate carpooling between the two metropolitan areas. The program is called Green Ride and is currently used in many Colorado cities such as Greeley, Ft. Collin's, Loveland and also in Grand Rapids, MI. Data collected through the ridesharing program will be helpful in future long-range planning.

City/KU Transit Service Coordination Feasibility Update

PTA said that tonight the RFP for a coordinated transit plan will go before the City Commission. Upon CC approval the RFP will be issued March 3. It will be advertised in this Sunday's paper, and on Monday, it will be published in APTA's Passenger Transport, which is a national transit publication. Proposals are due April 3rd. Based on the specifications, the coordination study will take approximately 6 months to complete, and the final report is expected by December 2006. Public involvement will play an important role in the process and no less than 5 public hearings will be scheduled.

The City and KU determined a $1M grant offered by KDOT, meant to be used towards a coordinated system, would be best utilized towards the purchase of 5 buses to serve the new park-n-ride service. KU will contract with their current provider, Lawrence Bus Company, to provide the service. No City or Federal funds will be used towards the operation of the service.

Appointment of PTAC Representation on Study Management Team

PTA said the team will be made up of 5 individuals representing the City, 5 KU representatives, and PTA will act as project manager. The team is expected to meet monthly, but during key decision times, once per week may be necessary. PTA is asking that two PTAC members be part of the 5 representing the City. Marian Hukle nominated Marc Epard; Richard Heckler seconded. Richard Heckler nominated Darlene Mortell; Marian seconded. Marc and Darlene will report the team's progress at the bi-monthly board meetings.

Board Elections

Richard Heckler moved to keep the current chairman Danny Kaiser, and the current vice-chair Marian Hukle for 2006; Marc Epard seconded. No other nominations were made and no public comment was provided. Motion passed unanimously.

March Sub-Committee Meetings

PTA said the Route Review Committee is on hold pending the completion of the planning study, and the KU Coordination Committee is no longer necessary due to the inception of the Study Management Team. The Standards Committee is the only one that can be scheduled at this time and Marc and Richard are the only two members are left on the committee. Marian said she would join this committee. The meeting was scheduled for March 9th at 4:10 pm.

Public Comment

No public comment provided.

Tentative Next Meeting Date

April 18, 2006

Adjournment

Meeting was adjourned at 5:14 p.m.

— Submitted by Wendy Koerner
Approved at April 18, 2006 PTAC Meeting