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Minutes Transit Board of Trustees 5 8 08MINUTES Date: Time: Place: Dubuque Transit Trustee Board May 8, 2008 4:15 p.m. Carnegie Stout Public Library Auditorium Eleventh & Bluff Streets, Dubuque, Iowa Members Present: Joel Lightcap; Sarah Davidson; Don Stedman; Ruth Scharnau Members Absent: George Enderson, Jr Others Present: Jon Rodocker -Joanne Kiefer /Keyline; Ray Kirpes, 1296 Langworthy, Dubuque/Guest May Lightcap called the meeting to order at 4:23 p.m. Agenda Approval The Board reviewed the agenda. Stedman moved to approve the agenda. Davidson seconded. All ayes. The Board members approved the agenda with no changes or additions. April The Board reviewed the minutes from the April 10th meeting. Minutes Davidson moved to approve the minutes. Enderson seconded. All ayes. Motion carried Managers Mini-bus Operations Report Ridership -Rodocker reviewed the Mini-bus rider totals for the month of April, and noted that the number of rides was slightly less than April 2007. He stated that mini-bus rides typically decline in April, and expects to see the usual increase as the weather stabilizes. Lightcap asked if there is a separate reporting system for East Dubuque mini-bus riders to the Illinois Department of Transportation. Rodocker explained that this would be the first year for a separate report to the Illinois DOT. Maintenance -The two mini-buses that are new to the Keyline fleet have been in use and management has been receiving positive reports from Operators and Dispatchers. Minutes - 2 Fixed Route Operations Passenger Shelters -There is nothing new to report in this area. Safety Training /Labor Management Committee - A Safety and Appreciation meeting was held for all operators on Thursday, April 3, 2008. Pizza and soft drinks were provided as a token of appreciation to all fixed route and mini-bus operators for their outstanding, safe service through the record-breaking snowfalls Dubuque experienced this winter. In addition, the meeting introduced the policy change regarding managing student disruptive behaviors. Rodocker reviewed the procedural changes in the policy. An officer from the Dubuque Police force conducted training on police intervention and when to request it. Lightcap asked if the students attending Jefferson still had a pick-up location at Mertz Street. Rodocker responded that was correct, and due to the narrow, congested streets around Jefferson Junior High School he does not foresee KeyLine being able to pick-up students any closer to school. Rodocker discussed the various route deviations that KeyLine implemented to assist in picking up students after the Dubuque Community School District adjusted dismissal times. Davidson stated she feels that people are not riding the bus during school dismissal times because they are afraid of the students. She believes that students are vandalizing the buses. Rodocker stated that the new policy for managing inappropriate behavior on the buses is based on the yellow school bus policy for safe student transportation. Davidson asked what the schools do in regard to disruptive students. Rodocker explained there is a process that includes seven steps with warnings that lead to more serious consequences, including suspending transportation services and eventually concludes with the student losing the right to ride the yellow school bus. Davidson stated she has three concerns about students riding on KeyLine buses: people will not want to ride the buses with the students, the bus driver is alone when trying to deal with problems, and the route is delayed when the bus pulls over to wait for the police. Scharnau commented that it is usually only a few who are causing all the trouble. Lightcap asked how the Dubuque Community Police figure into the yellow school bus policy. Rodocker replied that there are three resource officers who are responsible to cover all the schools. He added that the Minutes - 3 Dubuque Police have responded quickly whenever KeyLine has had to call them to a scene, and their presence has been very helpful for the bus operators. Davidson asked if students could be removed from the KeyLine buses. Rodocker answered that only if the students have paid $.50 to ride, and they are not traveling to or from school, would an operator be able to ask them to get off the bus at a safe and secure bus stop. If a student used their student ID to ride the bus, the only way the students could be removed from the bus would be in police custody. Student Rides -The student rider numbers continue to show dramatic increases as the school year comes to a close. Lightcap asked if the federal government will reimburse KeyLine for each student ride. Rodocker explained KeyLine would be eligible to receive additional state funding based on the increased number of riders; but there is usually at least a two year lag from the time the reports are submitted until the state evaluates the mileage-rider formula and recommends a funding increase. Davidson asked if KeyLine has noticed any revenue increases. Rodocker responded he would estimate a 2-3% increase in regular riders and he would have to investigate to determine the actual impact on revenues. Scharnau commented she had heard remarks from other KeyLine riders that more people are riding the bus. Fixed Route Bus Maintenance -There is nothing new to report in this area. General Transit Federal Transit Administration -Rodocker reviewed the changes that had been made in the Consolidated Grant Application. There had been some financial amounts changed to comply with the requested formula change from the Iowa DOT, and three light duty buses had been added. In addition, the JARC Application had been changed to reflect the expanded hours of service proposal. Rodocker hoped that KeyLine could offer additional service hours that would benefit both employees and employers in the Westside Industrial Park area as well as other local businesses. Davidson asked who would provide JARC rides. Rodocker answered that A-OK Yellow Cab had been the service provider, providing rides to JARC eligible customers who needed transportation outside the operating hours currently established by KeyLlne Transit. Unfortunately, A-OK Yellow Cab has declared bankruptcy and is no longer a service provider for KeyLine. Rodocker explained that the only other cab company Minutes - 4 in Dubuque, Starlight Taxi, does not have DOT approval to provide service for JARC riders He is concerned about the rides, although only a few, that happen in the evening and later on the weekend that had been handled by the cab service. He would like to work with the RTA to develop a plan to cover those rides. Rodocker stated that the JARC program is a complicated process involving several state and federal requirements. KeyLine Facility Maintenance -There is nothing new to report in this area. East Central Intergovernmental Association - ECIA will work with KeyLine to obtain a regional grant that could help finance a survey to identify stakeholders and gather additional information. Rodocker had asked board members to provide feedback on identifying stakeholders. He had provided a list of potential stakeholders with the agenda. The list included schools, medical facilities, community businesses, local industries, and retirement communities to name a few. Davidson said a group of people she has been working with about transportation issues had developed a list of stakeholders that she will forward to Rodocker. KeyLine would like to develop a marketing plan, and would use the list of stakeholders as a starting point. Updating the KeyLine Ride Guide -Rodocker stated that KeyLine will be planning to print more Ride Guides in the near future, and would be interested in suggestions from the Transit Board members on any recommendations for changes or additions to the Guide. KeyLine staff have identified some corrections to times and routes, as well as some minor route changes that would improve customer service; for example, traveling on Holiday Drive, instead of the Northwest Arterial. Rodocker is planning to add parochial schools to the map and enhance the symbol for the Transfer points. Lightcap suggested smaller maps that highlight the transfer points placed on the sides of the Guide. A discussion followed regarding ways to simplify the Ride Guide and make it more user friendly. Rodocker asked the Board members to review the Ride Guide and notify him with any recommendations. He encouraged members to a-mail him with any ideas for improvements to the Guide. Board Comments Davidson commented that the downtown transfer site did not work for mobility devices, since when buses have tried to pick her up they are angled into the street because the bus can not fit into the designated area. Rodocker explained that the Minutes - 5 transfer point had been designed with at least ten extra feet for each bus stop, and the allocated space was determined based on the larger bus size. The record breaking winter snows had provided a problem due to the large snow piles on the streets, but now that spring is here KeyLine staff will be installing concrete pads at the downtown transfer site to accommodate mobility devices for the rear door of the bus. The concrete pads will provide better access for the passenger and allow the operator to properly align the bus. Davidson left the meeting for a short time. Lightcap asked who would fund adding concrete to the entire transfer site and removing the trees. Rodocker responded that 80% of the funding for such a project would come from the FTA. KeyLine would be responsible to coordinate the funding and the current budget would not be able to finance the expenses involved in that type of project. Rodocker suggested the concrete pads because that would fit into KeyLine's limited budget and serve the needs of the customers. Scharnau asked if KeyLine had received much feedback from the series of articles in the Dubuque Telegraph Herald. She was pleased to see coverage of KeyLine services. Rodocker noted there has been minimal feedback. Scharnau commented she had attended abike-hike meeting, and a question about bike racks on the KeyLlne buses was asked at the meeting. Rodocker stated that KeyLine is in the process of purchasing five bike racks for the buses through a First Transit agency. A discussion of types of racks and bikes on the buses followed. Scharnau was surprised to learn customers could bring their bicycles on the bus. Lightcap commented that it would be helpful if there was information posted at each transfer site regarding the available amenities, like a public restroom or the proximity of stores and the police station. He felt that the Telegraph Herald had done a good job with the series of articles about KeyLine. Although, he was concerned that when referring to the Transit Board, he felt the official name, the Dubuque Transit Board of Trustees, should be used to maintain consistency Davidson stated that several people had stopped her with comments about the articles. A discussion of the impact of rising gas prices and the negative image of riding a bus followed. Scharnau had to leave the meeting at this point. Public Comments Ray Kirpes commented that he believes people would ride the buses if the ride was free. He recommended that the City of Dubuque raise everyone's taxes by a certain amount, and that amount could be used to fund KeyLine services. People would save money by not using their cars and not Minutes - 6 have to pay the related expenses, including fuel, insurance, loan payment, maintenance and repairs. Fewer cars on the road would mean less pollution which would correspond to the City of Dubuque's Green Initiative. In addition, greater numbers of KeyLine riders would eventually translate into greater federal funding for the transit system. Kirpes believes that most people do not realize how expensive it is to operate a car. He shared a story of his conversations with a waitress who bought a car and how her weekly expenses were far greater than the weekly cost of riding the bus. He wondered if the City of Dubuque could utilize money from a federal grant to initiate such a program. Davidson commented that she has read articles outlining how bus companies who offered free rides have increased their passenger count by at least seven times. Lightcap mentioned that in Iowa City buses provide free rides in the campus area. He wondered if the rides are free throughout the city as well. A discussion of KeyLine operating costs and the percent of funding from the City of Dubuque followed. Rodocker explained that due to the population of Dubuque, under 200,000, 50% of KeyLine's operating budget comes from federal monies. Kirpes asked if there could be any federal money available to initiate the type of program he outlined. Rodocker thought the first step would be a feasibility study, and the City of Dubuque would need to locate money to fund the study first. Lightcap thanked Kirpes for attending the meeting and presenting his ideas. Adjournment Lightcap asked for a motion to adjourn. Stedman made a motion to adjourn. Davidson seconded. All ayes. Motion carried. Meeting was adjourned at 5:58 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for June 12, 2008. Respectfully submitted, Joanne Kiefer Secretary These minutes passed, approved and adopted on this day of May, 2008. George Enderson, Jr.,Vice Chairman Dubuque Transit Trustee Board