Minutes_Transit Board of Trustees 5 14 09MINUTES
Dubuque Transit Trustee Board
Date: May 14, 2009
Time: 4:15 p.m.
Place: Carnegie Stout Public Library Boardroom
Eleventh & Bluff Streets, Dubuque, Iowa
Members Present: Joel Lightcap; George Enderson, Jr; John Curtis; Ruth Scharnau
Members Absent: Don Stedman
Others Present: Jon Rodocker-Joanne Kiefer /Keyline; Dave Heiar /City of Dubuque
May Lightcap called the meeting to order at 4:14 p.m.
Agenda Approval Lightcap asked the Board to review the agenda for any changes or
additions. Rodocker would like to add a notice that there would be a
Public Hearing for the Consolidated Grant Application on June 12, 2009.
This public meeting would be held at the Library at 3:00 pm with the
Transit Board and any one from the community is welcome to attend.
Scharnau commented she would not be able to attend and wondered if
the meeting required a quorum. Rodocker responded that the
Consolidated Grant Hearing does require a quorum since it will require
voting on issues by the Board members.
Rodocker mentioned the next Board meeting after the public hearing would
be held on August 13, 2009. Scharnau asked why the Board meetings
were not being held on a monthly basis. Rodocker reminded the Board
that he had asked when he arrived at Keyline to change the meetings
from bi-monthly to monthly in an efFort to be more responsive to the needs
of the community. Rodocker felt the Board members would be better
informed of any recommendations and be more active in the process with
monthly meetings. In the recent past, several meetings were cancelled
due to the lack of a quorum. Consequently, bi-monthly meetings seem to
be a better option, especially for the summer months. Once the LSC
Operational Analysis is complete, the Transit Board will be meeting more
frequently to discuss the results and the proposals for the future.
Curtis moved to approve the agenda with the addition of the notice of the
Public Hearing, Enderson seconded. All ayes Motion carried.
Minutes - 2
March 12, 2009 The Board reviewed the minutes from the previous meeting. Curtis
Minutes commented the minutes were very comprehensive. He moved to approve
the minutes as presented. Enderson seconded. All ayes Motion carried.
Managers Rodocker reviewed the March and April 2009 Operational Reports for
Report the Board. Overall the months of March and April are looking good.
The number of riders on the Fixed Route and Mini-bus are remaining
steady and consistent from month to month. The budget continues to
be on target, helped by the drop in the price of fuel. Rodocker
mentioned that the budget for KeyLine is $50,000 in the black. Heiar
explained this does not mean that KeyLine is generating excess
revenue. The significance of the budget in the b/ack is that the
planned expenditures are being covered accurately by the predicted
budget.
The LSC Consultants spoke with the City Council on April 6, 2009 in a
work session, and discussed the direction of the KeyLine Transit
Comprehensive Operational Analysis. LSC is in the process of
completing Technical Memorandum #3, and is coordinating with
KeyLine management to schedule the next round of meetings with the
KeyLine Operators and the general public. Curtis asked how the
meetings will be publicized. Rodocker noted that while KeyLine utilizes
several forms of the media to announce the meetings; it still seems to
be a problem to discern how to get the word out to the people who
might be most interested to attend the meetings. The Board discussed
several marketing ideas including posting announcements on the bus
shelters, continuing to use the newspaper and the local radio stations
to announce meetings, handing out fliers on the buses, and using the
City of Dubuque web site. Scharnau felt the biggest problem is many
people do not read the newspaper. or have access to a computer, and
wondered how to reach that segment of the public. Curtis mentioned
sending an announcement to several human service agencies who
could inform the participants in their programs. Rodocker agreed that
was a good idea. Heiar reminded the Board that it is important to
schedule meetings when the buses are running so individuals who use
the service are able to attend.
Rodocker explained to the Board that April is the last month that
KeyLine will report a separate line item noting the contract dollar
amount received for the service to East Dubuque, Illinois. The City
Council approved the Agreement for bus service between the City of
Dubuque and KeyLine Transit with East Dubuque, Illinois on April 20tH
The significance of the Agreement is that KeyLine will be drawing down
the money from the FTA to operate the service to East Dubuque. The
money can be applied toward operating expenses and capital
improvements. Rodocker is looking forward to making such
improvements as purchasing a new bus, improving bus shelters, and
developing a marketing plan. Rodocker has asked for the money that
is being paid back to the FTA by East Dubuque, approximately $87,000
to be part of the capital grant. A brief discussion of the significance of
this decision followed.
Minutes - 3
Rodocker updated the Board on the situation with Burlington Trailways.
The City Council approved the move to the location at 400 Rhomberg
Avenue, fondly known in the community as Five Points. The City of
Dubuque has signed off on the Agreement and is waiting for
representatives of Burlington Trailways to do the same. Burlington
Trailways appears to be hedging due to the agreement drafted by the
City of Dubuque is for one year, with yearly renewals, and the lease at
the new location is for more than one year. The Planning Services
Department has given Burlington Trailways a deadline for moving from
their current location on First Street. It is up to Burlington Trailways at
this point to respond.
KeyLine management continues to work with the LSC Consultants, staff
from ECIA and RTA to expand options for future transit service in the
community. Of course, KeyLine management is always interested in
ideas from the members of the Transit Board. Rodocker reviewed
several options that are currently being presented by LSC Consultants,
including utilizing smaller vehicles, either medium or light duty buses,
Sprinter vans, taxi vouchers, specifically outlined Demand Response
areas that could be served by the Mini-bus or RTA, and routes that
would incorporate relocated transfer hubs with shopper or medical
shuttles and more areas of the community covered by shorter routes.
Heiar stated that the City Council wants more than minor changes and
encourages the Transit Board members to read the next technical
memorandum thoroughly since many of the recommendations will be
described. Heiar encourages the Board members to provide feedback
and suggestions at the next meeting with the consultants.
Scharnau asked if there was a web site where she could review more
information and the previous memorandums. Rodocker offered to
deliver copies to her and any other Board member who has yet to
receive the memorandums. A discussion of the previous technical
memorandums followed.
Heiar mentioned he has been concerned about the antiquated record
keeping methods used by KeyLine in the past. This was also noted as
a concern by the consultants. Rodocker suggested that perhaps staff
did not realize the importance of the data at that time. But he believes
over recent years record keeping has been improving.
Lightcap said that recommendations from past studies had been
proposed by the Board, but there had been no follow through and that
was disappointing. He hopes that the results of this study might be
acted upon differently due to the motivation by the City Council.
In addition, Rodocker explained that the City of Dubuque, KeyLine and
ECIA are working on a TIGGER application for funding and replacement
of vehicles and equipment as part of the federal stimulus package.
While there are certain stipulations for the grant, such as not
purchasing new vehicles to expand your fleet, the emphasis on transit
improvements and the amount of money available nationwide, one
hundred million dollars, creates a very exciting environment for transit.
The grant imposes certain regulations regarding vehicles. The priority
will be to find buses or vans that will fit the criteria of more sustainable,
greener running vehicles with lower emissions. This is already a
Minutes - 4
primary consideration for the City of Dubuque and KeyLine. It would
be an opportunity for KeyLine to replace their bigger older vehicles with
alternative buses. Heiar reminded the Board there are limited funds
available, when you consider that transit agencies across the entire
United States will be competing for those dollars.
Enderson suggested considering combining public transit vehicles with
school buses to expand service options, save money, improve energy
usage, and be more sustainable.
Rodocker will inform the Board members as dates for the next round of
meetings with the Consultants are scheduled.
Curtis would like the Board to consider KeyLine providing service for
Disability Mentoring Day, scheduled for October 21, 2009. Michael
Murray is planning to bring employers together with disabled
individuals and will need bus service for the individuals and their
mentors. Rodocker said he would be happy to support such an activity,
but would need more details and would need to examine the itinerary
to insure that KeyLine could provide the service as opposed to a
charter bus company.
At this point in the meeting, around 5:00 pm, Heiar had to leave the
meeting.
Mini-bus There is nothing new to report about Mini-bus service at this time.
Operations Rodocker mentioned that Heartland, a medical transportation service for
seniors, has gone out of business. It is too soon to determine the impact
this might have on the number of rides for the Mini-bus.
Board Comments Rodocker wanted to notify the Board members that Don Stedman has sent
correspondence that indicates he will be resigning from the Transit Board
effective this July. He will serve at will until a replacement can be found.
Due to health concerns, Stedman will not be able to continue his active
involvement with the Transit Board. Rodocker stated that to date, there
have been two applications submitted to City Hall for the opening.
Lightcap said he had asked someone to attend the Transit Board meeting
today who he thought might be interested to join the Board. This person
is someone who rides the KeyLine Fixed Route and who Lightcap thought
could be a valuable addition to the Board. He is surprised the individual
did not attend today's meeting. A discussion of ways to obtain more
involvement by the public in Transit Board meetings followed.
Lightcap asked if there was a way to compare previous revenue gained by
KeyLine before the free ride program for students was implemented. He
wondered if there was a way to demonstrate the value of the increased
ride numbers that will be generating more funding from FTA. Lightcap felt
this might help the public understand the importance of the free ride
program for students.
Kiefer commented that initially the program was started to not only obtain
more funding from FTA based on the increased rider numbers; but also to
assist students who may have trouble getting to school and to help train
Minutes - 5
young people how to use mass transit so they are better able to travel
independently in any community.
The Board also discussed the importance of marketing the services KeyLine
offers to individuals with disabilities, to the organizations and agencies who
work with the disabled, and to the general public. Rodocker reflected on
the difficulty of marketing with limited resources.
Public Comments None
Adjournment Lightcap asked for a motion to adjourn. Curtis so moved. Enderson
seconded. All ayes Motion carried.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:25 p.m.
The next meeting will be the Public Hearing for the Consolidated Grant
Application on Friday, June 12, 2009 at 3:00 pm. The meeting will take
place at the Carnegie Stout Public Library Boardroom. Due to the
renovations at the Library, the Auditorium will not be available.
Respectfully submitted,
Joanne Kiefer
Secretary
These minutes passed, approved and adopted on this day of May, 2008.
Joel Lightcap, Chairperson
Dubuque Transit Trustee Board