Minutes_Transit Board of Trustees 10 8 09MINUTES
Dubuque Transit Trustee Board
Date: October 8, 2009
Time: 4:15 p.m.
Place: Public Works Facility Conference Room
925 Kerper Court, Dubuque, Iowa
Members Present: Joel Lightcap; John Curtis; Ruth Scharnau; Matt Esser
Members Absent: George Enderson, Jr; Dave Heiar /City of Dubuque
Others Present: Jon Rodocker-Joanne Kiefer /Keyline
October Lightcap called the meeting to order at 4:25 p.m.
Agenda Approval Lightcap asked the Board to examine the agenda for any changes or
additions. Curtis would like information regarding IBM Shuttle service
added to the agenda. Curtis moved to approve the agenda with the
addition. Scharnau seconded. All ayes Motion carried.
Sept 10, 2009 The Board reviewed the minutes from the previous meeting.
Minutes Curtis moved to approve the minutes as presented. Esser seconded.
All ayes Motion carried.
Managers Rodocker explained there would be no monthly report at this time,
Report since the financial information was not available yet. Once the
expenses and revenue have been compiled, Rodocker will complete his
report and a-mail the information to the Board members. In a few
weeks, the white International bus that had been provided to Keyline
through First Transit at no charge will be coming back to the garage
after being made road ready for wheelchairs with more accessible
seating. Rodocker would like the Board to consider making a
recommendation for that bus to be wrapped. Rodocker supplied the
Board members with several hand-outs illustrating bus wraps on
vehicles in public transit systems throughout the country. He outlined
the benefits of a bus wrap, including: increased revenue from
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advertising, the bus travels through the city like a moving billboard; an
opportunity to update the image of KeyLine buses, a priority identified
both by KeyLine management and the LSC Consultants Operational
Analysis; and a wrap would provide a protective covering to the
vehicle, improving the longevity of paint and the overall body condition.
A good example within our own Midwestern region is the Quad Cities,
where their entire fleet is totally wrapped, and that alone has
dramatically reduced the cost of paint and body maintenance.
Rodocker would like to see the first bus wrap promote the City of
Dubuque, and several photographs of landmarks could be used.
A discussion of the benefits of bus wraps followed. The Board agreed
with Rodocker that a wrap would be an excellent way to market a new
image for KeyLine buses.
Lightcap asked about a previous vendor who had made a presentation
about bench advertising. Rodocker responded he did not feel that
offered an attractive opportunity for advertising and the benches were
not in well-placed locations. Rodocker mentioned the RTA's new
vehicles that have bus wraps and wondered if any Board members
have seen those vehicles. Esser liked the idea, and said people will
notice the bus with a more positive impression as it travels down the
street, ..."it will look cool." Lightcap asked what would be the best
approach to move this idea forward. Rodocker suggested the Board
draft a recommendation to the City Council. Esser asked if the Transit
Board would need to ask for financing, or is existing money available.
Rodocker explained there is money available in a promotions budget
that could be used to wrap the first bus. Lightcap asked for a motion
to authorize Rodocker to compose a recommendation. All Board
members were in favor. Scharnau asked about advertising inside the
buses. Rodocker responded that inside advertising will continue to be
reserved for non-profit agencies and their announcements.
Comprehensive Operational Analysis - A rough final draft is currently
available for the Transit Board, the Steering Committee and Dave Heiar
to review. Please provide your feedback to Rodocker or Heiar in the
next few days, and they will be happy to pass your input on to the LSC
Consultants. The City of Dubuque would like to see the Final Draft of
the Operational Analysis in the beginning of November, so that the City
Council, the Steering Committee, the Transit Board, the public and
concerned groups are able to review the document before the public
meeting scheduled for Monday, November 16, 2009. The Consultants
are scheduled to make their final presentation to the City Council in the
beginning of December.
Ongoing Projects -Rodocker updated the Board on several ongoing
plans, including: 1) resubmitting the JARC application, approved for
$29,700, to be applied to equalized pull-out times for KeyLine Fixed
Route buses. The JARC money was originally requested for the west-
side shuttle, but the delayed opening of the Hormel plant has caused
KeyLine management to look at other ways to utilize the funding
according to the state specifications and time period. By having all
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buses leave the garage at the same time each morning, KeyLine would
provide an additional 45 minutes of service to many areas of the
community allowing more residents to access the bus to get to work
each day. This proposal would help address the Board's priority of
extending service hours, and a goal Rodocker has wanted to initiate for
some time. 2) Capital Investment Program to purchase replacement
buses for the aging KeyLine fleet, KeyLine will receive funding to
replace two 35-foot buses, as well as possibly receive additional funding
for one mini-bus, or a combination of medium and light duty buses. A
portion of the funds for the new vehicles will come from a state stipend
based on the increased rider numbers over the last two years. The
dramatic jump in riders is a direct reflection of the increased student
passengers as part of the Free Rides for Students program, a
partnership between the Dubuque Community Schools and KeyLine
Transit. 3) A grant for Cleaner Air that was co-authored by ECIA and
the City of Dubuque for five million dollars to help replace the fleets for
KeyLine Transit and the RTA did not succeed, but fleet replacement will
continue to be a priority for Rodocker. 4) Rodocker will be working on
the budget, and how to phase in some of the recommendations for
changes based on the results of the Operational Analysis.
IBM Service -Rodocker reviewed the history of IBM's development in
Dubuque, and the progression of transit service since employees have
been arriving over the summer months. KeyLine offers shuttle service
from designated parking ramps, including at the Port of Dubuque and
at Fourth and Main Street, initially to the downtown NICC location and
then to the Roshek Building. The number of employees has been
increasing over the last two months and so has the number of riders on
the shuttle. KeyLine is planning to expand the hours of service as
needed in the coming months, based on the growing number of IBM
employees and the increased need for service.
Board Comments Lightcap asked for comments from the Board. Scharnau asked if questions
recently developed by Board members had been submitted to the LSC
Consultants, and Rodocker responded the questions had been provided to
the Consultants.
Public Comments None
Adjournment Lightcap asked for a motion to adjourn. Curtis so moved. Esser _
seconded. All ayes Motion carried.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:45 p.m.
The next meeting will be held on Thursday, November 12, 2009 at the
Public Works Facility Conference Room, 925 Kerper Court. The
Auditorium and Board Room at the Carnegie Stout Public Library will
not be available due to the construction and renovations.
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Respectfully submitted,
Joanne Kiefer
Secretary
These minutes passed, approved and adopted on this day of November, 2009.
Joel Lightcap, Chairperson
Dubuque Transit Trustee Board