The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About10.a. RTB Meeting Report and RecommendationM E M O R A N D U M TO: Steve Jilk FROM: Lee Knutson DATE: September 23, 1987 RE: RT8 Meeting Attached is the public officials' briefing handout which is a brief outline of a lengthy presentation by Elliott Perovich at this meeting. As I listened to the discussion and comments from staff and those in attendance, I would like to recommend to you and the Council that some time be spent by you and staff on the following: (1) Put together some of the background and facts as they relate to our "opt out" proposal. (2) Contact our RTB representative Ed Kranz for a meeting to be scheduled with the S.W. Mobility group for information on how they established their plan. (3) Set up another, or a series of meetings on discussion with transportation providers for their input on the "opt out proposal. (4) Check to see how active our Dakota County Light Rail Transit Commission may be. (5) Prepare a report for Council to consider in late October. After the meeting, I had an opportunity to visit with Glen Olson, the MTC chairman, about the route #46 termination. They will be discussing the results at the hearing and the staff recommendations on September 23, 1987. I asked that he strongly consider continuation of the service in light of the growth and the potential for our area. smj cc Councilmembers Napper, Tucker, Walsh, Willard REGMALYMNSti BOARD 270 Metro Square Building St. Pout, Minnesota 55101 612/292-6789 A} BACKGROUND Public Officials' Briefing Sheet Metropolitan Transit System - The Regional Transit Board is responsible for transit planning, policy making and.administration in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. There are 43 contracts for various publicly subsidized transit services in the seven-county area. They range from the largest system, which is the Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC), to several small rural systems serving the special transit needs of the elderly. The MTC has an annual ridership of approximately 72 million per year and an annual operating budget of about $100 million. The RTB's responsibilities include the policy direction and contract administration of Metro Mobility, the area's largest public paratransit system for disabled citizens in the metropolitan area. Funds to operate metropolitan transit come from fares (about 35 percent), state grants (10 percent), federal grants (8 percent) and property taxes (47 percent) The total 1987 transit budget for the metropolitan area is $112 million. P_ `` The STB is composed of eight board members and a chair. The board members represent eight metropolitan districts and are appointed to four year terms by the Metropolitan Council. The RTB chair is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Governor. The 28-member staff includes planners, program administrators, fiscal personnel, public information and support staff. Greater Minnesota Transit There are 44 Greater Minnesota transit systems administered by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT). The systems range from regular route systems, such as those that operate in Duluth and Rochester, to very small special service systems, such as Upsala and Cottonwood County. The total operating costs of these contracts totalled about $14.4 million in 1985. State grants contributed approximately $5 million of this figure. B) 1988-89 STATE FUNDING The percentage of funding from different sources has changed over the past decade. Current concerns relate to the decline in federal support for transit operations and the subsequent increase in reliance on state funding and local property taxes in many communities. In keeping with the legislative recommendation in 1984, the RTB is working toward establishing a funding base composed of 35 percent fare revenues, 35 percent property taxes, 20 percent state aid and 10 percent federal support. The RTB also envisions the State Motor Vehicle Excise Tax as providing long-term, stable financing structure for transit. OVER An Equal Opportunity Ernpfoyer 0 METRO TRANSIT ASSISTANCE (000's) Metro Ivio iity - There has been a significant increase in the number of rides provided by Metro Mobility. This service is a special door -through - door transportation system for certified disabled people. In October 1986, he program was restructured to make the system more cost-effective. The egislature appropriated an additional $1.5 million in this biennium, ncreasing the amount to $12.5 million. The combination of the structuring and the additional appropriation increased the number of raiiable rides by 45 percent over the number of rides available under the )rmer program. The system can now accommodate 65,000 trips per month at a onthly cost of $520,000. Higher than projected ridership first occured in March 1987 and the program used previously unspent, allocated funds to provide all rides requested. At that time, it was anticipated that the seasonal pattern of declining summer ridership would bring the subsidy in alignment with the amount allocated. After reaching a record high of 69,700 rides in April, ridership continued to climb. In June, more than 73,500 elderly and disabled passengers rode Metro Mobility, a 75 percent increase from last year. The RTB is currently examining options on how the serivice can meet the demand for rides to minimize the adverse impact on is riders when rides are restricted by a daily allocation limit. Light Rail - The RTB is proceeding with the preliminary engineering process in the Region's identified first priority corridor - University Avenue between the two downtowns. The RTB requested $3,5 million this biennium to proceed with this project, but was appropriated only $400,000. Attempting to obtain the necessary dollars and determining the best process to lead to the construction on LRT on University Avenue, are high priorities for the RTB. The RTB also supports the need for regional coordination of any other LRT efforts being proposed by other governmental agencies. Agency Legislative 1986/87 Request % Appropriation % Biennium 1988/89 Change 1988/89 Change Metro Mobility $11,000 $12,500 13.6 $12,500 0.6 Transit Service Contracts 26,020.8 27,403 5.3 25,800 (.8) Light Rail Transit 3,500 ---- 400 ---- Planning & Programs (RTB) 1,750 2,324 13.3 1,500 (14.3) Administration (RTB) 2,165 764 (64.8) 700 (67.7) $40,935.8 $46,491 13.6 $40,900 GREATER MINNESOTA TRANSIT ASSISTANCE` Agency Legislative 1986/87 Request % Appropriation % Biennium 1988/89 Change 1988/89 Change Greater Minnesota $11,600 $12,500 7.2 $11,600* 0 * $80,000 will be used for two staff positions in the Office of Transit C) TRANSIT ISSUES Metro Ivio iity - There has been a significant increase in the number of rides provided by Metro Mobility. This service is a special door -through - door transportation system for certified disabled people. In October 1986, he program was restructured to make the system more cost-effective. The egislature appropriated an additional $1.5 million in this biennium, ncreasing the amount to $12.5 million. The combination of the structuring and the additional appropriation increased the number of raiiable rides by 45 percent over the number of rides available under the )rmer program. The system can now accommodate 65,000 trips per month at a onthly cost of $520,000. Higher than projected ridership first occured in March 1987 and the program used previously unspent, allocated funds to provide all rides requested. At that time, it was anticipated that the seasonal pattern of declining summer ridership would bring the subsidy in alignment with the amount allocated. After reaching a record high of 69,700 rides in April, ridership continued to climb. In June, more than 73,500 elderly and disabled passengers rode Metro Mobility, a 75 percent increase from last year. The RTB is currently examining options on how the serivice can meet the demand for rides to minimize the adverse impact on is riders when rides are restricted by a daily allocation limit. Light Rail - The RTB is proceeding with the preliminary engineering process in the Region's identified first priority corridor - University Avenue between the two downtowns. The RTB requested $3,5 million this biennium to proceed with this project, but was appropriated only $400,000. Attempting to obtain the necessary dollars and determining the best process to lead to the construction on LRT on University Avenue, are high priorities for the RTB. The RTB also supports the need for regional coordination of any other LRT efforts being proposed by other governmental agencies.