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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTESTRANSIT ADVISORY BOARD MINUTES FEBRUARY 18, 2009 4:30 P.M. MEMBERS PRESENT: Mary Louise Lewis, Diane Lowe, Troy Monday and Mike Norton MEMBERS ABSENT: Jessica King, Diane Hoffman, Jeffrey Olmstead OTHERS PRESENT: Christopher Strong, Transportation Director David Vickman, Transit Coordinator Chairperson Lewis called the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m. NEW BUSINESS: 1. PUBLIC HEARING ON A PROPOSAL TO DECREASE FARES ASSOCIATED WITH THE PARATRANSIT SYSTEM. Chairperson Lewis opened the public hearing at 4:30 p.m. Mr. Strong explained why this proposal was being brought back to Board. Deb Ackerson, 223 Merritt Avenue, felt there was a misunderstanding because she was under the assumption there would not be a fare increase for any Cabulance services and the Board would look at it again in April, 2009. Mr. Strong noted that Mr. Olmstead was under the same impression as Ms. Ackerson that all ADA fares would not increase. Mr. David Vickman said many fare increases were being considered at one time but it was the after-hours fare increases that were approved. He noted these fare changes were posted in all the vehicles and published in the local newspaper. Ms. Ackerson said many people don't subscribe to the newspaper and the notices in the vehicles are posted on the glove compartment, where the rider is unable to read these notices from where they sit. Mr. Norton asked if these notices are posted at other places like social services offices or the Senior Center. Mr. Vickman replied no, but said that was a good suggestion and we could do that in the future. Mr. Strong said he attended a meeting where it was suggested that the transit system could provide flyers that drivers could distribute to some of the more frequent riders. Ms. Ackerson thought that was a great idea. TAB MINUTES 2 FEBRUARY 18, 2009 Mr. Norton motioned to table the proposal until next month's meeting when Ms. King and Mr. Olmstead could be present to voice their concerns. Mr. Monday seconded the motion. Motion carried (4-0). The public hearing was closed at 5:12 p.m. ITEM #6 was heard next. 6. DISCUSSION OF TRANSIT SERVICE FOR THE OSHKOSH AREA COMMUNITY PANTRY. Mr. Steve Vickman, 1815 White Swan Drive, Executive Director of Oshkosh Area Community Pantry, said the pantry was trying to ensure good transit access for their clients, who are elderly, disabled and frequent bus riders. They would like a bus stop as close as possible to their building because of safety concerns. Many clients have to carry several large packages, which sometimes weigh up to SO lbs. Mr. Strong asked what the planned hours would be. Mr. Vickman replied the pantry would never have hours beyond St. Vincent de Paul's hours, which are Monday until 8 pm, weekdays 9 am - 4 pm, and Saturday 9 am - 1 pm. Mr. Norton questioned why the North Main (Route 4) bus could not turn directly from Packer Avenue onto Jackson Street. Mr. Strong replied that there are safety concerns with that turning movement. He added that Route 4, by going down Wisconsin Street, now can serve the elderly apartment complex on Packer Avenue and North High School students. Mr. Norton suggested going in on an on-call basis. David Vickman said that while we presently do route deviations for Greyhound and Piggly Wiggly, this presents operational and communication problems. We try to stay away from on-call route deviations, if possible. Mrs. Lewis said there could be a mid-block stop on Wisconsin Street, which would be on the back side of the store. Steve Vickman noted there is no rear entrance to the building. Mr. Norton was not opposed to making a route deviation on every run. Mrs. Lowe suggested driving up the south side of store and picking up passengers there. Mr. Strong said it could be a possibility. Another gentleman from St. Vincent de Paul suggested the bus come in on the north side of the building, pull in front of building and exit out the southern driveway onto Wisconsin Street or Jackson Street. Mr. Strong said he would have his operational supervisor drive this proposal to see how much time would be involved and report back to the Board with an update. TAB MINUTES 3 FEBRUARY 18, 2009 ITEM #2 was heard. 2. DISCUSSION OF NEENAH ROUTE 10. Mr. Norton would like to see the Neenah Route go to Parkview Health Center offices. He questioned why we have to use US Highway 41, and why not County Trunk A. Mrs. Lewis suggested going up State Highway 76 instead of US Highway 41. She noted that County Trunk A gets icy at times, which Mr. David Vickman confirmed. Mr. Norton said he would also like to see time points, which are not staggered. Mr. Strong said that Mr. Monday had emailed him about how this bus on Saturdays spends a lot of time pulling over to wait so as to not to run ahead of schedule. Mr. Strong said previously there was talk about using the Fox River Mall as a turn- around point. He said if many riders are going to the mall, it would make sense to consider that. In the context of the schedule, he said they had met with Valley Transit System, and there was a suggestion about switching to an express service outside of the city limits. By providing more service within the city limits, and having fewer stops outside the city limits, this would allow us to have a shorter time schedule. Mr. David Vickman said in a perfect world we would have a local route for the city and an express route. They both have different needs and different passages and we can't meet both of them with a single purpose. Mr. Norton felt it was our obligation to get people to the mall, Kohl's and the Neenah Mall. However, he thought that a little more service to the Park View area was necessary. He suggested that some stops at Lakeside Packaging could be eliminated, and perhaps stops added at the Coughlin building. Mr. Bob Poeschl, 912 Bay Shore Drive, Client Advocate at ARC, said he had spoken with the administrator from Park View Health Center and she is very open to the idea of bus service. She said that previously, when bus service was provided to Park View, more relatives came out to visit patients than presently. From his perspective, this kind of service can enhance the quality of life. Mrs. Lewis said unfortunately when we had it, not enough people used it to make it worthwhile. There were other considerations on other routes so that was the reason the service was dropped. Mr. Poeschl said that there may be partnerships that could make it more feasible to extend service to Park View. Mrs. Lewis said Mr. Strong should take these suggestions into consideration when he meets with Valley Transit next week. 3. EVENING AND SATURDAY SERVICE. Mr. Strong gave an update on the system's current evaluation of extending transit service into the evenings. Currently, staff are examining extending evening service on some of the routes and shortening Saturday morning service by a couple of hours. This would TAB MINUTES 4 FEBRUARY 18, 2009 support a couple of goals: 1) to make service more efficient from a ridership perspective and 2) to improve work schedules for drivers. Mr. Norton asked if the proposed routes would come before the Board. Mr. Strong replied, "Yes." He noted that we are not suggesting changing any routes at this time, but are rather focusing on when service would start and stop. 4. REVIEW OF ADA CERTIFIDATION PROCESS. Mr. David Vickman described Oshkosh Transit System's ADA certification process to the Board. He noted that, in 2008, OTS approved 880 applications and denied approximately 90 applications. Mr. Poeschl said from working with ADA clients, he feels this process is good. Mrs. Lowe asked if any thought had been given to giving the applicant a temporary card while the paperwork is being processed. Mr. Vickman replied that we follow ADA guidelines, which gives us 21 days to process the application. Mr. Poeschl asked how many denials have been received. Mr. Vickman replied he had received one since he started in July 2008. 5. DISCUSSION OF CHARTER REGULATIONS (E.G. EAA SHUTTLE) Mr. Strong gave board members an overview of recent Federal Transit Administration regulations regarding charter service, and the effects these regulations have on OTS's current EAA shuttle service operations. The regulations forbid the transit agency from charging a "premium fare"; therefore, OTS believes that the most we could charge would be $2.00 for a round trip, which would be comparable to our basic fare, and $25.00 for an EAA pass. To help curb costs he said we would have to cut service frequency. Another alternative would be to discontinue the shuttle service. Mrs. Lewis said she would hate to see us lose the income. Mr. Strong said we've gotten great feedback in the past on our service. From our perspective, it is a win-win situation for a lot of people. However, the regulations are pretty clear. Mr. Strong said they will analyze this over the next couple of weeks and report back to the Board. There be no other business to come before the Transit Advisory Board and upon duly being made and seconded (Lewis, Lowe), the meeting adjourned at 5:45 p. m.