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Home My WebLink AboutTAB Meeting Minutes 6 20 18Committee Name: Transit Advisory Board Date: 6/20/18 Location: City Hall 1 Please contact the Transit Advisory Board at TAB@ci.oshkosh.wi.us with any questions or concerns. Attendees: Absent: Jim Collins, Transportation Director Karl Buelow, Board Korbin Figg, Operations Manager Jane Cryan, Board Marlene Binder, Secretary Lori Palmeri, City Council Russ Pamulak, Operations Supervisor Lee Williams, Board Evelyn Meuret, Chairperson Mike Norton, Board till 4:30 Troy Monday, Vice-Chair Topic Facilitator Discussion Actions Meeting Started Evelyn Meuret Evelyn Meuret called the meeting to order at 4:10 p.m. The May 17, 2018 TAB meeting minutes were accepted. 1st: Karl Buelow 2nd: Lee Williams Welcome Lori Palmeri Jim Collins Lori Palmeri introduced herself as she joined the Transit Advisory Board as a City Council representative. Committee Name: Transit Advisory Board Date: 6/20/18 Location: City Hall 2 Please contact the Transit Advisory Board at TAB@ci.oshkosh.wi.us with any questions or concerns. Topic Facilitator Discussion Actions Walmart Bus Stop & Transfer Point Jim Collins Jim Collins told the buses were using the area south of the Walmart building for the bus stop\transfer point however; this area was converted to online pick up parking and we were asked to move to the current “temporary” location about a year ago. He explained that during the past year there has been much contact with them and their corporate office in Arkansas. He said Walmart consulted with their internal engineers and hired an outside engineering firm to evaluate options for the bus stop and transfer point on their property but they found no viable, safe accessible option for pedestrians, vehicles and buses to co- exist on their parcel. He and our operations supervisor, Russ Pamulak explained that GO Transit and the operators are concerned about the number of conflicts with vehicles and pedestrians at the temporary location. It is isn’t very safe for anyone. Additionally, there is no level platform for wheel chairs which causes safety concerns for these passengers as well. The buses have damaged the asphalt in this area, and Wal-Mart recently had a contractor repair the area. Jim told the bus stop was temporarily moved between the two driveways on Washburn for a day while the parking lot was being repaired and it seemed to work well. He went on to say the downside is the distance to the store front is almost double the distance from the current stop. However; as this is a transfer point for routes 6, 7 and 9 not all the passengers are patronizing Wal-Mart, some are simply transferring busses/routes. He also said if the stop moves to Washburn Street a carriage walk and shelter could be installed. Jim Collins explained we can either live with the existing bus stop or make it safer and more accessible on Washburn Street. He said not everyone that uses this bus stop goes to Walmart. 1st: Evelyn Meuret 2nd: Karl Buelow Carried: 5 - 1 Committee Name: Transit Advisory Board Date: 6/20/18 Location: City Hall 3 Please contact the Transit Advisory Board at TAB@ci.oshkosh.wi.us with any questions or concerns. Topic Facilitator Discussion Actions Walmart Bus Stop & Transfer Point Continued Lori Palmeri Russ Pamulak Lori Palmeri Eveline Meuret Jane Cryan Lori Palmeri Lee Williams Karl Beulow Lori Palmeri suggested changing the transfer point. Lee Williams suggested moving the stop closer to HuHot and creating a walkway to Walmart’s entrance. Jim Collins explained this area is private property owned by a different company. If they did want to allow use of their property an easement agreement would be needed. Russ Pamulak stated there is no safe path to walk to the Walmart entrance and it will become even more chaotic when the garden area of the parking lot is removed and vehicles park there. Lori Palmeri clarified that there is sidewalk between the driveways on Washburn Street. Karl Buelow said the Washburn Street location seems to be more logical and the lesser of the two evils. Eveline Meuret added moving the bus stop/transfer point to Washburn Street will save drivers the time maneuvering through the parking lot. Jane Cryan said she believes GO Transit may lose some of the elderly riders because of the increased the distance to the entrance of Walmart. She suggested putting the bus stop/transfer point on the north side of the building and asking Wal-Mart to remove the metal buildings there. Lori Palmeri inquired about improving the temporary location with a pad to load wheel chairs. She then inquired about moving the proposed stop on Washburn closer to one of the driveways, rather than in the center, to cut the walking distance. Lee Williams suggested moving the stop to the south side by the fencing. He also suggested pulling out of Walmart entirely and moving the transfer point further south on Washburn Street by the vision place. Karl Beulow said it didn’t make sense to move the stop even further from this popular destination. Committee Name: Transit Advisory Board Date: 6/20/18 Location: City Hall 4 Please contact the Transit Advisory Board at TAB@ci.oshkosh.wi.us with any questions or concerns. Topic Facilitator Topic Actions Walmart Bus Stop & Transfer Point Continued Lori Palmeri Lori Palmeri inquired if this decision should be postponed until the results of the TDP are known. Jim Collins said it was unlikely any recommendation will be made in the TDP regarding this bus stop/transfer point. He explained that he will double check with the consultants to make sure nothing different is being considered for this location. Staff Statements GO Transit Bus Delivery Jim Collins Jim Collins told that 4 buses have been delivered and 2 more should arrive Friday. He said warranty issues will need to be resolved before the new buses are put into service. He explained when we wish to liquidate a bus in our fleet, we advertise it for sale to transit agencies, and on other government surplus sites and then if no offer is received, the bus is sold for scrap. He told the first two buses were inoperable and sold for scrap as no interest was received. He said the goal is to replace our 2003 buses, which are well past their 12 year useful life, by the end of 2019. New Bus Ribbon Cutting Jim Collins Jim Collins told the Board the new bus ribbon cutting was a nice event that many attended. Committee Name: Transit Advisory Board Date: 6/20/18 Location: City Hall 5 Please contact the Transit Advisory Board at TAB@ci.oshkosh.wi.us with any questions or concerns. Topic Facilitator Discussion Actions Future Agenda Items Lee Williams Jim Collins Korbin Figg There was mention about the TDP and Jim Collins said he would provide a further update on the TDP at the next Board meeting. The TDP should be wrapping up and the Board will receive a draft to review in the coming months. Lee Williams said transfers/wheelchairs (radio code 1080) are not being called over the radio so transfers are having to wait for the next bus. Jim Collins explained that in the past when a wheelchair passenger wanted to transfer to another bus, the driver would tell the connecting driver that this passenger was coming to their bus over the radio. He told this was implemented so the driver could prepare for a wheelchair by getting the seats out of the way and deploying the ramp. Jim and Korbin Figg explained that there is concern about singling these passengers out so the policy is being evaluated. Korbin explained other systems do not do this. Adjournment Evelyn Meuret Meeting adjourned at 5:08 p.m. Next meeting: July 18, 2018 1st: Evelyn Meuret 2nd: Lee Williams