[Capital Metro Board of Directors Public Hearing on October 11, 2023.]
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I'M THE VICE CHAIR OF THE CAP METRO BOARD, AND I WILL BE ACTING AS CHAIR TODAY WITH, UM, COMMISSIONER JEFF TIAN TRAVELING.
SO THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR JOINING US FOR THIS CAP METRO PUBLIC HEARING.
TODAY IS WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, AND THE TIME IS 12:02 PM UM, WE WILL HAVE A PRESENTATION ON THE SERVICE CHANGES.
UH, LAWRENCE DIETER IS HERE TO MAKE THAT PRESENTATION.
THEN WE WILL, AND THEN WE HAVE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ITEMS AND PUBLIC COMMENTS.
RIGHT NOW I HAVE THREE PEOPLE SIGNED UP TO MAKE PUBLIC COMMENT TO REMOTE AND ONE IN PERSON, AND IF THAT CHANGES BY THE TIME WE GET THERE, WE WILL ADD PEOPLE IN.
SO I AM CALLING THIS MEETING TO ORDER.
TODAY'S PUBLIC HEARING IS TO TAKE ANY COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSED JANUARY, 2024 SERVICE CHANGES.
UNDERSTAND MR. DIETER IS HERE TO GIVE US A BRIEF PRESENTATION AND FOLLOWING THAT WILL BE OUR PUBLIC COMMENTS.
I TURN IT OVER TO YOU, MR. DIETER.
UH, CHAIR POOLE, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD PRESENT, C E O WALKINS.
UH, MY NAME IS LAWRENCE DIETER AND I AM THE MANAGER OF SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING.
UM, WE'RE HERE TODAY, UM, TO HEAR, HAVE A FORMAL HEARING FROM OUR CUSTOMERS AND OUR COMMUNITY ABOUT THE PROPOSED JANUARY, 2024 SERVICE CHANGES.
THIS IS ONLY ONE COMPONENT OF LISTENING TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND GETTING RECEIVING FEEDBACK.
UH, AT THE END OF MY PRESENTATION, I WILL DIVE MORE INTO WHAT WE'VE HEARD SO FAR.
SO, UM, JUST, UM, A LITTLE, UH, BACKGROUND INFORMATION IS THAT LEADING UP TO THE START OF THE PANDEMIC CAP METRO WAS EXPERIENCING MONTHLY RIDERSHIP INCREASES AFTER THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BOARD APPROVED CAP REMAP.
AND THEN AS PART OF CAP METRO'S ONGOING COMMITMENT TO BEST SERVE THE COMMUNITY AND STEWARD LIMITED RESOURCES RESPONSIBLY, WE IMPLEMENTED A SERIES OF DATA-DRIVEN SERVICE ADJUSTMENTS AND REALLOCATION.
WE FACED, UH, CHALLENGES MAINTAINING SERVICE LEVELS DUE TO A SHORTAGE OF OPERATORS, MECHANICS, VEHICLES, REPLACEMENT PARTS, AND OTHER UNFORESEEN, UM, UH, CHALLENGES.
SO IN THE, THESE CHANGES STARTED IN MARCH OF 2020 WHEN WE REDUCED, UH, SERVICE LEVELS ON MANY OF OUR SERVICES, BUT ESPECIALLY ON OUR COMMUTER SERVICE.
UM, THE 9 81 AND 9 87 WERE SUSPENDED.
THEN IN SEPTEMBER OF 2021, UH, CAP METRO WAS NOT DOING VERY WELL, UH, GETTING SERVICE OUT ON THE STREET.
WE WERE REGULARLY, UM, MISSING A LOT OF SERVICE.
AND SO WE HAD TO TAKE A SIGNIFICANT IMMEDIATE ACTION TO ADJUST OUR SERVICE LEVELS TO THE LEVEL THAT WE COULD PROVIDE AND TO STILL TO THIS DAY, THOSE ARE THE SERVICE LEVELS WE BELIEVE WE CAN PROVIDE, AND THAT'S WHAT OUR PROPOSED CHANGES ARE.
SO IN SEPTEMBER OF 2021, WE REDUCED THE FREQUENCIES ON, UM, ROUTES 18, 2 17 AND 3 35, ALONG WITH WEAKENED FREQUENCY ON OTHER HIGH FREQUENCY ROUTES.
UM, WE ALSO SUSPENDED THE EBUS, UM, SERVICE.
AT THAT TIME, WE DID NOT TAKE THAT DECISION LIGHTLY.
UM, IT WAS, BUT IT WAS TREATED AS A, A NECESSARY STEP, UH, TO PROVIDE THAT RELIABLE SERVICE.
IN, UH, JUNE, WE GOT A NEW CLICKER HERE, AND I'M SEEM TO BE HAVING, SORRY, LAUREN, YOU JUST WANNA ADVANCE THIS RIGHT, ED? THANKS.
UM, AND THIS IS THE FIRST CHANGE TO UTILIZE OUR NEW SERVICE EVALUATION PROCESS, UH, THAT WAS ADOPTED IN JUNE WITH OUR SERVICE STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES.
AND THIS PRESENTATION IS DESIGNED TO MATCH THAT PROCESS.
SO, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS I, I'LL JUST KIND OF GO AHEAD WITH THIS SPEAKING NOTES IS THAT, UM, WE, YOU KNOW, FIRST WE HAD TO IDENTIFY THE, UM, ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN FRONT OF US.
AND OF COURSE, THE SIGNIFICANT ISSUE THAT IS, UM, THE AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES.
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THAT WE'VE USED FROM SUSPENDING THAT COVID, THOSE, THOSE SUSPENSIONS HAVE BEEN REALLOCATED TO OTHER ROUTES.TO THIS DAY, 53% OF OUR CALLS TO THE GO LINE ARE ABOUT SERVICE RELIABILITY.
SO STILL A BIG ISSUE, UH, WITH OUR CUSTOMERS.
SO EVEN WITH THOSE REALLOCATED RESOURCES, WE'RE STILL STRUGGLING, UM, AT TIMES TO HAVE A RELIABLE SERVICE, UM, ESPECIALLY AS SOME OF OUR ROUTES ARE EXPERIENCING, UH, SIGNIFICANT RIDERSHIP GROWTH, ESPECIALLY THIS FALL.
UM, SO IF WE WERE TO RESTORE THE SUSPENDED SERVICE, WE WOULD NOT HAVE, UM, THE RESOURCES AND IT WOULD RESULT IN A RETURN TO THE NEGATIVE, UM, EXPERIENCES THAT WE HAD BACK IN SEPTEMBER OF 2121.
WE ALSO, AS I SAID, THIS WAS A DATA-DRIVEN RE, UH, DECISIONS.
THE ROUTES RE UH, DECIDED TO REDUCE FREQUENCY ON OR SUSPEND.
UM, AND WE DID THAT BECAUSE, UM, THEY HAD THE, UH, LOWEST RIDERSHIP.
OKAY, CAN WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE? HERE WE GO.
UM, SO THE OTHER, UH, THING WE HAVE IS A NEED FOR TRANSPARENCY, UM, WHICH IS A CAP METRO CORE VALUE.
UM, IT WAS CAP METRO'S ORIGINAL INTENTION TO RESTORE THESE ROUTES TO THEIR ORIGINAL SERVICE LEVELS ONCE VARIOUS RE UH, RESOURCES WERE AVAILABLE AND TRANSIT DEMAND RETURNED.
HOWEVER, DETERMINING WHEN TO RES RESTORE THAT SERVICE, UM, HAS PROVEN TO BECOME UNPREDICTABLE AND, UM, GIVEN THE, UH, NUMBER OF FACTORS, UH, THAT INFLUENCE, THAT PROCE THAT PROCESS.
UM, SO THAT HAS LED TO AN INDEFINITE, UM, SUSPENSION, UH, UH, SUSPENSION OF THOSE SERVICES.
AND WE WANNA BE CLEAR WITH OUR PUBLIC, UM, THEY HAVE BEEN COMING, THEY'VE BEEN COMING TO THIS BOARD MEETING TO OTHER COMMITTEE MEETINGS AND OTHER PLACES AND ASKING WHEN YOU'RE GOING TO RESTORE THE SERVICE BECAUSE IT'S INDEFINITE.
WE WANNA PROVIDE AN ANSWER TODAY, AND I KNOW THIS IS NOT THE ANSWER, THIS IS NOT THE ANSWER I WANNA BE PROPOSING.
THIS IS NOT THE ANSWER ANYONE IN THIS ROOM WANTS TO BE PROPOSING, BUT WE NEED TO BE CLEAR AND TRANSPARENT WITH OUR CUSTOMERS AS TO WHAT IS GOING ON.
UM, JUST LOOKING AT OUR RIDERSHIP REAL QUICKLY, AND NOW OF COURSE THIS CLICKER IS NOT WORKING.
UM, SO, RIGHT, IT, UM, RIDERSHIP IS RECOVERING.
AND AS I MENTIONED, WE ARE HAVING RIDERSHIP EXPERIENCE THEIR AREAS OF RIDERSHIP GROWTH.
UH, BUT ONE AREA WE ARE NOT SEEING RIDERSHIP COME BACK IS OUR EXPRESS IN OUR COMMUTER SERVICES.
SO THAT'S JUST IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER AS WE GO THROUGH THESE CHANGE, THESE PROPOSED CHANGES.
SO, UM, THIS IS WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING, AND TO BE HONEST, THIS IS A SERVICE CHANGE THAT REALLY IS NOT A SERVICE CHANGE.
WE ARE ASKING YOU TO APPROVE, TO CONTINUE TO OPERATE THE SERVICE LEVELS THAT WE HAVE, UM, OPERATING TODAY, AND THAT HAVE BEEN OPERATING SINCE, UH, SEPTEMBER OF 2021.
SO FOR ROUTES 18, 2 17 AND 3 35, WE'RE JUST RECOMMENDING THAT WE REMAIN AT THE 30 MINUTE SERVICE FREQUENCY.
AS I MENTIONED, WE UNDERSTAND THE DESIRE FOR FULL RESTORATION OF SERVICE TO THE 15 MINUTE SERVICE, BUT WE AGAIN, UM, WE'D RATHER RELIABLY PROVIDE 30 MINUTE SERVICE THAN PROMISE A HIGHER LEVEL OF SERVICE AND NOT BE ABLE TO PROVIDE IT.
UM, WE ALSO KNOW THAT TRAVEL PATTERNS HAVE CHANGED, UH, COMMUTER SERVICE REMAINS DOWN.
AND SO WITH THE, WE WANNA JUST PERMANENTLY SUSPEND THE 9 81 AND 9 87 AND THE EBUS.
THE EBUS IS A UNIVERSITY, UM, FOCUSED SERVICE THAT OPERATED ON THURSDAY, FRIDAY, AND SATURDAY NIGHTS FROM 10:00 PM TO 3:00 AM UM, TRANSPORTING STUDENTS TO AND FROM THE HOUSING AREAS TO THE CAMPUS.
EVEN PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC IN 2019, FALL 2019, WE'D REDUCED THAT SERVICE BY ABOUT 20%.
'CAUSE RIDERSHIP WAS GOING DOWN AS STUDENTS FOUND OTHER WAYS TO MAKE THESE CONNECTIONS, UH, DOWNTOWN.
UM, AND THEN FINALLY WE DO, UM, WANNA ADD SERVICE WHERE WE HAVE THE RESOURCES.
AND ONE OF THOSE AREAS IS WITH OUR NEW, UM, DEV SPRINGS, UM, PICKUP ZONE.
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AND THAT PICKUP ZONE WILL, UM, WILL LAUNCH, UM, IN JANUARY OF 2024.WE'VE HAD A REALLY ROBUST AND GREAT, UH, ENGAGEMENT EFFORT, UM, WITH IT, AND WE'VE INFORMED STAKEHOLDER GROUPS AND LOCAL COMMUNITY LEADERS OF THE NEW SERVICE.
WE'VE REACHED OUT TO BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS, UM, ALL THOSE ENTITIES TO GET THEIR INFORMA THEIR THOUGHTS ON THE ZONE AND SEEK THEIR INPUT.
AND SO WHAT WE ARE RECOMMENDING IS A ZONE THAT'S BORDERED BY I 35 ON THE WEST, BEEN WHITE ON THE NORTH, STASSNEY ON THE EAST, AND BASICALLY WILLIAM CANNON ON THE SOUTH.
UM, IT INCLUDES DESTINATIONS SUCH AS H E B TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND, AUSTIN LIGHTHOUSE FOR DEB BLIND, THE FUTURE SIDE OF THE DOVE SPRINGS MEDICAL CENTER.
AND NUMEROUS, UM, SCHOOLS FROM ELEMENTARY TO HIGH SCHOOL WE'RE PROPOSING, UM, 7:00 AM TO 7:00 PM ON WEEKDAYS, AND 10:00 AM TO 6:00 PM ON SATURDAYS.
UM, THIS IS A MAJOR SERVICE CHANGE THAT'S PART OF THE REASON WE'RE SITTING HERE TODAY.
ANYTIME WE HAVE A SERVICE CHANGE THAT IMPACTS MORE THAN 25% OF THE HOURS OR MILES OF A ROUTE, THE ANNUAL MILES OR HOURS OF A ROUTE, OR WE, UM, ELIMINATE OR DISCONTINUE ROUTE, WE HAD TO, UM, HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING.
AND WE ALSO HAD TO DO A TITLE SIX SERVICE EQUITY ANALYSIS.
AND THAT HAS BEEN COMPLETED AND PROVIDED TO THE BOARD.
SOME OF IT WAS IN JANUARY OF 2022, AND SOME OF IT WAS JUST RECENTLY IN AUGUST, 2023.
THE ONLY FINDING WE FOUND WAS A DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN FOR ROUTES 9 81 AND 9 87, AND THAT IS MITIGATED, UM, THROUGH SIMILAR EXPRESS AND, UM, RAIL SERVICE.
UM, AS I ALLUDED TO AT THE BEGINNING OF OUR, MY PRESENTATION, WE HAVE HAD A PRETTY ROBUST, UM, UH, PUBLIC OUTREACH PROCESS.
WE STARTED IN AUGUST WITH A MEMO TO THE BOARD.
UM, WE MET WITH OUR COMMITTEE CHAIRS, UM, OUR, OUR ADVISORY COMMITTEE CHAIRS.
UH, THEN IN SEPTEMBER WE, UM, WE MET WITH, WENT TO CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
WE HAD, UM, ON BUS BROCHURES, A WEBSITE, A VIRTUAL PRESENTATION PUT UP ON OUR WEBSITE OPERATOR NOTICES AT STOP SIGNAGE, SOCIAL MEDIA.
AND THEN IN OCTOBER, JUST, JUST STARTING, UM, THIS WEEK WE'VE DONE AT STOP OUTREACH WHERE WE'VE GONE AND ACTUALLY TALKED TO THE CUSTOMERS AT THE STOPS.
UH, WE SPOKE TO OUR ACCESS COMMITTEE AND WE'RE HERE TODAY IN OUR, UM, PUBLIC HEARING.
AND THEN, UM, WE'RE GONNA ASK YOU, UM, TO APPROVE THE CHANGES AT YOUR OCTOBER 23RD, UM, PUBLIC MEETING, UH, OCTOBER 23RD, BOARD MEETINGS, SORRY, JUST WANNA LET YOU KNOW WE'VE RECEIVED, UH, ACTUALLY I THINK THE LATEST NUMBERS ARE ABOUT 51 RESPONSES TO OUR ONLINE SURVEY, UM, WITH, WITH OVER 90 COMMENTS BY FAR, MOST OF THOSE COMMENTS HAVE BEEN THE ROUTE 18 WE ARE HEARING DO NOT REDUCE THE FREQUENCY OF THE ROUTE 18.
WE'RE ALSO HEARING THAT FOR 3 35.
ALSO, WE'RE HEARING SUGGESTIONS SUCH AS SPLIT THE ROUTE 18 INTO TWO ROUTES AND, AND THEREFORE MAKE THE EASTERN PORTION OF THE ROUTE MORE FREQUENT.
UM, UT STUDENTS NEED ROUTE 18 TO GET TO CAMPUS, UM, AND THEREFORE THEY WOULD LIKE IT TO BE MORE FREQUENT.
UM, ROUTE 18 ALSO PROVIDES, UM, CONNECTIONS FROM THE RAIL STATION TO DOWNTOWN AND CAMPUS.
SO, YOU KNOW, JUST A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THOSE.
WE'VE GOT A LOT OF GREAT COMMENTS.
WE GOT LOT A GOOD, THERE'S EVEN ONES THAT AREN'T EVEN UP ON THE SCREEN BECAUSE MAYBE THEY WERE ONE OR TWO COMMENT, BUT THEY'RE LIKE ONES THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO GIVE TO OUR, UM, SCHEDULERS, OUR PLANNERS, OUR OPERATIONS, AND, AND WE'LL START TO TAKE, TAKE ACTION ON THOSE.
BUT A LOT OF THESE, WE NEED TO, UM, WE NEED TO, UM, LOOK AT HOLISTICALLY.
PARTLY WE NEED TO LOOK AT HOW PEOPLE'S PA TRAVEL PATTERNS HAVE CHANGED.
WE NEED TO LOOK AT, UM, WHAT OUR RESOURCES ARE AND, AND TAKE A BIG LOOK AT IT.
AND WE DO THAT IN SOMETHING CALLED A TRANSIT SERVICE PLAN THAT WE'RE GETTING READY TO START.
AND YOU'LL HEAR A LOT ABOUT IN 2024.
UM, SO, UM, THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT, WHERE WE'RE GONNA TAKE THE LOOK AT THAT.
YOU KNOW, ALSO SOME OF THE COMMENTS LIKE WE'RE, WE'RE SENDING OUT A FREQUENTLY, UH, F A Q A FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS RESPONSE TO ALL THOSE, UH, 51 PEOPLE THAT HAVE RESPONDED TO OUR ONLINE SURVEY AND JUST LETTING THEM KNOW, UM, SOME DETAILED INFORMATION ON THESE COMMENTS.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE ARE TAKING A LOOK AT, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT WAYS TO IMPROVE THE SERVICE, YOU KNOW, ALONG, UM, FOR THE TWO 17 THAT OPERATES ALONG THE MINTA WEST CORRIDOR AND SOUTHEAST AUSTIN.
WE REALLY WANNA TAKE A HOLISTIC LOOK AT THAT AREA.
WE HAVE LOTS OF DIFFERENT ROUTES IN THERE.
WE HAVE, WE ACTUALLY HAVE SOME OPERATING CONSTRAINTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT NOW THERE, AND WE NEED, WE JUST NEED TO TAKE A HOLISTIC LOOK.
AND, AND THAT'S WHERE WE'D LIKE TO DO THAT.
AND THEN ALSO HOPEFULLY IN, UM, 2024 OUR RESOURCES
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WILL BE, UH, BETTER AND WE WILL, UM, BE ABLE TO PUT SOME ADDITIONAL, UH, SERVICE OUT ON THE STREET.UH, WITH THAT I WILL TURN IT OVER TO THE BOARD TO SEE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS AND, UM, THEN WE CAN, UH, LISTEN TO THE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC.
I WANTED JUST TO CONFIRM, LOOKS LIKE WE'RE, UM, GOING TO MAINTAIN THE 30 MINUTE SERVICE ON, UM, I'VE GOT 18 2 17 AND 3 35.
IS THAT, IS THAT CORRECT? THAT IS CORRECT.
AND PERMANENTLY SUSPENDING ROUTES 9 81.
9 87 AND THE EBUS ROUTES? THAT IS CORRECT.
AND THEN YOU HAVE SOME BACKFILL ON THOSE ROUTES SO THAT, UM, THOSE PEOPLE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO GET PICKED UP AND TRANSPORTED? YEAH, WE HAVE EXISTING, UM, SERVICES THAT ARE VERY SIMILAR.
THEY MAY NOT SERVE THE EXACT SAME AREAS, UM, OR GO IN THE EXACT SAME PATTERN, BUT THEY STILL PRIMARY SERVE THE AREAS OF MAJOR DESTINATION.
WE ARE ALSO LOOKING AT, UM, AS WE HAVE RESOURCES AVAILABLE OF PUTTING SOME ADDITIONAL SERVICE OUT ON 9 85, WHICH IS DUE, IT SERVES AROUND THE SAME AS 9 87.
WE ARE SEEING, UM, A COUPLE TRIPS ON THAT GET VERY FULL AND WE WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THAT WAS ONE OF THE COMMENTS WE HEARD.
SO WE WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE, WE DO HAVE TO PROCEED A LITTLE BIT CAUTIOUSLY BECAUSE WE DO, UH, CONTINUE TO, UH, HAVE SOME RESOURCE, UM, RESOURCE CONSTRAINTS, BUT WHERE WE CAN, WE CAN USE A RUN AS DIRECTED BUS OR SOMETHING SIMILAR TO HELP OUT WITH THAT.
AND THEN THE INTEREST IN HAVING TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS AT DOVE SPRING HAS, HAS BEEN ADDRESSED WITH THE CREATION OF A NEW DOVE SPRINGS PICKUP.
ALRIGHT, SO WE'LL GET BETTER CONNECTIONS TO SOUTH AUSTIN, UM, BOARD MEMBERS.
ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? ALRIGHT, LOOKS LIKE, LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GOOD.
I THINK, UM, WE WILL NOW MOVE TO PUBLIC COMMENTS.
TWO PEOPLE SIGNED UP AHEAD OF TIME TO SPEAK ON THE CHANGES AND THEN WE HAVE ONE GENTLEMAN HERE TO SPEAK TO US IN PERSON.
LET'S START WITH OUR, UH, REMOTE SPEAKERS.
ED IS EITHER, UH, MAY MATTSON TAYLOR OR ZENOBIA JOSEPH, UH, LINED UP TO SPEAK.
UM, OUR, OUR SPEAKERS WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES.
MS. TAYLOR, ARE YOU THERE? GREAT.
UM, HOPEFULLY THE SOUND DOESN'T GO OUT WHILE I'M TALKING.
I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO HEAR YOU ALL THIS WHOLE TIME, UM, BUT NOW I CAN.
UM, SO YEAH, I'M MAY TAYLOR, UM, I WANTED TO JOIN TO SPEAK AGAINST THE, UM, PROPOSED RECLASSIFICATION OF THE 3 35.
UM, TO ME THIS ROUTE HAS JUST BEEN COMPLETELY MISMANAGED BY CAT METRO FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS AND I'M GLAD THAT YOU'RE FRIENDLY LOOKING AT THIS OPENLY, BUT I DON'T BELIEVE THAT MAKING THE REDUCED SERVICE PERMANENT IS THE RIGHT SOLUTION.
UM, SO YOU'RE SAYING THAT IT'S BEING REMOVED FROM THE HIGH FREQUENCY NETWORK DUE TO LOW RIDERSHIP, BUT MY RESPONSE TO THAT IS THAT WHEN YOU RUN LOUSY SERVICE, YOU SHOULDN'T BE SURPRISED WHEN YOU GET LOUSY RIDERSHIP.
THE REASON THAT RIDERSHIP IS LOW IS THAT YOU'VE SYSTEMATICALLY DEPRIORITIZED THE 3 35 PER YEARS.
YOU'VE MADE IT COMPLETELY UNRELIABLE.
AND THE RESULT IS THAT ALMOST ANYONE WHO HAS ANOTHER OPTION PROBABLY STOPPED RIDING IT, UM, SEVERAL YEARS AGO.
THE SOLUTION TO THIS IS OBVIOUSLY NOT TO CONTINUE WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
I WOULD SAY THAT THE SOLUTION IS TO IMPROVE OR RESTORE THE SERVICE.
UM, SO AS A NEW ROUTE, THE 3 35 HAD BEEN IN SERVICE FOR LESS THAN TWO FULL YEARS WHEN COVID HIT.
AND THEN, UM, IT WAS PARTICULARLY BURDENED BY THE SO-CALLED TEMPORARY REDUCTIONS IN SERVICE IN SEPTEMBER, 2021.
BUT LONG AFTER MOST OTHER ROUTES HAD HAD SERVICE RESTORED, UM, WE CONTINUED TO OPERATE AT NOMINALLY 30 MINUTE FREQUENCIES FOR OVER TWO YEARS NOW.
UM, BUT I SAY NOMINALLY BECAUSE IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, THE 3 35 WAS PARTICULARLY IMPACTED BY THE, UM, VEHICLE OPERATOR AND MECHANICS SHORTAGES, EXCUSE ME.
UM, DURING THAT TIME, BUSES WERE FREQUENTLY PULLED OFF THE ROUTE FOR THE WHOLE DAY OR EVEN PULLED MIDDAY TO BE REDEPLOYED ON DIFFERENT ROUTES, MEANING THAT INSTEAD OF 30 MINUTE FREQUENCIES WE WERE EFFECTIVELY ONLY GETTING 60 MINUTE FREQUENCIES.
AND JUST TO NOTE, LIKE SOMETIMES THIS HAPPENED REALLY UNPREDICTABLY, LIKE I WOULD TAKE THE 3 35 TO WORK IN THE MORNING 'CAUSE IT LOOKED LIKE ALL THE BUSES WERE ACTUALLY GONNA BE ON THE ROUTE THAT DAY AND THEN TRIPS WOULD BE CANCELED IN THE AFTERNOON SO I COULDN'T GET HOME ON TIME.
UM, SO I CAN ALMOST GUARANTEE YOU THAT YOU LOST EVERY SINGLE NON-TRANS DEPENDENT RIDER DURING THAT TIME.
UM, AND JUST TO NOTE THAT STILL IS GOING ON SOMETIMES NOW IT JUST ISN'T AS FREQUENT AS IT WAS IN 2022.
UM, BUT MY BIG PROBLEM IS THAT THIS PROBLEM WITH BUSES BEING PULLED OFF THE ROUTE REALLY ISN'T REFLECTED IN THE RIDERSHIP DATA, AT LEAST WHAT YOU ALL HAVE PUT UP ON THE
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PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD.UM, THE DASHBOARD SAYS THAT IT'S USING THE SCHEDULED VEHICLE HOURS, UM, FOR EACH ROUTE RATHER THAN LIKE THE ACTUAL VEHICLE HOURS.
SO IT LOOKS TO ME LIKE WHEN YOU PULLED BUSES OFF THE ROUTE, YOU WERE STILL CALCULATING THE RIDERS PER REVENUE HOUR BASED ON WHAT WAS SCHEDULED, NOT WHAT WAS ACTUALLY BEING RUN.
AND THAT IS JUST REALLY, REALLY DECEPTIVE.
UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE MORE, MUCH, MUCH MORE USEFUL TO USE THE RIDERS PER ACTUAL SERVICE HOUR.
UM, BUT ANYWAY, JUST TO WRAP UP, LIKE I JUST DON'T THINK THAT IT'S VERY SURPRISING THAT RIDERSHIP ON THIS ROUTE IS LOW WHEN YOU'RE RUNNING REALLY LOUSY SERVICE ON IT.
UM, I'D REALLY LIKE INSTEAD OF SEEING THIS CHANGE MADE PERMANENT TO SEE YOU ALL FOLLOW THROUGH ON THE COMMITMENT TO PUT THE SERVICE BACK.
WHEN YOU SAID IT WAS GONNA BE TEMPORARY, YOU ALWAYS SAID YOU WERE GONNA PUT IT BACK AND UM, I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE THAT AS A WRITER OF THE 3 35.
SO I'LL STOP NOW, BUT THANK YOU.
IS UH, MS. JOSEPH AVAILABLE? XENOBI JOSEPH IS NEXT.
AND MS. JOSEPH, YOU WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES? YES, MR. EASTON, WE, WE HEAR YOU.
UM, MS. JOSEPH, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES PLEASE.
THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR MEMBERS, I'M ENOVIA JOSEPH.
I COULD ECHO THE SAME COMMENTS THE PREVIOUS CALLER MADE, HOWEVER, THAT WOULD BE THROUGHOUT 3 92.
AND WHILE I CERTAINLY EMPATHIZE WITH THEM FOR WANTING 15 MINUTE SERVICE, OUR SERVICE RUNS ABOUT 45 MINUTES HEADWAY.
AND I MENTIONED BEFORE WE WAIT AT KRAMER STATION ABOUT 20 MINUTES SOMETIMES, UH, FOR A WHITE CHOICE RIDER WHO MAY OR MAY NEVER SHOW UP, I'M ASKING ONCE AGAIN THAT YOU RESTORE THE SERVICE TO THE ARBORETUM ON THE 3 92 AND USE THE RESOURCES THAT YOU HAVE FROM ROUTE 18 2 17 AND 3 35 TO SERVE THOSE OF US WHO RIDE THE BUS.
I WANT TO CALL TO YOUR ATTENTION, AS YOU MAY KNOW, MADAM CHAIR, UH, THE CITY OF AUSTIN IS CONSIDERING A $10 MILLION PATHWAYS TO REMOVING OBSTACLES TO HOUSING THROUGH HUD HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT.
AND I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW TRANSPARENTLY THAT I SPOKE AT THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION LAST NIGHT AND I AM OPPOSING ANY FUNDING FOR CAPITAL METRO ARE THE CITY AS IT RELATES TO THIS GRANT BECAUSE THERE IS A SPECIFIC CRITERIA WHICH SAYS THAT THE CITY OR THE GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY MUST HAVE A COMMITMENT TO OVERCOMING THE LOCAL BARRIERS.
AND ONE OF THOSE BARRIERS FOR US OBVIOUSLY IS TRANSPORTATION.
IT SAYS HUD FURTHER ENCOURAGES APPLICANTS TO OUTLINE AND DISCUSS HOW THEIR PROPOSED ACTIVITIES WILL ADVANCE EQUITY, LOCATE AFFORDABLE, ACCESSIBLE HOUSING NEAR TRANSIT, AND BOLSTER ACCESS TO SERVICES AND OPPORTUNITIES.
IT IS DISINGENUOUS FOR YOU TO CONTINUE TO SPEAK ABOUT RIDERSHIP KNOWING THAT YOU ELIMINATED NORTHEAST WEST CONNECTIVITY.
I WANNA CALL TO YOUR ATTENTION A 2011 COMMENT BY ROBERTO GONZALEZ, WHO WAS HIRED BY CAPITAL METRO NOVEMBER 28TH, 1995.
HE SAID THAT MOST OF YOUR RIDERSHIP COMES FROM THE H E BSS AND THE WALMART, AND THEN YOU ELIMINATED 3 25 FROM NORWOOD, WALMART TO NORTH CROSS WALMART.
AND I JUST WANT YOU TO RECOGNIZE THAT $584,000 THAT YOU SAVED THEN WENT TO OPEN THE NORWOOD TRANSIT CENTER.
SO THERE'S NO ADDITIONAL FUNDING IN THE NORTH CORRIDOR.
YOU ARE SIMPLY USING THE SAME FUNDING OVER AND OVER AGAIN AS OPPOSED TO IMPROVING THE SERVICE.
I WANT TO ASK YOU SPECIFICALLY, YOU HAVE, UH, MR. DIETER MENTIONED YOUR PROCESS FOR REVIEWING ROUTE CHANGES.
IF I COULD JUST ASK YOU FOR THE PICKUP SERVICE DEV THOUGHT TO RUN THAT SERVICE AT 6:00 AM JUST LIKE IN LEANDER.
AND I WOULD JUST LASTLY SAY THERE WAS A LADY ON THE BUS THIS MORNING WHO MENTIONED THAT THE VEHICLE IS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AROUND SIX, PICKING UP INDIVIDUALS ABOUT EIGHT DOORS DOWN FROM HER.
BUT ON THE APP IT SAYS 7:00 AM TO 7:00 PM BUT 7:00 AM IS TOO LATE TO GET PEOPLE TO WORK.
AND IT ALL I CAN SAY IS, UM, TO IMPROVE THAT SERVICE AS WELL.
THANK YOU SO MUCH MS. UH, JOSEPH FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE METHOD? DONE.
AND OUR LAST SPEAKER IS LONNIE STERN.
UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH, MADAM CHAIR AND MADAME, C A O AND THE REST OF THE BOARD.
UM, MY NAME IS LONNIE STERN AND I, I THINK I DO HAVE SOME SLIDES TO ASSIST.
LET'S SEE IF I CAN MOVE THIS FORWARD.
SO I'M HERE TODAY AS THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MOVABILITY.
WE ARE A T M A AND WE FOCUS ON REDUCING CONGESTION AND ENCOURAGING PEOPLE
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TO REDUCE THEIR DRIVE ALONE COMMUTING.AND UH, TODAY I WANTED TO UM, FIRST UH, JUST COMMENT ABOUT THE SERVICE CHANGE AND START WITH NUMBER ONE, UH, WHICH IS WHERE THE DOVE SPRINGS PICKUP WILL BE.
UM, AS HAS BEEN STATED, THIS WILL CONNECT THE SEVEN, THE THREE 11 AND THE 3 33 TOGETHER, UM, IN DOVE SPRINGS AND IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME COMING, SO CONGRATS ON THAT AND I'M EXCITED TO SEE IT WHEN THE PLEASANT VALLEY METRO RAPID GETS GOING TOO.
UM, ON NUMBER TWO, I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT ROUTE TWO 17.
UM, THE SERVICE ON CAESAR CHAVEZ USED TO BE THE 17 AND NOW IT'S THE TWO.
UM, BUT DURING 180 3 CONSTRUCTION RELIABILITY BECAME AN ISSUE.
SO WE DID OUTREACH AT STOP AND SPOKE TO RIDERS ABOUT BETTER RELIABILITY BEING POSSIBLE BY BREAKING THE ROUTE UP INTO TWO.
SO THE TWO 17 IS A 30 MINUTE SERVICE AND WE PROMISED IT WOULD BE TEMPORARY.
AND NOW WE'RE SAYING, YOU KNOW, UM, WE WERE KIDDING ABOUT THE TEMPORARY NATURE.
I'M CONCERNED ABOUT THIS BECAUSE OF PEOPLE IN THE MONTOPOLIS NEIGHBORHOOD.
I'M ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT THE CONNECTION TO THE THREE 11 THAT'S OVER THERE.
AND ALSO IF YOU WERE AN A C C RIVERSIDE STUDENT GOING TO A C C E SIDE, UM, THIS IS A THREE SEAT TRIP TO GO FROM THAT SIDE OF TOWN.
AND, UM, THIS WOULD ACTUALLY BY RESTORING IT, MAKE IT SO THAT IT GOES BACK TO BEING A TWO SEAT TRIP.
UH, IT'S CONCERNING TO ME 'CAUSE I'M NOT SURE WHAT AT STOP AND ON BUSS OUTREACH WE'VE DONE TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR CUSTOMERS WILL TRUST US.
UM, FOR ROUTE 18, WHICH IS NUMBER THREE.
THIS IS A ONE SEAT RIDE, UM, FOR THOSE WHO LIVE ON LAKE AUSTIN BOULEVARD.
IF THE 6 63 ISN'T RUNNING, WHICH IS EVENINGS, WEEKENDS, WHEN UT'S NOT IN SESSION, THE 18 IS THAT ONE SEAT RIDE.
UM, FOR STUDENTS WHO LIVE ON CAMPUS, THAT'S A ONE SEAT RIDE TO AN H E B AS WELL.
AND WHILE PEOPLE MAY BE THINKING ABOUT MOZARTS OR MAYFIELD PARK OR LAGUNA GLORIA, I'M THINKING ABOUT THAT H E B OR O HENRY MIDDLE SCHOOL OR JOBS AT L C R A, UM, PEOPLE DESERVE TO HAVE ACCESS TO THIS.
FURTHER, THIS IS ACTUALLY A CONNECTOR FOR THE EASTERN CRESCENT IN COLONY PARK.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE 18 ALL THE WAY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF TOWN, IT CONNECTS TO THE 2 37 AND THE 3 39.
IT IS REALLY HARD TO TRANSFER BETWEEN TWO BUSES, BUT BELIEVE ME, IF YOU TRY TO MAKE A 30 MINUTE TRANSFER TO A 30 MINUTE, YOU'VE GOT SOME TROUBLE.
UM, I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT WE CONSIDER THAT WE DON'T HAVE ANY HIGH FREQUENCY SERVICE GOING WEST OF MOPAC IN THE CENTER OF OUR CITY.
THIS IS TROUBLESOME, NOT JUST FOR GETTING TO WEST AUSTIN, FOR WEST AUSTIN RIDERS, BUT FOR PEOPLE WHO WORK AND NEED TO GET THERE.
I WOULD RECOMMEND LOOKING FOR COST SAVINGS WITH THE 4 65 RAIL CONNECTOR AT THE M L K STATION.
SO WE CAN MAKE A LOOP THERE ON THE 18 INSTEAD.
I'D ALSO RECOMMEND LOOKING AT WHETHER WE COULD EXTEND THE FOUR WEST OF MOPAC FOR THAT LOOP.
UM, BUT AGAIN, I THINK THE 18 IS A BETTER SERVICE AND WE HAVE, UM, THE 3 33 ON WILLIAM CANNON AS A MODEL WHERE WE RUN IT.
THANK YOU MR. STERN EAST AND 30 MINUTES WEST OF MOPAC.
I SINCERELY APPRECIATE THE SERVICE AND AGAIN, I AM A DAILY WRITER.
DO WE HAVE ANYBODY ELSE IN THE ROOM WHO DIDN'T GET A CHANCE TO SIGN UP, UH, AND WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THE BOARD? ALRIGHT, IT LOOKS LIKE, UH, WE HAVE HEARD FROM EVERYONE WHO CAME TO SPEAK.
MR. DIETER, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
IF THERE ARE ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS FROM ANYBODY THAT HAPPENED TO CROP UP, BE SURE TO CONTACT MR. DIETER.
UM, THANKS EVERYONE FOR COMING TODAY.
THIS CONCLUDES OUR PUBLIC HEARING AND THE TIME IS 12:30 PM THANKS VERY MUCH.
I THINK THE OPS COMMITTEE IS GONNA MEET NEXT.