[00:00:02]
UH, GOOD MORNING OR GOOD AFTERNOON, RATHER, UH, HAVING ESTABLISHED A QUORUM.LET ME, LET ME LOOK TO MY RIGHT AND MAKE SURE.
ALRIGHT, UH, THEN WE WILL, UH, GO AHEAD WITH PUTTING THE MEETING TOGETHER.
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON AND THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR THE APRIL MEETING OF THE CAP METRO BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
[II. Safety Briefing]
WITH OUR SAFETY BRIEFING AND, AND, UM, LET'S SEE.NORMALLY IT'S GARDNER TABBAN, BUT HE'S NOT HERE TODAY.
SO I UNDERSTAND WE ARE, UH, GOING TO BE GRACED WITH OUR CEO PROVIDING THE SAFETY, UH, REPORT FOR US.
GOOD MORNING AND THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR BEING WITH US TODAY IN THE BOARDROOM.
JUST A FEW SAFETY REMINDERS, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF US THAT ARE VISITING US TODAY FOR THE FIRST TIME.
UM, WE ARE LOCATED AT 29 10 EAST FIFTH STREET IN THE ROSA PARKS BOARDROOM.
UM, IN THE EVENT OF EMERGENCY, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF CAT METRO STAFF MEMBERS WHO KNOW IT IS THEIR JOB TO CALL 9 1 1.
UM, SHOULD WE NEED TO EVACUATE THIS BUILDING, WE CAN EVACUATE.
UM, TO YOUR LEFT OR TO YOUR RIGHT, THERE'S ACTUALLY, UM, EXITS TOWARD THE OUTSIDE EITHER WAY.
UM, TO YOUR LEFT ACTUALLY IS, UM, A SHORT STAIRWELL.
SO THOSE WITH MOBILITY CHALLENGES, WE JUST ASK THAT YOU, UM, ALLOW FOR ASSISTANCE FROM STAFF IF YOU NEED HELP DOWN THE STAIRS.
UM, BUT IF WE DO NEED TO EVACUATE THE BUILDING FOR ANY POINT, WE WILL RALLY OVER, UM, NEAR FIFTH AND LINDEN, KIND OF GO TO THE FAR EDGE OF THE PARKING LOT AND WE'LL JUST BE KIND OF DOWN IN THIS GENERAL AREA.
UM, WE DO HAVE AN AUTOMATIC EXTERNAL DEFIBRILLATOR, EASY FOR ME TO SAY, OR A ED LOCATED NEXT TO THE ELEVATOR.
WE ALSO HAVE A FIRE EXTINGUISHER IN THIS ROOM.
SO THANKS FOR BEING HERE TODAY, UM, AND ALLOWING US TO HELP MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE A SAFE TIME WHILE YOU'RE HERE.
ALRIGHT, I, I JUST WANNA POINT OUT THAT THERE ARE VERY FEW, UH, TRANSPORTATION AGENCIES THAT HAVE THEIR CEO THAT CAN GO THROUGH, UH, THE SAFETY PROGRAM.
SO THAT JUST DEMONSTRATES THAT SHE'S WORKED HER WAY UP THROUGH THE ORGANIZATION.
I BELIEVE IN LEADING BY EXAMPLE.
SO I JUST, JUST WANNA MAKE SURE YOU ALL KNOW THIS.
[III.1. Bus Operator Glenn Palmer]
START OFF TODAY, UH, WITH A MOMENT OF RECOGNITION.WE'VE GOT TWO CAP METRO EMPLOYEES WHO'VE GIVEN SOME OUT SERVING, UH, OUTSTANDING SERVICE TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND COMMUNITY IN RECENT MONTHS, AND WE'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT.
SO OUR FIRST RECOGNITION WILL BE FOR BUS OPERATOR GLEN PALMER.
UH, MR. TURPEN, COULD YOU, UH, KICK US OFF, SAY A FEW WORDS ABOUT MR. UH, PALMER FOR US? YES, I WILL.
CHAIRMAN ILIAN, CEO WATKINS, UH, CAPTAIN METRO BOARD.
UM, YES, AND TO YOUR, TO YOUR FINE SEDIMENTS.
TODAY IS A VERY SPECIAL DAY, UH, NOT ONLY FOR BUS OPS, BUT UH, FOR MY PEER, UH, UH, MODE AS, UH, ON DEMAND AS WELL.
UM, AND BRIEFLY, UH, I WANT TO TELL A QUICK STORY ABOUT THIS GENTLEMAN, UH, THAT WORKS FOR US.
UM, HE'S A BUS INSPECTOR, MR. GLENN PALMER, BUT MANY OF YOU DON'T KNOW, UM, WHEN HE WAS, UH, IN SEVENTH GRADE, WHICH IS KIND OF APROPOS WHAT HE DID, UH, A COUPLE WEEKS BACK, BUT WHEN HE WAS IN SEVENTH GRADE, UM, GROWING UP AS WE ALL GREW UP, AND, AND AT THAT TIME, MR. PALMER WAS ACTUALLY RUNNING TO CATCH A BUS RIGHT? TO GO TO TRACK PRACTICE.
UM, AND IN THE MIDST OF GOING TO CATCH THAT BUS, UM, MR. PALMER WAS CROSSING THE STREET AND HE GOT HIT BY A CAR.
HE GOT HIT BY A CAR, UH, GOT KNOCKED UP IN THE AIR ABOUT 10 FEET.
AND WHEN HE CAME BACK DOWN, HE ACTUALLY LANDED ON TOP OF THE VEHICLE,
BUT MORE TRAGICALLY, UH, MR. PALMER WAS PRONOUNCED DEAD.
HE HAD LOST HIS LIFE, UM, AFTER BEING HIT BY THIS VEHICLE, FORTUNATELY TO OUR BENEFIT, RIGHT? EMS GOT ON SCENE AT THE TIME, AND BACK THEN, IF YOU GUYS REMEMBER, THEY HAD THE, THE DEFIBRILLATORS.
WE HAD TO PUT THE GEL ON THE THINGS AND YOU RIGHT? UM, AND THEY BROUGHT GLENN BACK TO LIFE.
AND BECAUSE OF THAT, WE ARE HERE TODAY TO CELEBRATE SOMETHING THAT, UH, MR. PALMER HIMSELF DID AND RETURNED TO FAVOR.
I WENT ON OUR ROUTE THREE TWENTY FIVE, THERE WAS A CALL THAT CAME IN AND THAT MR. PALMER RESPONDED TO FIND A CITIZEN IN DISTRESS.
AND THAT CITIZEN WAS FACE DOWN AND ONE OF OUR BUS STOPS.
AND WITHOUT HESITATION, MR. PALMER WENT INTO ACTION AND PROCEEDED TO DO CPR ON THIS INDIVIDUAL.
UM, AND UNTIL EMS ARRIVED, AND ONCE THEY DID
[00:05:01]
THAT CONTINUED THE PER, UH, COMPRESSIONS AND ALL THAT IS ENTAILS, THE CPR, THEY WERE ABLE TO REVIVE THIS GENTLEMAN EN ROUTE TO THE HOSPITAL.SO, UH, I AM PROUD AND, AND OVERWHELMED WITH WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU, UH, IF YOU REMEMBER, AND DOTTY REMEMBERS THIS, WHEN I FIRST CAME HERE, I SAID, THIS IS MY SUPER BOWL TEAM.
AND EVERY GOOD COACH KNOWS THAT YOU CAN'T GET THERE WITHOUT OUTSTANDING PLAYERS.
AND I WILL SAY TO YOU THAT BUS INSPECTOR PALMER IS AN EPITOME OF WHAT WE WANT HERE AT CAP METRO.
UM, IT'S NOT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, LEADING BY EXAMPLE.
HE SETS THE EXAMPLE SO WE ALL CAN FOLLOW HIS LEAD.
AND, UM, I WANNA SAY THAT TO YOU.
I KNOW HE IS, MAKES THE CITIZENRY HERE OF AUSTIN BETTER.
UM, A LOT OF US, UM, FOR OUR, OUR AGENCY, WHILE A LOT OF US ARE ASLEEP EARLY MORNINGS AN HOUR, MR. PALMER'S ALREADY OUT HERE MAKING SURE THAT OUR TRANSIT AGENCY IS VIABLE AND, AND READY TO TAKE ON CUSTOMERS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT, UM, MR. UH, CHAIRMAN PAVILION, UM, ONE OF OUR GREAT LEADERS, UM, AND, AND WE KNOW HIM AS B 40, THAT'S HIS CALL SIGN.
AND WHEN B FORTY'S ON THE JOB, YOU CAN BE REST ASSURED WE'RE GONNA BE IN A GOOD PLACE.
SO IF I EVER GET HIT BY A BUS, I'M LOOKING FOR YOU.
HOPE YOU NEVER GET HIT BY BUS.
STICK, STICK AROUND FOR A PHOTO.
[III.2. Customer Management Support Specialist John Reyna]
RECOGNITION WILL BE FOR, UH, OUR CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT SUPPORT SPECIALIST, JOHN RAINIER.I UNDERSTAND THAT SARAH SANFORD IS, IS GONNA BE HERE TO SAY A FEW WORDS ABOUT WHY MR. RAINIER IS HERE.
BOARD MEMBERS PRESIDENT WATKINS.
UM, THIS IS A REALLY PROUD MOMENT FOR ME.
I'M GONNA TRY TO NOT GET EMOTIONAL.
UM, JOHN REYNA WAS HONORED FOR THE 2025, UM, TEXAS TRANSIT ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE AS THE OUTSTANDING CUSTOMER SERVICE STAFF MEMBER.
UM, JOHN'S BEEN DOING THIS FOR OVER A DECADE WITH US.
UM, HE'S BEEN OUR GO-TO STAFF MEMBER.
HE'S, UH, PASSIONATELY ADVOCATES FOR ALL OF OUR RIDERS FOR DEMAND RESPONSE, INCLUDING OUR PICKUP RIDERS, OUR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES WHO RIDE ACCESS SERVICE.
UM, AND OUR NEWEST USERS ARE, UH, BIKE SHARE USERS.
SO, JOHN'S BEEN DOING THIS FOR A LONG TIME.
UM, AS MOST FOLKS IN THIS ROOM KNOW, CUSTOMER SERVICE IS NOT AN EASY JOB.
UH, A LOT OF TIMES IT'S A THANKLESS JOB.
UM, SOMETIMES HE'S THE GOOD GUY DELIVERING REALLY GOOD NEWS TO OUR CUSTOMERS.
SOMETIMES HE'S THE BAD GUY DELIVERING NEWS THAT FOLKS MAY NOT WANT TO HEAR, BUT IT'S OUR, YOU KNOW, OUR POLICIES.
SO HE DOES THIS PASSIONATELY WITH EMPATHY, UM, DAY IN AND DAY OUT, UM, AND JUST ADVOCATES FOR OUR CUSTOMERS ACROSS THE BOARD.
SO WE'RE REALLY PROUD AND HONORED TO HAVE HIM ON OUR TEAM AND WE WANNA COME UP AND, UM, HONOR HIM FOR HIS AWARD.
THIS MIGHT BE MY EASIEST SECTION OF THE MEETING.
UH, LET'S GO AROUND AND TAKE PICTURES.
WE'RE GONNA NEED YOU TO LOOK AT THE CAMERA AND SMILE.
LET Y'ALL STAND IN THE MIDDLE.
SO AT LEAST I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE SHE TREATS.
[00:10:17]
WONDERFUL.[IV. Public Comment]
WILL BE PUBLIC COMMENT.I UNDERSTAND THAT WE HAVE SEVERAL SPEAKERS WHO'VE SIGNED UP IN ADVANCE.
SO WHEN WE CALL YOUR NAME, UH, WE CAN EITHER BRING YOU, UM, BRING YOU A MICROPHONE, OR YOU MAY WANNA MAKE YOUR WAY UP TO THE PODIUM.
EACH SPEAKER WILL HAVE THREE MINUTES, UNLESS THEY'RE SPEAKING ON TWO AGENDA ITEMS OR REPRESENTING A GROUP WITH MORE THAN ONE PERSON IN, IN THE ROOM, IN, IN WHICH CASE THEY'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
SO OUR FIRST SPEAKER WILL BE MS. SHERRY TAYLOR.
YOU CLOSE, MR. CHAIR? I HAVE NOT SEEN MS. TAYLOR THIS AFTERNOON.
SO WE'LL PUT A CIRCLE AROUND THAT ONE.
AND IF SHE COMES IN, WE'LL CALL HER THEN.
UH, WHAT ABOUT DEB MILLER, WHO'S ASKED FOR FIVE MINUTES? 'CAUSE SHE'S GOT TWO AGENDA ITEMS. MS. MILLER IS HERE.
I, UH, BROUGHT A LITTLE, UM, PRESENTATION TODAY BECAUSE IT WOULD TAKE ME TOO MANY WORDS TO DESCRIBE IT.
I'VE BEEN WORKING ON A BLUE APPLE EXPRESS PROGRAM FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS, UM, WORKING ON WAYS TO DESIGN TO HELP SENIORS GET OUT AND USE THEIR MOBILITY DEVICES TO ENJOY THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITY, AND, UH, HAVE ACCESS TO THE RESOURCES.
UM, TODAY I'VE COME TO YOU WITH SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING SERVICES, CUTTING COSTS, REMOVING OBSTACLES, PREVENTING INJURIES AND DAMAGE TO EQUIPMENT.
BECAUSE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO US AS RIDERS IS SUPPORTING OUR DRIVERS.
UM, I HAVE UPDATES FROM A TRIP I TOOK TO SAN ANTONIO WHERE I TESTED THE PARATRANSIT SERVICE THERE.
UM, I ALSO AM NOW A PART OF THE GOVERNOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES BECAUSE MY RESEARCH WAS BETTER THAN THEIRS, BASICALLY
SO, UM, I CURRENTLY AM WORKING ON A LETTER OF INTEREST THAT I'M GONNA PRESENT TO THE TEXAS, UH, EMPOWERMENT FUND, UH, TRANSIT EMPOWERMENT FUND.
UH, OH, NO, I HAVE PRESENTED, AND I'M GONNA BE WORKING ON IT.
UM, AND IT'S IN RESPONSE TO THE NEED FOR A WHEELCHAIR RECORD SERVICE, TO BE CLEAR.
CAN YOU START THE SECOND SLIDE? OKAY.
SO I'VE BEEN WARNING YOU FOR THREE YEARS, AND THEY'RE HERE.
$40 ELECTRIC WHEELCHAIRS THAT ARE BASICALLY A LAWN CHAIR ON A POLE SCREWED INTO, I DON'T KNOW, WE MIGHT CALL IT A WAGON, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S BUILT THAT WELL.
UM, SO, UH, LET ME BEGIN WITH A LITTLE BIT OF THIS TEXT.
UM, SO, UM, THESE DEVICES ADD CHALLENGES INCLUDING THE LAYOUT OF THE VARIOUS MODELS OF BUSES, AMBI AMBIGUITY IN DESIGN OF THE NEW LOW-COST ABILITY MOBILITY DEVICES THAT ARE UNDER $50.
WE SHIPPING FROM TEMU, AMAZON, EBAY, AND SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS. SLIDE TWO SUCH AS X, FACEBOOK, AND INSTAGRAM.
COME GET IT, YOU KNOW, TWO FOR ONE ON THIS ONE.
UM, SO THIS, UM, IS GOING TO CONTINUE TO CAUSE A LOT OF PROBLEMS AND CONGESTION.
UM, THIS HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE GOVERNOR.
IT HAS BECOME A STATEWIDE ISSUE.
IT REALLY HASN'T HIT HERE AS MUCH AS IT HAS IN OTHER PARTS OF THE STATE.
THEY, I MEAN, IT'S LIKE THE E-BIKES, BUT THEY'RE MUCH HEAVIER, MORE DIFFICULT.
AND THE ASSUMPTION IS THAT THAT PERSON REALLY NEEDS IT, THAT THEY DIDN'T JUST LEAVE IT THERE.
SO, I MEAN, IT CAN BE A VERY BIG PROBLEM GOING FORWARD.
ANOTHER PROBLEM IS THAT I, UM, GOT ON THE BUS WITH A GUY IN A TIMO
UM, IN SAN ANTONIO, I WAS REALLY NEED, OKAY, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, WITH THIS MODEL, EXCUSE ME, IS THAT IT'S REMOTE CONTROL TO OPEN AT THIS SUITCASE THING.
THEY'RE GONNA BE CARRYING THESE IN ON AIRPLANES OR HAVING 'EM DELIVERED HERE AND JUST LEAVING THEM.
'CAUSE IT COSTS MORE TO FLY IT BACK HOME.
UM, WHICH IS ALSO GONNA BE A PROBLEM.
[00:15:01]
IN ADDITION, UM, ONE OF MY NEIGHBORS HAD A TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY THE DAY SHE GOT HERS, BECAUSE WHEN ONE WHEEL GOES OFF, THE WHOLE THING FLIPS.AND THERE'S, UNLIKE A REGULAR WHEELCHAIR PRESCRIBED FOR A DISABLED PERSON, THEY DON'T HAVE THAT STEEL CAGE TO PROTECT US.
SO, IN 2020 JANUARY, 2023, I, UH, PARTICIPATED IN A TRAINING FILM, UH, WITH THE MCI BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF TROUBLE.
AND IT WAS THE HEAD OF THE A DA SPECIALIST DEPARTMENT FOR CAPITAL METRO.ORG DECIDED THERE WAS NO WAY TO LOAD THIS BUS EXCEPT LAYING ON TOP OF MY LAP WHILE I'M TETHERED HOLDING ME DOWN, WHICH PRODUCED A LOT OF ANXIETY, FEAR, AND ENDED UP IN THE HOSPITAL THAT WEEKEND.
AS OF JANUARY, I'VE HAD FOUR WOMEN DRIVERS DO THE SAME THING.
I TRIED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THE TRAINING.
I'M PRETTY SURE YOU DID NOT USE THAT FILM, RIGHT? BECAUSE I REPORTED IT IMMEDIATELY THAT I HAD BEEN TOUCHING INAPPROPRIATELY, WHICH IS AN EDI VIOLATION.
SO I'VE BEEN LOOKING AT IT AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT DRIVER, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE IT WAS A DRIVER'S DOING IT, RIGHT? AND, UM, IT, IT WAS ALMOST ALWAYS WOMEN IT MEN, UH, CONDITION SOCIALLY.
THAT THEY DON'T COME AT YOU WITH THEIR FACE.
THEY ALWAYS STAND LIKE THIS, AND THEY MIGHT BUMP YOU WITH THEIR SHOULDER.
AND THE REASON IS THEY ARE NOT TALL ENOUGH TO REACH OVER.
WE'RE GONNA COMPARE THE 700 MODEL WITH THE BRAND NEW 400 MODEL.
OKAY? AS YOU CAN SEE, THE OLDER MODELS, UH, THE UNDERNEATH THE WINDOW, THERE'S A RAIL.
IN THE NEWER MODEL, THE WIND IS LOWER AND THE RAIL IS WAY LOW.
YOU CAN SEE THAT IN THE 700 MODEL, THERE'S A VER, A HORIZONTAL BAR THAT DRIVERS USED TO BE ABLE TO REST THEIR WEIGHT ON AND THEN USE THEIR OTHER HAND.
THE PROBLEM IS, THESE SHORTER WOMEN CANNOT DO THE LONDON BRIDGE ARCH BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE THE, THE LENGTH TO MEET, TO REACH IT.
SO THEY'RE JUST LAYING ON TOP OF THIS.
NOW, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE THE MEN AREN'T COMPLAINING, BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, PEOPLE THAT HAVE WORN OUT KNEES AND, UH, HIPS, THERE ARE DRIVERS, AND THAT'S PART OF THE JOB SITTING THERE ALL DAY LONG.
THEY'RE ACTUALLY CRAWLING ON THE FLOOR, JUST LIKE THESE WOMEN TRYING TO UNSCREW THESE BOLTS.
NOW, THE PROBLEM WITH THESE TETHERS TRACKS IS NOT ONLY ARE THEY DIFFICULT, THEY'RE FULL OF DIRT NOW, AND THE DRIVERS ARE HAVING TO SCOOP THOSE OUT IN A DI AND TRY.
I MEAN, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT AND SENSELESS.
NOW, THESE, IF YOU SLIDE BACK UP.
SO, SO LET, LET ME ASK YOU THIS, UHHUH, I WANT, I WANT YOU TO BE ABLE TO COMPLETE YOUR IDEA.
BUT WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT YOU SIT WITH THE PROPER STAFF SO THAT WE CAN OKAY.
WELL UNDERSTAND BETTER WHAT IT IS THAT YOU NEED.
OKAY? SO ONE SECOND, IF WE CAN GO BACK, I'LL SHOW YOU WHAT HAPPENED.
AFTER ALL THIS TIME, CAN ANYBODY SEE WHAT'S BLOCKING THE DRIVER BESIDES ME? NOPE.
DURING COVID, WE INSTALLED PROTECTION FOR THE DRIVER AGAINST AIRBORNE DISEASES.
WE DID NOT ENCLOSE THE WHOLE SPACE.
THE WIND BLOWS RIGHT THROUGH THERE.
AND NOW NO DRIVER CAN USE THAT TO REST ON IT.
AND THIS IS THE REASON THAT ALL THESE A DA VIOLATIONS ARE GOING ON.
AND THE DRIVERS THAT HAVE BEEN UNFAIRLY, UH, PUNISHED OR WHATEVER, THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO, I MEAN, THEY'VE BEEN ABUSED TOO.
AND I, I THINK IT'S REALLY SAD.
ANYWAY, I GOTTA CELEBRATE THINGS.
I'LL JUST BRING 'EM NEXT MONTH.
THANK, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME, UH, TO COME AND SPEAK TO US.
UH, ANDY'S IN THE BACK AND HE WILL, UM, AND HE'LL TALK TO YOU AS WELL, DEB.
AND, AND, UH, HE'LL MAKE SURE YOU TALK TO THE RIGHT STAFF.
UH, THE NEXT PERSON LISTED FOR PUBLIC COMMENT IS ANTHONY WALKER.
I HAVE NOT SEEN MR. WALKER THIS AFTERNOON, MR. CHAIR.
AND, UH, THEN THE NEXT PERSON IS GALINO FERNANDEZ.
MY NAME IS GINO FERNANDEZ AND I'M WITH EL CONCILIO, A COALITION OF MEXICAN AMERICAN LANDOWNERS IN EAST AUSTIN.
AND I WELCOME YOU ONCE AGAIN TO ARVA, UH, BUENAVISTA.
UH, AND WE, UM, WANNA CONTINUE WORKING WITH YOU, BUT I JUST WANTED TO SHOW SOME OF THE PARAPHERNALIA WE USED IN OUR VOTER REGISTRATION DRIVE THAT, UH, IT'S NONPARTISAN.
I WANNA EMPHASIZE THAT IT'S NONPARTISAN.
BUT WE ORDERED OVER, UH, 800 OF THESE SIGNS AND POSTED THEM ALL OVER THE NEIGHBORHOODS THROUGHOUT EAST AUSTIN TO
[00:20:01]
REMIND VOTERS, UH, VOTER REGISTRATION, UH, DEADLINES, AND, UH, UH, IF THEY WANTED TO, UH, FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT HOW TO GET A MAIL-IN BALLOT AND THINGS LIKE THAT.SO WE, WE HAD THESE SIGNS ALL, ALL OVER THE NEIGHBORHOOD ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO REGISTER TO VOTE, AND TO PARTICIPATE IN OUR ELECTORAL PROCESS.
AND WE GOT A PRETTY GOOD RESPONSE.
UH, WE'RE ALSO PARTNERS WITH THE, UH, NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DAY CAMPAIGN THAT HAPPENS EVERY SEPTEMBER, UH, WHERE OVER 50,000 NON-PROFITS AND SCHOOL, YOU KNOW, SCHOOLS, NEIGHBORHOODS AGREE TO HOST A VOTER REGISTRATION ON THAT ONE DAY.
AND, UH, OVERALL, LAST YEAR, THEY REGISTERED ON THAT ONE DAY THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, OVER 500,000 REGISTERED VOTERS.
TWO OF OUR FUNCTIONS AS EL CONCILIO IS, UH, DEDICATED TO EDUCATION AND VOTER REGISTRATION AND PARTICIPATING IN OUR ELECTORAL PROCESS.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE AN EVENT COMING UP, AND THAT IS A MEMORIAL DAY FLAG RAISING CEREMONY THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN ON MAY 24TH.
AND, UH, THIS IS AN ANNUAL EVENT PUT ON BY THE EAST AUSTIN LIONS CLUB AND, UH, AT THEIR VIETNAM MEMORIAL ON BRUSHY AND C CHAVEZ.
AND EVERY YEAR WE HAVE BEEN JOINED BY THE, UH, AIKENS, ROTC, AS, UH, MAKING THE PRESENTATION OF COLORS AT OUR EVENT.
AND, UH, THIS YEAR THEY WILL ALSO PARTICIPATE AGAIN, UH, IN THIS EVENT.
AND, UH, WE JUST WANNA EDUCATE YOU AND, AND SHOW YOU THROUGH OUR ILLUSTRATION OF PARAPHERNALIA AND HOW WE AMPLIFY AND MARKET THE NAME OF ALL THE NON-PROFITS THAT COME TOGETHER TO DO THIS.
THIS, UH, BOOTS ON THE GROUND WORK.
AND AGAIN, ALL THESE NON, ALL OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE NONPROFITS.
AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE VERY, VERY, UH, UH, ABLE TO GO OUT AND REGISTER FOLKS IN A NONPARTISAN WAY.
AND WE GET MANY REGISTRATIONS.
WE DID FOCUS OUR CAMPAIGN THIS, THIS PAST YEAR AT THE AUSTIN HOUSING AUTHORITY, UH, LOCATIONS, UH, AND WE'RE VERY SUCCESSFUL IN THAT.
AND LASTLY, THIS FRIDAY, WE'RE HAVING OUR ANNUAL IM OS CONFERENCE, UH, AT THE DORIS MILLER AUDITORIUM.
AND MS. WATKINS, YOU'RE ONE OF OUR GUEST SPEAKERS, AND WE WANNA THANK CAP METRO, UH, UH, MR. ILIAN FOR THE CONTINUED, UH, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPONSORSHIP THAT WE HAVE WITH YOU.
AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH Y'ALL.
CAN I SAY ONE LAST I DO, I DO WANNA THANK THE POLICE, UH, UH, GROUP THAT WAS PUT TOGETHER IN HELPING US REMOVE THE DAY CAMP THAT WAS LOCATED BEHIND THE HEB, THE HOMELESS DAY CAMP.
WE HAVE NO CORALS WITH HOMELESS DAY CAMP, BUT WHEN THEY BECOME A DRUG HUB DAY CAMP, THEN IT GO, THEY GO INTO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
AND THIS ONE HAD, WAS RAISED A BIG CONCERN.
AND I CALLED MS. ALI ORTIZ AND SHE CHANNELED ME TO THE INDIVIDUAL IN THE, UH, POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND THANK GOD, BY NOW, IT'S, IT'S A CLEAN AREA.
AND, UH, YEAH, WE'RE HAVING A SAFER NEIGHBORHOOD.
SO THANK YOU FOR COMING DOWN TO ADDRESS, UH, THE, UH, THE BOARD.
I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU DO.
I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE, HAVE, HAVE WE, UH, UH, ED, HAVE WE FOUND ANYONE ELSE THAT, THAT IS, UH, HERE TO SPEAK? ALL RIGHT.
IF THERE'S ANYONE IN THE ROOM THIS AFTERNOON THAT I'D LIKE A CHANCE TO ADDRESS THE BOARD, NOW'S THE TIME.
ANYONE ELSE, UH, NEED TO ADDRESS THE BOARD THIRD TIME? ANYONE ELSE WANT TO ADDRESS THE BOARD? UH, HEARING
[V.1. Customer Satisfaction Advisory Committee (CSAC)]
NONE, UH, THEN, UH, I'LL SAY THANK YOU AND I WILL BRING UP OUR ADVISOR, OUR BOARD ADVISORY COMMITTEE UPDATES.UH, MR. BRADEN, GOOD AFTERNOON.
CHAIR ILIAN, VICE CHAIR ELLIS PRESIDENT, AND CEO WATKINS AND MEMBERS OF THE BOARD.
MY NAME IS PETER BRETTON AND I'M THE STAFF LIAISON FOR OUR ADVISORY COMMITTEES.
SINCE LAST MONTH'S UPDATE, OUR CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND ACCESS ADVISORY COMMITTEES HAVE MET AT THEIR REGULARLY SCHEDULED TIMES.
BOTH COMMITTEES RECEIVED PRESENTATIONS ON OUR PROPOSED AUGUST, 2025 SERVICE CHANGES FROM SENIOR PLANNER EMMA MARTINEZ, THE ACCESS ADVISORY COMMITTEE RECEIVED AN ADDITIONAL PRESENTATION FROM THE SPARE LABS TEAM, AS WELL AS SARAH SANFORD, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF DEMAND RESPONSE AND MICRO TRANSIT SERVICES ON THE LAUNCH OF A NEW AI POWERED INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE SYSTEM FOR MAKING RESERVATIONS FOR TRIPS ON CAP METRO ACCESS.
AMONG OTHER UPDATES AS WELL, THE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
IN ADDITION TO THE SERVICE CHANGE PRESENTATION, RECEIVED A PRESENTATION ON BIKE SHARE FAIR ADJUSTMENTS BY BRANDY MOER, THE DIRECTOR OF REVENUE AND FAIRS AND MYSELF.
ADDITIONALLY, LAST WEEK, WE INVITED OUR ACCESS COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO VIEW POTENTIAL NEW PARATRANSIT VEHICLES, AND WE'VE INVITED ALL OF OUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO THE UPCOMING ART ON THE
[00:25:01]
BUS UNVEILING EVENT.THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR THIS MONTH.
AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE LEMME KNOW.
DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
[VI.1. Operations, Planning and Safety Committee]
WILL NOW MOVE TO OUR REGULAR BOARD COMMITTEE UPDATES.UH, CHAIR VELA, WOULD YOU, UH, KICK US OFF WITH OPERATIONS? UH, YES.
WE HAD A MEETING ON APRIL 14TH OF THE OPERATIONS PLANNING AND SAFETY COMMITTEE.
WE, BY ACCLIMATION, A SELECTED BOARD MEMBER ELLIS AS A VICE CHAIR.
UH, AND THEN REVIEWED THE HANDFUL OF SPENDING ITEMS THAT ARE ON THE, UH, CURRENT AGENDA AND DISCUSSED THE, WELL, WE HAD HEARD ACTUALLY A PRESENTATION ABOUT THE VICE SHARE IN THE, IN THE PUBLIC HEARING.
BUT, UH, WE DISCUSSED THAT, UH, A BIT AND THAT WAS ABOUT IT, A RELATIVELY SHORT AND STRAIGHTFORWARD MEETING.
ALRIGHT, UH, BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE,
[VI.2. Finance, Audit and Administration Committee]
UH, THANK YOU MR. CHAIR.UH, WE WILL GO TO OUR FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING WITH, WITH, UH, CHAIR HARRIS.
UH, THE FINANCE AUDIT ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE MET, UH, ON MONDAY, APRIL THE 14TH AT 11.
UH, AND, UM, WE APPROVED BY ACCLAMATION DIANE BENGAL AS THE VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR.
UH, APPROVED THE MINUTES, UH, FROM THE PRIOR MEETING AND ALSO APPROVED, UH, FOR CONSENT, A, UH, CONTRACT MODIFICATION WITH UNUM FOR LIFE, ACCIDENTAL DEATH, DEATH AND DISMEMBERMENT INSURANCE.
UM, IN ADDITION, WE ALSO HEARD REPORTS, UH, FROM TERRY FULMER ON THE INTERNAL AUDITS PLAN STATUS AND ALSO FROM, UH, CATHERINE WALKER WITH RESPECT TO, UH, JUST UP, UH, JUST A BRIEFING ON, UH, VARIOUS MATTERS WITH RESPECT TO, UH, ACCOUNTING AND, UH, UH, PERSONNEL PERFORMANCE.
UH, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? ANY QUESTIONS? UH, HEARING NONE THAT WENT SO
[VI.3. CAMPO update]
SMOOTHLY, WHY DON'T YOU ADD CAMPO AS WELL? ALRIGHT, THANK YOU.UH, UH, TRANSPORTATION AND POLICY BOARD, UH, MET, UH, AT TWO O'CLOCK ON APRIL THE 14TH.
UH, IN ADDITION TO HEARING A REPORT FROM THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND, UH, WE, UH, CONDUCTED A PUBLIC HEARING FOR THE 20 25 28 TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PRO, UH, PROGRAM, UH, AND ALSO CONSIDERED AND APPROVED AMENDMENTS, UH, TO THE 20 25 28 TIP PROGRAM WITH RESPECT TO SOME ITEMS THAT CAPITAL METRO BROUGHT FORWARD TO THE GROUP.
UH, AND, UH, FINALLY WE CONDUCTED A PUBLIC HEARING, UH, ON THE 2050, UH, UH, REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN.
ALRIGHT, BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? UH, HEARING NONE, THANK YOU FOR THE REPORT.
[VI.4. Austin Transit Partnership Update]
NORMALLY GIVE THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP UPDATE.THIS MIGHT BE THE SHORTEST REPORT ON RECORD WE DIDN'T MEET, SO, SO, UH, WHEN WE MEET AGAIN, WE'LL LET YOU KNOW.
ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE.
WE WILL NOW CONTINUE AND GO TO OUR CONSENT AGENDA.
WE'RE POSTED FOR ACTION ON THREE ITEMS TODAY.
UH, I DID WANT TO NOTE FOR EVERYONE THAT STAFF HAS MOVED, UH, TWO ITEMS THAT WERE RECOMMENDED FOR THE CONSENT AGENDA TO OUR COMMITTEE MEETINGS LAST WEEK AND MADE THEM REGULAR ACTION ITEMS
[VII. Consent Items]
INSTEAD OF CONSENT.AGENDA ITEMS, UH, BOTH HAD UPDATES TO, UH, THEIR PRICING AND TERMS. UH, SO WE'LL ASK FOR, FOR THOSE TO BE PRESENTED AGAIN AS ACTION ITEMS NUMBER THREE AND NUMBER FOUR, UH, BOARD MEMBERS.
YOU'VE, YOU'VE HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW, UH, THE REMAINING CON CONSENT ITEMS. AND IF THERE ARE ANY BOARD MEMBERS THAT WOULD LIKE TO PULL AN ITEM OFF SO THAT WE DISCUSS IT DURING OUR REGULAR, UH, DISCUSSION TIME, UH, NOW'S THE TIME TO MAKE THAT RECOMMENDATION.
ANYONE WANNA PULL ANYTHING OFF? CONSENT.
SO, UH, SINCE UH, NO ONE WANTS TO PULL ANYTHING OFF, CONSENT, UH, CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION, UH, TO APPROVE THE CONSENT ITEMS, UH, ONE THROUGH THREE AS LISTED IN OUR BACKUP.
I, I SAW, UH, BOARD MEMBER VELA, AND THEN I, I SAW, LET'S SEE, WAS IT, OKAY, NOW I SAW VICE CHAIR ELLIS.
ALRIGHT, SO IT'S BEEN MOVED AND PROPERLY SECONDED THAT WE APPROVE ALL THREE CONSENT ITEMS. UH, IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE, UH, ALL IN FAVOR LET IT BE KNOWN BY SAYING
[00:30:01]
AYE.DID I SEE BECKY ON THE, ON THE LINE? OKAY, SO I HAVE NOT SEEN HER, SO SINCE I DON'T SEE HER, WE WILL NOT COUNTER VOTE, BUT, UH, THE CHAIR WILL MAKE THAT VOTE UNANIMOUS FOR ALL OF THOSE WHO ARE PRESENT.
ALRIGHT, SO WE HAVE APPROVED, OFFICIALLY APPROVED CONSENT ITEMS ONE THROUGH THREE.
[VIII.1. Approval of a resolution authorizing the President & CEO, or her designee, to adopt the CapMetro Bikeshare fares and fees for users of the Bikeshare system. Memo: Proposed August 2025 Bikeshare Fare Adjustment (March 24, 2025)]
NOW MOVE ON TO TODAY'S ACTION ITEMS WE POSTED FOR ACTION ON FOUR ITEMS TODAY.UH, STARTING WITH ADJUSTMENTS TO THE CAP, METRO BIKE SHARE FAIR AND FEES.
UH, MS. MOER IS HERE TO PRESENT THEM FOR US.
SO LET ME READ IT, LET ME READ IT INTO THE RECORD.
APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OR HER DESIGNEE TO ADOPT THE CAB METRO BIKE SHARE FARES AND FEES FOR USERS OF THE BIKE SHARE SYSTEM, PLEASE.
GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR ILION, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF THE BOARD PRESIDENT AND CEO DOTTIE WATKINS.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT BIKE SHARE.
FAIRES FIRST, WE HAVE NOT RAISED FAIR SINCE 2013.
UM, AND INFLATION BEING WHAT IT IS, HAS RAISED SIGNIFICANTLY SINCE THEN.
THE DOLLAR IS NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE.
ADJUSTMENTS ARE NECESSARY IN THAT WE, UM, AND CONTINUED TO HAVE THE SUSTAINABILITY OF THE PROGRAM IN ORDER TO ALSO DO, IN HOPES OF FUTURE EXPANSION.
UH, THESE PROPOSED FARES WILL CONTINUE TO BE SOME OF THE LOWEST WE ARE CURRENTLY THE LOWEST IN THE UNITED STATES.
UM, THE RESEARCH AND INFORMATION, UM, THAT WE HAVE GATHERED AND GONE THROUGH CONTINUE TO BE THE LOWEST IN THE NATION STILL, OR SORRY, STARTED OUT THE LOWEST WE WILL BE, UM,
WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THIS PAY, OUR PAY AS YOU GO FARES.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THE BLUE LINE INDICATES WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW.
UM, THE, THE ORANGE LINE INDICATES WHERE WE ARE HEADED.
OUR CURRENT PRICE IS 1 0 9 AND AN UNLOCK FEE OF 23 CENTS PER MINUTE.
OUR PROPOSED PRICE IS $22 AND 50 CENTS UNLOCK FEE AND A 25 CENTS PER MINUTE.
THE LIME'S BIKE SHARE IN CONTRAST TO THAT IS CURRENTLY A $1 UNLOCK FEE AND 56 CENTS PER MINUTE.
SO WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? GRAPHICALLY, YOU CAN SEE HERE WE'VE GOT, AGAIN, THIS TIME THE ORANGE IS ON THE BOTTOM.
THAT IS OUR CURRENT PRICE, UM, OUR PROPOSED PRICE AT THE BLUE LINE.
AND THEN THE GRAY LINE IS YET THAT LIME'S BIKE SHARE.
YOU CAN SEE EVEN AT FIVE MINUTES, THEY BEGIN TO OUTPACE US.
AND BY THE TIME THAT WE GET TO 30 MINUTES, THEY ARE ALMOST THREE TIMES WHAT WE, WE HAVE NOW AND STILL A HUGE CHUNK ABOVE WHERE WE HAVE IN PROPOSAL.
SO WHAT ABOUT THE PRICE CHANGES OF EACH PASS TYPE? WE TALKED ABOUT THE PAGE YOU GO, WHAT ABOUT THE PASS TYPE? WE GOT THAT ONE DAY PASS THAT IS CURRENTLY 1299.
WE ARE SUGGESTING WE CHANGE IT TO 2 99 TO BE MORE IN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR FAIR STRUCTURES.
THAT WILL BE A $2 99 CENTS PER PASS REDUCTION WITH OUR 31 DAY PASS.
WE CURRENTLY HAVE IT AT $11 AND WE ARE PROPOSING A $25, UM, 31 DAY PASS PRICE, WHICH IS A $14 PER PASS CHANGE.
IT'S AN INCREASE, WHICH ROUGHLY COMES OUT TO ABOUT 50 CENTS PER DAY.
OUR ANNUAL PASS CURRENTLY 86 60 PROPOSED WILL BE ONE 50.
THAT CHANGE IS 63 40 PER PASS, ROUGHLY $5 AND 25 CENTS PER MONTH, WHICH IS LESS THAN MY STARBUCKS THIS MORNING.
SO THE STUDENT PASS, CURRENTLY $12 PROPOSED.
WE ARE PROPOSING A $75 FEE, WHICH IS A $63 INCREASE.
AGAIN, THAT $5 AND 25 CENTS MORE PER MONTH, BUT THIS IS ALSO A 50% DISCOUNT OFF OF THE ANNUAL PASS.
UM, AS YOU CAN SEE FOR THAT STUDENT PASS.
HOWEVER, WITH THIS CHANGE AND THESE STUDENT PASSES, CURRENTLY THE ONLY INDIVIDUALS WHO CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS ARE UT STUDENTS AND, UH, FACULTY MEMBERS.
NOT ONLY ARE WE RAISING PRICES, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE IT MORE ACCESSIBLE FOR INDIVIDUALS.
THE TRADE AND TECHNICAL SCHOOLS, IF YOU'RE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND YOU'RE 18, OR OVER NURSING AND OTHER VOCATIONAL SCHOOLS AND OTHER COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES SO THAT, SO THAT OTHERS CAN RIDE AS WELL.
[00:35:01]
IF I WAS GOING THROUGH MY ANIMATIONS, I HAD THIS REALLY PRETTY ANIMATION TO WHERE YOU WOULD SEE THAT.AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS BLUE LINE COMES IN, THIS IS WHERE OUR PER CURRENT PRICING STRUCTURE IS.
WE HAVE A RIDE TIME CURRENTLY OF 60 MINUTES.
AFTER THAT 60 MINUTES, THE FEE STRUCTURE STARTS TO CHANGE.
WE GO UP $4 AND 33 MINUTES, 33 CENTS PER 30 MINUTES.
AND THAT IS EVERY 30 MINUTES THAT YOU DO THAT.
OUR CURRENT FEE STRUCTURE THAT WE ARE PROPOSING STARTS AT 30 MINUTES, WHICH IS A REDUCED RIDE TIME.
I'LL EXPLAIN THAT IN A MINUTE.
AND IT IS ONLY 25 CENTS PER MINUTE.
THAT MEANS YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED A HUGE CHUNK OF MONEY IF YOU GO 31 MINUTES RATHER THAN GOING OVER THE, THE AVERAGE RIDE TIME THAT WE HAVE.
UM, IT WILL, IT WILL NOT CHARGE YOU AS MUCH IN A CHUNK.
YOU JUST SIMPLY PAY AS YOU GO.
OKAY? SHORTENING THE RIDE TIME FROM 60 MINUTES TO 30 MINUTES IS WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING.
AND WITHIN THAT, UM, 13 MINUTES IS OUR AVERAGE RIDE TIME, 88 PER 76, SORRY, 76% OF THOSE RIDES RECUR OF OUR RIDES OCCUR WITHIN THAT 15 MINUTES.
AND 88% OF THOSE FALLING WITHIN THAT 30 MINUTES, THAT JUST LEAVES AN ADDITIONAL 12% THAT RIDE BETWEEN THAT 30 MINUTE AND 60 MINUTE RIDE TIME REDUCTION THAT WE ARE, WE ARE DISCUSSING 98% OF THE RIDES OCCUR WITHIN THE 60 MINUTES.
WE ARE NOT LOOKING TO MAKE MONEY OR GO OVER, UM, TO, TO GOUGE PEOPLE FOR GOING OVER THEIR RIDE TIME.
WE ARE SIMPLY LOOKING TO ENCOURAGE THAT RED DOCKING.
SO THE 30 MINUTES IS MEANT TO ENCOURAGE, CHECK A BIKE OUT, GO CHECK IT BACK IN, IN 30 MINUTES, AND YOU CAN RIDE AS MUCH AS YOU WANT TO FOR THE PRICE OF THAT PASS.
I'LL GET TO THAT IN JUST A MINUTE.
SO WHAT CAN YOU DO IN THAT 30 MINUTE RIDE TIME? WE GOT 10 TO 15 MINUTE, UH, TRIP FROM WEST CAMPUS TO TRADER JOE'S.
WE'VE GOT A 15 TO 20 MINUTE TRIP FROM FLIP FRANKLIN'S TO THE PALMER EVENT CENTER, AND THEN SPEEDWAY TO SOCO IS A 20 TO 25 MINUTE TRIP ON OUR E-BIKES.
AND 25 MINUTES TO 30 MINUTES AT CREEK FIELD TO ZILKER PARK IS ALSO SOME OF THE THINGS YOU CAN DO JUST WITHIN THAT RIDE TIME.
IF I WANNA RIDE FROM CREEK FIELDS TO ZILKER PARK AND IT ONLY TAKES ME 30 MINUTES AND I CHECK IN MY BIKE, IF I HAVE PAID FOR A DAY PASS FOR THE $25 THAT WE ARE, SORRY, THE $10 THAT WE ARE SUGGESTING, I CAN CHECK MY BIKE BACK IN AND WHEN I'M READY TO GO BACK, MY 30 MINUTE RIDE IS CONTAINED WITHIN THAT, THAT 10 MINUTE, UH, THAT $10 PRICE.
SO LET'S LOOK AT SOME SCENARIOS.
WE'VE TALKED A LOT ABOUT DIFFERENT PRICING, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT PASSES.
SO LET'S JUST GET TO THE NITTY GRITTY.
UM, LET'S JUST SAY RITA TAKES 1 45 MINUTE RIDE.
THE PRICE PROPOSED WOULD BE $13 AND 75 CENTS.
AGAIN, WE'RE GOING BACK TO TRYING TO ENCOURAGE THIS 30 MINUTE RIDE TIME.
SO IF EDWARD TAKES TWO 30 MINUTE RIDES IN A DAY, HE WILL PAY IT.
PROPOSED WOULD BE THAT $10, THAT IS THAT PRICE REDUCTION.
UM, TERRY WOULD TAKE 2 45 MINUTES RIDES IN A DAY.
AGAIN, YOU SEE THE 45 MINUTE RIDES ARE, UH, NOT AS ENCOURAGED AS THE 30 MINUTE RIDES.
SO OF COURSE WOULD INCUR BIGGER PRICES.
UM, WHOOPS, SORRY, FINGERS GOT AWAY FROM ME.
ERIC TAKES FIVE 30 MINUTE RIDES THAT WOULD BE INCLUDED IN THAT 30 MINUTE, OR EXCUSE ME, THAT 30 DAY PRICE OF $25.
AND THEN PAIGE, WHO WOULD TAKE 75, 30 MINUTE RIDES IN A YEAR, WOULD ONLY PAY THAT ONE 50, UH, SEVEN $75 IF SHE WERE A STUDENT.
BUT THOSE 75 MINUTE, 75, 30 MINUTE RIDES IN A YEAR, AS LONG AS SHE'S CHECKING IN AND CHECKING OUT, ENDS UP JUST COSTING THAT ONE 50.
NOW WHAT I HAVEN'T TOLD YOU ABOUT, AND YOU CAN SEE VERY CLEARLY ON THE SIDE, ARE LIME'S, BIKE SHARE PRICES.
THEY ARE WAY OVER WHAT PAGE WOULD PAY EVEN WITH THE PRICE PROPOSED VERSUS $150, IT WOULD BE $477 A, A HUGE EXTREME DIFFERENCE.
SO THE TIMELINE, JUST WANNA TALK ABOUT, WE'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT, UM, WITH THE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT TEAM, MET WITH SEVERAL OF, UM, THE, THE COMMITTEES HAD AN OFFICIAL PUBLIC HEARING WITH YOU ALL HERE LAST WEEK.
UM, AND NOW WE ARE HERE TO GET YOU TO CONSIDER THIS ITEM.
AND WE ARE ASKING FOR AN AUGUST 1ST IMPLEMENTATION DATE.
I DO WANNA TALK ABOUT THE NOTIFICATION OF AN ENGAGEMENT THAT WE HAVE BEEN DOING.
WHAT THE COOL THING IS, IS THAT YOU CAN SEE WE'VE DONE A LOT OF DIGITAL, UH, COMMUNICATIONS.
WE GOT 10,000 PLUS APPROXIMATE ENGAGEMENTS, ALERTS, PUSH NOTIFICATIONS, SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS.
[00:40:01]
UM, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE'VE TALKED TO A LOT OF PEOPLE THIS WAY.WE'VE ALSO DONE IN-PERSON OPPORTUNITIES.
WE'VE DONE ROUGHLY 1200 APPROXIMATE ENGAGES WITH IN INDIVIDUALS AT STOP OUTREACHES, TABLING EVENTS, TELLING EVERYBODY ABOUT IT SO THAT THEY KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING AND AND WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING TO DO.
AND IF IT WERE TO BE APPROVED WHEN IT WOULD GO INTO EFFECT.
YOU CAN SEE WE'VE ALSO HAD FOUR PUBLIC MEETINGS HERE AND ENGAGED APPROXIMATELY 43 PEOPLE WITH THOSE.
SO WE'RE EXCITED TO BRING TO YOU TODAY, UM, AND ASK YOU TO APPROVE THIS RE RESOLUTION.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? SO I KNEW, I KNEW YOU WERE WAIT,
I, I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AGAIN, UH, YOU KNOW, I I THINK WE GENERALLY, AS, AS AN OFFICE THAT REPRESENTS A VERY LARGE STUDENT POPULATION, UNDERSTAND THE DIRECTION.
UH, I MEAN THE, THE SUSTAINABILITY OF THE SYSTEM KIND OF DEPENDS ON IT, BUT WE'RE STILL HEARING CONCERNS FROM, FROM, FROM STUDENTS.
SO I, I THINK WHAT MY HOPE IS IS IF CAP METRO CAN MONITOR RIDERSHIP ONCE THIS IS IMPLEMENTED, UH, ESPECIALLY AMONG STUDENTS, UM, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING, I THINK STUDENTS MAKE UP SOMETHING LIKE 90% OF, OF THE USAGE OF, OF THE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM.
UM, AND THEN ALSO, YOU KNOW, I THINK ONE THING THAT WE ARE HEARING A LOT FROM STUDENTS THAT WE REALLY WANT TO PUSH IS, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO EXPANSION, KIND OF, YOU KNOW, NORTH OF THE UNIVERSITY.
UH, SO, UM, BUT YEAH, I, I THINK OVERALL JUST SUPPORTIVE OF THE, UH, OF THE ITEM BOARD MEMBERS.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION EITHER.
UM, I WAS GOING TO ASK THE BEGINNING OR THE END OF AUGUST SPECIFICALLY AROUND STUDENT SCHEDULES, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE THAT'S ALREADY, UH, BEEN CONSIDERED AND JUST I WOULD, UM, ASK TO MAKE SURE THAT COMMUNICATIONS THAT ARE OUTGOING TO HELP MAKE SURE THAT THE GENERAL PUBLIC IS AWARE OF THIS CHANGE.
UM, THAT, THAT AUGUST 1ST DEADLINE IS KIND OF PUSHED OUT THERE.
SO WE KNOW THAT WHEN STUDENTS ARE MOVING, UM, IN, INTO THE, THE SCHOOL SYSTEMS THAT THEY ARE ABLE TO UTILIZE THIS AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET SIGNED UP.
UM, I CERTAINLY APPRECIATE THE EXPANSION INTO OTHER FORMS OF EDUCATION AND NOT SIMPLY JUST LIKE THE LARGEST UNIVERSITIES THAT WE HAVE HERE IN TOWN.
UM, SO I GUESS THAT'S JUST APPRECIATION FOR TAKING ALL THAT INTO CONSIDERATION AND INCLUDING SO MUCH INFORMATION IN THE SLIDES.
'CAUSE A LOT OF MY QUESTIONS WERE ANSWERED ALONG THE WAY.
AND SO ABSOLUTELY WE WILL, WE WILL TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION AND I'LL HAVE SOME CONVERSATIONS.
SO I TRULY APPRECIATE YOUR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS AS WELL.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR, ALL RIGHT, IF I MAY, UH, AS Y'ALL PREPARE TO VOTE ON THIS RECOMMENDATION, I JUST WANTED TO TAKE A BRIEF MOMENT AND CHECK IN ON WHERE WE'RE AT.
WE FULLY RECOGNIZE THAT FARES, WHETHER THEY ARE ON OUR CORE TRANSIT SYSTEM OR TRANSIT SUPPORTIVE AMENITY, LIKE BIKE SHARE, ARE ONE OF THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS AND CHALLENGING DECISIONS THAT WE ASK OUR COMMUNITY TO WEIGH ON.
AND THAT WE ASK THIS BOARD TO, UM, AND ENACT CHANGES TO.
UM, AND OUR TEAM RECOGNIZES THAT THIS IS A BIG CHANGE.
UM, BUT WE DO BELIEVE WHOLEHEARTEDLY THAT THIS IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO.
AND THE WAY FOR US TO ENSURE FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF THE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM IS A COMPLIMENT TO OUR OVERALL SYSTEM.
AND THAT THE, THE PROGRAM HAS BEEN UPGRADED SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE LAST YEAR.
AND AS WE DO THAT, THAT THE PRICES NEED TO SCALE.
I DO WANNA CALL OUT, 'CAUSE SOMETIMES WHEN WE SAY FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY, PEOPLE GET THE WRONG THOUGHT IN THEIR BRAINS.
WE ARE NOT LOOKING TO HAVE THIS BE A REVENUE GENERATOR FROM CAP ME FOR CAP METRO.
UM, BUT WE TALK ABOUT FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY IN TERMS OF US BEING ABLE TO JUST SUPPORT THE ONGOING OPERATION AND SUP, UM, NECESSARY MAINTENANCE AND SUPPORTS BECAUSE WE REALLY DO WANT TO GROW THE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM AS WE WORK WITH OUR PARTNERS AT THE CITY OF AUSTIN WHO HELP, UM, ALSO SUPPLEMENT THE OPERATING AND CAPITAL COST OF THE SYSTEM.
WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE'S A NEED TO GROW THE SYSTEM AND WE THINK IMPROVING THE FAIR STRUCTURE IS AN IMPORTANT NEXT STEP.
SO, UM, I APPRECIATE BRANDY AND HER TEAM FOR, FOR, UM, TAKING SUCH A THOUGHTFUL APPROACH TO THIS THING.
UM, AND TO YOUR POINT, UM, BOARD MEMBER KADRI, WE ARE VERY COMMITTED TO CONTINUING TO MONITOR THIS AND UNDERSTAND, UM, HOW THESE CHANGES ARE IMPACTING OUR, OUR SERVICES, UM, AND ULTIMATELY ENSURE THE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM'S CONTINUED SUCCESS.
SO THANK YOU GUYS ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR, YOUR TIME AND ENGAGEMENT ON THIS ISSUE.
BOARD MEMBER VIN THANK YOU, UH, VERY MUCH TO OUR, OUR CEO FOR, UH, UH, REALLY APPRECIATE HER COMMENTS.
AND JUST A QUESTION 'CAUSE UH, IF, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, WE RECEIVED A FEDERAL GRANT FOR THE PURCHASE OF THE EQUIPMENT AND THE, AND THE INSTALLATION OF THE, OF THE STATIONS.
UH, SO THE REVENUES WOULD THEN GO TO THE MAINTENANCE AND UPKEEP OR I, AND I, LET ME REPHRASE THAT AND ASK THAT OF THE QUESTION.
WILL THE REVENUE GO TO THE MAINTENANCE AND UPKEEP OF THE, OF THE SYSTEM? THAT IS CORRECT, YES.
AND, UM, IS, IS AT THIS POINT RIGHT NOW, I I DO WE KNOW WHAT THE, IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MUCH OF THE REVENUE IS USED FOR? IN
[00:45:01]
OTHER WORDS, IS IT A 100% SELF-FUNDING, AGAIN, ASSUMING THE, THE, THE CURRENCIES IN ASSUMING A STABLE AMOUNT OR DO, UH, OTHER CAPITAL METRO, UH, REVENUES GO TO SUPPORT THE THE BIKE SHARE SYSTEM? OKAY, SO THE BIKE SHARE PROGRAM OVERALL HAS FOR A VERY LONG TIME REQUIRED SUBSIDY OF ITS OPERATING COST TO STAY FUNCTIONING.UM, CAP METRO AND THE CITY OF AUSTIN SHARE IN THAT OPERATING KIND OF DEFICIT, UM, REVENUE BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZE THAT HAVING A FULLY FUNCTIONING AND, AND WELL SUPPORTED BIKE CHEER PROGRAM IS A PUBLIC GOOD.
THAT IS AN IMPORTANT MUNICIPAL ACT FOR US TO DO FOR OUR TRANSPORTATION NETWORK.
UM, SO RAISING THE FARES WILL HELP US KIND OF REBALANCE, UM, AND LOWER THE AMOUNT OF, OF OTHER PUBLIC FUNDS THAT ARE NECESSARY TO SUPPORT THE OPERATION.
UM, BUT, UM, THE, THE FARES IN AND OF THEMSELVES WILL NOT COVER THE FULL COST OF OPERATING THE SYSTEM.
AND THAT'S EVEN AT THE CURRENT WITH THE RAISED FARES, IT, IT, IT IT'S STILL A SYSTEM THAT THAT IS CORRECT.
EVEN WITH THE INCREASED FARES, WE WILL, WE WILL NEED TO CONTINUE TO SUBSIDIZE THE SYSTEM WITH ADDITIONAL, UM, LOCAL FUNDS.
AND AGAIN, I MEAN, EVERY TIME THAT SOMEONE TAKES A BICYCLE INSTEAD OF DRIVING A VEHICLE, THERE'S SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC BENEFIT GAIN FROM THAT.
SO IT'S WELL WORTH, UH, SUBSIDIZING SYSTEM TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S OUT THERE AND TO MAKE SURE THAT, THAT THE MOBILITY, UH, IS AVAILABLE.
BUT I JUST WANTED TO UNDERSTAND THE, KIND OF THE DYNAMICS OF THE PROGRAM.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? WELL, I, I, MY ONLY THOUGHT WAS I AM SO HAPPY, UH, THAT BOARD MEMBER ELLIS IS TAKING 75, 30 MINUTE RIDES
AND THIS, THIS REALLY, I THINK THAT MIGHT BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT IN ACTUALITY, BUT I APPRECIATE MY NAME SHOWING UP ON THE, ON THE LIST.
SO THE CITY OF AUSTIN REALLY IS SUBSIDIZING THIS PROGRAM,
ALRIGHT, WELL, UH, THE CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE ACTION ITEM NUMBER TWO.
UM, BOARD MEMBER ELLIS MAKES THE MOTION ACTION NUMBER ONE, IS THAT CORRECT? UM, LET'S SEE.
ACT LET ME, LET ME REREAD THAT.
I WAS, I CHECKED IT OFF EARLY, SO.
SO, UH, THIS IS FOR ACTION ITEM ONE, WHICH IS APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OR HER DESIGNEE TO ADOPT THE CAP METRO BIKE SHARE FARES AND FEES FOR USERS OF THE BIKE SHARE SYSTEM.
SO THAT IS ACTION ITEM NUMBER ONE.
UH, I'LL TAKE THAT AS A SECOND.
SO IT'S BEEN MOVED AND PROPERLY SECONDED THAT WE APPROVE ACTION ITEM NUMBER ONE.
IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE.
ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE LET IT BE KNOWN BY SAYING AYE.
AND I SEE ALL THREE OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE OFFITE, UH, SAYING AYE AS WELL.
THE CHAIR WILL MAKE IT UNANIMOUS.
UH, THANK YOU MS. MULLER FOR, FOR, UH, YOUR PRESENTATION.
OKAY, SO, UH, WE WILL MOVE TO ACTION
[VIII.2. Approval of a resolution approving the August 2025 Service Change Title VI Equity Analysis and authorizing the President & CEO, or her designee, to implement the August 2025 Service Changes.]
ITEM NUMBER TWO.I'LL READ IT INTO THE RECORD, APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE A, THE AUGUST, 2025 SERVICE CHANGES OR, OR SERVICE CHANGE, TITLE SIX EQUITY ANALYSIS AND AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OR HER DESIGNEE TO IMPLEMENT THE AUGUST 20, 25TH SERVICE CHANGES.
AND JORDAN MCGEE WILL MAKE THAT PRESENTATION FOR US.
GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR PAVILION, MEMBERS OF THE CAP METRO BOARD AND PRESIDENT AND CEO DOTTIE WATKINS.
I AM JORDAN MCGEE, A SENIOR PLANNER WITH CAP METRO'S PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
AND I AM HERE TODAY TO PRESENT THE AUGUST, 2025 SERVICE CHANGES.
AND STARTING WITH A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF OUR SERVICE CHANGE PROCESSES, OUR SERVICE CHANGES PROVIDE CAP METRO AN OPPORTUNITY TO ADJUST OUR RESOURCES TO MEET THE NEEDS OF CUSTOMERS AND EFFICIENTLY USE OUR RESOURCES.
THIS PROCESS IS GOVERNED BY OUR BOARD APPROVED SERVICE STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES, WHICH HELPS US IDENTIFY NEEDS, ISSUES, DEVELOPED PROPOSALS, AND ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDERS THROUGHOUT.
THESE SERVICE CHANGES TYPICALLY OCCUR THREE TIMES A YEAR IN JANUARY, JUNE AND AUGUST THAT COINCIDE WITH LOCAL SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY CALENDARS.
AND ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS, IN BETWEEN SERVICE CHANGES, WE MONITOR SERVICE, RESPOND, UH, DAILY TO CUSTOMER CARE REPORTS AND ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDERS TO GUIDE FUTURE SERVICE CHANGES.
AND THE PROPOSED CHANGES FOR AUGUST, 2025 ARE FOCUSED ON NEAR TERM IMPROVEMENTS TO MATCH RESOURCES WITH DEMAND AND RESPOND TO COMMUNITY FEEDBACK.
THESE SERVICE CHANGES FEATURE TWO MAJOR SERVICE CHANGES, INCLUDING THE EXTENSION OF ROUTE 4 83, NIGHT OWL RIVERSIDE TO THE AIRPORT TO PROVIDE LATE NIGHT CONNECTIONS TO THE AIRPORT AND TO THE RIVERSIDE AREA, AS WELL AS THE COMBINATION OF TWO UT SHUTTLE ROUTES ROUTE SIX 70 CROSSING PLACE IN 6 71,
[00:50:01]
UH, TO ALLOW FOR MORE EFFICIENT SERVICE AND HIGHER FREQUENCY DURING SELECT PERIODS WHILE MAINTAINING FULL CONNECTIVITY AND REMOVING A ONE-WAY LOOP THAT CURRENTLY CAUSES, UH, DELAYS IN TRAFFIC PROBLEMS IN A STUDENT'S HEAD BACK TO THE CLASS FROM THE SUMMER BREAK.WE'RE PROPOSING THE TYPICAL TRANSITION, UH, TO SCHOOL SERVICE LEVELS ON UT SHUTTLE ROUTES AND, UH, SELECT SCHOOL TRIPS ON BUS ROUTES AND TO INCREASE ACCESS DURING, UH, UT ORIENTATION AND OTHER PREREQUISITE ACTIVITIES.
WE'RE ALSO PROPOSING TO PROVIDE A UT SHUTTLE SERVICE DURING THE WEEK, UM, BETWEEN SUMMER AND FALL SEMESTERS AT EVERY 35 MINUTES FROM 8:00 AM TO 6:00 PM AND THIS IS THE SAME LEVEL PROVIDED DURING OTHER TRANSITIONARY PERIODS BETWEEN THE BREAK AND WOULD HELP FILL THAT GAP, UM, FOR STUDENT STAFF AND FACULTY TRAVELING THROUGH THE AREA.
AND NO OTHER, UM, CHANGES ARE PROPOSED FOR THE UT SHUTTLE, UM, SERVICE CALENDAR AND IF APPROVED CHANGES WOULD BE IMPLEMENTED STARTING ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 17TH.
AND CAP METRO IS PROPOSING THE EXTENSION OF ROUTE 4 83 NIGHT OWL RIVERSIDE TO IMPROVE LATE NIGHT CONNECTIONS TO THE AIRPORT AND TO THE RIVERSIDE AREA, UM, BOTH OF WHICH SHOW HIGH PROPENSITY FOR LATE NIGHT RIDERSHIP.
OUR NIGHT OWL SERVICES OFFER A SAFE AND INEXPENSIVE WAY, UM, TO TRAVEL LATE AT NIGHT ON MONDAYS THROUGH SATURDAYS YEAR ROUND FROM MIDNIGHT TO 3:00 AM AND TO ARRIVE AT THIS PROPOSAL, WE WERE REVIEW LATE NIGHT RIDERSHIP FROM 11:00 PM TO MIDNIGHT AS AN INDICATOR OF POTENTIAL NIGHT OWL USAGE TO EXPLORE, UM, POTENTIAL WAYS THAT WE COULD ADDRESS GAPS AND RESPOND TO CUSTOMER NEED.
THIS MAP DISPLAYS AVERAGE WEEKDAY RIDERSHIP DURING THIS HOURS AND DEMONSTRATED HIGH USAGE AND NEED ALONG THE RIVERSIDE CORRIDOR CORRIDOR, PARTICULARLY WHERE ROUTE 20 OPERATES, THAT'S MENA ROAD AND RIVERSIDE AND WHERE ROUTE 4 83 CLOSELY MIRRORS.
AND THIS ANALYSIS ALSO DEMONSTRATED, UM, THE AIRPORT AS A HIGH AREA, UM, FOR POTENTIAL PROPENSITY FOR THE NIGHT OWL SYSTEM.
AND CURRENTLY THERE ARE NO TRANSIT OPTIONS BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND 5:00 AM.
HOWEVER, THERE ARE MORE THAN A DOZEN FLIGHTS THAT ARRIVE DURING THIS HOUR.
AND COMMUNITY FEEDBACK HAS DEMONSTRATED STRONG INTEREST AND ADDITIONAL AIRPORT CONNECTIVITY.
AND THIS EXTENSION PROVIDES A NEAR TERM OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THAT GAP FOR LATE NIGHT TRAVELERS EMPLOYEES, UM, AND CUSTOMERS ON THIS SLIDE ARE SOME, UH, COMMUNITY COMMENTS THAT WE RECENTLY RECEIVED.
AND I'LL READ JUST A FEW OF THESE.
ONE OF THOSE IS THERE'S MANY AIRPORT FLIGHTS THAT ARRIVE AFTER 11:00 PM NOT INCLUDING FLIGHT DELAYS.
IT'LL BE NICE IF A MIDNIGHT BUS WAS AVAILABLE FROM THE AIRPORT.
ANOTHER COMMENT THAT WE RECEIVED WAS WE NEED REGULAR SERVICE TO THE AIRPORT AT ALL TIMES.
I'VE HAD TO UBER A HOME FROM THE AIRPORT JUST BECAUSE I LANDED AFTER MIDNIGHT.
AND THE PROPOSED ALIGNMENT SHOWN, UM, ON THE SCREEN ON THE RIGHT MAINTAINS CONNECTIVITY.
SO ITS EXISTING RIDERSHIP HOTSPOTS, AND THEN CONTINUES EAST ALONG RIVERSIDE TO CONNECT TO THE AIRPORT.
SO IN LIEU OF OPERATING, UM, IN A ONE WAY LOOP SHOWN ON THE LEFT, WHICH GOES DOWN BURTON ULT WHARF, UM, AND WICKERSHAM, AND THEN UP BACK ALONG, UM, RIVERSIDE, IT'LL OPERATE BIDIRECTIONALLY DOWN, UM, BURTON ULT WHARF AND PLEASANT VALLEY TO CONNECT WITH THE KEY PLEASANT VALLEY AND RIVERSIDE, UH, INTERSECTION IN KEY AREA FOR TRANSIT RIDERSHIP.
SO, UM, ROUTE 4 83 NIGHT OWL RIVERSIDE WHEN CONTINUE OPERATING WITH THE FREQUENCY AND SPAN THAT IT DOES TODAY, PROVIDING LATE NIGHT CONNECTIONS FROM DOWNTOWN ALONG RIVERSIDE.
UM, ON MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHTS, UH, MIDNIGHT TO 3:00 AM AND IF APPROVED THE PROPOSAL, UM, WOULD EXTEND THE ROUTE, UH, TO THE AIRPORT WHILE MAINTAINING FULL CONNECTIVITY AND SERVING LOCAL NEIGHBORHOODS ALONG THE WAY.
AND KEMP METRO STAFF ADDITIONALLY REVIEWED THE UT SHUTTLE SYSTEM TO IDENTIFY POTENTIAL NEAR TERM IMPROVEMENTS FOR CUSTOMERS.
THE UT SHUTTLE NETWORK IS A UNIQUE PART OF OUR SYSTEM AND THAT IT'S A COST SHARE BETWEEN UT AND CAP METRO AND IS DESIGNED, UM, TO CONNECT, UH, MAJOR STUDENT RESIDENTIAL AREAS TO CAMPUS.
SO DUE TO THE NATURE OF THIS SERVICE, UM, THE GOAL IS TO MATCH UT SERVICE WITH UT STUDENT, STAFF AND FACULTY, UM, AND EFFECTIVELY SERVE THOSE, UM, STUDENT STAFF AND FACULTY USING AVAILABLE RESOURCE.
UM, SO WE COORDINATE PROPOSALS VERY CLOSELY WITH THE UNIVERSITY AND THE UT SHUTTLE BUS COMMITTEE.
AND FOR THIS SERVICE CHANGE, WE IDENTIFIED
[00:55:01]
A NEAR TERM IMPROVEMENT TO COMBINE ROUTE SIX 70 CROSSING PLACE AND 6 71, UM, NORTH RIVERSIDE WHILE MAINTAINING FULL CONNECTIVITY, SERVING ALL EXISTING STOPS AND IMPROVING FREQUENCY TO EVERY 10 MINUTES.UM, DURING MOST OF THE DAY, THE BLUE LINES ON THE MAP ARE THE TWO EXISTING ROUTES, AND THE RED DASH LINE IS THE PROPOSED, UM, COMBINED ROUTE.
SO IT'LL CONTINUE OPERATING FROM CAMPUS NEAR SAN JACINTO INTO LOS DODGES, TRAVELING DIRECTLY ON 35, AND THEN CONNECTING TO MAJOR STUDENT RESIDENTIAL AREAS ON ELMONT, WICKERSHAM AND CROSSING PLACE.
AND THE COMBINED ROUTE ALLOWS FOR CONSISTENT BIDIRECTIONAL SERVICE.
UM, AND CURRENTLY ROUTE 6 71 USERS HAVE TO SIT THROUGH A POTENTIALLY LONG, UM, TIME POINT BEFORE THE DROP OFF, UM, AND PICK UP.
SO THE TRAVEL TIME FOR ROUTE 6 71 CUSTOMERS MAY ACTUALLY BE REDUCED DUE TO THE REMOVAL OF THE ONE, UH, WAY LOOP AND THE EXTENT OF THE TRAVEL TIME DIFFERENCE FOR SIX 70 CUSTOMERS IS AN ESTIMATED THREE MINUTES.
AND THE PROPOSED, UH, COMBINATION ALSO BUILDS UPON LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE PRIOR SUCCESSFUL COMBINATION OF SIX 40, UH, 40 ACRES AND 6 41 EAST RIVERSIDE, WHERE WE CAN SEE THAT THOSE EFFICIENCIES HELP WITH SERVICE DELIVERY, UM, RELIABILITY AND FREQUENCY.
SO TODAY, ROUTE SIX 70 CROSSING PLACE TRAVELS DIRECTLY ALONG RIVERSIDE, UM, WITHOUT STOPPING, UH, TO CONNECT TO THE THREE STOP PAIRS THERE ALONG CROSSING PLACE.
AND 6 71 SIMILARLY TRAVELS DIRECTLY ALONG RIVERSIDE TO SERVE THE FOUR ONE-WAY STOPS ALONG ELMONT AND WICKERSHAM.
THE COMBINATION SHOWN ON THE RIGHT MAINTAINS SERVICE TO ALL EXISTING STOPS BIDIRECTIONALLY BY TURNING UP 10 AND FORD ELMONT DOWN WICKERSHAM AND UP CROSSING PLACE.
AND THE EXTENT OF THIS DIFFERENCE IS A MINIMAL TOTAL TRAVEL TIME ADJUSTMENT OF THREE MINUTES.
AND THE CONTINUED TRENDS SHOW HIGH MIGRATION OF UT STUDENTS AWAY FROM THE RIVERSIDE AREA WITH A 74% DECREASE OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
AND THIS TREND IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE DUE TO THE CLOSURE OR TURNOVER OF, UH, STUDENT HOUSING IN THE AREA AND THE GROWING CONCENTRATION OF STUDENTS IN THE DIRECT PERIPHERY OF CAMPUS, ESPECIALLY AS WEST CAMPUS GROWS.
SO COLLECTIVELY WE CAN SEE HOW, UM, RESOURCES MATCH STUDENT HOUSING TRENDS AND RIDERSHIP.
SO OVERALL, THE THREE UT SHUTTLE ROUTES WITHIN THE RIVERSIDE AREA, THAT'S 6 76 71, AND 6 72 COMPROMISED 40% OF THE UT SHUTTLE SERVICE HOURS, BUT ONLY 1% OF THE ESTIMATED STUDENT POPULATION AND 16% OF THE UT SHUTTLE'S RIDERSHIP REPRESENTING AN OPPORTUNITY TO ADJUST RESOURCES BASED ON DEMAND.
AND CAT METRO STAFF ALSO REVIEWED, UM, FEEDBACK FROM THE UT COMMUNITY WHEN, UH, PUTTING TOGETHER THIS PROPOSAL FEEDBACK REFLECTED THE IMPORTANCE, UM, FOR STUDENTS OF FREQUENCY OVER TRAVEL TIME AND PREFERENCE, UM, FOR MORE STOP COVERAGE ALONG THE UT SHUTTLE ROUTES.
WE ALSO HEARD FROM THE UT COMMUNITY AN ISSUE WITH THE CURRENT ROUTE 6 6 71 ROUTING THAT DELAYS STUDENTS BEFORE DROP OFF.
UM, AND AFTER PICKUP AND CAP METRO ALSO PRESENTED THE RECOMMENDED ADJUSTMENTS TO THE UT SHUTTLE, UM, BUS COMMITTEE AND THE UNIVERSITY, WHICH FORMALLY AND UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.
THE UT SHUTTLE BUS COMMITTEE SERVES AS A FORMAL CHANNEL, UM, FOR COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION WITH CAP METRO, UM, AND PROVIDES ACTION, UM, ON OUR SERVICE CHANGE ITEMS. THIS COMMITTEE MEETING HAD REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE TENANT ADVISORY BOARD COMMITTEE, THE GRADUATE STUDENT ASSEMBLY, UM, AMONG OTHERS AND AHEAD I'LL DISCUSS SOME OF THE SPECIFIC ENGAGEMENT, UM, STRATEGIES AND METHODS FOR THE OVERALL SERVICE CHANGE.
AND THESE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE CLASSIFIED AS A MAJOR SERVICE CHANGE AS TWO OPERATING ROUTES ARE COMBINED INTO ONE.
AND THE EXTENSION OF ROUTE 4 83 UM, AMOUNTS TO, UH, AN INCREASE OF ANNUAL REVENUE MILES BY 25% COMPARED TO ITS CURRENT REVENUE MILES.
AND SINCE THESE ARE MAJOR SERVICE CHANGE, UM, CAP METRO CONDUCTED A TITLE SIX SERVICE ANALYSIS DETER TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE PLANNED, UH, CHANGES WOULD HAVE A DISPARATE IMPACT ON THE BASE OF RACE, COLOR, OR NATIONAL ORIGIN, OR WHETHER LOW INCOME POPULATIONS WILL BEAR A DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN, UH, OF THE CHANGES.
THE EXTENSION OF ROUTE 4 83 AMOUNTS TO AN APPROXIMATE INCREASE OF 21,000, UH, ANNUAL REVENUE MILES AND NO DISPARATE IMPACT OR DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN WAS IDENTIFIED.
[01:00:02]
AND THIS CHANGE WILL EXPAND SERVICE FOR LATE NIGHT CUSTOMERS IN THE RIVERSIDE AREA, INCLUDING MINORITY AND LOW INCOME CUSTOMERS.AND FOR ROUTE SIX 70 AND 6 71, THAT WAS AN APPROXIMATELY 84,000 DECREASE IN ANNUAL REVENUE.
MILES AS TWO OPERATING ROUTES WERE COMBINED INTO ONE WHICH DEMONSTRATED A POTENTIAL DISPARATE IMPACT OR POTENTIAL DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN.
AND HOWEVER, THERE'S A MINIMAL IMPACT ON CURRENT CUSTOMERS AS SOME CUSTOMERS CAN EXPECT.
AN ADDITIONAL THREE MINUTES IN TRAVEL TIME AND FULL CONNECTIVITY WILL BE MAINTAINED AND ALL EXISTING STOPS WILL STILL HAVE SERVICE, UM, WITH IMPROVED FREQUENCY.
AND AS STUDENTS HEAD, UM, BACK FROM THE SUMMER, UM, BREAK AND INTO THE CLASSROOM, WE PROPOSE A TYPICAL TRANSITION IN NORMAL SERVICE LEVELS ON UT SHUTTLE ROUTES AND SELECT TRIPS ON LOCAL ROUTES FOR ROUTE 4, 2 17, 3 15 AND 3 33 THAT HELPS STUDENTS GET TO VARIOUS ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE SCHOOLS AND HIGH SCHOOLS.
A NOTABLE CHANGE, UM, FOR AUGUST WILL BE THAT SCHOOL TRIPS WILL NOT RETURN ON ROUTE 3 37 BECAUSE RAPID 8 37 STOPS AT LBJ HIGH SCHOOL.
AND ADDITIONALLY, WE ARE PROPOSING TO PROVIDE UT SHUTTLE, UM, SERVICE DURING THE WEEK OF TRANSITION BETWEEN THE SUMMER AND FALL BREAK, UM, AT EVERY 35 MINUTES FROM 8:00 AM TO 6:00 PM TO INCREASE ACCESS DURING UT'S ORIENTATION AND OTHER PREREQUISITE ACTIVITIES TO HELP FILL A GAP DURING THAT WEEK.
AND LASTLY, TO IMPROVE ON-TIME PERFORMANCE VIA RELIABILITY AND BETTER SERVE CUSTOMERS, WE ARE PROPOSING MINOR SCHEDULE ADJUSTMENTS THAT WE ARE, UH, CURRENTLY EVALUATING SO FAR.
WE, UM, ARE PROPOSING AN ADJUSTMENT OF ROUTE SIX FORTY'S LAYOVER, UM, TO THE EAST CAMPUS GRADUATE APARTMENTS TO RESPOND TO COMMUNITY FEEDBACK AND RIDERSHIP TRENDS.
WE'RE ALSO EXPLORING ADDITIONAL EVENING TRIPS ON ROUTE 2 71 IN COORDINATION WITH TRAVIS COUNTY, AS WELL AS MINOR ROUTE ADJUSTMENTS FOR ROUTE FOUR 90 AND 4 93 NEAR THE LAKESIDE APARTMENT AREA TO RESPOND TO CONSTRUCTION, UM, AND OPERATING NEEDS IN OUR SERVICE CHANGE.
PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT PLAN AIMS TO KEEP CUSTOMERS, UM, INFORMED ON THE POTENTIAL CHANGES AND GATHER INPUT TO DEC, UM, TO HELP US WITH THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT KICKED OFF ON MARCH 18TH AND COINCIDED WITH THE ENGAGEMENT ON THE PROPOSED BIKE SHARE.
UM, FAIR UPDATES JUST HEARD EARLIER AND THE BIKE SHARE FAIR UPDATES ARE A SEPARATE ITEM, BUT HELPED US GET THE WORD OUT AS BOTH OF THESE WILL COINCIDE, UM, IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST, UM, AND HELPED US GET THE WORD OUT WITH THE UT COMMUNITIES.
AND OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS, CAT MITCHELL STAFF DIRECTLY SPOKE WITH OVER 175 CUSTOMERS AND 25 OPERATORS DURING AT STOP AND ONBOARD OUTREACH.
THE COMMUNITY ALSO HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE COMMENT ON OUR WEBPAGE, JOIN A VIRTUAL PUBLIC MEETING, UM, SPEAK AT OUR PUBLIC HEARING LAST WEEK AND ENGAGE THROUGH OTHER CHANNELS LISTED ON THE SLIDE.
UM, NOTIFICATIONS WERE ALSO SENT OUT TO ALL TECH SUBSCRIBERS AND EMAIL UPDATES WERE PROVIDED TO OVER 10,000 CUSTOMERS.
FEEDBACK FROM THE CUSTOMERS AND OPERATORS HAS BEEN, UM, VERY POSITIVE AND I'LL READ.
UM, ONE OF THE COMMENTS THAT WE RECEIVED THROUGH THE WEBPAGE SAYS, VERY HAPPY ABOUT 4 83 TO THE AIRPORT.
IT'S ALWAYS BOTHERED ME THAT THERE WAS NO BUS FROM THE AIRPORT AFTER 1130 WHEN THERE'S PLENTY OF LIGHTS COMING IN AFTER THAT GREAT JOB.
ADDRESSING THAT GAP AND COLLABORATING WITH OUR REGIONAL PARTNERS IN MEMBER CITIES IS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF OUR SERVICE CHANGE PROCESS AND FOR OVERALL ACHIEVING THE AGENCY'S VISION.
TOGETHER, WE ADDRESS CONCERNS AND ENSURE THAT THE SERVICE REFLECTS REGIONAL CONDITIONS, UM, AND FEEDBACK.
THE CAP METRO GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS TEAM AND REGIONAL PLANNING TEAM, UH, COLLABORATE CLOSELY WITH PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT STAFF, UH, TO FACILITATE ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND ONGOING COMMUNICATIONS WITH ALL CITIES WITHIN THE CAP METRO SERVICE AREA.
AND WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH, UM, EACH CITY WITHIN, UM, OUR MEMBER CITY AREA TO UNDERSTAND THEIR FEEDBACK, EVALUATE EXISTING AND FUTURE SERVICES, UM, AND MODEL SCENARIOS AND ADDRESS ISSUES AS PART OF OUR SERVICE CHANGES AND TRANSIT PLAN PROCESSES.
AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME TODAY.
I'D LOVE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE.
ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? UH, BOARD MEMBER VELA, UM,
[01:05:01]
THE, THE, THE NIGHT OWL, UH, WHAT'S THE TIME THAT THE NIGHT OWLS RUN FROM WHAT TIME TO WHAT TIME? UH, MIDNIGHT TO 3:00 AM ON MONDAY TO SATURDAY NIGHTS, AND THAT'S YEAR ROUND.AND I KNOW THAT THE, THE 43 IS ONE OF A HANDFUL OF, OF NIGHT OWLS THAT WE RUN THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY, HUH? CORRECT.
WELL, NO, JUST, UH, REALLY APPRECIATE THE EXTENSION TO THE AIRPORT.
UH, AND, AND I THINK IT'LL BE, I MEAN, IT'S ALREADY BASED ON THE PUBLIC COMMENTS, VERY WELL RECEIVED, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE AIRPORT IS ESSENTIALLY A 24 7 OPERATION, AS IS MUCH OF THE CITY.
UH, SO JUST TO REALLY APPRECIATE THE STAFF CONSIDERING THAT AND, AND ADDING THAT EXTENSION.
ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS? CHAIR? CHAIR? OKAY.
I JUST WANNA MAKE A QUICK COMMENT.
I, I APPRECIATE, UH, CAP METRO'S PIVOT HERE, EXPANDING THE LATE NIGHT HOURS TO THE AIRPORT BASED ON ALL THE FEEDBACK.
I THINK IT'S OBVIOUSLY A NECESSARY, IT'S AN IMPORTANT CHANGE FOR SAFETY, FOR CONVENIENCE, AND I TOTALLY SUPPORT IT.
I WOULD BE CURIOUS AND I WOULD LOVE TO SEE WHAT THOSE RIDERSHIP NUMBERS ARE.
AFTER THIS HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED.
AND IT'D BE GREAT TO HEAR BACK FROM CAP METRO ABOUT, UH, HOW THIS CHANGE HAS BEEN, HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED AND TO SEE SOME OF THE RIDERSHIP NUMBERS.
SO THANK YOU FOR MAKING THE CHANGE.
AND WE CAN CERTAINLY FOLLOW UP WITH THAT.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? COMMENTS, UH, HEARING NONE, THE CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE ACTION ITEM NUMBER TWO.
UH, I'LL GET YOU FOR THE SECOND, UH, BOARD MEMBER.
UH, IT'S, IT'S BEEN, UH, MOVED AND PROPERLY SECONDED THAT WE APPROVE.
UH, IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE, UH, ALL IN SUPPORT OF THIS ACTION ITEM TWO.
PLEASE LET IT BE KNOWN BY SAYING AYE.
THE CHAIR WILL MAKE IT UNANIMOUS.
[VIII.3. Approval of a resolution authorizing the President & CEO, or her designee, to finalize and execute a month-to-month lease with 1303 Properties Ltd. DBA Travis Properties for approximately 7,052 square feet of rentable square feet of office space on the first floor of the Travis Building located at 209 West 9th Street, Austin, TX 78701, extending the month to month lease through September 30, 2026 for a total amount not to exceed $925,575.]
CALL UP ACTION ITEM NUMBER THREE AND LET ME READ IT INTO THE RECORD.APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OR HER DESIGNEE TO FINALIZE AND EXECUTE A MONTH TO MONTH LEASE WITH 1303 PROPERTIES LIMITED, UH, DOING BUSINESS AS TRAVIS PROPERTIES FOR APPROXIMATELY 7,052 SQUARE FEET OF RENTABLE.
UH, LET'S SEE, OF RENTABLE, UH, OFFICE SPACE ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE TRAVIS BUILDING LOCATED AT 2 0 9, UH, WEST NINTH STREET, AUSTIN, TEXAS 7 8 7 0 1.
EXTENDING THE MONTH TO MONTH LEASE THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2026 FOR A TOTAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 925,000, UH, $575.
AND, UM, MR. CARTWRIGHT, WOULD YOU BRIEF US ON THAT ITEM, PLEASE? YES, SIR.
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR ILIAN.
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT, CEO WATKINS.
I'M KEN CARTWRIGHT, VICE PRESIDENT OF CONSTRUCTION FACILITIES, AND I WILL NOTE THAT THIS, UH, IS THE CURRENT LOCATION FOR OUR DEMAND RESPONSE ELIGIBILITY CENTER, UH, LOCATED THERE AT THE CORN, UH, CORNER OF NINTH AND LA VACO.
WE'VE BEEN THERE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, UM, AND, UH, WE WILL ARE PROPOSING TO CONTINUE THAT FOR JUST A SHORT TIME LONGER.
AS WE'VE DISCUSSED WITH THE BOARD PREVIOUSLY, WE ARE WORKING TO, UH, REDUCE OUR RELIANCE ON LEASED FACILITIES AND MOVE INTO OWNED FACILITIES.
SO WE WILL BE RELOCATING, UH, THIS OPERATION INTO AN OWNED BUILDING JUST NEXT DOOR TO US HERE AT OUR, UH, 6 24 NORTH PLEASANT VALLEY ANNEX, UH, CENTER THAT WILL NOT BE READY UNTIL ABOUT THIS SEPTEMBER, 2020, UH, SIX TIMEFRAME.
SO WE'RE PROPOSING TO EXTEND THE CURRENT MONTH TO MONTH LEASE, UH, UNTIL THAT SEPTEMBER TIMEFRAME.
AND I WILL NOTE THIS BOARD ACTION IS EXTENSION OF THE EXISTING LEASE.
SO EXTENDING THE TERM TO THE SEPTEMBER, 2026 TIMEFRAME AND INCREASING THE ORIGINAL BOARD AUTHORIZED AMOUNT TO, UH, TO THAT $925,000 AMOUNT.
THE NET INCREASE, HOWEVER, IS ONLY $290,895.
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE THAT CLEAR THAT IT'S JUST A NET INCREASE.
UH, AND WITH THAT, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE REGARDING THIS.
BOARD MEMBERS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE ACTION.
ITEM NUMBER THREE, NO MOVE BOARD MEMBER VELA, UH, BOARD MEMBER STRATTON.
[01:10:01]
UH, I WILL, I WILL LOOK FOR YOU FIRST NEXT TIME.UH, AS IF ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE.
UH, ALL IN FAVOR OF ACTION ITEM NUMBER THREE, PLEASE LET IT BE KNOWN BY SAYING AYE.
THE CHAIR WILL MAKE IT UNANIMOUS.
[VIII.4. Approval of a resolution authorizing the President & CEO, or her designee, to finalize and execute a contract with Modern Rail Systems to purchase, install, test and commission defect detectors on the Central Subdivision installing two new locations for a base term of one (1) year in an amount not to exceed $900,507.]
LET'S CALL UP ACTION ITEM NUMBER FOUR.I THINK, UH, I THINK, UH, MURIEL FRIDAY WILL MAKE THE PRESENTATION, LET ME READ IT INTO THE RECORD, APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OR HER DESIGNEE TO FINALIZE AND EXECUTE A CONTRACT WITH MODERN RAIL SYSTEMS TO PURCHASE, INSTALL, TEST, AND COMMISSION, UH, DEFECT DETECTORS ON THE CENTRAL SUBDIVISION.
INSTALLING TWO NEW LOCATIONS FOR A BASE TERM OF ONE YEAR IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 900,000.
GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR, TRILLIAN.
UH, BOARD MEMBERS PRESIDENT, CEO WATKINS.
MY NAME IS MURIEL FRIDAY AND I'M THE VICE PRESIDENT OF RAIL OPERATIONS FOR CAP METRO.
UH, THIS ACTUALLY WENT TO THE OPS AND SAFETY COMMITTEE, UH, TO ON THE CONSENT, BUT IT WAS REMOVED DUE TO THE CORRECTION OF THE TERMS, UH, WHERE WE'RE ONLY GONNA DO THE TWO LOCATIONS FOR THE BASE, UH, PRICE TERM OF ONE YEAR FOR THE CONTRACT.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, WE BE HAPPY TO ANSWER THEM AT THIS TIME.
BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY.
HEARING NONE, UH, CHAIR WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION BOARD MEMBER STRATTON, DON'T MOVE.
UH, AND IS THERE A SECOND? OKAY.
IT'S BEEN MOVED AND PROPERLY SECONDED THAT WE APPROVE.
IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? HEARING NONE, UH, PLEASE LET IT BE KNOWN.
UH, LET YOUR SUPPORT BE KNOWN BY SAYING AYE.
THE CHAIR WILL MAKE IT UNANIMOUS.
[IX. Report]
UH, WE'VE GOT ONE REMAINING ITEM ON OUR AGENDA TODAY, AND THAT IS THE PRESIDENT AND CEO'S MONTHLY UPDATE, CEO WATKINS.UM, WE'VE BEEN A BIT BUSY HERE THIS MONTH, UM, AND MUCH OF THIS REPORT WILL FOCUS ON SOMETHING THAT HAS TAKEN UP A GOOD AMOUNT OF OUR TIME.
UM, IT WAS OUR HONOR THIS MONTH TO HOST THE AMERICAN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATION OR ACTA, UM, FOR THEIR INTERNATIONAL BUS RODEO AND MOBILITY CONFERENCE RIGHT HERE IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.
UM, SO FIRST UP, WE HAD THE HONOR OF HOSTING THE INTERNATIONAL BUS RODEO.
UM, THE BUS RODEO FEATURES, UM, OPPORTUNITIES FOR DRIVERS AND MECHANIC TEAMS TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR SKILLS IN VARIOUS DRIVING ACTIVITIES, SAFETY AND REPAIR SCENARIOS.
OUR TEAM HAS BEEN WORKING FOR MONTHS, WHICH IS A BIT OF AN UNDERSTATEMENT.
IT TOOK A BIT OVER A YEAR OF PREPARATION, UM, TO BE READY TO HOST THE NATION AND CANADA.
THAT'S WHY WE CALL IT THE INTERNATIONAL.
WE HAVE THREE TEAMS FROM CANADA.
THEY NO, INDEED, THEY ARE INTERNATIONAL.
UM, YOU'RE, YOU'RE TRYING TO KNOCK ME OFF THE GAME CHAIR PAVILION.
WE HAD A VERY SUCCESSFUL IF COLD BUS RODEO, UM, AND WE'RE, WE'RE VERY THRILLED, UM, TO HAVE OUR, UM, OWN OPERATOR, UM, SHOWN THERE.
PETE RIVERA AND MAINTENANCE TEAM, UM, OVERALL COME OUT 10TH OF THE 81 SYSTEMS, UM, IN THE COUNTRY.
WE WERE QUITE PROUD, UM, OF THEIR PARTICIPATION.
UM, WE ALSO HOSTED A RECORD BREAKING MOBILITY CONFERENCE.
UM, SO AFTER A LONG WEEKEND, UM, OUT AT THE CHILI BURGER CENTER HOSTING THE RODEO, UM, WE WERE SHARED TO SEE THAT THIS CONFERENCE HAD A RECORD ATTENDANCE OF OVER 2200 TRANSIT PROFESSIONALS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.
UM, IT WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO CATCH UP WITH FRIENDS, OLD AND NEW.
UM, I WAS THRILLED TO GET THE OPPORTUNITY, YOU SEE THE PICTURE ON THE BOTTOM LEFT THERE, UM, TO CATCH UP WITH, UM, AFTER CEO PAUL ELLAS PICTURED ON, UM, TO THE RIGHT OF ME ON MY LEFT, TECHNICALLY IN THE PICTURE.
UM, BUT ALSO WITH FRED GILLUM, A FORMER CEO, UM, OF CAP METRO, UM, WHO WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN HELPING ME UNDERSTAND TRANSIT AS A CAREER FOR MYSELF.
SO IT WAS A, IT WAS GREAT TO BE ABLE TO CATCH UP WITH FOLKS, UM, AND TO BE ABLE, UM, TO HAVE A NUMBER OF PEOPLE, UM, HEAR FROM OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, AND THEN LASTLY, I JUST WANNA GIVE A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO THE CAT METRO STAFF.
UM, OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENT, ESPECIALLY AS THEY, UM, REALLY LEANED IN AS WELL AS OUR SAFETY AND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TEAMS,
[01:15:01]
AND GIVING BEHIND THE SCENES CONFERENCE TOURS.ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAPPENS AT EVERY AP MOBILITY CONFERENCES, THE HOST PROPERTY WILL OFFER AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO COME SEE THEIR FACILITIES AND SEE WHAT'S GOING ON.
UM, WE HAD SIX OR SEVEN DIFFERENT TOURS, MOST OF WHICH, UM, WERE OFFERED TWICE, TWO DAYS IN A ROW, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF WHICH WAS OVERSUBSCRIBED.
WE HAD WAITING LISTS OF OUR PEERS WHO WANTED TO SEE WHAT WE WERE DOING.
AND WE HAD AMAZING FEEDBACK FROM PEOPLE WHO WERE JUST VERY EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO GET OUT INTO OUR GREAT CITY AND SEE ALL OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE WORKING ON.
UM, SO A BIG SHOUT OUT TO OUR, OUR STAFF WHO HELPED TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
UM, IN TERMS OF AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS, UM, EARLIER THIS MONTH, UM, WE WERE VERY PROUD TO RECEIVE, ALONG WITH OUR PROJECT CONNECT PARTNERS AT A TP IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, THE, UM, COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT NETWORKS, UM, CAN AWARD FOR TRANSFORMATIONAL IMPACT.
UM, IT, I WAS THRILLED TO BE, UM, JOINED BY CHURCH PAVILION AT THAT EVENT, UM, TO HELP ACCEPT THAT ON OR ON BEHALF OF CAP METRO.
UM, AND THEN I WAS ALSO PROUD TO RECEIVE ON BEHALF OF CAT METRO, THE APTA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING EFFORTS AS HOST OF THE CONFERENCE.
UM, I DO BELIEVE WE'VE SET THE BAR HIGH FOR OUR, OUR TRANSIT COLLEAGUES.
I THINK EVERYONE HAD A FANTASTIC TIME WHILE THEY WERE HERE IN TOWN.
UM, AND MANY THANK YOUS TO THOSE OF YOU WHO WERE ABLE TO JOIN US, UM, FOR LARGE BITS AND SHORT BITS OF THE PROGRAM.
UM, IT WAS, IT WAS GREAT TO HAVE CHAIR PAVILION JOIN US IN THE OPENING.
UM, MAYOR PRO TEM FUENTES AND JUDGE BROWN ALSO JOINED, HELPED US TO WELCOME FOLKS HERE.
UM, MAYOR PRO TEM, UH, FUENTES ALSO JOINED ON A PANEL LATER IN THE, IN THE, UH, CONFERENCE.
SO IT WAS REALLY GREAT, UM, TO HAVE SUCH AMAZING PARTICIPATION IN THAT EVENT.
IN TERMS OF WHAT'S BEING SAID ABOUT US CAT METRO IN THE NEWS, UM, OBVIOUSLY THE FACT THAT WE HAD A RECORD BREAKING CONFERENCE HERE WAS BIG NEWS IN INDUSTRY PRESS.
UM, ALSO, UM, A LOT OF INTEREST IN, UM, THINGS LIKE OUR BIKE SHEAR FAIRS AND THE CONTINUED INTEREST IN OUR OVERALL, UM, FAIR SYSTEM.
UM, WHICH WE LAUNCHED, AS YOU'LL RECALL IN MARCH.
UM, I ALSO WANNA COUNT, CALL OUT THAT, UM, A TX TODAY, UM, CALLED OUT AND USES COVER PHOTOS, UM, OF THEIR FAVORITE APRIL FOOLS JOKES FROM AUSTIN BUSINESSES.
AND CALLED OUT THE FANTASTIC SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN THAT WE RAN WHERE AT KAZ METRO, THE CAT HAD TAKEN OVER FOR A DAY, UM, IN A GREAT BLOG POST FEATURING THE MANY, UM, CAT SUPPORTERS OF THE FOLKS THAT MAKE PUBLIC TRANSIT HAPPEN HERE IN AUSTIN.
SO, UM, TOOK THE OPPORTUNITY ALONG THE WAY TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF FUN WITH OUR FURRY FRIENDS.
UM, I WILL SHARE THAT MY 10-YEAR-OLD WANTS TO KNOW WHEN PUP METRO IS GOING TO HAPPEN AS SHE IS A DOG LOVER.
SO, UM, I, I ASSURED HER WE WOULD FIGURE OUT THE APPROPRIATE TIME TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
UM, NEXT UP WE HAVE, UM, SEEN AGAIN AN OVERALL, UM, HIGHEST EVER, UM, CALL TOTAL FOR CUSTOMER CARE, UM, FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH, UM, WITH OVER 17,000 TOTAL CONTACTS, UM, IN THE MONTH OF MARCH.
UM, NOT TERRIBLY SURPRISING GIVEN THAT MARCH WITH SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST IS ONE OF OUR HIGHEST RIDERSHIP MONTHS OF THE YEAR, AS WELL AS WAS THE MONTH IN WHICH WE LAUNCHED A NEW FAIR COLLECTION SYSTEM.
SO, UM, OUR CUSTOMER CARE TEAMS HAVE STAYED QUITE BUSY MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE'S QUESTIONS ARE ANSWERED.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF WHERE I'VE BEEN, IT'S NOT GONNA BE SURPRISING TO LEARN THAT I'VE BEEN AT APTA, UM, THIS MONTH.
UM, I WAS HONORED TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ON A COUPLE OF PANELS AT THE CONFERENCE.
UM, I PARTICIPATED AT THE TOP LEFT THERE IN THE DREAM BIG CEO PANEL ALONGSIDE, UM, SOME FRIENDS AND FANTASTIC, UM, TRANSIT LEADERS, DEB JOHNSON FROM, UM, DENVER, RTA, AS WELL AS NET FORD, WHO'S FROM JACKSONVILLE.
UM, IT WAS HOSTED BY INEZ EVANS AND THE, UH, TEAM AT WSP INEZ ACTUALLY, UM, SPENT A GOOD BIT OF TIME HERE AT CAP METRO ABOUT A DECADE AGO ON OUR PARATRANSIT TEAM.
AND WAS FUN TALKING ABOUT INNOVATION AND ALL OF THE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT AS YOU TRY AND DO NEW AND DIFFERENT AND HARD THINGS.
UM, I ALSO HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF MODERATING THE TEXAS ROAD SHOW HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE LONE STAR STATE, UM, WHERE I WAS JOINED BY, UM, COLLEAGUES FROM FORT WORTH, HOUSTON, AND LUBBOCK, TEXAS.
AS WE TALKED ABOUT TRANSIT THROUGHOUT THE GREAT STATE OF TEXAS.
I THINK IT'S EASY FOR FOLKS WHEN THEY, YOU THINK ABOUT TRANSIT TO ONLY THINK ABOUT THE LARGEST CITIES.
UM, BUT THERE IS ACTUALLY, UM, TRANSIT IN ALMOST EVERY COUNTY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.
UM, AND A TON OF SMALL AND UM, MID-SIZE, UM, URBAN SYSTEMS THROUGHOUT THE GREAT STATE.
SO IT WAS FUN TO BE ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT THAT.
AND THEN WE DID GET A CHANCE BRIEFLY THAT WEEK TO STEP AWAY FROM APTA, UM, AS THE GREATER AUSTIN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE HOSTED THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE SUMMIT.
UM, MANY THANKS TO THE CHAIR FOR, UM, JOINING US AS WE HAD A PANEL ABOUT TRANSPORTATION AND TRANSIT AND WHERE WE'RE WE'RE GOING, UM, AS A REGION FOR THAT.
UM, LASTLY, BEFORE WE CONCLUDE FOR THE DAY, I WANNA TAKE A QUICK OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE TO Y'ALL A COUPLE OF NEW LEADERS THAT WE HAVE HERE AT CAP METRO.
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BOTH OF WHOM ACTUALLY STARTED THEIR TIME WITH US TODAY.SO WE MUST BE NICE TO THEM 'CAUSE IT'S THEIR VERY FIRST DAY.
UM, FIRST I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE CATHERINE YOUNGBLOOD, WHO JOINS US AS A SERENE SENIOR DIRECTOR OF LONG RANGE PLANNING.
UM, SHE LAST WORKED AT FTA HEADQUARTERS AS A COMMUNITY PLANNER, UM, BUT HAS, UM, HAD A, A, A GREAT CAREER HOLDING VARIOUS ROLES, UM, IN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING AND, AND PLANNING WITH FOLKS LIKE THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, UM, THE DC DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND THE VIRGINIA RAILROAD EXPRESS.
WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO HAVE YOU.
HER FOCUS HERE WILL BE ON OUR LONG RANGE PLANNING, UM, AS WELL AS RAIL PLANNING AND REGIONAL NEEDS.
UM, AND THEN ALSO I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE TO YOU JEFF HILL.
UM, JEFF JOINS US TODAY AS OUR VICE PRESIDENT OF FACILITIES MAINTENANCE.
UM, JEFF IS A VETERAN EXECUTIVE IN PROPERTY AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE OPERATIONS WITH MORE THAN 20 YEARS OF LEADERSHIP IN BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE IN ENTITIES AS WELL AS INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE.
HE COMES TO US MOST RECENTLY FROM, UM, HARRIS COUNTY, BUT HIS CAREER INCLUDES LEADERSHIP ROLES AT AUSTIN ENERGY, AFLAC, AND THE US STATE DEPARTMENT AND ABROAD IN ALL MANNER OF PLACES.
HE'S LIVED A FANTASTIC LIFE AND WE'RE WHAT WE ARE VERY THRILLED, UM, TO HAVE HIM JOIN US HERE AT CAP METRO TO HELP US TAKE CARE OF OUR FACILITIES.
UM, AND WITH THOSE TWO INTRODUCTIONS THAT COMPLETES MY PRESIDENT'S REPORT FOR THE MONTH.
BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? UH, LEMME JUST TAKE A MOMENT OF PERSONAL PRIVILEGE TO SAY, UH, I ATTENDED APTA AND, UH, NOT ONLY WAS THERE A GREAT BUZZ ABOUT, UH, TRANSIT AS A WHOLE, UH, THERE WAS A REAL BUZZ ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN AUSTIN AND, UH, AND, AND, UH, I SAW OUR CEO UH, HAVE TO TALK TO, UH, UH, I WANNA SAY HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE THAT WERE INTERESTED IN HOW WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE CITY, HOW WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE COUNTY, HOW WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, WITH, UH, THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP.
IT WAS REALLY NOT ONLY EXCITING TO SEE THE DISCUSSION, UH, BUT TO HAVE OUR, OUR CONFERENCE UNDERSTAND, UH, THAT OUR CEO AS A PERSON WHO WORKED HER WAY UP THROUGH THE ORGANIZATION IS RESPECTED BY THE, THE WORKFORCE AT THE ORGANIZATION AS WELL AS THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE.
UH, IT, IT IS, IT IS REALLY NOT ONLY AN HONOR, BUT IT IS VERY COOL, UH, TO, TO HAVE FOLKS WHO WORK FOR, UH, WHO WORK FOR THE TEAM THAT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND ARE DOING AN EXCELLENT JOB AND BRING HONOR TO THE INDUSTRY.
SO, JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DO, BOARD MEMBERS.
ARE THERE ANY FURTHER ITEMS TO DISCUSS TODAY? ANY FURTHER ITEMS? IF THERE ARE NO FURTHER ITEMS, UH, THEN I WANT TO THANK NOT ONLY THE BOARD MEMBERS, BUT THE STAFF, UH, THAT MAKE ALL OF THIS POSSIBLE.
SINCE THERE'S NO FURTHER BUSINESS, UH, THEN WE WILL STAND ADJOURNED AT 1 27.