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Public Transit: “Fixing a system in crisis” St. Mary Baptist Church May 10 th , 2011

Public Transit: “Fixing a system in crisis” St. Mary Baptist Church May 10 th , 2011. We face serious challenges…. The transit system could run out of funding either in September or October of 2011. Chronic budget crises, under-funding and poor public perception have plagued the system.

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Public Transit: “Fixing a system in crisis” St. Mary Baptist Church May 10 th , 2011

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  1. Public Transit: “Fixing a system in crisis” St. Mary Baptist Church May 10th, 2011

  2. We face serious challenges… • The transit system could run out of funding either in September or October of 2011. • Chronic budget crises, under-funding and poor public perception have plagued the system. • The 2010 vote to create a dedicated revenue source for transit failed, 53% to 47%.

  3. Who cares?

  4. Traffic Congestion Avg. delay per year U. S. Avg for Mid-size Cities 22 hours 37 hours Baton Rouge 33rd Baton Rouge rank for congestion among mid-size U.S. cities (2010)? # of mid-size cities studied? 33

  5. Projected Traffic Congestion FuturEBR projects traffic congestion will increase to over 70 hours per year in 20 years

  6. Projected Traffic Congestion FuturEBR prediction of congested routes in 20 years (Not a pretty picture.)

  7. Who cares? Mildred. • Receptionist at local hospital. Makes minimum wage and is a single mother. She and her daughter rely on public transit. Dr. Jeanne. • Jessica. Retired PhD in Clinical Psychology. Recently visually impaired. Very limited ability to drive. Student at a local university. Moving next to a bus route because her car is about to give out.

  8. Who cares? People who … • want less traffic congestion. • need reliable transportation to get to work, appointments, school, entertainment. • need their employees to have reliable transportation to work. • would like to reduce overall transportation costs: car insurance, gas, road repair, vehicle repair. • want economic development: $1 in transit investment = $35 in economic development.

  9. Tens of thousands of Baton Rouge residents have limited or no access to cars. People who are elderly, have disabilities, are low-income, students, young people. Hundreds of thousands want options for transportation.

  10. Public transit is a popular idea in B.R. Percent of residents who say there is a “good” or “great” need for improved public transportation 70% Percent of residents who “would use rapid transit if it were available” 55% But very few people use it… Percent of residents who “ever use” transit system in Baton Rouge 16%

  11. If the idea of transit is popular, why don’t more people use it? Because the current system is not working.

  12. Problem #1: Wait times are too long Average wait time at a transit stop? 75 minutes

  13. Problem #2: Overall travel times are too long. Average total travel time (including waits)? 2 hours, 20 minutes

  14. Problem #3: The route system is inefficient “Spoke” route structure built for cities of 40 years ago. Consider Essen to Bluebonnet 5-10 minutes by car Over 2 hours by bus

  15. #4: Poor service coverage Many highly developed areas are not covered by transit system: O’Neal Lane Coursey Blvd. Essen & Siegan Lane

  16. #5: Poor Signage and Stops • Shelters are in poor condition or do not exist. • Poor and uninformative signage at bus stops: no route information; no time information.

  17. How did it get this bad?

  18. You get what you pay for… • Baton Rouge vs. Peer cities: Transit funding per resident Per capita funding Peer Cities (2009) $134 • Charlotte • Knoxville • Little Rock • Raleigh • Memphis • Peer City Average • Baton Rouge (2009) • Baton Rouge (2011) Includes local taxes, fares and federal funding $84 $84 $70 $59 $86 $32 $27

  19. You get what you pay for… • High dependence on rider fares for funding Percent of • Peer Cities (2009)funding from fares Peer City Average Baton Rouge (2011) 14% 25%

  20. Other cities with dedicated revenue for transit … Akron, OH Alameda, CA Albuquerque, NM Ames, IA Ann Arbor, MI Antioch, CA Arlington, VA Asheville, NC Atlanta, GA Austin, TX Bakersfield, CA Batavia, OH Bay City, MI Bellingham, WA Benton Harbor, MI Billings, MT Birmingham, AL Bismarck, ND Bloomington, IN Bradenton, FL Bremerton, WA Brunswick, OH Buffalo, NY Burlington, WA Canton, OH Cedar Rapids, IA Chapel Hill, NC Charleston, SC Charleston, WV Charlotte, NC Charlottesville, VA Chicago, IL Cincinnati, OH Cleveland, OH Colorado Springs, CO Columbus, GA Columbus, OH Commerce, CA Concord, CA Corpus Christi, TX Corvallis, OR Culver City, CA Cumberland, MD Dallas, TX Davenport, IA Davis, CA Dayton, OH Denver, CO Detroit, MI Duluth, MN El Paso, TX Elk Grove, CA Everett, WA Fairfield, CA Flagstaff, AZ Flint, MI Fond du Lac, WI Fort Collins, CO Fort Myers, FL Fort Smith, AR Fort Wayne, IN Fort Worth, TX Fredericksburg, VA Gardena, CA Gary, IN Glendale, AZ Grand Forks, ND Grand Rapids, MI Grand River, OH

  21. MORE cities with dedicated revenue for transit … Granite City, IL Great Falls, MT Greensboro, NC Gretna, LA Hanford, CA Hesperia, CA Highland Falls, NY Holland, MI Houston, TX Huntington, WV Indianapolis, IN Iowa City, IA Jackson, MI Jacksonville, FL Jefferson City, MO Kalamazoo, MI Kansas City, MO Kent, OH La Mirada, CA LaCrosse, WI Lafayette, IN Lakeland, FL Lancaster, CA Lansing, MI Laredo, TX Largo, MD Las Cruces, NM Lawrence, KS Lewisville, TX Lexington, KY Livermore, CA Logan, UT Lompoc, CA Long Beach, CA Los Angeles, CA Medford, OR Miami, FL Minneapolis, MN Missoula, MT Moline, IL Montebello, CA Monterey, CA Murfreesboro, TN Napa, CA New Orleans, LA New York, NY Norwalk, CA Oakland, CA Oceanside, CA Olympia, WA Omaha, NE Orange, CA Oxnard, CA Peoria, IL Petaluma, CA Phoenix, AZ Pinole, CA Pittsburgh, PA Pompano Beach, FL Port Huron, MI Port Washington, WI Porterville, CA Portland, OR Providence, RI Redondo Beach, CA Richland, WA Riverside, CA Rockville, MD

  22. STILL MORE cities with dedicated revenue for transit … Sacramento, CA Saginaw, MI Salem, OR San Antonio, TX San Bernardino, CA San Carlos, CA San Diego, CA San Francisco, CA San Jose, CA San Juan, PR Santa Barbara, CA Santa Clarita, CA Santa Cruz, CA Santa Fe, NM Santa Maria, CA Santa Monica, CA Santa Rosa, CA Savannah, GA Scottsdale, AZ Seattle, WA Sioux City, IA South Bend, IN Spokane, WA Springfield, IL St. Cloud, MN St. Johns, MI St. Joseph, MO St. Paul, MN St. Petersburg, FL Stockton, CA Sugar Land, TX Tampa, FL Tempe, AZ Thousand Oaks, CA Thousand Palms, CA Toledo, OH Topeka, KS Tucson, AZ Union City, CA Urbana, IL Vallejo, CA Valparaiso, IN Vancouver, WA Ventura, CA Visalia, CA Washington, DC Waterloo, IA Wenatchee, WA West Covina, CA West Palm Beach, FL Wheeling, WV Winston-Salem, NC Woodland, CA Yakima, WA Youngstown, OH • No dedicated funding means losing millions in federal match funding and grants.

  23. So how do we fix it?

  24. 4 Reform Proposals

  25. Proposal A: Basic Reform • 1. Decrease wait times from 75 minutes to 30 minutes. • 2. Increase service from 19 to 31 routes. • 3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 42. • 4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system. • 5. Overhaul bus stops, with new shelters, covers & benches. • 6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones. • 7. New signage with route and time info. • 8. Dedicated revenue source for transit. A Preliminary Estimates Only Total Transit Budget: $25 million Required from dedicated revenue source: $15m Federal & Other Funds leveraged: $10m per year

  26. Proposal B: Ridership Expansion 1. Decrease wait times from 75 minutes to 20 minutes. 2. Increase service from 19 to 37 routes. 3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 57. 4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system. 5. Overhaul bus stops: shelters & benches. 6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones. 7. New signage with route and time info. 8. Dedicated revenue source for transit. 9. 3 New Express Lines: a) Downtown to LSU, b) Florida Blvd. & c) Plank Rd. (servicing Airport). B Preliminary Estimates Only Total Transit Budget: $29.9 million Required from dedicated revenue source: $18.3 million Federal & Other Funds leveraged: $11.6m per year

  27. Proposal C: Broad “rider-of-choice” appeal 1. Decrease wait times from 75 to 15 minutes. 2. Increase service from 19 to 39 routes. 3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 98. 4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system. 5. Overhaul bus stops (shelters/benches). 6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones. 7. New signage with route and time info. 8. Dedicated revenue source for transit. 9. Bus Rapid Transit on Florida. 10. Start-up for Street Car downtown to LSU. 11. SIX New Express Service Lines for Florida Blvd, Airline Hwy, Scenic Hwy (serving Southern Univ), Plank Rd. (serving Airport), Acadian Thruway (serving BRCC) and O’Neal Lane. 12. New Limited Stop Routes for Zachary/Baker, Denham Springs & Highland Rd. C Preliminary Estimate Only Total Transit Budget: $55.4 million Required from dedicated revenue source: $38.7million Fed & other funds leveraged: $16.7m

  28. Proposal C: Broad “rider-of-choice” appeal Double click image for video Bus Rapid Transit 1. Decrease wait times from 75 to 15 minutes. 2. Increase service from 19 to 39 routes. 3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 98. 4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system. 5. Overhaul bus stops (shelters/benches). 6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones. 7. New signage with route and time info. 8. Dedicated revenue source for transit. 9. Bus Rapid Transit on Florida. 10. Start-up for Street Car downtown to LSU. 11. SIX New Express Service Lines for Florida Blvd, Airline Hwy, Scenic Hwy (serving Southern Univ), Plank Rd. (serving Airport), Acadian Thruway (serving BRCC) and O’Neal Lane. 12. New Limited Stop Routes for Zachary/Baker, Denham Springs & Highland Rd. C Preliminary Estimate Only Total Transit Budget: $55.4 million Required from dedicated revenue source: $38.7million Fed & other funds leveraged: $16.7m

  29. Proposal D: No Reform • 1. No dedicated revenue source or • additional funding for transit. • 2. Current or declining level of service: • 75 minute wait times • 2hr 20min average trip time • Current state of stops, signage and amenities. • Decrease routes from 19 to 17. • No weekend service. • Fare increases. • Reduction in service area by 50%. • Reduce peak buses from 32 to 26. D Total Transit Budget: $12 m Additional revenue: $0 Additional Federal & other funds leveraged: $0m

  30. It’s our choice… PROPOSAL A Basic Reform . PROPOSAL B Ridership Expansion • PROPOSAL C • Broad “Rider-of-choice” Appeal • PROPOSAL D • No • Reform C D A B Total Budget: $25 million Dedicated revenue: $15 million Total Budget: $29.9 million Dedicated revenue: $18.3 million Total Budget: $55.4 million Dedicated revenue: $38.7million Total Budget: $12 m Dedicated revenue: $0.

  31. Transit Meeting: May 2nd

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