OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

El Paso Mass Transit Board Meeting Summary - December 2, 2025

City Council — Tuesday, December 2, 2025
BodyEl Paso, Texas
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, December 2, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 50:54

Transcript — Verbatim
1:27

Good morning.

1:29

This is a meeting of the El Paso Mass Transit Department Board for Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025.

1:35

It is 1130 AM.

1:37

Present and presiding is Board Chair Johnson, also present in chambers are board members Chavez Acevedo, Maldonado Rocha, Boyart Trejo, Fierro, Limon, and Canales.

1:52

We do not have any public comment.

1:55

Okay.

1:55

So all matters listed under the consent agenda will be considered by Mass Transit Department Board to be routine and will be enacted by one motion unless separate discussion is requested by members of the public by mem board members.

2:08

Prior to the vote, members of the audience may ask questions regarding items on the consent agenda.

2:14

When the vote has been taken, if an item has not been called out for separate discussion, the item has been approved.

2:20

The Mass Transit Department Board may however reconsider any item at any time during the meeting.

2:29

Okay, is there a motion to approve the consent?

2:31

Second.

2:34

Call for the vote.

2:40

And we do have a motion made by board member Limon, seconded by board member Fierro.

2:46

And this is to approve the consent agenda.

3:14

Okay.

3:16

Is that number two?

3:18

Item number two is item number number three, sorry.

3:21

Number three, okay.

3:22

It's the presentation and discussion of Sun Metro.

3:36

Okay.

3:37

Good afternoon.

3:42

Director for public transportation.

3:44

Uh for the city of El Paso.

3:46

Can we pull up the IT?

3:51

So today I'm here with Ulysses Hernandez from Nelson Igar.

3:55

They are the ones that did help us get put this all together and and do a lot of the um analysis and come up with the pan plan based upon the the direction and guidance that that we gave them to make sure that we're moving forward for the to do better in transit for um for the city of Opaso.

4:12

So this this is from Nelson Icar.

4:15

Okay.

4:17

So today I would like to update you on the fixed route um optim optimization endeavor, sunmeturizing.

4:24

A year and a month ago from today, the Mass Transit Board approved Sunmetro Rising.

4:30

The first ever complete redesign of the network.

4:35

So today what I want to talk about is projected goals, timelines next and our next steps, recommendations, and the way ahead.

4:43

And then finally cover the benefits and impacts that it has.

5:01

This is what we call optimization in transit.

5:04

And here's the key.

5:06

This plan had to be done without increasing any financial responsibilities or any other resources.

5:12

So everything we got now holds for this.

5:16

That that is the key for this optimization.

5:20

And in four in order for this optimation to come to fruition, four project goals had to be met.

5:28

Analyze, engage, redesign, and develop.

5:32

So we analyze evolving ridership to understand ridership and how we're gonna adjust that in the future.

5:37

We engaged with riders, stakeholders, and the Sun Metro staff in person to ensure that that information can be incorporated, which I think was key.

5:46

And after those two things were done, we had to do the actual redesign.

5:50

Thank you, Nelson Igar, and the development framework.

5:53

So that's what how we we moved ahead.

5:57

As you can see in this timeline, it's lengthy process that involves analyzing and identifying strengths and requirements, coupled with the best practices and community outreach to get this initial state of the system report, which was briefed to the Mass Transit Board on 2 August of 2022.

6:17

This was the finishing of the initial analysis process.

6:21

Sorry.

6:22

This was the finishing of the initial analysis process to get us moving into the next phase.

6:30

That is the state of the system report.

6:38

It was on 7 November 2023 that the Mass Transit Board approved Sunmetro Rising Plan.

6:43

This was a major hurdle, a major milestone that we had to get through to keep moving forward.

6:48

And the next thing we had to do was look at Title VI.

6:51

And Title VI is an FTA requirement that ensures that everything we're doing is fair.

6:56

And so you say, hey, what's fair?

6:58

Um it's so it does not disproportionately affect members of a group.

7:01

The group that we're talking about here is race, color, national origin, or minorities.

7:06

That's what we're covering.

7:06

So when we did this plan, we had to make sure we took in consideration everybody, their geographical location, and who they are as a whole, and make it fair so it's not disproportionate.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Transit█████████████████████████████████████████████74%
Procedural██████10%
Disability Rights██4%
Community Engagement██3%
Public Safety██3%
Equity in Transportation█2%
Public Engagement█2%
Public Utilities█2%
Summary of Proceedings

El Paso Mass Transit Board Meeting Summary - December 2, 2025

The El Paso Mass Transit Department Board convened on December 2, 2025, to review the implementation progress of the "Sun Metro Rising" network optimization plan, adopt routine consent items, and approve a sole-source contract for ticketing equipment. Board members engaged in a detailed discussion regarding the plan's impact on accessibility, specific community concerns about stop removals, and the digital divide.

Consent Calendar

  • Routine Approvals: The Board unanimously approved the consent agenda via a motion by Board Member Limon and second by Board Member Fierro. The agenda included standard administrative and routine items that required no separate discussion.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Public Comment Status: No public comments were recorded at the beginning of the meeting.
  • Board Member Concerns & Positions:
    • Representative [Name not specified in transcript, referred to as "Representative"] expressed concern regarding the distance between deactivated stops and newly assigned ones in District 1, specifically near a high school, questioning the feasibility of service for students and the ability to reactivate stops if necessary.
    • Representative Canalis expressed concern about unintended consequences for residents with mobility issues or the elderly who may need to walk 5 to 15 minutes to new stops, questioning whether the analysis definitively ensured accessibility for all.
    • Representative Canalis also raised concerns about infrastructure maintenance (e.g., rocks, trash, broken bottles) on pathways leading to new stops and the digital divide, worrying that elderly constituents would not understand digital interfaces without sufficient paper flyer distribution.
    • Representative Canalis questioned the safety risks for elderly constituents having to cross major highways (specifically referencing the Bridge of the Americas area) to reach reactivated stops.
    • Representative Canalis expressed a desire to salvage and repurpose existing bus benches rather than disposing of them, suggesting the city transfer usable benches to other parks.

Discussion Items

  • Sun Metro Rising Plan Update: Director Anthony (Sun Metro) and consultant Nelson Igar presented the "Sun Metro Rising" optimization plan.
    • Project Description: The plan simplifies the network by reducing routes from 52 to 39, reducing the number of buses by two, and cutting frequency wait times by 16 minutes. It aims to reduce indirect routes, extend service hours (20 of 39 routes gaining ~2 hours, 6 routes until 10:30-11:00 PM), and introduce a microtransit pilot program that integrates with the "Brio" system and existing corridors.
    • Performance Data: The Director cited that ridership is recovering at a rate 26% faster than the industry, reaching 6.9 million annually (up from ~9 million pre-COVID, but industry recovery is only at 50%). The plan projects that 95.3% of riders will see improved frequency, while 0.8% may face a 5-15 minute walk to a new stop.
    • Accessibility Commitments: The team stated a commitment to fixing curb cuts, noting a reduction from 27 problematic stops to 6 by the end of December, with a specific $500,000 annual budget for stop improvements. They asserted a commitment to reassess the network six months post-implementation to make adjustments.
    • Outreach Strategy: The Board discussed a comprehensive outreach plan running from September to June, involving face-to-face engagement with riders, physical posters, digital maps, and bilingual flyers. 350 online surveys and 240 paper surveys were initially collected.
    • Addressing Specific Concerns:
      • Stop Reactivation: The team confirmed that deactivate stops can be re-evaluated and potentially reactivated six months after implementation if concerns arise, though changes may impact the broader system's efficiency.
      • Safety & Highways: Director Claudia Garcia clarified that two stops deactivated at the Bridge of the Americas were previously suspended due to a specific MOU with TEXAS; these are queued for reinstallment pending agreement finalization, independent of the Sun Metro Rising plan. The team noted that while they install infrastructure, daily maintenance of pathways (e.g., clearing debris) falls under other city departments (e.g., Union Pacific, street sweepers), though they will coordinate to ensure pathways are clear for ADA compliance.
      • Benches: The team confirmed a process exists via Property Control to salvage and transfer usable bus benches to other city departments or parks, rather than immediate disposal.

Key Outcomes

  • Approval of Purchase Order: The Board unanimously approved Item 4 to issue a sole-source purchase order to Flowbird America Incorporated for Ticket Vending Machines (TVMs) and validators under Solicitation 2025-0133.
    • Contract Details: A three-year term for an estimated amount of $2,219,995.49.
    • Vote Tally: Unanimous approval (Motion by Limon, Seconded by Fiero).
  • Implementation Timeline: The Sun Metro Rising network changes are scheduled for full execution in June 2025 to avoid disrupting the school year.
  • Signage Deployment: Bilingual signage with QR codes linking to the interactive map will be installed at deactivated stops starting in January 2026.
  • Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 12:19 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning. This is a meeting of the El Paso Mass Transit Department Board for Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025. It is 1130 AM. Present and presiding is Board Chair Johnson, also present in chambers are board members Chavez Acevedo, Maldonado Rocha, Boyart Trejo, Fierro, Limon, and Canales. We do not have any public comment. Okay. So all matters listed under the consent agenda will be considered by Mass Transit Department Board to be routine and will be enacted by one motion unless separate discussion is requested by members of the public by mem board members. Prior to the vote, members of the audience may ask questions regarding items on the consent agenda. When the vote has been taken, if an item has not been called out for separate discussion, the item has been approved. The Mass Transit Department Board may however reconsider any item at any time during the meeting. Okay, is there a motion to approve the consent? Second. Call for the vote. And we do have a motion made by board member Limon, seconded by board member Fierro. And this is to approve the consent agenda. Okay. Is that number two? Item number two is item number number three, sorry. Number three, okay. It's the presentation and discussion of Sun Metro. Okay. Good afternoon. Director for public transportation. Uh for the city of El Paso. Can we pull up the IT? So today I'm here with Ulysses Hernandez from Nelson Igar. They are the ones that did help us get put this all together and and do a lot of the um analysis and come up with the pan plan based upon the the direction and guidance that that we gave them to make sure that we're moving forward for the to do better in transit for um for the city of Opaso. So this this is from Nelson Icar. Okay. So today I would like to update you on the fixed route um optim optimization endeavor, sunmeturizing. A year and a month ago from today, the Mass Transit Board approved Sunmetro Rising. The first ever complete redesign of the network. So today what I want to talk about is projected goals, timelines next and our next steps, recommendations, and the way ahead. And then finally cover the benefits and impacts that it has. This is what we call optimization in transit. And here's the key. This plan had to be done without increasing any financial responsibilities or any other resources. So everything we got now holds for this. That that is the key for this optimization. And in four in order for this optimation to come to fruition, four project goals had to be met. Analyze, engage, redesign, and develop. So we analyze evolving ridership to understand ridership and how we're gonna adjust that in the future. We engaged with riders, stakeholders, and the Sun Metro staff in person to ensure that that information can be incorporated, which I think was key. And after those two things were done, we had to do the actual redesign. Thank you, Nelson Igar, and the development framework. So that's what how we we moved ahead. As you can see in this timeline, it's lengthy process that involves analyzing and identifying strengths and requirements, coupled with the best practices and community outreach to get this initial state of the system report, which was briefed to the Mass Transit Board on 2 August of 2022. This was the finishing of the initial analysis process. Sorry. This was the finishing of the initial analysis process to get us moving into the next phase.

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