OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Transit Advisory Board Business Meeting - July 10, 2025

Commissions & Advisory Boards — Thursday, July 10, 2025
BodyLoudoun County, Virginia
SessionCommissions & Advisory Boards
DateThursday, July 10, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:07:45

Transcript — Verbatim
0:05

All right.

0:06

That said.

0:08

Can we call this meeting to order?

0:11

First of all, I just want to say thank you for all who made it out of this beautiful weather that we're experiencing again.

0:19

Can't get to paint my house for nothing, but sorry.

0:23

But happy that happy to see some face is that we haven't seen in a bit.

0:28

Everything good.

0:30

Everybody graduated already.

0:32

Um, I mean, no, but a second round to do, yeah.

0:37

Yeah, one down.

0:38

Okay, good, good, good.

0:41

Um that's a raise.

0:43

Do we have anybody who would be making any public comments?

0:47

I'm just reviewing today.

0:49

All right, good.

0:50

So we should be out of here by fast and ugly.

0:55

Let's call for an approval of the May 14, 2025 business meeting.

1:00

I I have one um change I'd like to.

1:03

Well, yeah, I was gonna get to that.

1:05

I was gonna get to that.

1:06

Oh, I thought that was the I'm sorry.

1:08

I was gonna get to that.

1:10

So does anybody have any changes, updates or comments they would like to make?

1:19

Yeah, yeah.

1:20

Um, I have a small small one.

1:23

Um page two or four.

1:26

Um actually has it in most Kevin.

1:30

Um says Kevin Potter comma Nova track.

1:36

Um, I just would suggest changing Kevin Potter, comma, director of Nova Track.

1:45

He's not there.

1:45

Oh, I want you to say you're got to okay, then forget that, but said um presented their concept to plan design construct rail.

1:55

So he what you did is he presented their concept.

2:02

So that that's just my recommendation just to say um presented their concept.

2:15

Well how is that different from um how is that different from what what they uh it's in the minutes now, just out of curiosity.

2:22

Gives them leadership of it.

2:24

Oh okay, as opposed to I read something in the paper and I'm interested in telling you about it.

2:30

Okay, okay, and um okay.

2:35

So where is that?

2:36

What do you want to change again?

2:38

Um director um or not director, Kevin Potter, MOVAC, and cross the rest of that line out and just say presented their concept.

2:56

Oh, so you basically the first line identifying that Kevin is related to it, yeah.

3:02

Yeah, okay, I understand.

3:04

Yeah, so the first line, Kevin Potter, yeah, Kevin Potter.

3:08

That what you got in the parentheses, then nothing along the rest of that line, and then where it says then the second line and concept to plan.

3:18

I'm suggesting to say presented the their concept presentation, and then the rest of that sentence to plan and blah blah blah blah.

3:30

Okay, let's go.

3:45

Any objections to that suggestion?

3:50

I do.

3:52

I do have an objection.

3:54

I don't see any reason for change, but that's just me.

3:58

Because I just I I see what he what's written here is exactly what was done.

4:05

It was a presentation and it was it was another interest finding presentation.

4:16

So that's what that's my that's my take on it.

4:21

I don't see any reason for it to be changed, but this is a an opportunity to vote.

4:30

So if there's a vote for change, I'll do in favor of the change, signify by saying I say me one.

4:38

I'm sorry, say that again.

4:39

What was the motion to accept the change or to leave it as is?

4:44

Okay.

4:45

Not in favor of accepting the change, say aye.

4:47

I one, two, three.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Transportation█████████████████████████████████████████████45%
Public Transportation████████████████████████24%
Procedural█████████████13%
Technology and Innovation██████████10%
Public Engagement████4%
Personnel Matters██2%
Education██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Transit Advisory Board Business Meeting - July 10, 2025

Note: The agenda listed this meeting for Wednesday, July 9, 2025, but the user-provided date is July 10, 2025. This summary uses the provided date.

Introductory paragraph: The Transit Advisory Board (TAB) held its regular business meeting on July 10, 2025, at the Transit & Commuter Services Office in Leesburg, Virginia. The board approved the minutes from the May 14 meeting, discussed the annual report planning, and received extensive staff updates on ridership trends and the launch of the microtransit pilot in Leesburg.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of May 14, 2025, Business Meeting Minutes: After a brief discussion and a proposed amendment to clarify that Kevin Potter (NOVA-TRAC) presented their concept, the board voted to approve the minutes as amended. The motion passed unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public were present to comment.

Discussion Items

  • Annual Report Planning: The board reviewed the 2024 Annual Report (Attachment 2) as a template. Vice-Chair Vlad Ovchynnikov volunteered to take the lead on drafting the 2025 report, with input from members to be collected offline. The report is scheduled for discussion at the September meeting and a vote in November.
  • Staff Updates – Transit Service and Ridership (Scott Gross and Steven Pairo):
    • Commuter Bus: Ridership dipped in May and June, but when adjusted for abnormal days (holidays, protests), daily ridership remains near the March peak of ~1,440 riders per day (about 1,400 in June). Two additional morning and afternoon trips were added in May, and all commuter routes were re-timed on June 30 to account for increased traffic due to return-to-office mandates.
    • Local Bus: Ridership is stable and healthy, though not at pre-COVID levels. Weekend service was expanded in April.
    • Paratransit: Ridership spiked significantly last fall and remains well above planned levels, creating budget pressures.
    • Microtransit Pilot (Leesburg): Launched on July 7, 2025, as a soft launch. Service operates three vehicles (two minivans, one electric wheelchair-accessible “Game Changer”) from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, free of charge. Ridership: 12 on Monday, 21 on Tuesday, and about 24 on Wednesday. Average trip times are 7–18 minutes, compared to 45–60 minutes on fixed routes. The app provider is Rideco. Staff are actively collecting data, identifying gaps (e.g., areas just outside the zone), and adjusting stops. The pilot is intended to inform potential replacement of fixed routes 55 and 56.
    • New Commuter Routes: Timetable testing is underway for new routes to Dale City, VA, and Frederick, MD, with buses running the proposed routes daily for five weeks to validate schedules.
    • Transit Center Discussion: Staff noted that a hub-and-spoke transit center is not currently efficient, but microtransit may reveal demand patterns that support such a system in the future.
  • Member Comments: Members discussed the potential for microtransit to serve students after school, the need to track no-shows and cancellations, and the possibility of political pushback from ride-hailing companies.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes Approved: The May 14, 2025, meeting minutes were approved as amended (unanimous).
  • Annual Report Lead: Vice-Chair Ovchynnikov will coordinate the 2025 annual report; members will submit input via email.
  • Microtransit Pilot: The pilot is underway and will be monitored closely; staff will report findings at future meetings.
  • Next Meeting: Tentatively scheduled for September 9, 2025, at 7:00 PM at the same location.
  • Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned by unanimous consent.

Meeting Transcript

All right. That said. Can we call this meeting to order? First of all, I just want to say thank you for all who made it out of this beautiful weather that we're experiencing again. Can't get to paint my house for nothing, but sorry. But happy that happy to see some face is that we haven't seen in a bit. Everything good. Everybody graduated already. Um, I mean, no, but a second round to do, yeah. Yeah, one down. Okay, good, good, good. Um that's a raise. Do we have anybody who would be making any public comments? I'm just reviewing today. All right, good. So we should be out of here by fast and ugly. Let's call for an approval of the May 14, 2025 business meeting. I I have one um change I'd like to. Well, yeah, I was gonna get to that. I was gonna get to that. Oh, I thought that was the I'm sorry. I was gonna get to that. So does anybody have any changes, updates or comments they would like to make? Yeah, yeah. Um, I have a small small one. Um page two or four. Um actually has it in most Kevin. Um says Kevin Potter comma Nova track. Um, I just would suggest changing Kevin Potter, comma, director of Nova Track. He's not there. Oh, I want you to say you're got to okay, then forget that, but said um presented their concept to plan design construct rail. So he what you did is he presented their concept. So that that's just my recommendation just to say um presented their concept. Well how is that different from um how is that different from what what they uh it's in the minutes now, just out of curiosity. Gives them leadership of it. Oh okay, as opposed to I read something in the paper and I'm interested in telling you about it. Okay, okay, and um okay. So where is that? What do you want to change again? Um director um or not director, Kevin Potter, MOVAC, and cross the rest of that line out and just say presented their concept. Oh, so you basically the first line identifying that Kevin is related to it, yeah. Yeah, okay, I understand. Yeah, so the first line, Kevin Potter, yeah, Kevin Potter. That what you got in the parentheses, then nothing along the rest of that line, and then where it says then the second line and concept to plan. I'm suggesting to say presented the their concept presentation, and then the rest of that sentence to plan and blah blah blah blah. Okay, let's go. Any objections to that suggestion? I do. I do have an objection. I don't see any reason for change, but that's just me.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com