Sacramento Regional Transit Board Meeting - December 9, 2016
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Sacramento Regional Transit Board Meeting - December 9, 2016
The Sacramento Regional Transit Board met on December 9, 2016, in Elk Grove. The meeting covered a consent calendar, public comments, the General Manager's report focusing on Golden One Center preparations, a Connect Card update, and other business. Key outcomes included unanimous approval of consent items and resolutions related to fare payment modernization.
Consent Calendar
- Item 4 (Mobile Fare App Contract): Delegated authority to GM to award a contract. Public comment (Jeff Tardiya) raised concerns about app reliability and alert system.
- Item 6 (Light Rail Maintenance Agreement with Folsom): Delegated authority for agreement. Public comment (Mike Barnbaum) supported consistent late-night service and cited available lawsuit funds, asking for an amendment to ensure consistent hours. GM was directed to review consistency.
- Item 10 (Pocket Timetable Printing): Delegated authority for a five-year contract. Public comment (Jeff Tardiya) asked for bus stop numbers on schedules.
- Item 11 (Granite Park Shuttle Discontinuation): Approved discontinuation based on Title VI equity analysis. Public comment noted shuttle ran 12 hours every 15 minutes and that rugby tournaments were overlooked.
- Item 13 (Credit Agreement with U.S. Bank): Approved $29 million promissory note. Public comment asked about interest cost disclosure in budget.
- Motion passed unanimously (90 votes).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Arthur Ketterling: Requested earlier weekend/holiday service on Routes 56 and 21; asked if Measure B sales tax applied countywide.
- Robert Coplin: Criticized new fare boxes for malfunctioning; stated bus drivers dislike them; urged creating more destinations to boost ridership.
- Jeff Tardiya: Advocated for e-transit telephone line, requested town hall meetings continued, referenced Measure B articles, reported a light rail training vehicle with malfunctioning A/C and overshot ramp.
- Mike Barnbaum: Introduced Nate Knott of San Joaquin RTD; proposed terminating SJRTD commuter service at CRC to reduce vehicle miles, requiring a transfer agreement.
- Helen O'Connell (Dogfight): Asked about group rates for arena, security concerns at stops, Connect Card reliability, RT app and Wi-Fi issues.
- Ed Harris: Noted a missing bus shelter at North 12th & North C (public safety issue); questioned fare enforcement bias against veterans; cited a veteran ticketed en route to a Stand Down event.
Discussion Items
- General Manager's Report (Item 15): Henry Lee announced RT won an APTA award, signed $10/trip (wheelchair) and $5/trip (regular) contracts with Uber/Lyft/Yellow Cab for station link program. Golden One Center free ride day on Oct 1 drew over 5,000 inquiries at outreach events. Devra Surna detailed extended service, directional signage, security, and the GoSACRT microsite. Financial update: operating reserve $3.2M; August fare revenue 5% above budget (17% above prior year); ridership down 5.5% (attributed to fare increase and non-paying riders not riding); fare recovery ratio 22.2% vs. budget 20.9%.
- Connect Card Update (Item 16): Henry Lee reported August integration tests, code freeze lifted, issues being fixed. Two resolutions passed: (1) amending fare structure to allow electronic payment, (2) establishing a $5 fee for new/replacement cards. Public tester comments (Mike Barnbaum, Jeff Tardiya) noted minor issues and requested better instructions.
- Paratransit Inc. Board Summary (Item 17): No additional comments.
- Director Communications: Director Hume reported on San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority meeting: Union Pacific may allow additional stops (Elk Grove, 65th Street) without counting as increased service; also noted board matched up to $50,000 for outgoing executive director's long-term care.
Key Outcomes
- Consent calendar and all resolutions passed unanimously (90 votes).
- GM directed to review consistency of Folsom light rail service hours.
- Board approved resolutions enabling electronic fare payment and setting a $5 Connect Card replacement fee.
- Closed session held for GM performance evaluation; no report out.
- Chair thanked staff for Golden One Center preparations.
Meeting Transcript
I was wondering right. Okay. Okay. We haven't decided yet, but it looks like it's pretty outdated right now. Well that's the only thing. Well, 7th of 8. That's not going to be my own. The last day 7 September 30. Okay, so appreciate it. Okay. All right, I'd like to call this meeting of the Regional Transit Board to order. Thank you all for coming tonight, making your way to Elk Grove if you don't live here, and to those in Elk Grove, thank you for hosting us. Ms. Brooks, do you want to call the role? My place. Here. Chair Shineer. Here. With that, we have a quorum at 90 votes. Mr. Hume is our host tonight. Would you like to lead us in the pledge? Absolutely. Please address the flag. Pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republican, which stands one nation underground. Thank you. We're now going to move to uh public comments on matters not on the agenda. And I have uh first Mrs. Mayura who wishes um who can't speak, but I will read her card here. Um school trippers not stopping for regular writers. Driver claims school bus and will not stop. All school trippers need to stop for regular passengers, Route 227. So we'll pass this on to uh our general manager and go from there. Uh Arthur Ketterling. And then Robert Coplin. I'll be very fast. I'm Arthur Kitterling from Sacramento. And uh I would like to mention if I know this would be toward the future, but I would like to have the 56 and the 21. This would be both on the weekends. Weekends in your main holidays. Uh I would like to see the 56th start a little earlier of the morning, and then have the 21 start at Lewis and Orlando a lot earlier than what than what it does, because I know the first bus isn't until after 11 a.m. Uh on the weekends and your main holidays. And I know on uh on the 21 uh go and they go to uh Maycer uh starting about six o'clock on Saturday, but still they don't show it. They don't uh have any service come in until after 10 o'clock going to Lewis and Orlando. Uh until after 10 o'clock, and then as I said, from Lewis to Orlando leaving the first buses until after 11 o'clock, and uh uh if even if it was a couple hours, a couple of hours earlier, that would really help. And if even if it was a couple hours, a couple of hours earlier, that would really help. But I know this is toward the future, but I was wanting to bring this up to you people. And uh I uh have a question on just real quick on the I didn't know how to answer it on the on the card, but on the uh measure B, like of us having to vote on the initiative of the sales tax. Is that for city and county?
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