Sacramento Regional Transit Board of Directors Meeting - July 22, 2024

The Sacramento Regional Transit (RT) Board of Directors held a regular meeting on July 22, 2024. The board approved a consent calendar, heard public comments on accessibility, service gaps, and new light rail vehicles, received the General Manager’s report on recent achievements and extreme heat response, and discussed capital projects and legislative successes.

Consent Calendar

• Items 2.1 through 2.7 were approved unanimously by a voice vote. No board members requested removal, and no public comments were offered on the consent items.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Helen O’Connell (private citizen) expressed safety concerns regarding the design of new light rail vehicles, specifically that the call strip (request-to-stop strip) is not reachable from the ADA seating area due to the placement of a grab bar. She stated that this prevents independent operation for some disabled riders and urged the board to provide feedback to manufacturer Siemens. Board members acknowledged the concern.
• Robert Copeland (member of ACE) spoke in support of the kids’ ride rate program, which he said was on the “chopping block” at the Sacramento City Council. He criticized RT for insufficient public outreach and noted that ACE Sacramento is the only ACE chapter in California with a transportation committee, implying other regions have better transit.
• Jeffrey Tardiya (written comment and in-person testimony) raised several issues: (1) Route 33 provides only weekday service, which is inadequate for the 250 current residents of Dos Rios (projected to be 450), and weekend service is needed; (2) the Gold Line’s 65th Street station is a “contraption” and needs improved access; (3) additional time should be allocated for Routes 82 and 87. He praised RT staff for listening at MAC (Municipal Advisory Council) meetings but expressed concern that the board does not fully understand the situation of 30,000 disability riders.
• Dan Allison (Sacramento Transit Advocates and Riders) expressed disappointment with staff’s responses at the May MAC meeting, stating that staff claimed to listen but refused to change anything. He criticized several aspects of the new light rail vehicles: (1) bicycle capacity would drop to four hooks per car, whereas current cars have space for 12 bikes; passengers would have to stand with their bike on an hour-long trip from Sacramento Valley Station to Folsom. (2) No barriers between cars, unlike systems in San Francisco. (3) Seat height meets APTA requirements but staff could not provide references when asked. (4) Activation strips are inaccessible, as demonstrated by disabled riders; asking a person in a wheelchair to move before a stop is unsafe. He concluded that staff has “stonewalled” necessary changes.

Discussion Items

• General Manager’s Report (Henry Li) : Mr. Li acknowledged public feedback and provided a series of updates:
  • Extreme heat response: RT provided free rides during triple-digit temperatures (12 days with average temp over 107°F) and, with assistance from Director Katie Maple, ensured unhoused community members could ride without restrictions. RT also used buses as cooling centers and transported residents during a power outage affecting 200 mobile homes along Alban Way.
  • Infrastructure summit: Director Mike Kozlowski, Chris, and Mr. Li participated in the U.S. Transportation Infrastructure Summit, presenting a panel on transit-oriented development that highlighted RT’s recent housing projects.
  • Congressional meetings: Met with Congressman Kine, who sits on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, to discuss RT priorities; secured $3 million in community project funding for the library modernization program.
  • Media coverage: Hosted Paul Comfort of “Transit Unplugged TV” (the #1 transit podcast globally) for a two-day shoot; video expected in September.
  • Watt Avenue Transit Center Improvement Project: Groundbreaking for a $26 million investment to widen the Watt Avenue bridge, build a stairwell and plaza, upgrade on-ramps, and enhance the transit center in a disadvantaged community. Joined by Congressmen Ami Bera and Kevin Kiley, State Senator Roger Yarrow, Chair Kennedy, and Director Kaplan.
  • FTA grant: Received $77 million from the Low-No Emissions Bus Program (third-largest award in the U.S., behind only LA Metro and New Jersey Transit), which will be leveraged with $24 million from other sources for a total $102 million investment to purchase hydrogen fuel-cell buses, build the region’s first hydrogen station, modernize the BFM2 facility, and launch a workforce development program. The goal is to transition the bus fleet serving northern Sacramento communities to zero-emission buses by 2028. Mr. Li thanked six board members who participated in an FTA meeting in Washington, D.C.
  • State legislation: Governor Newsom signed AB 2634 (allowing a pilot discount for super seniors) and AB 1924 (modifying service boundaries and board composition), both passed unanimously.
• Director Comments:
  • Director Maple congratulated the team and specifically thanked Mr. Li for quickly communicating that riders could access cooling centers even without a valid flyer.
  • Coco Koza (public comment, member of Sacramento Transit Advocates and Riders) asked several operational questions: (1) Where can citizens find a status update on the global capital project list? (2) What criteria drove the decision to choose hydrogen fuel-cell buses over battery-electric? (3) How many battery-electric buses does RT currently have? (4) Could the grant have been used to upgrade existing battery-electric buses? (5) What is RT’s initial cost for the hydrogen buses? Staff indicated they would follow up.
  • Director Koslowski thanked facilities and construction staff for the Folsom double-track project (aiming for 15-minute service), noting careful tree canopy protection. He highlighted RT’s leadership in transit-oriented development, citing interest from other agencies. He also thanked the congressional delegation (Kiley, Bera, Matsui) for securing funding.
• Reports, Ideas, and Questions from Directors:
  • Director Maple had no additional comments on the Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority meeting summary.
  • Jeffrey Tardiya (public comment) encouraged Director Maple to report on any developments regarding extending the third rail to Roseville and requested that future summaries include highlights of physical changes. He noted that Congressman Bera, five years ago, committed to working across boundaries on transportation infrastructure, and the results are now visible.

Key Outcomes

• The consent calendar (Items 2.1–2.7) was approved unanimously.
• The General Manager’s report was received; no board action was taken.
• Staff committed to follow up with Coco Koza regarding capital project information and hydrogen bus decision criteria.
• The meeting was adjourned.