Board Box
OCTOBER 20, 2014
Item / Board Box Item / Staff / Pages /1. / Recap of Recent Legislative Activities for September/October 2014 / A. Colaiace / 2-6
2. / New Employee Update / F. Moseley / 7
3. / Out of State Travel For September 2014 / C. Motta / 8
4. / Recap Proceeding of September 22, 2014 Board Meeting / D. Cisco / 9
5. / Safety Update For August 2014 / M. Greenwood / 10-11
6. / Access Services Fleet Health Update / R. Streiff / 12
7. / Web-Based Vehicle Locator System Pilot Project / G. Okamoto / 13
8. / Rolling Board Meeting Calendar / F. Jewell / 14-15
9. / Operations & Customer Service Action Plan Update / S. Chang/S. Kelley / 16-22
10. / Key Performance Indicators August 2014 / M. Thompson / 23-29
11. / Financial Report for August 2014 / H. Rodriguez / 30-46
12. / Executive Summary Update for August 2014 / S. Chang/S. Kelley/M. Avancena /K. Hagen / 47-50
13. / Operations Report for August 2014 / M. Thompson / 51-64
BOARD BOX ITEM #1
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: ANDRE COLAIACE, DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PLANNING AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
RE: RECAP OF RECENT LEGISLATIVE/MEDIA ACTIVITIES
Federal Legislative Activities: In September, the House passed H.J. Res. 124, a short-term continuing resolution (CR) to extend the funding of federal operations until December 11, 2014. All public transportation formula programs are funded at FY2014 levels as are other public transportation related programs. It is expected that Congress will pass a further extension in the Lame Duck session after the November elections. There is some talk that Congress would look at passing a new six-year transportation authorization bill but that seems unlikely.
I attended the APTA Legislative Committee in Houston last week where we received an update on various federal legislative proposals. The committee also debated a resolution (attached) regarding the Federal Transit Administration’s use of Triennial Reviews to audit grantee compliance with federal statutes and regulations. The resolution, after quite a bit of debate, was tabled until the December Legislative Committee meeting after many members asked that the issue be discussed with FTA first.
State Legislative Activities: The California Transit Association hosted a teleconference intended to serve as a priorities update for Congressional staffers who work on transportation issues. Our federal advocate Len Simon listened in and prepared the following memo (attached).
Local Legislative Activities: I previously reported that the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors passed a motion directing County staff to work with Access Services on pursuing Medicaid reimbursement for eligible paratransit trips. Many transit entities within California, including transit systems in San Diego and Ventura counties, have begun participating in the Medical Administrative Activities (MAA) Program. Through the MAA Program, the County of Los Angeles serves as the “Local Government Authority” or administrative entity and transit entities receive a percentage of funding back from the federal government for transporting Medi-Cal eligible individuals to Medi-Cal related appointments. Access Services staff and L.A. County staff met in August to discuss the feasibility of adding Access Services into the MAA program. County staff was receptive to the idea and we will continue to work with them to implement this going forward.
If you have any concerns or questions, please feel free to contact me at 213/270-6007.
RESOLUTION
of the American Public Transportation Association
Regarding needed reforms to the triennial review and State management review processes of the Federal Transit Administration.
Whereas consistent enforcement by the Federal Transit Administration of duly promulgated Federal requirements can support public transportation agencies’ mission of delivering safe, reliable service to ever-growing numbers of public transportation riders by eliminating unforeseeable changes in enforcement approaches or substantive Federal requirements;
Whereas such consistent enforcement can reduce project implementation costs for Federal Transit Administration grantees and their private sector partners in such fields as project finance, manufacturing, and operations;
Whereas, the Federal Transit Administration should therefore enforce only lawfully promulgated Federal requirements; and
Whereas, the Federal Transit Administration’s enforcement of Federal grant requirements should be consistent and uniform across all eleven regions nationwide:
Now therefore be it resolved, that the American Public Transportation Association finds that –
The Federal Transit Administration, in conducting any triennial review or State management review, should be limited to examining a grant recipient’s compliance with Federal statutory requirements, regulations promulgated in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, and agency guidance promulgated via public notice in the Federal Register providing opportunity for public comment;
The Federal Transit Administration should ensure that such statutory requirements, regulations, and guidance have been applied to and enforced against all grant recipients in a uniform manner nationwide in all triennial and State management reviews; and
The U.S. Congress should enact legislation to ensure the Federal Transit Administration’s triennial reviews and State management reviews fully comply with the standards set forth in this resolution.
SIMON AND COMPANY
INCORPORATED
Intergovernmental Relations and Federal Affairs
1660 L Street, NW • Suite 501 • Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 659-2229 • Fax (202) 659-5234 • email:
TO: Andre Colaiace, Tess Lengyel
FROM: Len Simon, Brandon Key
SUBJECT: Summary of California Transit Association Teleconference
DATE: September 24, 2014
Today, we listened to a teleconference hosted by the California Transit Association (CTA), mainly intended to serve as a priorities update for Congressional staffers who work on transportation issues. The following is a summary of that teleconference, following the agenda. All times are in Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
1:00 P.M. Welcome and Introductions
· Mike Wiley, General Manager of Sacramento Regional Transit District (RT) and Vice Chair of the California Transit Association
o Mike welcomed participants to the call, especially the staff of the Congressional offices who were on the line. He provided an overview of the call, which follows as below.
1:05 P.M. California Updates
· Federal Surface Transportation Reauthorization Overview
o Rick Bacigalupo, Manager of Federal Relations, Orange County Transportation Authority
§ Rick outlined the following top federal legislative priorities:
§ (1) Long-Term Transportation Reauthorization – To move away from approving federal funding for just a few months at a time. Multi-year transit planning is near-impossible in the current environment.
§ (2) Support for the Bus and Bus Facilities Program – MAP-21 deeply cut funding for the Bus and Bus Facilities program, shifting that money into the State of Good Repair Program. CTA advocates for more funding for both programs, with Bus and Bus Facilities restored to at least pre-MAP-21 levels. If overall transit funding cannot be increased in the next transportation bill, CTA suggests that Congressional staff consider shifting funding from the Section 5340 program, which primarily benefits 6-7 states in the Northeastern U.S., into Bus and Bus Facilities.
§ (3) Support for the Alternative Fuels Tax Credit
§ (4) Support to restore parity between transit and highway users in Commuter Benefits
· Bus Axle Weight Limitations
o Sabrina Means, Legislative Advocate, California Transit Association
§ CTA and APTA have been working to study regulations that put an unfair burden on public transit agencies for buses whose axels exceed weight restrictions.
§ CTA expects to release their study later this year, and will be meeting personally with the staff of Congressional offices next year to discuss their findings.
· Update on 13c (Federal Transit Act) Litigation and California Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act
o Mike Wiley
§ Mike provided an update on litigation between several California transit agencies, including Sacramento RT, and the Department of Labor, regarding a dispute over the authority of what was formerly Section 13c of the Federal Transit Act.
§ A ruling in court is now pending on if California Transit agencies will receive back-pay of federal dollars that were withheld from them over the dispute.
· Update on Cap and Trade Implementation in California: Transit Impacts
o Matt Robinson, Legislative Advocate, California Transit Association
§ While California is implementing a Cap-and-Trade system to incentivize a reduction in carbon pollution, it’s important to note that the amount of money collected that will go to transit agencies will be fairly small. The federal role in transit funding should not be diminished because of new state cap-and-trade revenues.
Conclusion
Mike Wiley said that he anticipates CTA’s second annual trip to Washington, DC to happen in February 2015. He looks forward to meeting with Congressional staff on that trip. He said that any follow-up questions from the teleconference should be directed to Sabrina Means, whose contact information is below. But feel free to let us know if you have any questions about this teleconference.
Sabrina MeansCalifornia Transit Association
Legislative Advocate
/
1415 L Street, Suite 1000
Sacramento CA 95814
T : (916) 446-4656 x.1019
F : (916) 446-4318
caltransit.org
BOARD BOX ITEM #2
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: FAYE MOSELEY, HUMAN RESOURCES CONSULTANT
RE: NEW EMPLOYEE UPDATE
New Employees
I am pleased to announce that we have one new employee at Access.
Rachel Nieto has returned to Access Services in a staff capacity as a Customer Service Representative. In this role, she will be responsible for handling calls from prospective or current customers, stranded passengers, resolving passenger issues and determining trip eligibility. Rachel will report directly to Cara Eichorn, Customer Service Analyst.
She joins Access Services with 15 years of experience in Customer Service and Administration. Prior to Access, Rachel worked with Zimmerman & Associates in various capacities (Customer Service, Filing Clerk and Receptionist). She was also the Co-Owner of Sweetpea and Tallulah Innovative Products. Rachel previously worked with Access Services as an Eligibility Appeal Coordinator, Complaint Response Representative and Customer Service Representative/Operations Monitor 1 in our Call Center. She is currently attending Cerritos College.
Employee Movement
Ricky Bout recently transferred from the role of Operations Coordinator in the Operations Department to Data Analyst Assistant on the Finance team. In this new role, he will be responsible for assisting in tracking agency key performance indicators, providing ad hoc reports and analysis to various departments and reviewing service trends. Ricky earned his Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies, with a minor in Geography/Spatial Science from University of California at Santa Barbara. This resource reallocation allows us to utilize Ricky’s unique skill set to better serve the organization. In this new role, he will report directly to Kevin Lee, Manager of Analytics & Process Oversight.
BOARD BOX ITEM #3
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: CHARLENE MOTTA, ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
RE: OUT OF STATE TRAVEL FOR SEPTEMBER 2014
The following is a list of out-of state travel for September 2014.
Washington DC, Eno Transit Executive Seminar
September 20 – 28, 2014
Washington, DC
The below mentioned Access Services staff member traveled to Washington, DC, to be a part of the Eno Transit Executive Seminar. The seminar is an intensive week-long course held in Washington DC. Participants focus on building individual and interpersonal skills in a small group setting. Eno connects people and ideas to enhance cross-industry knowledge.
Faye Moseley, Deputy Executive Director, Administration
BOARD BOX ITEM #4
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: DONNA CISCO, ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGER/BOARD LIAISON
RE: RECAP PROCEEDING OF SEPTEMBER 22, 2014 BOARD MEETING
RECAP OF PROCEEDINGS
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014
Los Angeles County MTA
One Gateway Plaza, 3rd Floor
729 Vignes Street, Los Angeles CA 90012
ITEMNO. / SUBJECT ITEM / ACTION TAKEN
3 / CLOSED SESSION / None
5 / Review & Approval of Minutes From the Board Meeting On August 25, 2014 / Approved
8-a / Consideration to Renew Access Services Insurance Policies for Fiscal Year 2014/15 / Approved/On Consent Calendar
8-b / Consideration to Reappoint the Transportation Professional Advisory Committee (TPAC) Members / Approved/On Consent Calendar
8-c / Consideration to Appoint Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Members / Approved/On Consent Calendar
9 / Consideration to Approve Access Rider ID/TAP Card Reimbursement Agreement / Approved
10 / Consideration to Approve Vehicle Allocation Formula / Approved
11 / Consideration to Approve the Triennial Review Update / This item was tabled for the next board meeting
12 / Status Update on Metro’s Review of Access Services / Information
BOARD BOX ITEM #5
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: MIKE GREENWOOD, DIRECTOR OF SAFETY & RISK MANAGEMENT
RE: SAFETY UPDATE FOR AUGUST 2014
Key Safety Indicators
Access’ preventable collision rate in August 2014 was 0.46 preventable collisions per 100,000 miles (compared to 0.40 in August 2013).
The total number of preventable collisions increased from 14 in July to 17 in August.
Department Activities
In August, staff from the Safety & Risk Management Department participated in the following:
· Held its monthly Safety Steering Committee Meeting with service providers;
· Conducted a Drug & Alcohol Program Audit at San Gabriel Transit;
· Conducted, with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, a security assessment of San Gabriel Transit’s facility in El Monte;
· Attended a Mass Care and Shelter Emergency Preparedness Workshop in Altadena;
· Interviewed candidates for the new Road Safety Inspector position; and
· Began implementing the Everbridge Mass Event Notification System, a software system that will allow Access to communicate with employees, contractors, and customers via land line, cell phone, text, and email in the event of a major emergency or disaster. When fully implemented, selected staff will be able to send messages out via their PC or mobile device to a number of contact lists including our active riders.
BOARD BOX ITEM #6
OCTOBER 20, 2014
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FROM: RICK STREIFF, MANAGER FLEET DESIGN AND MAINTENNACE
RE: ACCESS SERVICES FLEET HEALTH UPDATE
The FY 2013/14 fleet build was finished on September 30, 2014. The charts below provide a snapshot of fleet composition by mileage. Both graphs show the number of vehicles and percentage of fleet in a particular mileage category.