Transit Advisory Board Meeting, May 9, 2013
In Attendance: Lucy Birbiglia, Orville Pratt, Annie JonesFrancis, Warren Smith, Bill Richardson, Bob Tilley, and David Kesner
Public in Attendance: Lynne Reeve and Mark Clark
Representative from Transit: Bruce Rizzieri, Director, Transit Department
Meeting was called to order by Lucy Birbiglia, Chairperson, at 1135 hours.
Public Comment:
Lynne: Recently moved to Albuquerque from London. Her car broke down and rather than repairing it, she decided to try getting around on ABQ RIDE. She stated Albuquerque has a fabulous transit system. The bus is working out well for her. Her major concern is a bus driver should never be early. This is the worst thing a driver can do. Recently, she was eavesdropping outside the ATC and overheard two drivers talking. One stated he does not follow the schedule. He leaves when he wants to leave. Lynne also stated she has noticed drivers waiting at their check points. If he sped up to get there, people will be waiting at the previous bus stops for a while (assuming the driver was ahead of schedule to begin with). Lynne is very grateful for the service. Lynne was informed the bus is supported by the city.
Mark: Mark works for the SE Heights Public Health Office located at San Pablo and Zuni. The clinic has a grant with a refugee program through Lutheran Services and Catholic Charities. He stated a covered bus stop was recently installed near the clinic which helps. This really benefits refugees since they do not own vehicles and mothers with small children.
Mark has noticed a high frequency of foot traffic between San Mateo/Central and Zuni/San Mateo. He wants to study and develop a plan similar to the D route downtown because of the high frequency of foot traffic. This area has a lot of pedestrian traffic. And, by riding the bus you are a pedestrian by definition. Lynne added the worst place to cross the street is at an intersection because of turning traffic.
David: David stated he rode the bus for fun on a recent Saturday. He noticed when crossing Comanche, Candelaria, Indian School, and Constitution the announcement states they are transfer points. Indeed they are, but not on Saturdays. Bruce is going to look into what the announcement actually says.
Orville: Orville is concerned about security at San Mateo/Central and Louisiana/Central since so many passengers gather there to catch the bus. Bruce stated transit has a mobile security unit.
Acceptance of Agenda:
Voted to accept
Minutes from April’s meeting:
Acceptance of minutes from last meeting was approved with thanks to David Kesner.
Chairperson’s Report:
Lucy expressed improving the effectiveness of the Transit Advisory Board. She suggested a Board retreat. All Board members in attendance thought this was a good idea. The last retreat was spring 2012. One big issue is time/place. This discussion will continue on email.
Director’s Report:
Bruce handed out the Ridership Report. Ridership is based on work days in the month. He stated ridership is pretty much the same as last year with a 2.71% increase last year. He stated the second round of public discussions have begun concerning Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Two meeting have already occurred with three more to go. The remaining meetings are: Loma Linda (5/14), Alamosa Community Center (5/28), and the Albuquerque Museum (5/29). Discussion includes median service, curb lane service, dedicated lanes, and the original six segments of Central presented at earlier meetings. Bruce and others are looking for feedback as to the pros and cons of the items mentioned above. He is also holding meetings with the Chamber of Commerce. Initially, the BRT committee was looking from a 40,000 foot view. These secondary meetings give a closer look to BRT. Maybe, BRT will look at seven to ten miles of Central Avenue versus 15 miles.
Bruce stated this Saturday, May 11, 2013, is National Train Day. It is also the 3rd Annual Great Bus Race. Participants will navigate Albuquerque via smartphones and the bus to get from one location to the next. The winning team will receive an iPod based on time/points. This event was announced on the website in early April and is closed. Thirty teams signed up.
Bruce mentioned the budget process. Transit operational budget for service is unchanged. There is more money for indirect costs including employee benefits. Transit has many employees with families. The city picks up 80% of the premium. Therefore, this will increase transits budget, but not for service.
Warren mentioned Santa Fe is proposing free bus service to promote an auto free city. Bruce stated this will not occur in Albuquerque.
David asked Bruce about the new policy concerning Forest Service employees and their bus passes. Most of the employees of the Forest Service complain about purchasing their bus passes downtown between 8 am – 5 pm. This conflicts with their working hours. Bruce stated he will look into this.
Bob suggested TAB notifications occur on the ABQride Application.
Advisory Committee on Transit for the Mobility Impaired Report:
Bill stated at the last meeting there was discussion on the Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) system. The system automatically calls the bus patron the night before. Bill reported people were not receiving the call and the IVR calls twice. The IVR is sometimes on/sometimes off. People were missing the first part of the call. Danny Gonzales told the committee the IVR is off.
Also, there are problems with not shows/cancellations. Some patrons did not know until the morning of service they needed to cancel. This results in a no show and a person is only allowed so many no shows before the service is cancelled temporarily. The officers who will be elected May 21st are Chairperson Randy Mullen, Vice-Chairperson, Jane Francin, and Secretary Sanya Trap.
Jane told Bill of an incident that occurred on a fix route bus at Candelaria/San Mateo at 4 pm. Direction of travel of the bus and the bus number were not available. Bill stated the driver put a person with a wheelchair disability off the bus. The disabled person was traveling with his son. The person in the wheelchair was about to have a seizure and went into a full seizure after the bus left. Bill stated if the son had not been present, the paramedic would have administered a shot that would have killed the disabled person. Bill wanted to know what the protocol should be. Should the driver contact his supervisor who then contacts the police. Bill stated their could have been some liability if the disabled person was not with his son.
Old Business/New Business:
Lucy discussed the TAB resolution. She stated Item C information refers to the Advisory Committee on Transit for the Mobility Impaired, not to the TAB, and therefore, should not be included in the TAB resolution. She also mentioned the resolution refers to the Transit and Parking Department. Bruce stated the Parking Department has not been part of Transit for 10 years. Lucy asked if the Board wants to change the resolution officially with the Mayor and City Council involvement. The Board thinks it should be revised.
Lucy stated on May 21, 2013, and June 20, 2013, there will be meetings concerning the Open Meetings Act. This Act regulates how meetings are held. The Board was asked to participate.
Annie discussed the CNM meeting from May 2, 2013. She gave an update on the UNM/CNM/Airport study. There are three proposed routes, 1. University, 2.Yale through campus, and 3.Buena Vista. All three require different modes of transportation. University will allow cars, bikes, pedestrians, and buses. Yale will have dedicated bus lanes with no cars. Buena Vista will allow buses/bikes, no cars. Each mode has its own issues. There is no talk about extending University to Mesa del Sol. Annie stated there needs to be a balance between UNM/CNM/Airport/Neighborhoods. By August 31, 2013, a route will be picked.
Annie also mentioned ABQride Public Service Announcements on KANW radio. Announcements include information about BRT and the UNM/CNM/Airport studies. Media Match creates the announcements.
Bob asked Bruce about the ATC tower clock that does not work. Bruce stated his plan is to get rid of it because he has already invested lots of time and money and it still does not work.
Next Meeting:
The next TAB meeting is June 13, 2013.
Meeting adjourned at 12:45 pm