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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 09 11 08 Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority MINUTES OF THE CAPE FEAR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY September 11, 2008 Mr. William Bryden, Chair, Presiding MEMBERS PRESENT Mr. William Bryden, Chair Mr. Don Betz, Vice Chair Mr. George Dolan, Secretary Mr. Jeff Bellows Ms. Fannie Freeman Mr. Andrew Koeppel Ms. Christine McNamee Ms. Nancy Pritchett Ms. Laura Padgett Mr. John Stukes STAFF PRESENT Mr. Albert Eby, Director Mr. Arlanda Rouse, Assistant Director Ms. Kathy Williams, Administrative Assistant Mr. Matthew Kunic, Planner Ms. Catherine Beasley, Finance Director CONTRACT MANAGEMENT STAFF PRESENT Mr. Terrance Thompson, General Manager, PTM Mr. Thomas Molina, Paratransit Manager, PTM Mr. Andrew Olsen, Attorney GUESTS PRESENT Mr. Joshuah Mello, Associate Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Mr. Chris Hawkins, Citizen Mr. Ricky Meeks, Citizen Mr. Anthony Pursley, Citizen Ms. Sue Mora Anderson, Citizen Mr. Pat Gannon, Star News CALL TO ORDER  Chairman Bryden called the meeting to order at 12:00 pm pm  Mr. Bryden opened the meeting with a moment of silence asking those in attendance to remember the victims of the 9/11 attacks and their families CONSENT AGENDA  Mr. Bryden presented the August 14, 2008 consent agenda  Mr. Dolan made a motion to approve the September 11, 2008 consent agenda  Ms. Freeman seconded the motion and it carried unanimously PUBLIC COMMENT  Chairman Bryden opened the public comment period  Ms. Anderson presented a list of concerns about the bus system’s new routes and procedures and problems regarding riding the bus  Mr. Bryden presented Ms. Freeman, Mr. Stukes & Mr. Bellows with a plaque from the board thanking them for their 6 years of service on the board  Mr. Bryden stated that Mr. Freeman, Mr. Stukes & Mr. Bellows will remain on the board until replacement appointments are made by Wilmington City Council  Mr. Koeppel presented a motion to accept resolution supporting a feasibility study of the rail service multimodal transportation center to Wilmington International Airport  Mr. Betz seconded the motion to accept the resolution supporting a feasibility study from the rail service multimodal transportation center to Wilmington International Airport  Mr. Betz made a substitute motion that the resolution be amended to include language that the study not cause a distraction from other funds or projects committed to by the authority  Mr. Bellows seconded the substitute motion  Ms. Padgett suggested that the authority rethink the involvement of the resolution due to current issues with the budget and routes  Mr. Betz withdrew the substitute motion  Mr. Eby and Mr. Mello agreed to ensure that the authority is represented in the planning portion of the transit portion of the multimodal transportation center study  Mr. Koeppel withdrew the resolution supporting a feasibility study of the rail service multimodal transportation center to Wilmington International Airport  Mr. Koeppel made a motion that he and Mr. Eby will meet and draft for a statement to the board for further input for the rail and or transportation service study and submit to the board for input from the board  Ms. Padgett made a substitute motion that a statement of interest is submitted to the authority for approval for the feasibility study that includes consideration of transit rail connection  Ms. Pritchett seconded the substitute motion and it carried unanimously unanimously EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bryden stated that the three public hearings held for the fare increase were sparsely attended  Mr. Bryden stated that the individuals that attended were generally not opposed to the fare increase  Mr. Bryden made a motion to implement the proposed fare increase effective October 20, 2008  Mr. Bellows seconded the motion which carried unanimously  Mr. Dolan inquired about treating the Brunswick Connector fare to operate the same as all the regular buses  Ms. Padgett made a motion to create new fare stickers to replace the old fare signs on the Brunswick Connector in order for the fares to operate the same system wide  Ms. Pritchett seconded the motion  Ms. Padgett withdrew her motion  Mr. Betz made a motion to drop the reference of New Hanover and Brunswick County and make all fares uniform  Staff was directed to undertake an internal promotion make sure that Brunswick Connector passengers understand that they are included universally in the fare structure  Ms. Pritchett seconded the motion and it carried unanimously  Mr. Dolan inquired about representation on the Authority board from Brunswick County  Staff was directed to investigate the possibility of seeking a non-voting member from Brunswick County to the board ROUTE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bryden recognized Mr. Koeppel to give the report for the route committee  Mr. Koeppel stated that Mr. Kunic was able to contact NHRMC in regards to the hospital using their shuttle to connect the passengers from the hospital bus stops to the main hospital entrance  Mr. Koeppel stated that a meeting was being arranged  Mr. Koeppel stated that the Independence Mall transfer location is still not complete  Mr. Eby stated that the staff and local and state branches of DOT were working on the encroachment permit  Mr. Koeppel presented preliminary ridership statistics for August 2008  Mr. Koeppel stated that the passenger counts for August were over 108,000 a difference of 36% from the month of April  Mr. Koeppel stated that the public is adjusting to the new route structure MARKETING COMMITTEE  Mr. Bryden recognized Mr. Betz to give the Marketing Committee report  Mr. Betz recognized Mr. Kunic to present a text messaging program  Mr. Kunic stated that the program would allow passengers to send a text message and receive a return text within ten seconds identifying the current location of the bus  Mr. Kunic stated that in exchange for the text messaging service, Coupons to Your Phone is requesting advertisement on the interior of buses at no charge  Mr. Kunic stated that Coupons to Your Phone has requested exterior rear advertising on the UNCW routes in exchange for AVL hosting services  Mr. Bellows inquired about the length of the advertising  Ms. Padgett stated that there should be a time limit for advertising  Ms. McNamee suggested reassessment the text messaging program periodically  The motion from the committee was to allow a barter agreement between the authority and Coupons to Your Phone for hosting services in exchange for advertising services  The motion carried unanimously FINANCE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bryden recognized Mr. Dolan to give the Finance Committee  Mr. Dolan stated that if any board member required additional information on the monthly financial reports to submit those request to the finance committee FACILITIES COMMITTEE  Chairman Bryden recognized Ms. McNamee to present the facilities report  Ms. McNamee stated that staff is working with TransSystems to on a design and engineering contract  The contract would be presented to the authority following the agreement to purchase additional property from Corning  Ms. McNamee stated that DOT is working on a contract in order for the authority to use the balance of Moving Ahead Funds  Ms. McNamee stated that the State Storm Water permit application will need to be submitted by the end of the month AD HOC PLANNING COMMITTEE  Chairman Bryden recognized Mr. Bellows to present the committee report  Mr. Bellows stated that a $5.00 vehicle registration fee dedicated to Wave Transit by the City of Wilmington was unavailable because that city was not the operator of the transit system as required by statute  Mr. Bellows stated that the committee developed an express route would cover basically the Southside of downtown to the hospital hospital and the Long Leaf Park areas  Mr. Bellows stated that the operation of this route would cost around $175,000  Funds to support adding the route were being studied STAFF REPORT  Chairman Bryden recognized Mr. Eby to present the staff report  Mr. Eby stated that he met with Tim Owens of the town of Carolina Beach and Mr. Owens stated that the town was considering submitting an RFP for shuttle service  Mr. Eby stated the staff would monitor the plan  Mr. Eby then presented the Safe Haven Initiative  Mr. Eby stated that the program will allow anyone in danger to flag down a bus and request the driver to call 911 for help  Mr. Eby recognized Mr. Thompson to give the General Manager’s report  Mr. Thompson stated that PTM is in the process of reducing operating costs and are re-cutting the current runs  Mr. Thompson stated that this could result in possible driver layoffs  Mr. Thompson stated that the full-time drivers will be offered part-time positions first  Mr. Thompson stated that customer training has begun and is going well well  Mr. Thompson introduced paratransit manager Mr. Thomas Molina  Mr. Molina briefly introduced himself  Mr. Thompson and Mr. Eby congratulated Mr. Molina for his part during Tropical Storm Hanna  Mr. Molina gave a brief overview of Wave Transit responsibilities during emergencies OLD BUSINESS  Mr. Bryden stated that the trolley from the multi modal to the convention center was unable to be supported but other options were being investigated SCHEDULING OF NEXT MEETING  Hearing no further business, Mr. Stukes made a motion to adjourn the meeting  Ms. McNamee seconded the motion to adjourn the meeting  The motion carried unanimously  The next meeting of the Cape Fear Pubic Transportation Authority is scheduled for October 09, 2008 at 12:00 pm in the Castle Street Board Room Respectfully Submitted, Albert Eby Director /kw