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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Corpus Christi Regional Transportation Authority - 07/05/2006 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY °2i ` BOARD OF DIRECTORS' MEETING / JULY 5, 2006 .. , AUG 2006 FD SUMMARY OF ACTIONS RECEIVED EKE j CITY SECRETARY'S A7 z., OFFICE �v j 1. Called the Meeting to Order 2. Provided Opportunity for Public Comment 3. Adopted Resolutions for Outgoing Board Members Davie Cissna and John Buckley 4. Heard Update on RTAC Committee Activities 5. Heard Presentation on ADART 6. Heard Update on Investment Committee June 9, 2006 Meeting 7. Consent Agenda a. Approved the Board of Directors' Minutes of June 7, 2006 b.. Accepted Committee Reports c. Approved a Resolution Authorizing Signatory for 2007 South Texas Aggregation Project (STAP) Electric Services Agreement, and if Economically Feasible 2008 Electricity Needs d. Authorized Awarding the Second of Two Option Years to Multiple Vendors for the Supply of Bus and Engine Parts e. Approved Awarding a Contract to A. Ortiz Construction & Paving, Inc.,for the Access Partnership I Bus Stop Improvements Located at Brownlee and Booty Areas 8.. Approved the May 2006.Financial Report . • 9. Approved Exercising the First of Two One-Year Options for Depository Banking Services with Wells Fargo Bank 10..Authorized Submittal of Title VII Report to theFederalTransit Administration . 11.Heard B-Line Report 12.Heard Update.on 2006 Board Goals — Mid Year Progress Report 13.Heard General Manager's Report The Regional Transportation Authority Board of Directors met at 8:30 a.m: in the Regional Transportation Authority Facility located at 565. 8 Bear Lane, Corpus Christi, Texas. Board Members Present: Rolando Barrera (Board Chair), Carmen Arias (Board Secretary), John Buckley, Anna Flores, John Longoria, Crystal Lyons, Glenn Martin, • John Valls . Board Members Absent: David Martinez, (Board Vice-Chair), Sara Salvide Staff Present Ricardo Sanchez (General Manager), David Seiler, John Bell (Legal Counsel), Ed Carrion, Vangie Chapa, Chuck Trexler, Sharon Montez, David Seiler, Elias Sissamis, Lamont Taylor, Sharlene Sexton SCANNED negional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 2 Public Present: Brenda Fernandez, Edna Arredondo, Dana Smith, MV Transportation; Eloy Soza; Deb-Hovda, Mary Saenz, RTAC Call to Order The Board of Directors' meeting was called to order by Mr. Barrera at 8:39 a.m. Opportunity for Public Comment Mr. Eloy Soza requested that service for persons with disabilities be equalized. He proposed extending fixed route service in Flour Bluff to reduce the number of B-Line riders thathave to,pay,the $2 surcharge because they reside outside the ADA zone. Adoption of Resolutions for Outgoing Board Members Davie Cissna and John Buckley Ms. Arias,read the resolution honoring Mr. Cissna for his service on the RTA Board of Directors. . MS. LYONS MADE A MOTION TO:ADOPT A RESOLUTION FOR OUTGOING BOARD MEMBER DAVIE CISSNA. MR. LONGORIA SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, BUCKLEY, LYONS, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. Ms: Arias read the resolution honoring Mr. Buckley for his eight-year service-on the RTA Board of Directors. MR. LONGORIA MADE A MOTION TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION FOR OUTGOING BOARD MEMBER JOHN BUCKLEY. MS. ARIAS SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, BUCKLEY, LYONS, ARIAS', AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENTS Each Board Member expressed their appreciation to Mr. Buckley and Mr. Cissna for their service on the RTA Board. Mr. Buckley and Mr. Cissna commented on their educational experiences while serving as a member of the RTA Board of Directors. Each departing,Board Member received tokens of appreciation for their service on the Board. Mr. Barrera recessed the meeting at 8:52 a.m. The meeting was called to order by Mr. Barrera at 9:40 a.m. regional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 3 Update on RTAC Committee Activities Ms. Hovda updated the Board on the RTAC meeting held on June 15, 2006. She noted that two riders had spoken on concerns they had experienced while using the B-Line service; the No Show Appeals Committee had heard seven appeals; and the Eligibility Appeals Committee had heard six appeals. The reports heard at the meeting were on the Metropolitan Planning Organization's (MPO) long range mobility planning needs; GoCOASTAL's evacuation planning strategies; implementation of the wheelchair securement policy; status of vehicle procurement including the added technology; the eligibility assessment process; and on ADA paratransit standards. Also presented were the regular monthly B-Line and Customer Assistance Form (CAF) reports. Mr. Barrera called for consideration of Agenda Item Six. Update on Investment Committee June 9, 2006 Meeting Mr. Buckley reported that the Committee had approved staff negotiating and entering into a contract with a qualified benefits firm to assist RTA staff in drafting and evaluating the Request for Proposals for Defined Benefit and Defined Contribution plans. The group recommended to assist in this project was the Hay Group, Inc. He also noted that the Committee had stressed the need for conducting regular employee meetings to keep personnel informed about the Plans. r • Continuing with his report, Mr. Buckley stated that after reviewing the timeline, the Committee had extended the Plan award date to October 4, 2006 to allow for transition of services, if applicable. The Committee also had recommended that Errors and Omissions coverage be required. In response to Mr. Buckley, Mr. Sissamis stated that the Request for Proposals were scheduled to be released on July 16, 2006. Due to Mr. Buckley's departure from the Board, Mr. Barrera appointed Mr. Longoria as Chairman of the Administration Committee. Presentation on ADART Mr. Sanchez noted that a presentation on ADART was made at the June Operations Committee. Mr. Carrion, using a PowerPoint presentation, explained that ADART was an acronym for Autonomous Dial-A-Ride Transit and was a fully automated booking, routing and scheduling demand response system. It was the only real-time scheduling system software. He provided historical background on the ADART program. 1tegional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 4 The next steps, as explained by Mr. Carrion, were to utilize the ADART software to provide late night, weekend, and zoned fixed route services; and seek and enter into a private-public venture with a firm willing to partner with the RTA to provide the financial backing and labor to complete the ADART project. Mr. Carrion stated that Trapeze had expressed an interest in entering into such a partnership. If Board approval for this course of action were received, then the RTA would develop a business plan and issue either a Request for Quotes (RFQ) or a Request for Information (RFI). Mr. Barrera identified several RTA service areas that would benefit from the feeder service such as. Flour Bluff and Padre Island. In response to Mr. Valls, Mr. Carrion stated that a complete inventory had not been performed but he estimated that approximately $250,000 would be required to fully implement the ADART project. Responding the Mr. Valls, Mr. Sanchez stated that to date a timeline for project • completion had not.been developed. Ms. Lyons expressed the opinion that utilizing ADART to provide Job Access Reverse Commute (JARC) service could provide supplemental funding for the project. Responding to Mr. Valls, Mr. Bell stated that the ADART software developed to date was not proprietary software. If software enhancements were developed, then the software would be considered as "ADART 1.1" and would then be considered proprietary software. There was extensive discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of entering into a partnership with Trapeze; it currently provides routing and scheduling service and has approximately 80% of the market share. The ability to adequately evaluate the selected partner's job performance was questioned. :.,.,.:. Mr. Carrion clarified that the estimated $250,000 was for programming and did not include the cost of securing hardware to implement the project. Mr. Sanchez estimated that the hardware per vehicle cost would be approximately$5,000. Consent Items • Mr. Barrera called for consideration of the Consent Agenda items which are of a routine or administrative nature. He asked if there were any items that should be pulled from the consent Agenda. There being none, Mr. Barrera called for a motion on the following consent items: Regional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 5 a) Discussion and Possible.Action to Approve the Board of Directors' Minutes of June 7, 2006 b) Action to Accept Committee Reports. c) Action to Approve a Resolution Authorizing Signatory for 2007 South Texas Aggregation Project (STAP) Electric Services Agreement, and if Economically Feasible 2008 Electricity Needs d) Action to Authorize Awarding the Second of Two Option Years to Multiple Vendors for the Supply of Bus and Engine Parts e) Action to Award a Contract to A. Ortiz Construction & Paving Inc. for the Access Partnership I Bus Stop Improvements Located at Brownlee and Booty Areas MS. LYONS MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS 7a- 7e. MR. LONGORIA SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, LYONS, FLORES, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. Action to Authorize Issuing an Invitation for Bids (IFB) for the Planned Vehicle Procurements for Fixed-Route and Paratransit Services Mr. David Seiler stated that a detailed presentation had been given at the June 2006 Operations Committee meeting. He summarized that in February 2006 the Board had.approved entering into an eight-year contract with STV Inc. for the purchase of vehicles to be used in fixed-route service. The goal was to standardize the fleet, enhance the basic design of the bus to ensure longevity, reliability, passenger comfort and safety, and to ensure that it was ergonomically sound and safe for the operators. MR. VALLS MADE A MOTION TO ISSUE AN INVITATION FOR BIDS (IFB) FOR THE PLANNED VEHICLE PROCUREMENTS FOR FIXED-ROUTE AND PARATRANSIT SERVICES. MR. LONGORIA SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, LYONS, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. Discussion and Possible Action to Approve the May 2006 Financial Report Mr. Sissamis summarized that as of April 2006 sales tax was $215,493 higher than the April budget; year to date it had a favorable balance of$680,249; salaries and benefits line item had a year-to-date favorable balance of$224,954 due to vacancies. Other budget line items having a favorable balance were passenger service, bus advertising,and fuel. Mr. Sissamis noted that the Purchased Transportation line item was over budget. He expressed the opinion that salary savings would offset this expense. itegional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 6 MS. LYONS MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MAY 2006 FINANCIAL REPORT. MR. LONGORIA SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, LYONS, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. Discussion and Possible Action to Approve Exercising the First of Two One- Year Options for Depository Banking Services with Wells Fargo Bank Mr. Sissamis stated that the depository banking services provided by Wells Fargo Bank had been satisfactory. MR. LONGORIA MADE A MOTION TO APPROVE EXERCISING THE FIRST OF TWO ONE-YEAR OPTIONS FOR DEPOSITORY BANKING SERVICES WITH WELLS FARGO BANK. MS LYONS SECONDED THE MOTION. VALLS, LONGORIA, LYONS, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. • Discussion and Possible Action to Authorize Submittal of Title VII Report to the Federal Transit Administration Mr. Taylor explained that the Title VII Report was an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)/Affirmative Action Plan (AAP) that was required to be submitted every three years. He cited the required compliance objectives and reviewed the EEO-1 report, which he distributed to the Board Members. Responding to Mr. Longoria, Mr. Taylor replied that to date RTA had not received any written complaints related to employment. Ms. Lyons noted that the number of female employees at RTA was low compared to overall employee composition. MR. LONGORIA MADE A MOTION TO AUTHORIZE SUBMITTAL OF TITLE VII REPORT TO THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION. MS. LYONS SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED. VALLS, LONGORIA, LYONS, ARIAS, AND MARTIN VOTING FOR. SALVIDE, FLORES, AND MARTINEZ ABSENT. B-Line Report Ms. Fernandez reported that compared to May 2005 current ridership had increased 4.7%; compared to April 2006 it had increased 10.3%; and wheelchair boardings, compared to the previous month, had increased 1.4%. Reviewing the service performance measures, Ms. Fernandez stated that for the month of May there had been zero denials; PPH (passengers per hour) was 2.62; OTP (on time performance) was 98% with only 2% of trips being late; the number of iegional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 7 CAF's (Customer Assistance Forms) had decreased. Road calls in May had increased to 30, which did not comply with the monthly mileage standard but did meet the standard for the twelve-month rolling average. She expressed her anticipation of new bus purchases, which would result in lowering the number of road calls. Continuing her report,Ms. Fernandez commented that wheelchair securement training was ongoing and that Mr. Lodde had visited the MV office in Corpus Christi and had hosted a brisket luncheon for MV employees. Responding to Mr. Valls, Ms. Fernandezstated that free trip passes were given to all riders experiencing a late trip pickup and that every attempt was made to contact the rider as soon as knowledge of a late trip pick up was known. Update on 2006 Board Goals — Mid Year Progress Report Mr. Carrion, using a PowerPoint presentation, presented a mid-year update on the established 2006 Board Goals. He provided the following information on outstanding goals: Goal 1 - Conduct an independent financial and operational assessment- -the estimated completion date was December 2006 and the Request for Proposals closing date was July 6, 2006; Goal 2—Evaluate ADA compliance needs for all RTA services, revenue vehicles, policies and facilities- -the Corpus Christi MPO would.be assisting with approximately $45,000; Goal 4 —Define and implement an effective and innovative wellness program- -the best practices have been researched, the dates on the milestones have not been determined, a presentation would be made to the Board in.the future; Goal 5 —Establish effective fleet size composition - - this goal was revised to focus on educating the public on fleet size requirements based on ridership, this was integrated into the RTA's marketing plan providing for additional public outreach during the Try Transit Week, which would.be held in September 2006; Goal 7— Creation of an electronic board library including all active plans and policies in the RTA - -.a presentation would be made at the August 2006 Administration Committee meeting to finalize the project; and Goal 8—Redesign RTA's website --.a presentation had been made, inclusion of a trip planning software was'being investigated, public feedback would be solicited and the target completion date was September 2006. General Manager's Report Mr. Sanchez announced that an RTA Board of Directors' retreat would be held after the regular August 2006 Board meeting.from approximately 11:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. Discussion of the Board goals and future initiatives would be discussed. Referencing personnel changes, Mr. Sanchez congratulated Mr. Oscar Vargas on filling the Transportation Services Coordinator position and Ms: Linda Fallwell-Stover on being named as the Manager of Purchased Transportation/ADA Services. He announced that Mr. Martin Trevino, former transportation manager with San Antonio -_1egional Transportation Authority Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 7,2006 Page 8 (VIA) Metropolitan Transportation Authority, would fill the Manager of Transportation position and that Mr. Thomas-Paolillo,formerly the Equipment Maintenance Supervisor with the Regional Transportation District (RTD) in Denver, Colorado, would fill the Director of Maintenance position. Both Mr. Trevino and Mr. Paolillo would assume their positions either the second or third week of July. Continuing with his report, Mr. Sanchez stated that extensive outreach on the Wheelchair Securement policy had been performed prior to its implementation at the end of June. Speaking on employee-related events, Mr. Sanchez said that an RTA Day would be held at Whataburger field during the.Hooks baseball game on Sunday, July 9, 2006; and a representative of the Waters Consulting Group would be addressing employee issues related to the compensation study on July 19th and 20th, 2006. Mr. Sanchez stated that he would be on vacation from July 7-14, 2006 and that Mr. Seiler, Mr. Sissamis, and Mr. Carrion would be available to assist with any concerns during this time. Referencing the maintenance facility, Mr. Sanchez informed the Board that identifying alternative funding options for construction of the maintenance facility would require the assistance of a consultant. He stated that Mr. Barry Goodman with The Goodman Corporation had been approached to assist the RTA with this endeavor. He cited Mr. Goodman's credentials. He suggested that identifying fundingfor the maintenance facility be a topic for discussion in the near future. Mr. Valls expressed his appreciation to Mr. Chuck Trexler for providing bus service for the Career Development Class. . Mr. Longoria commended staff for the work performed on the Board Goals and expressed his confidence in their job performance. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.at 10:26 a.m. 0---20.AA4-441 Carmen Arias Date . .