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Presentation on Transit Reform
Civic Academy SeriesFebruary 2012
2
The East Baton Rouge Parish transit system is in crisis
Chronic budget crises and under-funding have plagued the system for years
The transit system faces a $2.1 million deficit and is set to run out of funding and shut down in July 2012
Transit Reform Process & Dates
February 2011: Together Baton Rouge & Baton Rouge Area Chamber formed Blue Ribbon Commission on Transit
June 2011: Blue Ribbon Commission submits final recommendations for comprehensive transit reform. Mayor, Metro Council & CATS endorse its findings.
January 2012: CATS calls for transit election and legislative strategy to implement Blue Ribbon Commission proposal.
April 21st, 2012: Election Date for Transit Reform
Traffic CongestionAvg. delay per year
22 hours
Baton Rouge rank for congestion among mid-size U.S. cities (2010)?
U. S. Avg for Mid-size Cities
Baton Rouge 37 hours
33rd
# of mid-size cities studied? 33
The System Today
Little
Roc
k
Colum
bia
Baton
Rou
ge
Ralei
gh
Charlo
tte
Memph
is
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Traffic Delay per Capita
Projected Traffic CongestionFuturEBR projects traffic congestion will increase
to over 70 hours per year in 20 years
FuturEBR prediction of congested routes
in 20 years
Projected Traffic Congestion
What does mass transit have to do with traffic?
Average wait time between buses?
75 minutes
The System Today
Average total trip time? 2 hours, 20 minutes(Time it takes to drive to Biloxi, MS.)
Outdated “spoke” route structure built for cities of 40 years ago.
Essen to Bluebonnet:5 – 10 minutes by car, over 2 hours by bus
High-demand areas not covered by transit system.
O’Neal Lane, Coursey Blvd, Essen & Siegan Lane
Poor Signage and Stops Shelters are in poor condition or do not exist. Poor and uninformative signage at bus stops: no
route information; no time information.
The System Today
How did it get this bad?
Includes local taxes, fares and federal funding
Source: National Transit Database, 2009
Baton Rouge transit funding vs. other southern cities
Peer Cities (2009)Per capita
funding
AtlantaNew OrleansAustinHoustonCharlotteKnoxvilleLittle RockRaleighMemphisPeer City AverageBaton Rouge (2009)Baton Rouge (2012)
$134
$32
$84$84$70
$133
$27
$59
$253$215$162$138
Is efficiency the problem?
Why not just raise revenue from the riders?
B.R. already has a very high dependence on rider fares for funding
Percent of
Peer Cities (2009) funding from fares
Peer City Average
Baton Rouge (2011) 25%
14%
Akron, OHAlameda, CAAlbuquerque, NMAmes, IAAnn Arbor, MIAntioch, CAArlington, VAAsheville, NCAtlanta, GAAustin, TXBakersfield, CABatavia, OHBay City, MIBellingham, WABenton Harbor, MIBillings, MTBirmingham, ALBismarck, NDBloomington, IN
Bradenton, FLBremerton, WABrunswick, OHBuffalo, NYBurlington, WACanton, OHCedar Rapids, IAChapel Hill, NCCharleston, SCCharleston, WVCharlotte, NCCharlottesville, VAChicago, ILCincinnati, OHCleveland, OHColorado Springs, CO
Columbus, GAColumbus, OHCommerce, CAConcord, CACorpus Christi, TXCorvallis, ORCulver City, CACumberland, MDDallas, TXDavenport, IADavis, CADayton, OHDenver, CODetroit, MIDuluth, MNEl Paso, TXElk Grove, CAEverett, WAFairfield, CAFlagstaff, AZFlint, MI
Fond du Lac, WIFort Collins, COFort Myers, FLFort Smith, ARFort Wayne, INFort Worth, TXFredericksburg, VAGardena, CAGary, INGlendale, AZGrand Forks, NDGrand Rapids, MIGrand River, OHGranite City, IL
Other cities with dedicated revenue for transit …
Great Falls, MTGreensboro, NCGretna, LAHanford, CAHesperia, CAHighland Falls, NYHolland, MIHouston, TXHuntington, WVIndianapolis, INIowa City, IAJackson, MIJacksonville, FLJefferson City, MOKalamazoo,
MIKansas City, MOKent, OHLa Mirada, CALaCrosse, WILafayette, INLakeland, FLLancaster, CALansing, MILaredo, TXLargo, MDLas Cruces, NMLawrence, KS Lewisville, TXLexington, KYLivermore, CALogan, UTLompoc, CALong Beach, CA
Los Angeles, CAMedford, ORMiami, FLMinneapolis, MNMissoula, MTMoline, ILMontebello, CAMonterey, CAMurfreesboro, TNNapa, CANew Orleans, LANew York, NYNorwalk, CAOakland, CAOceanside, CAOlympia, WA
Omaha, NEOrange, CAOxnard, CAPeoria, ILPetaluma, CAPhoenix, AZPinole, CAPittsburgh, PAPompano Beach, FLPort Huron, MIPort Washington, WIPorterville, CAPortland, ORProvidence, RIRedondo Beach, CARichland, WARiverside, CARockville, MD
MORE cities with dedicated revenue for transit …
Sacramento, CASaginaw, MISalem, ORSan Antonio, TXSan Bernardino, CASan Carlos, CASan Diego, CASan Francisco, CASan Jose, CASan Juan, PRSanta Barbara, CASanta Clarita, CASanta Cruz, CASanta Fe, NMSanta Maria, CA
Santa Monica, CASanta Rosa, CASavannah, GAScottsdale, AZSeattle, WASioux City, IASouth Bend, INSpokane, WASpringfield, ILSt. Cloud, MNSt. Johns, MISt. Joseph, MOSt. Paul, MNSt. Petersburg, FLStockton, CASugar Land, TXTampa, FL
Tempe, AZThousand Oaks, CAThousand Palms, CAToledo, OHTopeka, KSTucson, AZUnion City, CAUrbana, ILVallejo, CAValparaiso, INVancouver, WAVentura, CAVisalia, CAWashington, DCWaterloo, IA
Wenatchee, WAWest Covina, CAWest Palm Beach, FLWheeling, WVWinston-Salem, NCWoodland, CAYakima, WAYoungstown, OH
STILL MORE cities with dedicated revenue for transit …
No dedicatedfunding means
losing millions infederal match-
funding & grants.
How does LSU Tiger Trails do it?
When LSU left the CATS system, it created a dedicated revenue source through a fee on student tuitions.
Funding for LSU tiger trails = $132 per capita for its service area.
(compared to Southern Metro average of $133 and CATS funding of $32)
People who …
1) want less traffic congestion.2) need reliable transportation to get to work,
appointments, school, entertainment.3) need their employees to have reliable
transportation to work.4) would like to reduce overall transportation
costs: car insurance, gas, road repair, vehicle repair.
5) want economic development.
Who benefits from transit reform?
Election to create dedicated revenue source for transit
Election Date: April 21st, 2012Municipalities included: Baton Rouge, Baker and Zachary Only voters in city limits are eligible to vote on or pay the proposed tax. Each election is held separately. Success or failure in any municipality
does not affect other elections.
Dedicated Revenue Amount
Property Tax rate (mills)
Avg cost per household per
monthAverage house value by area
Baton Rouge $16,663,200 10.6 $14 $157,100 Baker $636,000 10.6 $10 $110,074 Zachary $1,144,800 10.6 $16 $180,518 TOTAL $18,444,000
Rates, Revenue and Cost per Household Value of Home Cost per
month
$50,000 $4.42
$75,000 $6.63
$100,000 $8.83
$125,000 $11.04
$150,000 $13.25
$200,000 $17.67
$300,000 $26.50
Cost depends upon home value
Other EBR-area millage rates Parish Library 11.1 mills BREC 14.46 mills Average for fire districts 18.65 mills Downtown Dev District 10 mills Baker Schools 43.2 mills EBR Schools 43.45 mills Zachary Schools 79.2 mills
Proposed rate for transit: 10.6 mills
How does the proposed rate for transit compare to other dedicated revenue
sources in our City-Parish?
3 Components of Comprehensive Transit Reform
1) Service Improvements
2) Governance Reform
3) Accountability
Decrease wait times between buses from the current average of 75 minutes to 15 minutes (at peak hours)
Build 3 new transfer centers to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system Overhaul bus stops, with new shelters and benches Overhaul all signage for transit stops, providing detailed route and time
information Add GPS tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones Increase service from 19 to 37 routes, including high-demand areas that
currently are not served (eg. O’Neal Lane, Coursey Blvd., Essen and Siegen Lane) Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 57. Create eight new express and limited stop lines:
Express Routes
Southern University to Downtown, Airport to Downtown, O’Neal Lane to Downtown, Mall of Louisiana to Downtown, Highland / I-110 to Downtown
Limited Stop Routes
Baker/Zachary through Southern University to Cats Terminal, Florida Blvd to Downtown, LSU to Downtown
Lay foundation for Bus Rapid Transit system
I. Service Improvements
New route map &
city boundaries
II. Governance Reform Strengthen board member criteria for CATS board
(following recommendations of Blue Ribbon Commission) Remove Metro Council from operational decisions such as
routes and fares, in line with best practices nationally. Legislation will be introduced in 2012 legislative session.
III. Accountability Adhere to and publicize concrete benchmarks and timeline
of deliverables for service improvement.