Public Transit:“Fixing a system in crisis”

St. Mary Baptist ChurchMay 10th, 2011

We face serious challenges… The transit system could run out of

funding either in September or October of 2011.

Chronic budget crises, under-funding and poor public perception have plagued the system.

The 2010 vote to create a dedicated revenue source for transit failed, 53% to 47%.

Who cares?

Traffic Congestion

Avg. 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 hours33rd

# of mid-size cities studied?

33

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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

(Not a pretty picture.)

Projected Traffic Congestion

Who cares?

Dr. Jeanne.

Mildred.

Student at a local university. Moving next to a bus route because her car is about to give out.

Retired PhD in Clinical Psychology. Recently visually impaired. Very limited ability to drive.

Receptionist at local hospital. Makes minimum wage and is a single mother. She and her daughter rely on public transit.

Jessica.

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:

$1 in transit investment = $35 in economic development.

Who cares?

Tens of thousands of Baton Rouge residents have limited or no access to cars.

People who are elderly, have disabilities, are low-income, students, young people.

Hundreds of thousands want options for transportation.

Percent of residents who “would use rapid transit if it were available”

16%

55%

Public transit is a popular idea in B.R.

Percent of residents who “ever use” transit system in Baton Rouge

But very few people use it…

70%Percent of residents who say there is a “good” or “great” need for improved public transportation

If the idea of transit is popular, why don’t more people use it?

Because the current system is not working.

Problem #1: Wait times are too long

Average wait time at a transit stop?

75 minutes

Problem #2: Overall travel times are too long.

Average total travel time (including waits)?

2 hours, 20 minutes

Problem #3: The route system is inefficient

“Spoke” route structure built for cities of 40 years ago.

Consider Essen to Bluebonnet5-10 minutes by car Over 2 hours by bus

#4: Poor service coverageMany highly developed areas are not

covered by transit system:O’Neal LaneCoursey Blvd.Essen & Siegan Lane

#5: 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.

How did it get this bad?

You get what you pay for…Baton Rouge vs. Peer cities: Transit funding per

resident

Peer Cities (2009)

$134

$32

Per capita funding

$84$84

$70

$86

$27

$59

Includes local taxes, fares and federal funding

Charlotte

Knoxville

Little Rock

Raleigh

Memphis

Peer City Average

Baton Rouge (2009)

Baton Rouge (2011)

You get what you pay for…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,

INBradenton, FLBremerton, WABrunswick, OHBuffalo, NYBurlington, WACanton, OHCedar Rapids, IAChapel Hill, NCCharleston, SCCharleston, WVCharlotte, NCCharlottesville, VAChicago, ILCincinnati, OHCleveland, OH

Colorado Springs, COColumbus, GAColumbus, OHCommerce, CAConcord, CACorpus Christi, TXCorvallis, ORCulver City, CACumberland, MDDallas, TXDavenport, IADavis, CADayton, OHDenver, CODetroit, MIDuluth, MNEl Paso, TXElk Grove, CAEverett, WA

Fairfield, CAFlagstaff, AZFlint, MIFond du Lac, WIFort Collins, COFort Myers, FLFort Smith, ARFort Wayne, INFort Worth, TXFredericksburg, VAGardena, CAGary, INGlendale, AZGrand Forks, NDGrand Rapids, MIGrand River, OH

Other cities with dedicated revenue for transit …

Granite City, ILGreat Falls, MTGreensboro, NCGretna, LAHanford, CAHesperia, CAHighland Falls, NYHolland, MIHouston, TXHuntington, WVIndianapolis, INIowa City, IAJackson, MIJacksonville, FLJefferson City, MO

Kalamazoo, 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, WAOmaha, NE

Orange, 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, CA

Santa Cruz, CASanta Fe, NMSanta Maria, CASanta 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, FLTempe, AZThousand Oaks, CAThousand Palms, CAToledo, OHTopeka, KSTucson, AZUnion City, CAUrbana, ILVallejo, CAValparaiso, IN

Vancouver, WAVentura, CAVisalia, CAWashington, DCWaterloo, IAWenatchee, WAWest Covina, CAWest Palm Beach, FLWheeling, WVWinston-Salem, NCWoodland, CAYakima, WAYoungstown, OH

STILL MORE cities with dedicated revenue for transit …

No dedicated funding

means losing millions in

federal match

funding and grants.

So how do we fix it?

4 Reform Proposals

Proposal A:

Basic Reform1. Decrease wait times from 75 minutes to 30 minutes.2. Increase service from 19 to 31 routes.3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 42.4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system.5. Overhaul bus stops, with new shelters, covers & benches.6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones.7. New signage with route and time info.8. Dedicated revenue source for transit. 

Preliminary Estimates OnlyTotal Transit Budget: $25 million

Required from dedicated revenue source: $15m

Federal & Other Funds leveraged: $10m per year

  

Proposal B:

Ridership Expansion1. Decrease wait times from 75 minutes to 20 minutes.2. Increase service from 19 to 37 routes.3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 57.4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system.5. Overhaul bus stops: shelters & benches.6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones.7. New signage with route and time info.8. Dedicated revenue source for transit.9. 3 New Express Lines: a) Downtown to LSU, b) Florida Blvd. & c) Plank Rd. (servicing Airport).   

Preliminary Estimates OnlyTotal Transit Budget: $29.9 millionRequired from dedicated revenue

source: $18.3 million

Federal & Other Funds leveraged: $11.6m per year

  

Proposal C: Broad “rider-of-

choice” appeal1. Decrease wait times from 75 to 15 minutes.2. Increase service from 19 to 39 routes.3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 98.4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system.5. Overhaul bus stops (shelters/benches).6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones.7. New signage with route and time info.8. Dedicated revenue source for transit.9. Bus Rapid Transit on Florida.10. Start-up for Street Car downtown to LSU.11. SIX New Express Service Lines for Florida Blvd, Airline Hwy, Scenic Hwy (serving Southern Univ), Plank Rd. (serving Airport), Acadian Thruway (serving BRCC) and O’Neal Lane.12. New Limited Stop Routes for Zachary/Baker, Denham Springs & Highland Rd.   

Preliminary Estimate OnlyTotal Transit Budget: $55.4 million

Required from dedicated revenue source: $38.7millionFed & other funds leveraged: $16.7m

 

Proposal C: Broad “rider-of-

choice” appeal1. Decrease wait times from 75 to 15 minutes.2. Increase service from 19 to 39 routes.3. Increase peak-hour buses from 32 to 98.4. Build 3 new transit hubs to replace “spoke” system with “grid” system.5. Overhaul bus stops (shelters/benches).6. Add tracking to fleet, with exact arrival times accessible on cell phones.7. New signage with route and time info.8. Dedicated revenue source for transit.9. Bus Rapid Transit on Florida.10. Start-up for Street Car downtown to LSU.11. SIX New Express Service Lines for Florida Blvd, Airline Hwy, Scenic Hwy (serving Southern Univ), Plank Rd. (serving Airport), Acadian Thruway (serving BRCC) and O’Neal Lane.12. New Limited Stop Routes for Zachary/Baker, Denham Springs & Highland Rd.   

Preliminary Estimate OnlyTotal Transit Budget: $55.4 million

Required from dedicated revenue source: $38.7millionFed & other funds leveraged: $16.7m

 

BUS RAPID TRANSIT Double click

image for video

Proposal D:

No Reform1. No dedicated revenue source or additional funding for transit.2. Current or declining level of service: • 75 minute wait times• 2hr 20min average trip time• Current state of stops,

signage and amenities.• Decrease routes from 19 to

17.• No weekend service.• Fare increases.• Reduction in service area by

50%.• Reduce peak buses from 32

to 26.  

Total Transit Budget: $12 mAdditional revenue: $0

Additional Federal & other funds leveraged: $0m

It’s our choice…

PROPOSAL A

Basic Reform.

Total Budget: $25 million

Dedicated revenue: $15

million 

PROPOSAL B

Ridership Expansion

PROPOSAL C

Broad “Rider-of-choice”

Appeal

PROPOSAL D

No Reform

Total Budget: $29.9 million

Dedicated revenue: $18.3

million 

Total Budget: $55.4 million

Dedicated revenue:

$38.7million 

Total Budget: $12 m

Dedicated revenue: $0.

 

Transit Meeting: May 2nd