FTA associate administrator attends SURTC steering committee meeting at NDSU

Economics of transit systems in rural areas, affordable insurance, coordination among systems and agencies, and funding rules that make sense for small communities were some of the concerns voiced by members of the SURTC steering committee during the group's annual meeting Sept. 24 at NDSU.

On hand for the meeting were committee members Tony Kouneski, American Public Transportation Association; Chris Zeilinger, Community Transportation Association of America; Bruce Fuchs, North Dakota Department of Transportation; Julia Bommelman, Metropolitan Area Transit, Fargo; Peggy Morris, Dakota Transit Association; Bruce Lindholm, South Dakota Department of Transportation; Lyn Hellegard, Montana Transit Association; Rich Douglas, Wyoming Department of Transportation; Lori Van Beek, Moorhead, Minn., Transit; and Keven Anderson, Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Opening the session was David Sprynczynatyk, director of the North Dakota DOT. He commented on the serious challenges facing mobility. The biggest challenges, he said, are not knowing what will happen in the next 10 to 20 years, and how to put the best transit system in place. There is a need for more rural transit, he said, including providing service to an aging population, many of whom want to stay in their home towns in rural areas. The state has a good system, with 36 transit systems in place, but needs to do more, he said. Local authorities need help to efficiently use available resources to serve people in their jurisdictions. He cited SURTC as a resource, providing professionals and students offering expertise in helping systems serve neighboring counties by overcoming jurisdiction barriers.

UGPTI director Gene Griffin pointed out that mobility is essential to quality of life but it does not always receive a high level of public attention. Public transportation is becoming recognized as a vital part of providing mobility to citizens, he said.

An outlook from the federal government perspective was presented by Barbara Sisson, associate administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. She said that proposed reauthorization legislation offers transit systems the opportunity to enhance coordination among local, state, federal and other agencies working with transportation issues. Pr0posed legislation also offers increased funding for rural transit, with the ability to obtain funds to start new transit systems, increase planning, and encourage private sector participation in public transportation. Incentive programs for transit systems should provide encouragement for services beyond those required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Tony Kouneski of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) pointed out that his group is an advocacy organization representing transportation interests in Washington. APTA has an active program for small urban and rural transit operators, seeking increased funding and a means to replace vehicles. Its strategic plan for small operators is to provide more resources and technical supports, develop programs to grow ridership, and help small operators build capabilities.

Chris Zeilinger of the Community Transportation Association of America listed some of the issues facing transit systems including working across jurisdictional boundaries, security and safety plans that make sense in rural areas, vehicle design, and appropriate training and professional development, especially in light of the growing number of young people using transit in communities.

Jill Hough presented an overview of SURTC projects, including studies on transportation of the disadvantaged; campus transit studies involving NDSU, Minnesota State University-Moorhead and Concordia College; and analysis of census data to show demo-graphics related to transit planning. SURTC is involved in North Dakota's Statewide Mobility Plan, collecting information on transit services, creating a transit Website, and identifying potential application of ITS.

Hough described projects underway, including work on the North Dakota statewide mobility plan, demographic analysis, non-profit organizations in public transportation, transit best practices manual, coordinated transportation, the James River Transit study, and an information technology tool kit for transit providers, and also reported on education and training efforts.

Steering committee members shared information from their localities and discussed mutual concerns that SURTC might be able to address. Coordination and cooperation among transit systems, including crossing jurisdictional lines, was one major topic. Bruce Lindholm, of the South Dakota Department of Transportation, observed that it is easier to achieve coordination in small towns than in larger ones, because small communities have more economic incentive. Julia Bommelman of MAT-Fargo and Lori Van Beek of Moorhead Transit said the two cities work closely together and are looking at further integration in areas like ride passes and purchasing equipment. Rich Douglas of the Wyoming DOT told about an effort involving communities in the Bighorn Basin to establish regional transit to provide intercity bus service. Lyn Hellegaard of the Montana Transit Association said coordination is working in Montana, using software to locate rides on other systems, including crossing county lines and cooperation with Native American reservations.

SURTC Steering Committee attendees (left to right): Lyn Hellegaard, Tony Kouneski, Barbara Sisson, Gene Griffin, Julia Bommelman, David Sprynczynatyk, Lori Van Beek, Gary Hegland, Bruce Lindholm, Peggy Morris, Chris Zeilinger, Rich Douglas, Del Peterson, Jill Hough, Keven Anderson, Bruce Fuchs.

Changes in ridership patterns were noted, with the number of youth using transit increasing while use by the elderly is declining. SURTC surveys have shown that the elderly and disadvantaged prefer riding with friends or relatives to using transit.

Need for driver education and training was noted by committee members. Peggy Morris of the Dakota Transit Association said that driver training is a major concern in her rural area, and that drivers may know how to drive but not how to deal with people.

Bruce Fuchs of the North Dakota DOT raised the topic of a need for more flexibility in federal funding. Programs that require a 50-50 match with the transit system to operate are not realistic in small towns where money to meet the match is just not available, he said. Also, some federal funding programs have reporting requirements so extensive that it is virtually impossible for small organizations to comply with them. Barbara Sisson responded that she needed a "tutorial" on how different types of funds can be used and that she understands that "one size does not fit all." Chris Zeilinger observed that it is harder to make a case for transit funding in rural areas, but that these areas need transit services to retain people who need them, like the elderly, and preserve the community. It is cheaper for society to keep these rural people in their homes and provide transportation rather than to pay for them to be in nursing homes, he said.

Rapidly increasing insurance costs for transit systems was cited as a major problem by Keven Anderson of the Minnesota DOT. He said one system in the state had a 100 percent premium increase; many systems are seeing increases of 50 to 75 percent. Other committee members agreed that insurance is a major issue, with fewer providers willing to insure transit systems.

Other topics suggested for future attention by SURTC included revenue sources, driver safety training, multi-state procurement, transit economics for small systems, development of economical and easy-to-use scheduling software, and ITS integration into rural transit. Meeting minutes are available at www.surtc.org.