Training & Outreach
How to Develop a Business Plan for Your Small Transit System

Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2005
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. (Central Time)

Are your days filled with plenty of issues demanding your immediate attention? Is long term to you the end of the month? Perhaps on the way home or while you're away at a meeting you take time to reflect upon the future direction of your transportation operation over the next few years. Some of the questions you ponder are:

• Can I afford to keep my buses running next year?
• How can I add service to meet needs I know are there?
• Where will I get the money to replace my vehicles?
• How many vehicles will I need?
• Do I have the right staffing arrangement?
• Am I properly organized to meet all of my system's obligations?
• How do I set priorities for capital expenditures or service changes?

Purpose of Workshop

Assist you in answering these questions by providing the information necessary to prepare a business plan for your operation. A business plan is no more than a systematic analysis of your existing system, your customers, your services, facilities, management, and governance structure combined with an assessment of your future service and management options. In addition to describing future options, a business plan includes ridership, revenue, and expense estimates for the next 3-5 years along with a capital budget for vehicle, equipment, and facilities capital needs.

This one-day workshop presents:

• Outlines and resources to help you develop your own plan or prepare an RFP for someone else to prepare your plan.
• You will learn about the type of information you need to assemble a plan, how to clarify your organization's goals and priorities, and then how to construct a three-year operating and capital budget projection.
• A case study will be used to illustrate the planning process and time will be allotted for questions and discussion.

Instructor

Dr. James H. Miller, faculty affiliate of the Small Urban & Rural Transit Center was the instructor for this workshop. Dr. Miller will be assisted by Dustin Ulmer, graduate research assistant.