North County Transit

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT:
North County Transit
MEETING DATE:
September 5, 2012
STAFF CONTACT:
Steve VanDenburgh, Peter Imhof
AGENDA ITEM: 4
RECOMMENDATION:
A. Receive an update on transferring operation of Clean Air Express to Lompoc and
direct staff to prepare a Memorandum of Understanding for consideration by the
committee and the board in October.
B. Recommend the board approve a revised Clean Air Express Memorandum of
Understanding and request the City of Santa Maria approve an amendment
extending the termination date to November 22nd, 2012.
C. Receive an update on amendment to the Memorandum of Understanding for the
Breeze Service to Provide Indemnification to SBCAG.
D. Receive an update on the Memorandum of Understanding to initiate new Breeze
Intercity Service between the Santa Ynez Valley, Los Alamos, and Santa Maria.
E. Receive an update on the initiation of the North County Transit Plan Update.
DISCUSSION:
A. Transfer of Clean Air Express to Lompoc Administration
On August 14 SBCAG received a letter from the City of Santa Maria stating the city would cease
operating the Clean Air Express commuter bus service on October 28, 2012. SBCAG staff has
been in discussions with the City of Lompoc to determine the interest of having Lompoc assume
responsibility for administering the service after that date. In order for an estimate to be
completed, the 14 buses in the fleet were inspected to determine their condition and the likely
maintenance costs that a new operator would assume. This sizable feat was accomplished at
facilities owned by the County of Santa Barbara with the assistance of County mechanics. On
August 27 SBCAG received a formal cost estimate from the city, attached to the staff report.
The proposal looks promising. Lompoc and their contract operator Storer Coachways are
proposing to operate the service for a two year term, with two one year optional extensions, at a
rate of $114.83\revenue hour, adjusted annually by the CPI. The interim MOU the board
adopted last month pays Santa Maria up to $120\revenue hour until the service is transferred to
a new operator, Some items will warrant additional negotiation such as the administrative cost
the city of Lompoc will charge and new fees for using park and ride lots in Lompoc, but SBCAG
staff anticipates these negotiations will be completed in a timely manner so that an MOU
between SBCAG and Lompoc can be brought to the October North County subregional
committee meeting for recommendation to the full board. Attachment 2 to the staff report is a
schedule that SBCAG and Lompoc staff and Storer Coachways have developed for completing
the transition process. If the MOU is approved by the Lompoc City Council on October 16 and
the SBCAG board on October 18, Storer Coachways would need an additional month to hire
and train drivers and establish a maintenance facility for the service. SBCAG and Lompoc staff
and management at Storer Coachways believe that Monday, November 26 is a reasonable start
date for the new operator, assuming that Storer can take possession of the bus fleet on Friday,
November 23, the day after Thanksgiving. SBCAG staff will schedule a meeting with Santa
Maria staff and their contractor to review the proposed transition schedule.
B. Revised Clean Air Express MOU
At their July 19 meeting, the SBCAG board approved a revised MOU with the city of Santa
Maria for operating the Clean Air Express through June 30, 2013. Two original copies were
signed by the board chair and provided to Santa Maria for signature. SBCAG received one
copy of the MOU on August 14 signed by Mayor Lavagnino that had been modified from what
had been approved by the SBCAG board and signed by the SBCAG board chair. The primary
modification made by the city was to change the termination date of the MOU from June 30,
2013 to October 28, 2012.
Because the MOU returned by the city differs from the one approved by the board and provided
to the city, SBCAG’s counsel has advised that the board approve the version signed by the city
of Santa Maria and provided to SBCAG in order for the MOU to be valid.
It should be noted that the earliest Lompoc’s contractor could start operation of the service is
Monday, November 26 (assuming the MOU is approved by the Lompoc City Council on Oct 16th
and the SBCAG board on October 18th). This means that the City of Santa Maria would need to
be requested to continue operating for an additional 4 weeks (until November 22, Thanksgiving
Day) and that the MOU with Santa Maria be amended again to extend the termination date. At
the last committee meeting, Director Lavagnino indicated that the city would be open to
extending the service termination date as long as a good faith effort is being made to transition
the service to a new operator. The committee should recommend that the board request the
city approve an amendment to the MOU to extend the termination date.
C. Breeze MOU Revision to Indemnify SBCAG
The Breeze service operates between Santa Maria, Vandenberg Village and Lompoc. The
service was started in 2005 and is operated by the city of Santa Maria. The city of Lompoc and
County of Santa Barbara pay the net operating cost of the service using state transit funding
passed through by SBCAG, after deducting fare revenues. Under the terms of the MOU,
SBCAG’s role is to serve as the staff to the service’s Policy Committee and Technical
Committees and to serve as a member of the Technical Committee along with the three funding
partners and Vandenberg Air Force Base. Under the existing MOU, SBCAG is not currently
covered by the indemnification, hold harmless and insurance clauses of the MOU. Currently the
city of Santa Maria must indemnify, defend and hold Lompoc and the County harmless from all
costs, expenses, losses and liabilities and judgments arising of Santa Maria’s operation of the
service. This clause also requires that Santa Maria include Lompoc and the County as
additional insureds on the insurance policy for the service. By being left out of this section of
the MOU, SBCAG would have to defend itself during lawsuits and its financial resources would
be exposed by an accident insurance claim or court verdict. A recent lawsuit filed against the
service by a Breeze rider injured in an accident brought this issue to staff’s attention. SBCAG
was required to defend itself (fortunately at a minor expense). SBCAG’s attorney and insurance
company want the section of the MOU to be amended to include SBCAG.
With the cooperation of the County and two cities, we are hopeful that the amendment to the
MOU that has been under development and review by the four parties for four months will be
approved by the respective policy bodies shortly.
D. Breeze Service between Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria
In the North County, existing intercity transit services allow a person to travel between
Guadalupe\Santa Maria (Guadalupe Flyer), Santa Maria\Lompoc (Breeze), and Lompoc\Santa
Ynez Valley (Wine Country Express). But there is currently no intercity transit service
connecting the Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria. During the Unmet Transit Needs process in
recent years, persons desiring to travel on transit between Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria,
via Los Alamos, have requested that new service be added.
The North County subregional committee recommended to the SBCAG board that SBCAG
staff be authorized to submit state and federal grant applications to fund Santa Maria to
Santa Ynez Valley service. A grant application w as submitted for Federal Transit
Administration 5311(f) funding in cooperation w ith the city of Santa Maria last year, w ith
the city as the proposed operator. A grant for $102,500 in funding for one year of pilot
service, for FY 12/13, w as aw arded for the service in September 2011. The net costs of
operating the service w ould be paid by Solvang, Buellt on, the County and Lompoc using
Measure A Local Transportation Funding and state transit funding. SBCAG’ s role w ould be
to provide staff services to the services’ Technical and Policy Committees, to serve on the
Technical Committee and be an ex-officio member of the Policy Committee.
A memorandum of understanding has been under development for the past seven months
betw een Solvang, Buellton, t he County, Santa Maria and SBCAG. Originally planned to be
implemented on July 1, 2012, the service start date has been pushed back as the MOU
continues to be negotiated betw een the five parties. Many of the delays are related to the
long lead time for law yer review s and the differing perspective of each agency’ s law yer
about appropriate indemnification and insurance coverage for the partners. Some partner
agencies have also asked that there be monitoring of the net cost of t he service to be paid
by the partners and “ opt out” points if the net cost of the service is exceeding estimated
costs. The attorneys from some partner agencies also w anted assurances that if the
service w ere ever put out to bid to give another operator aside from Santa Maria a chance
to operate the service, that a party not bidding on the service, such as SBCAG, w ould
prepare the Request for Proposal so as t o ensure the integrity of the proposal process.
SBCAG staff is hopeful that the MOU review is nearing completion so that the new service could
be initiated by the end of the calendar year.
E. North County Transit Plan Update
As part of its 2012-2013 overall work program, SBCAG will update the North Santa Barbara
County Regional Transit Plan, using an $85,500 federal grant award. The first North County
Transit Plan was adopted in 2006. The plan update will study options for greater collaboration
and coordination between North County transit operators. It will also address opportunities to
enhance transit service in North County, especially with respect to intercity and interregional
transit. In the interim since the adoption of the original plan, Measure A was approved which
has eliminated the uncertainty regarding funding that stopped the 2006 plan short of proposing
new or different ways of delivering transit services. It was that funding uncertainty that caused
the board to adopt a policy to update the 2006 study once Measure D was renewed.
This plan update is timely in light of the present issues regarding operation of the Clean Air
Express transit service. Rather than the current ad hoc approach, the North County Transit
Plan update will propose a long-term, coordinated solution for operation of intercity and
interregional transit in the North County. An array of options would be considered in this
planning process including maintaining the status quo which delivers intercity and interregional
transit using agencies that “volunteer” to operate services under MOUs or the creation of a joint
powers authority that could consolidate operation of intercity and interregional transit service
under one organization dedicated to the task. Such consolidation could lead to better
coordination of transit service, greater efficiency through economies of scale, and a more
seamless ridership experience. It could also take pressure off of local transit operators juggling
multiple demands of local, intercity and interregional service.
Approximately 11 different transit services, and one pending service, presently operate or will
operate in northern Santa Barbara County, many involving multiple parties, and a spider’s web
of cooperative agreements, MOUs, and contracts:
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Breeze (Santa Maria, VAFB, Lompoc)
Breeze Pilot (S.Y. Valley, Los Alamos, Santa Maria)
City of Lompoc Transit (COLT), including the COLT Santa Barbara Shuttle
Clean Air Express (Lompoc\Santa Maria – Goleta\Santa Barbara)
Cuyama Transit (Cuyama – Santa Maria)
Guadalupe Flyer (Guadalupe – Santa Maria)
Guadalupe Shuttle
Los Alamos Shuttle (Los Alamos – Santa Maria)
San Luis Obispo Regional Transit Authority (SLORTA) Route 10
Santa Maria Area Transit (SMAT)
Santa Ynez Valley Transit (SYVT)
Wine Country Express (Lompoc, S.Y. Valley)
Ridership demands in the North County are changing, with a greater demand for intercity
service for commuters, students and families. The plan update would consider these changing
needs and set a course for the future provision of services.
As a first step in this process, SBCAG will issue a request for proposals (RFP) to consultants
interested in preparing the North County Transit Plan update and conduct the consultant hiring
process. An RFP will be drafted in September after consultation with local transit operators, and
the RFP would be issued in September or October. The plan update will also involve a public
process and outreach in coordination with North County transit operators to identify needs and
opportunities for service enhancement, efficiencies to be achieved through economies of scale,
redundant administrative functions, etc. An important group that will be part of the study and
vetting process will be the North County Executives, including the city managers and County
administrator. They have expressed an interest in the study and they will be able to provide
organizational management and financial experience during the development and evaluation of
transit service delivery options.
COMMITTEE REVIEW: None
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Lompoc Clean Air Express Proposal
2. Clean Air Express Transition Schedule
3. MOU As Revised by City of Santa Maria for Clean Air Express
Clean Air Express Transition Timeline
Date
August 21/22
Milestone
CAE vehicle inspections
August 27
Lompoc cost proposal received
August 31
Storer estimate for vehicle repair costs, including tires
September 5
NC Subregional update on transition plan, cost under COLT administration
September 7
Draft MOU
September 14
Final MOU, Lompoc deadline to docket for Oct. 2 Council meeting
September 24
Initiate transfer of customer service phone # to COLT
October 2
Lompoc Council reviews CAE MOU
October 3
NC Subregional recommends approval of CAE MOU
October 4
First communication to customers about contractor change, including notice
that current number of sales outlets may be reduced
October 16
Lompoc City Council approves MOU
October 18
SBCAG board approves MOU
Storer hires and trains drivers, signs leases for maintenance facilities and sets-up shop,
hires\relocates maintenance crews, etc.
Wednesday,
November 21
Last day of service provided by Santa Maria\First Transit.
Thursday,
November 22
Thanksgiving Day. Last day that Santa Maria is the operator of record,
though the service does not operate on this day.
Friday,
November 23
Day after Thanksgiving. Lompoc\Storer’s first day as operator, through
there is no service on this day. Vehicle transfer from Santa Maria\First
Transit to Lompoc\Storer at 8:00 a.m.
Monday,
November 26
First day of operation by Lompoc\Storer under new MOU.