MINUTES OF THE February 14, 2018 MEETING
Harbor Transit Operations Center
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The meeting was called to order at 3:00 pm
Members present: Roger White, Chairperson
Warren Roosen, North Ottawa Council on Aging Represenative
Jon Toppen, Member at Large
Ray Harz, Member at Large
Chrysteen Moelter-Gray, Member at Large
Jeffrey Smith, Member at Large
Members absent: Carrie Uthe, Spring Lake Township
Marion McDonald, Spring Lake Township
Norman Cunningham, Member at Large
Citizens present: None
Harbor Transit Staff: Tiffany Bowman, Director
Anthony Dionise, Operations Manager
Shelly Converse, Customer Care/Compliance Manager
Moved by Roger White and supported by Jon Toppen, to approve the minutes of November 15, 2017. Motion carried.
General Business/Call to Audience
None
Committee Member Input on Customer Service
Roger asked the Committee if they had any input on customer service.
*Jon Toppen questioned if we were an hour late with pickups at West Michigan Academy on a daily basis. Shelly Converse explained that we have two different timed pick up’s there. The first pick up is at 3:15 pm and the second is at 4:15 pm. This would explain the hour difference.
*Chrysteen had questions in regards to the Momentum Center. She wondered if we could help transport outings for patrons at the center. She was told as long as there was availability of buses, drivers and times we could. She also wondered what the “green vouchers” are for when passengers ride. A driver asked a Momentum Center passenger for a voucher instead of their bus pass. A voucher is a billed ride that the Center gets billed directly for, saving the passenger from using their bus pass. She also wondered if drivers can help passengers with loading and unloading of bikes on vehicles. Tiffany told her that this is a “Reasonable Accommodation” and the drivers will load the bikes for the passengers. She also had an address question for passenger pick up. The passenger lives outside of our service area and wondered if we could make an exception and transport her. Tiffany would look into the address and get back with her on a decision.
Adoption of FY2019 Vehicle Accessibility Plan
Each member received a copy of the FY2019 Vehicle Accessibility Plan for review. The Plan is an annual document, mandated by the Michigan Department of Transportation that is to be attached to the FY2019 Application for funding. It reports changes in fares, territories, hours of service, committee members, and fleet numbers and must give each committee member the opportunity to comment, and those comments must be recorded into the minutes, and then signed by the committee chairperson. Tiffany made note that the Agency made no changes in the categories of fare increases, square miles for service area, or hours of operations.
Comments on the FY2019 Vehicle Accessibility Plan by Advisory Members-
*Roger asked that all members check the member list for accuracy.
*Warren Roosen asked to have him be removed from the disability category, he should be put into the 65 years or older category.
*Jeffrey Smith asked to have his name spelled correctly, Jeffrey not Jeffery.
*Chrysteen Moelter-Gray declared she should be put into the 65 years or older category.
*Every other member present was asked if they had comments or questions. All declined.
Motion made by Roger White, supported by Jon Toppen, that the Harbor Transit Local Advisory Committee approve the Harbor Transit Multi-Modal Transportation System’s FY2019 Vehicle Accessibility Plan. Motion carried unanimously.
Ridership
Harbor Transit transported over 253,000 passengers in the year 2017. Shelly Converse gave kudos to all the drivers, dispatchers and mechanics for this accomplishment. It was an extremely busy year, but with a great staff this feat was made possible.
Jeff asked if we have spare buses and how many buses are on the road during peak periods. We do not have spare buses at this time, but Tiffany explained we have requested (6) new buses from a grant request of $520,000. Eight of our vehicles are past the useful life according to FTA. Jon then wondered if more buses would mean more staffing. Tiffany stated that we have 71 drivers at this time, but we are continually hiring drivers. The need for more staffing is unknown at this time.
Directors Report:
Tiffany thanked the Committee for approving the FY2019 Vehicle Accessibility Plan. She touched briefly on the budget for the upcoming year. The total budget comes in at just under 4 million. We will be requesting (7) new buses and (2) new trolleys. The trolleys are ten years old and provide numerous rides during our summer months.
She informed the Committee that the Triennial Review will be on April 27thand 28thof 2018. FTA will spend two days reviewing our financials and operations from the prior three years.
Also on the table for discussion was our Q-Straint training platform. This training tool allows Harbor Transit the ability to train new and seasoned drivers in the proper procedures for tie-downs on vehicles. Warren questioned if tie-downs were difficult and he was informed, not if they are done correctly.
The members took a tour of the Harbor Transit facility upon adjournment of the meeting.
The next Local Advisory meeting will be held on
Wednesday, May 16, 2018 at the Grand Haven Memorial Airport.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 3:36 pm
Respectfully submitted,
Shelly Converse – Customer Care/Compliance Manager