SMALL OPERATIONS & METRO PRINCIPLES

APTA LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE 3

Here in the third installment of the position papers we will be forwarding from the APTA legislative committee meeting last week in Washington D.C. are the Small Operations Legislative Proposals AND the Metropolitan Rail Discussion Groups ("Old rail" cities) Guiding Principles.

Pictured: DC Metro Train (pictures by T.D.)

BECAUSE OF THE LENGTH OF SOME OF THESE MATERIALS WE ARE SENDING SEVERAL EMAILS AND NOT JUST ALL ITEMS IN ONE.

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APT A Small Operations Legislative Proposals - 10/19/07

The APTA Small Operations Steering Committee is proposing that the following are the key priorities for APTA's Small Transit Operators as we proceed forward with proposals for reauthorization.

1. Aging bus replacement program - Special funds designated for transit systems in areas fewer than 1 million in population and for buses having reached 125% of their useful life. The amount is to be determined based upon accurate survey of bus fleets in these population area based upon the APT A database or NTD Data.

2. Provide up to 100% funding for alternative fuel buses that are purchased by Transit properties - Based upon local considerations of a transit system, funding for buses may be requested at a 100% ratio if they are purchased as alternative fuel powered buses.

3. Charter regulations should allow flexibility for certain trips - Provide legislative guidance to the Federal Transit Administration to enable transit operators to perform certain community based trips.

4. Transit Operators to be included in planning process in every state Currently this applies only to new Metropolitan Planning Organizations. Transit operators in every small urban area must be at the policy table where transportation funds are involved.

5. Increase funding for rural areas - SAFETEA-LU included such a provision.

There are still needs in rural areas that need to be met.

6. Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) and New Freedom funds should not be distributed as a formula set aside - This program has not been successful in getting needs met. Transit systems should be able to access those funds as part of their larger formula distribution under the FTA Section 5307 program without burdened guidance and programming.

7. Bus Rapid Transit Projects (BRT) must be eligible for new starts funding BRT projects must be eligible for fixed guide way funding whether it is a New Starts or Small Starts funding eligible program.

8. Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funds must be distributed for the greatest effect - Transit projects tend to have a greater air quality benefit than other eligible projects. Find mechanism to fund transit projects at higher levels than under previous reauthorizations.

9. Fixed guide way funds must be provided equitably to all projects - Fixed guide way modernization funds must be made available equitably to systems operating in population areas above and below 200,000 in population if they are a operating a fixed guide way system. There should not be a threshold.

10. Create a simplified rating process for all small starts - Currently only the Very Small Starts (VSS) program has a streamlined simplified rating process. Congress intended to have all Small Starts projects streamlined with a simpler rating process.

11. Tax credit for alternative fuel vehicles - The current $O.50/gge tax credit must be continued. Vehicles used by transit systems including staff and other agency vehicles must be eligible for the tax credit.

12. Transit systems going over 200,000 in population but having less than 100 buses in peak operation should be allowed flexibility to continue using capital funds for operating purposes.

The Small Operations Steering Committee are also monitoring or advocating for the following legislative initiatives.

1. Need to insure that funding for security is also made available to small systems.

2. Medicaid reimbursement should be available to transit operators.

D.C. BUS powered by natural gas

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Metropolitan Rail Discussion Group

Guiding Principles

� Federal transportation investments should help the nation achieve its goals to be more competitive in the global economy while addressing important environmental issues like global climate change.

� Investments in public transportation pay significant dividends in addressing these policy drivers. However, capacity on the nation's critical public transportation systems is falling behind growing demand, stifling economic growth.

� Additional federal investments are required to both modernize as well as expand capacity of our nation's public transportation systems.

� Major metropolitan areas are the economic engines ofthe nation, due in large part to the significant past investments made in their rail transit systems and the high utilization of those systems. Major metropolitan areas' transit systems ...

� share of overall transit ridership has been increasing from 51 % of national trips in 1996 to 58% in 2005 representing more than 5.6 million rides,

� have the highest concentration of transit ridership - 107 trips per person -compared to 15 for the rest of the country,

� get 4.2 trips per vehicle revenue mile, compared to 2.4 trips nationally,

� provide 713% more trips per person than the rest of the country and get 315% more trips per vehicle revenue mile than the rest of the country.

� However, over the past fifteen years and more, Federal transit funding has been tilting away from the major metropolitan areas with rail systems, where transit use is intensive, with such major metropolitan transit systems providing 58% of transit trips nationally, but only receiving 47% of federal transit funding .

� The major metropolitan areas where transit is most prevalent provide the greatest opportunity for "bang for the buck" for Federal investment on both competitiveness and environmental issues .

� Therefore, federal transit funding provided to major metropolitan areas with rail systems should grow to support the increased demand placed on these systems.

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R.E. "Tuck" Duncan, Executive Director,

Kansas Public Transit Association

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