Laserfiche WebLink
in recovery, LTD proposed to increase service by two percent and to continue to add service if permitted by <br />economic conditions. <br /> <br />Mr. Pangborn shared information about LTD’s transportation demand management programs and projects, <br />which included group pass programs, Commuter Solutions, RideSource, employer outreach, Park and Ride, <br />and the Diamond Express, which served Oakridge and Westfir. <br /> <br />Mr. Pangborn compared LTD’s operating characteristics with those of selected transit providers with fixed <br />route systems, noting the data indicated that LTD’s performance was better than average in terms of cost <br />and much better than average in terms of ridership. <br /> <br />Responding to a question from Mr. Papé, Mr. Pangborn clarified that the comparisons did not include <br />capital expenditures. Capital expenditures for transit agencies could vary wildly from year to year, <br />depending on the projects and programs being funded. In response to a follow-up question from Mr. Papé, <br />Mr. Pangborn said that as a public agency, LTD did not depreciate its assets. <br /> <br />Mr. Pangborn invited other questions. <br /> <br />Ms. Ortiz determined from Mr. Pangborn that the Betsy grant was a credit that came through from the State <br />of Oregon, and did not affect the transportation reimbursement the school districts received from the State <br />school funding formula. They were separate programs. Mr. Pangborn noted that the 4J School District <br />started a program through which it sold bus passes to high school and middle school students living near <br />LTD bus lines and reduced its transportation service costs. <br /> <br />Mayor Piercy asked if LTD had a way of knowing what schools took the greatest advantage of the bus pass <br />programs. Mr. Pangborn said that LTD counted people getting on and off the bus and could compare <br />utilization at stops near schools when school was in and out of session. He said that LTD knew there was <br />high student use of the passes to travel to and from school, but he acknowledged that LTD lacked <br />information about whether students used passes at other times to reach other destinations. He noted that the <br />State Department of Energy was pleased by the statistics LTD shared with it in regard to the student <br />programs. Mayor Piercy questioned if LTD could benefit from the experience of schools having greater <br />success with the programs. Mr. Pangborn said that LTD began its effort with the schools with the best bus <br />service and worked with those schools to promote the programs to students. He noted that this was the first <br />full year of the program and he anticipated that LTD would learn from its experience and increase use. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly found the statistics provided by LTD to be a testament to the good work the district did. When he <br />moved to Eugene he had been struck by the size of the bus network compared to the size of the city. He <br />believed ridership statistics showed increased demand, and he believed there could be a quantum leap in <br />demand if there was a higher level of service. He said that people who did not have to use the bus were <br />discouraged from using it when routes were not nearby or did not travel at a frequency that encouraged use. <br />He thought the cost of a fare was less of a consideration for such riders. Mr. Pangborn agreed. Mr. Kelly <br />supported the payroll tax that currently underwrote the system but suggested that further discussion was <br />needed about how to broaden the revenue base to increase service levels. He thought that discussion could <br />appropriately occur at the Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC) as that group weighed transportation <br />priorities around the region. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council June 12, 2006 Page 2 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br />