DRPT Update SFAC Transportation Subcommittee January 27, 2021

Jennifer Mitchell, Director Department of Rail and Public Transportation Transforming Rail in Initiative Paradigm Shift for Rail in VA • VA will own active railroad tracks and railroad ROW, and the new Long Bridge • Construct and maintain a growing rail network with regional benefits • Innovative public/private partnership with VA, Class I Railroad (CSX), , VRE All Tracks Lead to Long Bridge

3 Long Bridge Expansion Project • Estimated $1.9B project covering 1.5 mi corridor: • 2-track bridge over • 4th track into Union Station • 5 additional bridges over GW Parkway, I-395, 1th Street, Washington Channel and Ohio Drive • VA will own the passenger train bridge and tracks

4 Program Service

• Provides Virginia with control and guaranteed VRE / Amtrak service • Double state-supported Amtrak, with nearly hourly service from DC to Richmond • Additional train to Norfolk with mid- day arrival/departure • New round-trip to Newport News • Increase VRE service by 75% along the • Allows future ability to increase Roanoke Amtrak service and VRE Manassas Line

5 Project Benefits

• Nearly $3B in direct construction impacts to Virginia • Over $200M/year by 2040 to Virginia from additional O&M expenditures • Additional $6B/year to the DC Region from rail commuters by 2040 • Over $50M in reduced employee turnover costs for employers in the DC Region by 2040 • $17M in time savings for rail users and between $24-$59M for road Source: Stephen S. Fuller Institute, users annually by 2040

6 Western Rail Initiative

• Governor’s Budget includes $50M GF • CTB requested $50M in SMART SCALE funding • Second daily round trip Amtrak service would stop at Roanoke, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Culpeper, Manassas, Burke and Alexandria • Extension of the existing and new second trains to the NRV

• Improved freight and passenger rail reliability

Source Map: NRV MPO

7 Western Rail Initiative

• Recommended in 2018 Statewide Rail Plan • Amtrak service along the US-29/I-81 corridor has been very successful to-date with ridership increasing 77% from its inception in 2009 to 2019 • Current Roanoke train is the only Amtrak service in VA that covers 100% of its operating costs through ticket revenue

• NRV has strong demographics with a population over 180,000, including more than 40,000 university students

• DRPT ridership forecasts indicate healthy demand • ~80,000 new passenger trips expected in the first year • ~90,000 new passenger trips by 2030 8 Benefits Of Transit

9 COVID-19 Impact to Transit

• Prior to COVID-19, FY20 transit ridership was growing at 2.5% • WMATA ridership had increase 4.6 percent • Decrease started in March 2020

• CTB approved $11M in supplemental operating assistance • Equivalent to one month of statewide transit agency operating expenses • Allocated on a proportional basis to the transit agencies

• DRPT distributed 10,000 face coverings statewide to transit agencies with fewer than 40 employees.

• Larger transit agencies received shipments directly from USDOT

10 Transit Agencies Response

Heightening Sanitation & Limiting Interactions Tailoring Operations Precautions • 61% of public transit • Spaced out/reduced • 30 agencies reduced, agencies suspended fare operations to plan for enhanced, or suspended collection thorough intermediate their services to most cleaning appropriately meet the • 15 transit agencies changing needs of their enacted rear door • Created local riders- prioritized routes boarding only policies partnerships to attain that serve medical additional sanitizer and facilities, employment centers, and core needs • 100% of operating transit cleaning products agencies enacted social distancing policies- • Provided on-vehicle hand • Limited transit to limiting vehicle capacity sanitizer dispensers essential trips only to 10 or less patrons • Compensated low vehicle capacity with additional buses

11 FY21 Transit Operating Assistance

• Adjustment to the formula with final sizing metrics • Increased funding level: • +$6M over FY20 budget • New year of performance data (FY19) • Changes in individual agency performance relative to statewide trends • Passenger Miles Traveled data now collected directly from 16 agencies • 25 agencies are not required to report this data to FTA . Represent less than 10% of operating assistance distributed

4/9/2019 12 FY21 Transit Operating Assistance What was the result? • 32 agencies had an increase over FY20 funding • 8 agencies had a reduction: • Six rural agencies and two urban agencies • Largest reduction: Pulaski Transit (27%) . Significant loss of ridership due to change in service • Reductions of >1% . Fairfax County . PRTC . Bay Aging . Greensville County • In FY22, DRPT will reuse FY21 performance data due to COVID-19

4/9/2019 13 WMATA Capital Fund

• Enacted by the 2018 General Assembly • Provide $154.5M annually for WMATA’s capital needs • Revenues collected from a variety of state/regional taxes • VA’s proportional share of a regional $500M need

• Reduction in funding by VA will lead to a proportional reduction from MD and DC

FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26 FY27 $154.5* $132.1 $135.1 $135.7 $136.5 $137.3 $138.0

* CTB used unobligated bonds of $17.6M to cover deficit

14 WMATA Capital Fund – Fund Sources

• Several sources are fixed annual amounts – Regional Fuels, Recordation, and NVTA Local

• Main source of shortfall is decline in hotel usage resulting from pandemic

Source Budget FY22 Shortfall % Regional Fuels Tax $22.2 $22.2 - - Grantor’s Tax 28.6 28.3 (0.3) -1.0% Transient Occupancy Tax 45.6 24.6 (21.0) -46.0% Vehicle Rental Tax 11.0 9.9 (1.1) -10.0% Recordation Tax 20.0 20.0 - - NVTA Local Share 27.1 27.1 - - Total $154.5 $132.1 ($22.4) -14.5%

15 Transit Ridership Incentive Program

• $25M annually, including at least $5M to operating cost assistance to reduce congestion in urban areas.

16 Regional Connectivity

17 Zero-Fare and Low-Income Programs

18 TRIP Program - Request for Ideas

• Priority is to ensure the program is representative of needs Open comment period • RFI is a key component of RFI the outreach process for creation of TRIP policy Focus • Other outreach: Group/ Task Group • Open comment period on draft guidelines • Focus group/working group • DRPT will present materials to CTB in Spring 2021 Final Application Materials • Mid-2021 application period

19 Summary of Responses

• 12 responding agencies • 23 proposed ideas • 12 regional connectivity projects • 11 zero-fare/low-income projects

• City of Alexandria/ DASH • Bluefield • Charlottesville (CAT) • Fairfax County • Hampton Roads • City of Lynchburg • New River Valley MPO • PRTC/OmniRide • City of Richmond • Roanoke-RIDE solutions • Roanoke- Valley • Suffolk

20 COVID-19 Impact on TRIP

• Legislation provides the following parameters:

• Regional Connectivity: At least 75 percent

• Zero Fare/Low Income: Up to 25 percent

• At least $5M to projects that reduce congestion

• Current Need:

• Fewer individuals commuting due to increased telework

• More transit agencies providing zero-fare service

• Delegate McQuinn’s proposed amendment:

• The Commonwealth Transportation Board shall waive the limitation on Transit Ridership Improvement Program, pursuant to § 33.2- 1526.3 D, Code of Virginia, to utilize more funding for transit equity to support fare reduction or elimination efforts due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 21 DRPT Update SFAC Transportation Subcommittee January 27, 2021

Jennifer Mitchell, Director Department of Rail and Public Transportation