Amador County Short Range Transit Development Plan

For Years 2014 through 2019

Final Plan

Prepared for the

Amador County Transportation Commission

Prepared by

LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

AMADOR COUNTY SHORT RANGE TRANSIT DEVELOPMENT PLAN, 2014

Final Plan

Prepared for

Amador County Transportation Commission 117 Valley View Way Sutter Creek, California 95685 209 • 267-2282

Prepared by

LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. 2690 Lake Forest Road, Suite C P.O. Box 5875 Tahoe City, California 96145 530 • 583-4053

June 19, 2014

LSC #137410

Chapter 8 Amended March 25, 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION PAGE

1 INTRODUCTION ...... 1

2 EXISTING CONDITIONS ...... 3 Amador County Background and Setting ...... 3 Existing Land Use ...... 3 Employment ...... 7 Historic and Current Population ...... 8

3 EXISTING TRANSPORTATION SERVICES ...... 21 Amador Transit ...... 21 Other Transportation Services in Amador County ...... 34

4 LAND USE AND DEMOGRAPHIC FORECASTS ...... 39 Long Range Plans and Forecasts ...... 39

5 TRANSIT NEEDS AND SURVEY RESULTS ...... 43

6 COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS ...... 59

7 AMADOR TRANSIT ALTERNATIVES ...... 71 Service Alternatives ...... 71 Capital Alternatives ...... 83 Alternatives ...... 84

8 TRANSIT DEVELOPMENT PLAN ...... 89 Service Plan ...... 89 Capital Plan ...... 93 Financial Plan ...... 94 Implementation Plan ...... 97

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 99

APPENDIX A: Amador Transit Survey Efforts

LIST OF TABLES

TABLE PAGE

1 Amador County Employment ...... 7 2 Major Employers in Amador County ...... 7 3 Amador County Population ...... 8

Amador County Short Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page i 4 Amador County Transit Dependent Population by Place ...... 9 5 Amador County 2010 Census Housing Data by Place ...... 15 6 Amador County Travel Mode to Work ...... 16 7 Amador County Commuter Flow by Community ...... 17 8 Amador County 2010 School Enrollment by Area ...... 18 9 Amador County Unified School District 2013 Enrollment ...... 19 10 Amador Transit Ridership by Month ...... 25 11 Amador Transit Ridership by Passenger Type ...... 26 12 Amador Transit Revenues ...... 27 13 Amador County Local Transportation Fund History ...... 28 14 Amador Transit Fiscal Year 2012-13 Expenses & Cost Allocation ...... 29 15 Annual Operating and Financial Characteristics by Route ...... 31 16 Amador Transit Fleet ...... 32 17 Existing Amador Transit Stop Facilities ...... 33 18 Amador County Population Forecast ...... 41 19 Most Common Locations ...... 46 20 Most Common Alighting Locations ...... 46 21 Senior Population in Amador County ...... 61 22 Amador Transit Benefit / Cost Analysis ...... 69 23 Amador Transit Service Alternatives ...... 73 24 Potential Limited Express Sacramento Service Schedule ...... 77 25 Potential Mid-day Sacramento Service ...... 79 26 Service Alternatives Performance Analysis ...... 81 27 AT Fleet Replacement Schedule – Revenue Vehicles ...... 83 28 Transit Agency Fare Comparison – Fixed Route Service ...... 85 29 Peer Sacramento Commuter ...... 86 30 Analysis of Fare Increase Alternatives ...... 87 31 Fare Alternatives Performance Analysis ...... 88 32 Amador County TDP – Estimated Operating Costs ...... 89 33 Amador County TDP – Estimated Annual Ridership ...... 90 34 Amador County TDP – Estimated Farebox Revenues...... 90 35 Amador County TDP – Capital Plan ...... 94 36 Amador County TDP – Financial Plan ...... 96

LIST OF FIGURES

FIGURE PAGE

1 Amador Site and Location Map ...... 4 2 Amador County Elderly Population Density ...... 11 3 Amador Low-Income Population Density ...... 12 4 Amador Zero-Vehicle Households Density ...... 13 5 Amador Mobility-Limited Population Density ...... 14

Amador County Short Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page ii LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. 6 Existing Amador County Transit Routes ...... 22 7 Jackson/Sutter Creek Shuttle ...... 23 8 Amador Transit Sacramento Express ...... 24 9 Amador Transit FY 2012-13 Ridership by Month ...... 26 10 Historical Transportation Development Act – LTF Revenues ...... 28 11 How did you get to the bus today? ...... 45 12 Trip Purpose ...... 47 13 How will you make return trip? ...... 47 14 How often do you ride the bus? ...... 48 15 How long have you been using the bus? ...... 48 16 If AT was not available, how would you have made trip? ...... 49 17 If Amador Transit was not in operation, would you be able to stay in your current home? ...... 49 18 Age of Respondents ...... 50 19 Respondent Employment Status ...... 50 20 Respondent Household Income ...... 51 21 Driver Courtesy ...... 52 22 On-Time Performance ...... 52 23 Areas Served ...... 52 24 Bus Comfort ...... 52 25 Cost of Bus Fares ...... 52 26 Bus Cleanliness ...... 52 27 Printed Information ...... 52 28 Telephone Information ...... 52 29 Bus Stops and Shelters ...... 53 30 Overall Transit Service ...... 53 31 What improvements would you like to see? ...... 53 32 GP Survey – What Community Do You Live In? ...... 54 33 GP Survey – Age ...... 54 34 GP Survey – Locations of Activities by Trip Purpose ...... 55 35 GP Survey – Trip Purpose by Location ...... 55 36 GP Survey – How often do you use Amador Transit? ...... 56 37 Reasons for not Using Amador Transit ...... 56 38 GP Survey – Out of County Transit Needs ...... 57 39 Without Amador Transit, would you be able to get to: ...... 57 40 Do you think public transit should be provided in Amador County? ...... 58 41 Amador Service Alternatives ...... 72 42 Service Alternatives Passengers per Hour ...... 82 43 Service Alternatives Subsidy per Trip ...... 82 44 Amador Transit Development Plan ...... 91

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Amador County Short Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page iv LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 1 Introduction

Transportation considerations play a key role in the quality of life provided by any community. Access to social and medical services, employment opportunities, educational resources and basic necessities are issues of universal concern, as they have a strong impact on the economy, ease of movement, and quality of life for residents of an area. In addition to providing mobility to residents without easy access to a private automobile, transit services can provide a wide range of economic development and environmental benefits.

The Amador County Transportation Commission (ACTC), aware of the importance of transportation issues, has retained LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc., to prepare a Five-Year Transit Development Plan for Amador County. This study provides an opportunity to develop plans that will tailor transit services to current and near-term future conditions in the study area.

This document presents and reviews the setting for transportation, including demographic factors, as well as the recent operating history of Amador Transit services. The document also contains the results of on- board passenger surveys conducted on the fixed routes as well as a general public survey regarding transportation patterns and needs. The findings of these analyses were used to guide the development of the Transit Development Plan (TDP), which encompass the evaluation of service alternatives, capital alternatives, fare alternatives, and ultimately a recommended Plan.

The overall study affords the leaders and transportation providers of the area an opportunity to take an in-depth look at the transit systems currently in place, identify the optimal manner in which transit can meet the public’s needs within this dynamic area, and carefully identify where transit resources should be devoted over the plan period. This TDP update was conducted in conjunction with the update of the Amador County Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Agency Transportation Plan.

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 2 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 2 Existing Conditions

AMADOR COUNTY BACKGROUND and SETTING

Amador County is in the heart of California’s Gold Country, bordered by Sacramento County and San Joaquin County to the west, El Dorado County to the north, Alpine County to the east, and Calaveras County to the south. The closest major cities are Sacramento and Stockton (each about 45 miles from Amador County). The major north-south road is State Route (SR) 49, and the major east-west road is SR 88. The County is approximately 595 square miles in size, stretches from the Sacramento Valley, through the foothills to the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Elevations range from 200 feet in the west to over 9,000 feet in the east, and there is a large diversity in climate and terrain.

EXISTING LAND USE

Amador County consists of five incorporated cities – Jackson, Amador City, Plymouth, Sutter Creek and Ione – as well as unincorporated communities such as Fiddletown, Pine Grove, and Pioneer. Figure 1 depicts Amador County and its communities. Development within the County is primarily concentrated in the Ione, Jackson, Martell, and Sutter Creek areas. The Jackson Rancheria Casino, located off of SR 88 east of Jackson, serves as a major activity and employment center for residents of the County and surrounding areas.

Major Transit Activity Centers

Community activity centers potentially generate transit ridership depending on the clientele served. Human service programs typically generate ridership from low income, elderly and/or disabled residents; shopping centers often generate ridership from all types of residents, but particularly elderly and low income passengers; schools and recreational facilities may generate transit ridership from the youth population. Below are lists of major community activity centers in Amador County which are potential transit ridership generators.

Retail Concentrations

The primary retail-shopping areas in Amador include Plymouth, Sutter Creek, Martell, Jackson, Ione Pine Grove, and Pioneer. Specifically:

 Downtown on Preston Street in Ione  K-Mart, Wal-Mart, and Amador Plaza Shopping Center on SR 88 in Martell  Along AR SR49 and in the historic downtown area of Jackson  Along Main Street and SR 49 in Plymouth  Downtown (Old Highway 49), Sutter Hill and Martell Business Park between SR 49, SR 88 and SR 104  Along SR 88 in Pine Grove and Pioneer

Activity Centers for Seniors, Persons with Disabilities, and Low-Income Persons

Social service and other centers that serve older adults, persons with disabilities and low income persons are generally located in Jackson and Sutter Creek and served by Amador Transit. These include:

Jackson

 Amador County Senior Center  Oak Manor Senior Retirement Home (near the Senior Center)

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 3

108 ¬ « Kirkwood Tuolumne Miles 1.5 0 3 6 9 12 88 ¬ « 4 ¬ « I Buckhorn Figure 1 26 Calaveras ¬ « Pioneer Red Red Corral 49 ¬ « El Dorado Volcano 88 ¬ « Pine Grove Pine Amador County Site and Location Map 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 ¬ « Jackson 104 ¬ « Fiddletown Amador Amador City Plymouth Martell 49 26 ¬ « ¬ « 88 ¬ « SutterCreek 124 ¬ « BuenaVista 12 ¬ « 50 Drytown £ ¤ CamancheNorth Shore Ione CamancheVillage 16 ¬ « 104 ¬ « Amador

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 4 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.  Amador Residential Care (assisted living near the Senior Center)  The Arc of Amador and Calaveras  Jackson Gardens Elder Care Home  AssistCare (assisted living)  Community Compass (developmental)  The Arc Whole Life Services  Amador – Tuolumne Community Action Agency  First 5 Amador

Sutter Creek

 Amador County Department of Social Services / Mental Health Services  WIC Program  Gold Quartz Inn Senior Retirement Home

Medical Facilities

Medical facilities within Amador County also tend to be concentrated in the Jackson area.

Jackson

 Sutter Amador Hospital  Kit Carson Nursing and Rehabilitation Center  Sutter Amador Pediatric  Sutter Amador Women’s Services  Sutter Amador Family Practice  MACT Clinic at the Jackson Rancheria  Amador Physical Therapy  Court Street Medical Complex  Sierra Wind Wellness and Recovery Center

Other Areas

 Sutter Amador Health, Plymouth  Sutter Amador Health Pioneer Center, Pioneer

Government

Governmental service offices, such as City Hall and court, are located throughout the County, and include:

 Jackson City Hall  Municipal Court and Superior Court, Jackson  Public Health Department, Sutter Creek  Sutter Creek City Hall  Amador City Hall  Amador County Offices, Jackson  Ione City Hall  Plymouth City Hall

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 5 Recreation & Tourism

Amador County has many recreational and tourism-related opportunities. Within the County there are numerous wineries, hiking opportunities, lakes for water sports / activities, the Kirkwood ski area, Indian gaming, and other popular tourist sites. The following is a list of the major recreation and tourism activity centers:

 Wineries / vineyards in Plymouth, Ione, and Sutter Creek  Jackson Rancheria Casino, Hotel and Conference Center, Jackson  Black Chasm Cavern, Pine Grove  Daffodil Hill, Volcano  Kirkwood Ski Area, Kirkwood  Lake Camanche  Lake Pardee Marina, Ione  Lake Amador  Lake Tabeau  Amador County Fairgrounds  Amador County Recreation Agency  Preston Castle, Ione

Education

There are a number of elementary, middle and high schools in the county. As shown in the list below, students from Pine Grove, Pioneer, and Plymouth must travel to other areas of the County for junior high and high school.

Jackson

 Argonaut High School  Jackson Elementary School  Jackson Junior High School

Sutter Creek

 Independence High School (alternative and adult education)  Amador High School  Sutter Creek Primary School  Sutter Creek Elementary

Ione

 Ione Elementary School  Ione Junior High School

Other Areas

 Pine Grove Elementary School, Pine Grove  Pioneer Elementary School, Pioneer  Plymouth Elementary School, Plymouth

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 6 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. EMPLOYMENT

Amador County has recorded only small increases in the civilian labor force over the past decade, from an average of 16,600 in 2002 to an average of 16,670 in 2012, with peaks as high as 17,830 in 2008 and 2009. However, like most of the nation, the county experienced increasing unemployment rates starting in 2008. The unemployment rate soared from 5.3 percent in 2007 to 12.4 percent in 2010, with an improvement in 2012 to 10.5 percent, as presented in Table 1.

TABLE 1: Amador County Employment

Amador County Unemployment Rates Year Labor Force 1 Amador County 1 State of California 2002 16,600 5.8% 6.7% 2003 16,510 6.2% 6.8% 2004 16,970 5.8% 6.2% 2005 17,230 5.6% 5.4% 2006 17,280 5.3% 4.9% 2007 17,730 5.8% 5.3% 2008 17,830 7.6% 7.2% 2009 17,830 11.7% 11.3% 2010 17,530 13.2% 12.4% 2011 17,050 12.8% 10.9% 2012 16,670 11.8% 10.5%

Note 1: Annual average Civilian Labor Force and unemployment rates. Source: California Employment Development Department, retrieval September 2013.

Major Employers

The largest employer in Amador County is the Jackson Rancheria Casino located in Jackson (Table 2). Other major employers include Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, and Preston Youth Correctional in Ione. None of these facilities are served by public transit. Other large employers such as hospitals, government offices and retail businesses are served by Amador Transit.

TABLE 2: Major Employers in Amador County

# of Served by Employer Employees Location Transit? Jackson Rancheria 1,000 - 5,000 Jackson N Mule Creek State Prison 500 - 999 Ione N Sutter Amador Hospital 250 - 499 Jackson Y County of Amador 100 - 249 Jackson Y Kit Carson Nursing and Rehab 100 - 249 Jackson Y Volcano Telephone 100 - 250 Pine Grove Y Wal-Mart 100 - 250 Jackson Y Safeway 100 - 250 Jackson Y Lowe's Home Improvement 100 - 250 Jackson Y Source: California Employment Development Department, 2013

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 7 HISTORIC AND CURRENT POPULATION

Table 3 presents the historical population growth for the county. As indicated, the population increased from 11,821 in 1970 to 35,400 in 2000 to an estimated 38,091 in 2010. The California Department of Finance estimates that the countywide population in 2012 decreased to 36,899. Of the total population in 2010, the US Census indicates that 4,315 were in correctional institutions (virtually all in Mule Creek State Prison near Ione). The 2010 population excluding prison inmates is approximately 33,776 according to the US Census. Between 1990 and 2000, Amador County’s population increased by 5,361, or 1.7 percent annually. The growth in Amador County from 2000 to 2010 was considerably less, growing by 0.7 percent per year. Over the last two years, population decreased by 1.6 percent annually.

TABLE 3: Amador County Population

Historical Population Countywide Annual Growth Year Population Rate 1970 11,821 -- 1980 19,314 5.0% 1990 30,039 4.5% 2000 35,400 1.7% 2010 38,091 0.7% 2012 1 36,899 -1.6%

2010 Non-Incarcerated Population by Jurisdiction Jurisdiction Population Percent of County Amador City 185 0.5% Ione 2 3,758 11.1% Jackson 2 4,558 13.5% Plymouth 1,005 3.0% Sutter Creek 2,501 7.4% Unincorporated 21,769 64.5% Amador County 2 33,776 100.0%

Note 1: California Department of Finance Preliminary July 1, 2012 estimate. Note 2: Not including individuals in Correctional Institutions. Source: US Census 2010 and prior.

Transit-Dependent Population

Nationwide, transit system ridership is drawn largely from various groups of persons who make up what is often called the “transit dependent” population. This category includes elderly persons, persons with disabilities, low-income persons, and members of households with no available vehicles. There is considerable overlap among these groups.

Table 4 presents the transit dependent population by community in Amador County from the 2010 U.S. Census, which includes elderly, disabled and low income persons, as well as households without access to a vehicle. As presented in the table, the countywide population in 2010 was 33,776 (per Census data, not including prison inmates). Not including incarcerated individuals, Jackson is the largest city in Amador County (4,558), followed by Ione (3,758) and Sutter Creek (2,501). Just under one-third of the population lives outside of communities in the County.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 8 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

5.1% Percent of of Percent Population Community Residents Mobility-Limited Mobility-Limited to 64 to (2000 Census Data) Census (2000 Age 16 ######## ######## ######## ####### 8.4% Percent of of Percent Community Community Households 1 2 more 3 or Households by Number of Vehicles of Number by Households ###### Mi. Zero per Sq.per Persons Persons Status 14.5% Percent of of Percent Population Community Persons Living Below Poverty ####### Mi. Total per Sq. Persons 11.8% Percent of Population Community Community Elderly Residents (ageElderly Residents 65+) Total ####### Area Land (sq.mi.) 70 1.50 28 24.3% 18.7 0 0.0% 0.0 0 0.0% 0 60 60 -- -- 80 3.69 29 17.4% 7.9 0 0.0% 0.0 0 0.0% 49 0 30 -- -- 114 2.34 26 9.2% 11.1 36 23.5% 15.4 36 31.0% 51 29 0 -- -- 126 4.64 55 23.4% 11.9 0 0.0% 0.0 0 0.0% 0 20 27 -- -- 108 0.31 25 13.5% 79.6 19 14.8% 60.5 0 0.0% 18 18 18 6 3.6% 218 1.62 29 6.8% 17.9 49 9.5% 30.2 0 0.0% 65 124 0 -- -- 757 5.33 25 15.8% 4.7 26 23.6% 4.9 3 7.1% 24 11 4 -- -- 344 5.45 92 10.9% 16.9 68 11.5% 12.5 30 10.9% 54 137 55 -- -- 480 2.31 134 13.7% 58.1 150 19.3% 65.0 0 0.0% 49 181 118 -- -- Units Housing Housing 13,680,081 282 115 235 185 429 158 847 167 979 1,005 493 0.94 155 15.4% 164.2 131 14.5% 138.8 20 5.6% 59 169 106 25 3.7% 2,501 1,367 2.59 460 18.4% 177.7 221 7.9% 85.4 57 9.3% 226 0 332 29 1.6% 2,219 1,140 6.97 550 24.8% 78.9 93 3.9% 13.3 0 0.0% 176 189 252 -- -- 1,094 600 4.32 362 33.1% 83.8 39 3.6% 9.0 0 0.0% 98 134 193 -- -- 3,7584,558 1,635 2,309 4.78 3.37 780 1,173 9.9% 25.2% 163.2 348.1 247 546 6.6% 12.1% 162.0 51.7 190 86 11.3% 7.2% 404 97 697 433 385 584 167 88 4.7% 4.1% 1,351 679 5.84 297 21.0% 50.8 104 6.2% 17.8 0 0.0% 149 514 244 -- -- 2,429 1,662 5.87 701 28.9% 119.4 264 9.7% 45.0 34 2.8% 268 472 420 -- -- Not In 11,464 5,850 532.71 2,904 25.3% 5.5 776 6.8% 1.5 137 2.5% 709 2,584 2,022 540 3.3% Facility Correctional Correctional 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 In In 93 62 Facility Correctional Correctional 282 115 235 185 429 158 847 167 1,005 2,501 7,9184,651 4,160 2,219 1,094 1,413 2,429 Total 11,464 38,091 4,315 33,776 18,032 594.58 7,825 20.5% 13.2 2,769 7.3% 4.7 593 4.3% 2,496 5,772 4,850 855 3.5% 36,096,954 Population Amador County State of California California of State Community Balance County of Volcano CDP Red Corral CDP Corral Red Sutter Creek Pioneer CDP Plymouth city Martell CDP CDP Pine Grove Fiddletown CDP Ione Jackson Kirkwood CDP Buena Vista CDP Camanche North Shore CDP 979 Camanche Village CDP Drytown CDP Buckhorn CDP Amador City TABLE 4: Amador 4: Transit Population Dependent County byPlace TABLE CDP = Census Data Place

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 9 There are an estimated 7,825 persons aged 65 or over residing in the study area (or 20.5 percent of the total population, compared to 18.5 percent a decade ago). This percentage is especially high (over 25 percent) in Buckhorn, Jackson and Pioneer, as well as the areas outside of communities in the County. Elderly population density is presented graphically in Figure 2.

The number of low-income persons, another likely market for transit services, is measured by the number of persons living below the poverty level. An estimated 2,769 people live below the poverty level within the study area, representing 8.2 percent of the total population (compared with 14.5 percent statewide). The percentage of those persons living below poverty status is highest in Kirkwood and Martell (each nearly 25 percent), though the overall populations in both locations is very small. In terms of the number of individuals living in poverty, Jackson has the highest number (546, which is 12.1 percent of the City’s population) followed by Buckhorn (264, or 9.7 percent of the area’s population) and Ione (247, or 6.6 percent of the City’s population). See Figure 3 for low-income population density details.

The number of households without access to an available vehicle is estimated at 593, as presented in the Table 4. This represents 3.3 percent of the total households in the area (compared with 7.8 percent statewide). A large proportion of households without vehicles available are located in Jackson (190, or 8.7 percent of households there). Martell is the community with the highest percentage of zero-vehicle households at 31.6, which represents just 36 households. This is presented graphically in Figure 4.

The Census Bureau defines “mobility limited” as having a health condition lasting more than six months that makes it difficult to go outside alone. No data is available from the 2010 census by place. In 2000, it was estimated that 855 mobility-limited persons between the ages of 16 and 64 resided in the study area, which comprised 3.5 percent of the County’s population. Statewide, the percent of persons who were reported as mobility-limited in this age range in 2000 was 5.1 percent. Jackson and Ione had the highest proportion of mobility-limited residents at 167 and 88, respectively. This data is shown in Figure 5.

Housing

The housing data from the 2010 US Census, shown in Table 5, reflects the tourist nature of Amador County. There are a total of 18,032 housing units in the County, and nearly 20 percent of them are vacant. Second home ownership is particularly prevalent in Kirkwood and Buckhorn, with 90 percent and 45 percent vacancies and high “occasional” use. Amador City, Volcano and Pioneer also have over 20 percent vacancy due to the prevalence of vacation homes, as shown in Table 5.

Means of Transportation to Work

Table 6 presents the means of transportation to work for employed Amador County residents according to the 2010 U.S. Census. Countywide, 82.3 percent of employed residents drove alone, while 8.1 percent carpooled (compared with 73.2 percent and 11.5 percent statewide). In addition, 4.9 percent worked at home, 2.4 percent walked, and 1.6 percent used other means of transportation. Only 0.7 percent used public transportation, but this is up from 0.3 percent a decade ago.

Commute Patterns

Commuting patterns within Amador County are presented in Table 7. As shown in the table, there are 4,296 employees who both work and live in Amador County. There are approximately 11,785 residents who work outside of the County, and approximately 6,045 employees who live outside of the County and commute in for work. In terms of specific work locations, Jackson is the single largest center of employment for Amador County residents, followed by Sacramento. The next largest centers for employment for Amador County residents are Ione, Stockton and Sutter Creek. The greatest number of employees commuting into Amador County, not including those that live in Amador County, travel from Stockton, Elk Grove and Sacramento.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 10 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. 108 ¬ « Kirkwood 50 t u 6-12 12-19 19-58 58-119 119-314 88 Elderly Population Density ¬ « 4 ¬ « Buckhorn Figure 2 Figure 26 ¬ « Pioneer Red Corral Persons Per Square Mile 49 ¬ « Amador County Elderly Population Density Population ElderlyAmador County Volcano 88 ¬ « Pine Grove 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 ¬ « Jackson 104 ¬ « Fiddletown Amador CityAmador Plymouth 193 ¬ « Martell 49 26 ¬ « ¬ « 88 ¬ « Sutter Creek 124 ¬ « Buena Vista Buena 12 ¬ « 50 Drytown t u Camanche North Shore Ione Camanche Village 16 ¬ « 104 ¬ «

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 11

108 ¬ « Kirkwood 50 t u 0-6 6-18 18-52 52-86 86-146 88 Low-Income PopulationDensity ¬ « 4 ¬ « Buckhorn Figure 3 Figure 26 ¬ « Pioneer Red Corral Persons Per Square Mile 49 ¬ « Amador Low-Income Population Density Population Amador Low-Income Volcano 88 ¬ « Pine Grove 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 ¬ « Jackson 104 ¬ « Fiddletown Amador CityAmador Plymouth 193 ¬ « Martell 49 26 ¬ « ¬ « 88 ¬ « Sutter Creek 124 ¬ « Buena Vista Buena 12 ¬ « 50 Drytown t u Camanche North Shore Ione Camanche Village 16 ¬ « 104 ¬ «

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 12 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

108 ¬ « Kirkwood 50 t u 0-1 1-6 6-18 18-22 22-50 88 Density of Zero- Vehicle Households Density of Zero- Vehicle ¬ « 4 ¬ « Buckhorn Figure 4 Figure 26 ¬ « Pioneer Red Corral Persons Per Square Mile 49 ¬ « Amador Zero-Vehicle Households Density Households Amador Zero-Vehicle Volcano 88 ¬ « Pine Grove 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 ¬ « Jackson 104 ¬ « Fiddletown Amador CityAmador Plymouth 193 ¬ « Martell 49 26 ¬ « ¬ « 88 ¬ « Sutter Creek 124 ¬ « Buena Vista Buena 12 ¬ « 50 Drytown t u Camanche North Shore Ione Camanche Village 16 ¬ « 104 ¬ «

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 13 108 ¬ « Kirkwood 50 t u 0 1 - 11 11 -19 19 -27 27- 45 88 Density of Mobility-Limited Persons ¬ « 4 ¬ « Buckhorn Figure 5 Figure 26 ¬ « Pioneer Red Corral Persons Per Square Mile 49 ¬ « Amador Mobility-LimitedPopulation Density Volcano 88 ¬ « Pine Grove 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 ¬ « Jackson 104 ¬ « Fiddletown Amador CityAmador Plymouth 193 ¬ « Martell 49 26 ¬ « ¬ « 88 ¬ « Sutter Creek 124 ¬ « Buena Vista Buena 12 ¬ « 50 Drytown t u Camanche North Shore Ione Camanche Village 16 ¬ « 104 ¬ «

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 14 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Use Occasional Occasional Vacant Housing Renter Owner Occupied HousingUnits nsus Housing Data by Place Data nsus Housing Total TABLE 5: Amador County 2010 Ce County TABLE Amador 5: AreaAmador CityBuckhorn CDPBuena VistaCDP Camanche North Shore CDPCamanche Village CDP 480Drytown CDPFiddletown CDPIone Housing 1,662 108 391 344 218Jackson TotalKirkwood CDP 1,138 305Martell CDP 85 309 180 Units CDPPine Grove 962Pioneer Population CDP 126 80 736 274 133Plymouth 54 Units 2,001 CorralRed CDP Population 102Sutter Creek 72 86 740 289 757 Total 111 176Volcano CDP 2,309 1,140 1,635BalanceCounty of For Rent 77 114 243 For 49 Sale 35 47 2,065 72 428 31 1,466 984Amador County 600 679 174 97 1,122 1,026 89 122 107 140 524CDP = CensusData Place 45 493 758 74 475 5,850 1,367 2,305 2,574 573 25 53 70 23 35 38 1,668 17 9 4,934 403 1,168 96 394 943 18,032 23 440 458 124 4,201 61 226 14,569 626 55 45 17 259 2,118 4 38 866 1,172 14 27 1,060 10,833 3 9,721 547 1,355 44 244 24 24,659 634 169 37 13 81 8 115 430 10 683 38 58 542 3,686 4 156 93 58 144 49 2 83 1,759 289 228 8,881 685 0 0 1,145 5 13 362 916 11 17 58 3,463 106 45 125 18 199 1 3 1 28 373 90 56 10 9 39 7 93 22 32 17 3 355 20 4 65 86 8 17 18 0 15 2,052 673 11 528 3 55 45 64 0 30 0 6 Source: Census US 2010 Interactive Map Household Data, accessed February 2012.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 15 Worked Worked at Home at (1) Other Means Means Walked Public Public Transportation Car, Truck, or Van or Car, Truck, Total Alone Drove Carpooled Amador County 13,802 11,359 1,122 96 330 223 672 Stateof California 15,921,475 11,650,145 1,831,538 820,349 429,786 365,352 824,305 Percent of Statewide Work ers 73.2% 11.5% 5.2% 2.7% 2.3% 5.2% TABLE 6: Amador CountyTABLE Travel Amador Mode 6: Work to Amador CityBuckhorn CDPBuena Vista CDPCamanche North Shore CDP CDP Village Camanche Drytown CDPFiddletown CDP 322IoneJacksonKirkwood CDP 1,070 246 46 308Martell 287 CDPCDPPine Grove Pioneer CDP 994 226 207Plymouth 44 35 CorralRed CDP 93 69Sutter Creek 72 6Volcano 54 CDP 2Balance County of 46 49 33 0 2,072 1,579 983 90 0 37 0 1,744 380 12 1,378 0 37 0 452 888 0 39 347CDP =Census 244 Data Place 1,135 3,424 87 302 0 0 37 370 21 0 0 0 0 0 280 3,510 0 0 937 54 6 25 4 37 10 0 31 405 0 100 5 0 0 0 36 0 0 0 10 4 0 0 40 0 17 0 0 0 12 22 0 0 0 0 34 36 12 0 11 0 0 0 0 125 35 32 38 41 0 0 110 12 74 0 34 0 19 15 374 24 57 7 0 2 0 Community Bicycle. or Motorcycle, , = Other 1: Note CensusSource: US 2010, retrieved February 2012. Percent of Countywide Workers Workers Countywide of Percent 100% 82.3% 8.1% 0.7% 2.4% 1.6% 4.9%

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 16 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 7: Amador County Commuter Flow by Community

Amador Residents Commuting To… Amador Employees Commuting From… County of Workplace Number Percent County of Residence Number Percent Amador County 4,296 26.7% Amador County 4,296 41.5% Outside Amador County 11,785 73.3% Outside Amador County 6,045 58.5% Total 16,081 100% Total 10,341 100.0%

Amador Residents Commuting To… Amador Employees Commuting From… Place of Employment Number Percent Place of Residence Number Percent Jackson City, CA 1,699 10.6% Jackson City, CA 663 6.4% Sacramento City, CA 1,066 6.6% Ione City, CA 596 5.8% Ione City, CA 642 4.0% Stockton City, CA 326 3.2% Stockton City, CA 501 3.1% Sutter Creek City, CA 323 3.1% Sutter Creek City, CA 493 3.1% Pine Grove CDP, CA 304 2.9% San Francisco City, CA 408 2.5% Buckhorn CDP, CA 279 2.7% San Jose City, CA 376 2.3% Elk Grove City, CA 200 1.9% Martell CDP, CA 257 1.6% Sacramento City, CA 192 1.9% Roseville City, CA 256 1.6% Red Corral CDP, CA 182 1.8% Rancho Cordova City, CA 240 1.5% Camanche North Shore CDP, CA 161 1.6% Oakland City, CA 212 1.3% Lodi City, CA 159 1.5% Pine Grove CDP, CA 209 1.3% Camanche Village CDP, CA 139 1.3% Los Angeles City, CA 202 1.3% Rancho Calaveras CDP, CA 127 1.2% Lodi City, CA 191 1.2% Valley Springs CDP, CA 118 1.1% Folsom City, CA 162 1.0% El Dorado Hills CDP, CA 108 1.0% Placerville City, CA 162 1.0% Pioneer CDP, CA 103 1.0% Fresno City, CA 152 0.9% Galt City, CA 98 0.9% Modesto City, CA 150 0.9% Angels City, CA 96 0.9% Arden-Arcade CDP, CA 139 0.9% Los Angeles City, CA 96 0.9% San Andreas CDP, CA 121 0.8% Rancho Murieta CDP, CA 82 0.8% Reno City, NV 118 0.7% South Lake Tahoe City, CA 78 0.8% Elk Grove City, CA 115 0.7% Folsom City, CA 72 0.7% El Dorado Hills CDP, CA 97 0.6% San Andreas CDP, CA 72 0.7% Davis City, CA 94 0.6% Davis City, CA 68 0.7% Vacaville City, CA 93 0.6% Diamond Springs CDP, CA 62 0.6% All Other Locations 7,926 49.3% All Other Locations 5,637 54.5%

Total 16,081 100% Total 10,341 100%

CDP = Census Data Place Note: LEHD figures represent estimates of commute patterns, synthesized from several sources of US Census residential location, business location, and commute data. These figures exclude Federal, railroad and self-employed employees, and include trips that are not made each w orkday. As such, this data should be considered to only provide a general commuting pattern. Source: US Census On the Map data, 2011 (retrieved September 2013).

School Enrollment

Students, particularly between the ages of 10 and 16, are another population element with a relatively high potential to use transit services. Table 8 presents school enrollment figures. As indicated, a total of 7,403 students reside in the county, which is a decrease of 706 from a decade earlier. Of these, 1,264 students (3.8 percent of the countywide non-incarcerated population) are in the age range most likely to need transportation to and from school or to after school programs.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 17 The Amador County Unified School District current enrollment (2013) for junior high and high school grade levels are listed in Table 9. The school district provides home to school transportation for all students with the exception of the Independent Study Program. Junior high and high school students are the most likely to use transit to access school or after school activities. The school district reports that 2,185 students are enrolled in public school junior high and high school programs in 2013. In recent years school enrollment in Amador County has been declining but the district projects that enrollments should stay relatively steady over the next five years as the county has recovered somewhat from the recession.

Not in School Total In School In Population Population High (9-12) College School y (5-8) Elementar (1-4) Elementary Elementary CDP = Census Data Place Total Population Preschool Kindergarten Amador County Amador County 37,627 396 465 1,264 1,689 2,454 943 7,403 30,224 TABLE 8: Amador County 2010 School Enrollment by Area Enrollment School 2010 County TABLE Amador 8: Area CensusSource: U.S. 2010. Bureau, Amador CityBuckhorn CDPBuena VistaCDP Camanche North Shore CDPCamanche Village CDPDrytown CDPFiddletown CDP 766IoneJackson 2,652 128Kirkwood 589 CDP 518Martell CDP 0CDP Pine Grove Pioneer 133 CDP 0Plymouth 0 0 210CDP 83 Corral Red 0Sutter CreekVolcano 0 CDPBalanceCounty of 0 110 0 0 0 4,525 0 2,261 7,685 140 0 1,087 60 0 1,639 36 123 22 11 0 43 89 0 0 889 11,401 47 2,773 0 46 171 42 16 28 29 0 8 45 0 14 28 7 56 5 0 0 72 14 0 125 79 195 0 200 0 31 0 44 0 28 24 186 43 0 24 0 151 14 277 5 153 0 49 132 21 103 0 299 339 44 0 652 11 82 110 299 234 167 0 0 138 663 24 2,313 7 590 216 155 0 0 81 67 41 0 152 422 108 380 104 551 79 37 7 29 1,479 260 36 871 0 0 489 0 184 6,206 131 166 3,654 33 5 1,772 37 538 83 35 2,009 136 1,101 708 0 73 232 9,392 951 105 2,065 657 19 152

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 18 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 9: Amador County Unified School District 2013 Enrollment

Regular Program Special Ed. Guest(1) Total Junior High School Ione Junior High 375 19 0 394 Jackson Junior High 348 27 0 375 Subtotal 723 46 0 769

High School Amador High 643 29 24 696 Argonaut High 535 40 3 578 Independence 56 0 0 56 Independent Study 76 0 0 76 Court school 10 0 0 10 Subtotal 1,320 69 27 1,416 Total 2,043 115 27 2,185 Note 1: Attend 1 or 2 classes at this school. Remainder of classes are at another school. Source: Amador County Unified School District, 2013

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 20 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 3 Existing Transportation Services

Passenger transportation services in Amador County are provided by a variety of public, non-profit, and private services. This chapter first presents a review of existing Amador Transit conditions, followed by a discussion of other providers.

AMADOR TRANSIT

Background

Amador Transit (AT) has been providing transit services in Amador County since 1976 and operates under direction of the Amador County Transportation Commission (ACTC). Amador Transit (AT) was formed as a Joint Powers Agency (JPA) between Amador County and its five incorporated cities (Jackson, Sutter Creek, Ione, Plymouth and Amador City).

Existing Amador Transit System Services

AT currently operates four local fixed routes and one commuter route to Sacramento Monday through Friday, approximately between the hours of 5:30 A.M. and 7:30 P.M. Dial-A-Ride (DAR) is offered three- quarters of a mile from the fixed routes in the Jackson and Sutter Creek areas from 6:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) qualified passengers. Fixed routes outside the DAR service area will deviate up to three-quarters of a mile for ADA eligible passengers. All routes begin and end at the Sutter Hill Transit Center. Descriptions of the routes are presented below. Amador Transit routes are graphically displayed in Figures 6 (all routes), 7 (Jackson-Sutter Creek Shuttle) and 8 (Sacramento Express).

Route 1: Sacramento – This commuter route makes one morning (leaving Sutter Hill at 6:15 AM) and one afternoon round trip (leaving Sutter Hill at 3:30 PM) to Sacramento. Departures from Sacramento are at 7:50 AM and 5:05 PM. After leaving the Sutter Hill Transit Center, the bus makes a stop in Drytown and De Martini in Amador County and two stops in Rancho Murieta in Sacramento County prior to arriving in downtown Sacramento. Once in Sacramento, passengers can transfer to , Greyhound, Amtrak, and Yolo Bus to the Sacramento .

Route 2: Upcountry – A morning, midday, and afternoon out and back run is made from the Sutter Hill Transit Center to Amador Station in Mace Meadows, serving Jackson, Pine Grove and Pioneer along the way.

Route 3: Plymouth – On Tuesdays through Fridays, the Plymouth Route operates two round trips daily departing from the Sutter Hill Transit Center at 8:15 AM and at 3:10 PM and the community of Plymouth. Just recently, AT added a variation to Route 3 on Mondays. Transit service continues beyond Plymouth as far as River Pines (although this may be discontinued). Three round trips are made to Plymouth on Mondays while two round trips are made to River Pines.

Route 5 A and B: Sutter Creek-Jackson Shuttle – This service is the core of the local fixed route service. Two shuttles (A and B) are operated. The two shuttles serve the same areas, but Shuttle A operates southbound on Argonaut Road and northbound on Jackson Gate Road while Shuttle B operates northbound on Argonaut Road and southbound on Jackson Gate Road. Six round trips are made daily on Shuttle A at 7:00 AM, 9:00 AM, 10:30 AM, noon, 1:00 PM and 3:15 PM. Another trip to Raley’s and as far as the Jackson Gate Road Apartments is made at 5:15 PM. Shuttle B serves seven daily departures at 6:55 AM, 8:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 11:30 AM, 12:30 PM, 2:05 PM and 4:15 PM.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 21

Miles Buckhorn 4 AmadorStation Mace Meadows Sugar Pines 26 ¬ « 0 Jackson/SutterCreek Shuttle 1 1 -Sacramento 2 -Upcountry 3 -Plymouth 7 -Ione RiverPines Pioneer Existing TransitRoutes Red Red Corral 2 4 Volcano Clinton & I Irish Town Road Town Irish Pine Grove Pine 88 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 49 ¬ « 12 Dalton ¬ « River River Pines Hospital 104 ¬ « SutterAmador Figure 6 Jackson SutterCreek Amador Amador City Martell Sutter Hill 49 ¬ « Transit Transit Center ExistingAmador CountyTransit Routes PokervilleMarket ShellStation 49 ¬ « 88 Pool ¬ « Post Post Office Plymouth 124 Drytown ¬ «

; ; The OaksThe

; ;; BuenaVista

Josie's PlaceApartments ;

;; CamancheNorth Shore Ione BuenaVista Sutter 16 ¬ « W. MarletteW. Stonybrook CamancheVillage

To SacramentoTo ; 104 ¬ «

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 22 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

I Scottsville Miles 88 ¬ «

Sutter AmadorSutterHospital Clinton CourtSt. MedicalComplex Rollingwood 0.25 Kennedy Meadows 0.5 0 0.5 Senior Center Jackson

Apartments Main JacksonGate GroceryOutlet Water St/Petkovitch Water Park 104 ¬ « Figure 7 Savemart SutterHill CourtHouse Post office Post Kmart 49 SutterCreek 49 ¬ « ¬ «

49 88 ¬ « Transfer to Up Country Route Transfer to Ione Route Jackson/Sutter Creek Shuttle Martell SutterCenterHill Transit Amador Amador High School Route 5A Route 5B 88 ¬ « Health& Human Services

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 23 Mokelumne Hill Calaveras Jackson Placerville SutterCreek 49 ¬ « Diamond Springs Amador City Plymouth Ione Shingle Springs Amador Cameron Park Miles 10 Sacramento Inset El Dorado El El Dorado Hills 50 Rancho Murieta £ ¤ SanJoaquin SAcramentoInset Folsom 0 Figure8 49 ¬ « Orangevale Wilton 5 Gold River Fair Oaks AmadorTransitSacramento Express Galt 10 80 § ¨ ¦ Placer Vineyard Elk Grove 99 U V I Florin Laguna NorthHighlands 99 § ¨ ¦ Rio Linda 5 § ¨ ¦ Sacramento Sacramento 305 § ¨ ¦ Sutter Laguna West-Lakeside Yolo

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 24 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Route 7: Ione – The Ione Route departs the Sutter Hill Transit Center at 7:45 AM, 11:20 AM and 3:30 PM and serves Ione and Buena Vista.

Dial-a-Ride (DAR) – Dial-a-Ride currently operates only in the Jackson-Sutter Service area, within three-quarters of a mile of regular fixed route service. Service was initiated on July 18, 2011.

Route Deviations – Outside of the DAR service area, the fixed-routes will deviate up to three-quarters of a mile to pick-up or drop-off an individual who qualifies for door-to-door service under the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines. Route deviations are only allowed for ADA eligible passengers with approved applications.

Amador Transit Fare Media

Fares for Amador Transit are $1.00 on the shuttle for all passengers. On the local fixed routes, fares are $2.00 for the general public and $1.00 for disabled passengers and those under the age of 18 or over the age of 62. Dial-a-Ride fares and route deviations, available only to ADA eligible passengers, are $2.00 per trip. One-way trip fares for the Sacramento commuter service are $5.50 for general public, $3.15 for elderly and disabled and $4.50 for students. Discounted fares are available to Sacramento RT pass holders.

Discounted monthly passes available to the elderly, disabled or youths can be purchased for $40.00. A general public monthly pass is $75 per month. Various multi-ticket options are available to all passengers. Monthly passes are not available on the DAR.

Amador Transit Ridership

Table 10 and Figure 9 display seasonal trends in Amador Transit ridership or one-way passenger-trips per month and route. Systemwide the greatest number of passenger-trips were recorded in the month of August (6,508 trips), followed by January (6,182 trips) and May (6,138 trips). Demand for DAR services peaked in August (1,711 trips) and January (1,558 trips). The Sacramento Express had the greatest monthly ridership in October (1,234 trips) while the other routes stayed relatively steady throughout the year.

TABLE 10: Amador Transit Ridership by Month FY 2012-13

Sacramento Amador Sacramento Dial-A- County County Total Upcountry Plymouth Shuttle Ione Ride Total July 319 552 871 439 416 1,982 510 1,293 5,511 August 335 605 940 473 420 2,370 594 1,711 6,508 September 341 592 933 406 339 1,791 537 952 4,958 October 502 732 1,234 447 432 2,035 654 1,120 5,922 November 411 518 929 426 336 2,029 573 954 5,247 December 348 452 800 435 312 2,010 504 713 4,774 January 409 560 969 628 384 2,033 620 1,558 6,192 February 400 533 933 523 340 1,614 513 928 4,851 March 378 571 949 647 361 2,014 580 1,028 5,579 April 396 592 988 650 317 2,358 577 1,024 5,914 May 428 616 1,044 682 371 2,365 592 1,084 6,138 June 435 619 1,054 551 286 1,978 479 967 5,315 4,702 6,942 11,644 6,307 4,314 24,579 6,733 13,332 66,909 Source: Amador Transit

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 25

Figure 9: Amador Transit FY 2012‐13 Ridership by Month 2,500

2,000 Sacramento 1,500 Upcountry 1,000 Plymouth Shuttle 500 Ione 0 DAR

Table 11 presents Amador Transit ridership by type of passenger. Over 40 percent of total ridership is disabled. This is a result of the fact that all DAR ridership is considered disabled and DAR represents nearly 20 percent of system ridership. Also of note, is that 92 percent of ridership on the Plymouth route is disabled. Non-disabled seniors account for another 11.3 percent of system ridership. Youth represent 9.4 percent of total ridership on AT while non-revenue passengers account for 6.2 percent.

TABLE 11: Amador Transit Ridership by Passenger Type FY 2012-13 Child Below Non Adults Seniors Disabled Youth Age 5 Revenue Total

Annual One-Way Passenger-Trips Sacramento Express 7,710 2,685 535 475 17 222 11,644 Upcountry 2,653 1,279 697 1,525 10 143 6,307 Plymouth 249 52 3,971 21 2 19 4,314 Shuttle 9,853 3,330 6,785 3,021 91 1,499 24,579 Ione 833 239 4,229 1,225 5 202 6,733 Dial-A-Ride -- -- 11,276 -- -- 2,056 13,332 Total 21,298 7,585 27,493 6,267 125 4,141 66,909

Percent of Annual One-Way Passenger-Trips Sacramento Express 66.2% 23.1% 4.6% 4.1% 0.1% 1.9% 100.0% Upcountry 42.1% 20.3% 11.1% 24.2% 0.2% 2.3% 100.0% Plymouth 5.8% 1.2% 92.0% 0.5% 0.0% 0.4% 100.0% Shuttle 40.1% 13.5% 27.6% 12.3% 0.4% 6.1% 100.0% Ione 12.4% 3.5% 62.8% 18.2% 0.1% 3.0% 100.0% Dial-A-Ride -- -- 84.6% -- -- 15.4% 100.0% Total 31.8% 11.3% 41.1% 9.4% 0.2% 6.2% 100.0%

Source: Amador Transit

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 26 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Amador Transit Revenues

Amador Transit budgeted and actual revenues for FY 2012-13 are shown in Table 12. As shown, a total of approximately $1,341,245 was collected for operating revenues. The largest single source of funds is the Local Transportation Fund (LTF), which totaled $746,289, or 55.6 percent of the total operating revenues. Other major sources of Amador Transit revenue include Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grants (19.2 percent), and fare revenue, including reimbursement for Sacramento service costs (13.6 percent). State Transit Assistance Funds are also an important transit funding source at $98,000. Capital revenues totaled $715,752 with FTA capital grants accounting for the majority of revenue.

TABLE 12: Amador Transit Revenues

FY 2012-13 FY 2012-13 Actual Budgeted Operating Revenue Fare Revenue Fixed Route Fares$ 90,789 $ 77,000 Dial-a-Ride Fares$ 13,517 $ 16,716 Sacramento Contract $ 78,272 $ 70,000 Subtotal$ 182,578 $ 163,716 Non-Fare Revenue Advertising Contracts $ 34,263 $ 40,000 Local Transportation Fund (LTF)$ 746,289 $ 746,760 Section 5316 Operating $ 55,900 $ 55,900 Section 5311 Operating$ 144,224 $ 144,224 Section 5317 Operating$ 57,543 $ 96,000 State Transit Assistance (STA)$ 98,000 $ 98,000 RTAP$ 1,700 $ 2,000 ACTC Expense Sharing$ - $ - Other$ 20,748 $ 2,400 Subtotal$ 1,158,666 $ 1,185,284 Total Operating Revenues$ 1,341,245 $ 1,349,000

Capital Revenue STA to Reserve$ - $ 204,000 Section 5311 ARRA Grant$ 69,619 $ 69,619 Section 5310 Capital$ 500,500 $ 500,500 Prop 1B Cal-EMA$ 33,136 $ - Capital Reserves$ 112,497 $ 81,592 PTMISEA Bus Replacement$ - $ 980,670 Total Capital Revenues$ 715,752 $ 1,836,381

Source: Amador Transit

As LTF revenues comprise a large proportion of overall AT revenues, it is useful to review the recent history of this funding source. These funds are generated by a quarter-cent sales tax imposed statewide, and returned (minus administrative fees) by the State to the ACTC, which in turn allocates funds to

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 27 specific transportation purposes. As shown in Table 13 and Figure 10, overall LTF revenues received by ACTC grew in the early 2000s, but dropped beginning in 2008-09. LTF avaailable to the transit program dropped a full 37 percent between 2007-08 and 2009-10, but has since had a modest increase of 4 percent over the most recent four years. As of FY 2007-08, the local jurisddictions no lonnger receive LTF. While the proportion of funds used by ACTC (for purposes such as planning and administration) has increased over this time period, the amount of funds available to Amador Transit is now approximately 76 percent of LTF funds.

TABLE 13: Amador County Local Transportation Fund History Percent of Total Total Percent Change Percent Percent LTF Available for Available for Fiscal (Includes Amador Local Amador Local Amador Year Interest) Transit ACTC Ped/Bike Jurisdictions Transit Jurisdictions Total Transit

2004-05 $1,078,021 $600,000 $154,000 $16,720 $307,301 56% 29% -- -- 2005-06 $1,141,479 $838,000 $144,000 $17,120 $142,359 73% 12% 6%40% 2006-07 $1,235,999 $998,620 $56,000 $20,380 $160,999 81% 13% 8%19% 2007-08 $1,220,753 $1,034,753 $245,000 $21,000 $0 85% 0% -1%4% 2008-09 $1,039,529 $733,669 $287,000 $18,860 $0 71% 0% -15% -29% 2009-10 $895,171 $657,000 $238,171 $0 $0 73% 0% -14% -10% 2010-11 $874,258 $717,558 $156,700 $0 $0 82% 0% -2%9% 2011-12 $900,000 $741,250 $158,750 $0 $0 82% 0% 3%3% 2012-13 $950,000 $746,760 $188,000 $15,240 $0 79% 0% 6%1% 2013-14 $980,000 $746,288 $218,594 $15,840 $0 76% 0% 3%0% 2% Avverage Annual Increase

Source: ACTC, 2013

Amador County Short-Rangnge Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 28 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Amador Transit Expenses

Amador Transit operating expenses by line item for Fiscal Year 2012-13 are presented in Table 14. Expenses for the fiscal year totaled approximately $1.2 million. Of this, $410,629 (33.2 percent) was expended on operating and vehicle costs, and another 442,705 (35.8 percent) can be attributed to administrative (fixed) costs. Lastly, operating personnel expenses totaled $383,552 (31 percent) of the total expenditures for the fiscal year.

TABLE 14: Amador Transit Fiscal Year 2012-13 Expenses & Cost Allocation

Allocation Variable Total Line Item Fixed Hourly Per Mile Expense

Operating Personnel Expenses Salaries/Wages: Operators $289,952 $289,952 Benefits $93,600 $93,600 Subtotal: Personnel $0 $383,552 $0 $383,552

Administrative Expenses Administration Salary $242,954 $242,954 Administration Benefits $78,429 $78,429 Communications $11,448 $11,448 Facility Expenses $11,226 $11,226 Office Expenses $9,719 $9,719 Transit Center Expenses $538 $538 Contract IT Services, Software $11,071 $11,071 Legal Counsel, Notices $3,664 $3,664 Advertising, Marketing, Print Materials $18,311 $18,311 Driver Training, Safety, etc. $5,010 $5,010 Travel, Meetings, Subscriptions, Misc. $8,255 $8,255 Professional/Specialized Service $4,405 $4,405 Utilities $18,868 $18,868 Leases and Rentals $11,415 $11,415 Fees $1,110 $1,110 Other Materials, Expenses, and Supplies $6,282 $6,282 Subtotal: Administrative $442,705 $0 $0 $442,705

Operating and Vehicle Expenses Maintenance Salary $127,951 $127,951 Maintenance Benefits $41,304 $41,304 Vehicle Technical Services (outsourced) $9,537 $9,537 Insurance--vehicles $22,684 $22,684 Fuel & Lubrication $145,861 $145,861 Tires $18,270 $18,270 Maintenance-Equipment $30,243 $30,243 Safety and Emergency Supplies $1,435 $1,435 CDL and DOT Physical Exams and Penalties $11,501 $11,501 Uniforms $1,843 $1,843 Subtotal: Vehicles $0 $37,463 $373,166 $410,629 Total Bus Service Expenses $442,705 $421,015 $373,166 $1,236,885

Vehicle Service Vehicle Service Factors for FY 2012-13 Hours Service Miles 11,134 222,109 Vehicle Service Hour Cost Factor $37.81 Vehicle Service Mile Cost Factor $1.68 Annual Fixed Cost $442,705

Source: Amador Transit System Actual Expenses, LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 29 Amador Transit Operating Cost Model

Table 14 also presents a “cost model” for Amador Transit operations. This methodology assigns each cost line item to that service variable – vehicle-hour or vehicle-mile – that most closely determines the associated cost. For instance, fuel costs are largely a function of vehicle-miles operated, while driver salaries are a function of vehicle-hours operated. In addition, some annual operating costs (such as administrative salaries and facility maintenance costs) are “fixed” in that they typically do not vary with changes in service quantities. As shown in the bottom of Table 14, the resulting cost model for FY 2012- 13 is as follows:

Annual Operating Cost = $37.81 X vehicle-hours of service + $1.68 X vehicle-miles of service + $442,705 fixed costs

This equation can be used both to evaluate the costs associated with service changes, as well as to allocate operating costs to particular routes. It provides a more accurate estimate of costs for a particular service element than a total per-hour or per-mile cost factor.

Amador Transit Service Performance

Ridership and financial data can be used to conduct a “route performance analysis” to gain further insight into the efficiency and effectiveness of Amador Transit’s service. Ridership and operating statistics for FY 2012 - 2013 were reviewed to identify average passenger activity, fares and operating quantities. The cost model in Table 14 was employed to allocate operating costs to each route. Detailed fare revenue is not recorded on a per route basis; therefore fare revenue for both cash boardings and monthly boardings was estimated based on passenger trips and the proportion of reduced fare passenger boardings per route. Operating quantities and performance measures are presented in Table 15.

Systemwide operating cost per trip is $18.49. Interestingly, the Plymouth route recorded the lowest operating cost per trip of $10.31 and the Upcountry recorded the highest, $28.61 per trip. The Upcountry service travels a much greater distance to connect a smaller concentration of residents with needed services in contrast to the DAR which only serves the Jackson – Sutter Creek area. In terms of operating cost per hour, all AT services combined cost $111.09 per vehicle hour of service. The DAR has the lowest operating cost per hour of $87.37 while the Sacramento Express route has the highest $128.63. The Shuttle and the DAR operate a greater number of vehicle hours than the other routes. Table 15 demonstrates that AT has an overall operating cost per mile of $5.57. The DAR service has the highest operating cost per mile, $14.99, while the other services range from $4.23 to $5.85 per vehicle mile.

A strong indicator of the transit system’s effectiveness is the number of passengers carried per hour of service, presented in Table 15. Combined fixed route, commuter route and DAR productivity is 6.0 passengers per hour. The Plymouth route carried the greatest number of passengers per hour (11.6). It should be noted that this route only operates two round trips per day four days a week or a total of 372 vehicle service hours. The second most productive route in the system is the Ione Route which carried 8.6 passenger trips per hour, followed by the Sacramento Express Route with 8.0 one-way passenger trips per hour. The least productive route is the Upcountry route with 4.4 passengers per hour.

A strong indicator of the transit system’s efficiency is the subsidy per passenger trip (total operating cost minus fares divided by passenger trips). The best performing route currently is the Plymouth route with the lowest subsidy per passenger trip of $8.49. The Ione, DAR and Sac County Express follow with $12.92, $13.08, and $13.70 respectively. The poorest performers are the Upcountry Service, and the Shuttle ($26.60 and $20.64 respectively). The average fare paid on AT systemwide is $1.56. This varies by route from $1.01 on DAR to $2.46 on the Sacramento commuter route.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 30 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 15: Annual Operating and Financial Characteristics By Route Fiscal Year 2012 - 2013

Route Sacramento Upcountry Plymouth Shuttle Ione DAR Total Annual Operating Data One-Way Passenger-Trips 11,644 6,307 4,314 24,579 6,733 13,332 66,909 Vehicle Service Hours 1,463 1,430 372 4,938 781 2,150 11,134 Vehicle Service Miles 44,462 41,382 9,306 91,919 22,507 12,532 222,109 Total Operating Cost $188,206 $180,465 $44,492 $537,487 $98,398 $187,837 $1,236,885 Marginal Operating Cost(1) $130,028 $123,603 $29,701 $341,151 $67,346 $102,352 $794,181 Farebox Revenue $28,673 $12,919 $8,363 $28,841 $11,993 $13,517 $104,306

Performance Indicators Operating Cost per Trip $16.16 $28.61 $10.31 $21.87 $14.61 $14.09 $18.49 Operating Cost per Hour $128.63 $126.19 $119.60 $108.85 $125.99 $87.37 $111.09 Operating Cost per Mile $4.23 $4.36 $4.78 $5.85 $4.37 $14.99 $5.57 Passengers per Hour 8.0 4.4 11.6 5.0 8.6 6.2 6.0 Subsidy per Passenger Trip $13.70 $26.57 $8.37 $20.69 $12.83 $13.08 $16.93 Average Fare $2.46 $2.05 $1.94 $1.17 $1.78 $1.01 $1.56 Total Farebox Ratio 15.2% 7.2% 18.8% 5.4% 12.2% 7.2% 8.4% Marginal Farebox Ratio(1) 22.1% 10.5% 28.2% 8.5% 17.8% 13.2% 13.1% Total Adjusted Farebox Ratio(2) ------12.9%

Note 1: Does not include fixed costs. Note 2: Unaudited figures. Not the official TDA farebox ratio calcuation. Per TDA, costs associated w ith Sacramento Contract and DAR (new service) are excluded along w ith fare revenues for DAR. Depreciation has not been calculated and subtracted as allow ed in TDA regulations.

Farebox ratio is determined by dividing passenger fare revenue by operating costs. Table 15 displays three separate farebox ratio calculations. The first is “total farebox ratio” which includes administrative/fixed costs and is simply total fare revenue in Table 15 divided by total operating costs in Table 15. The second is marginal farebox ratio which does not include administrative costs, as administrative/fixed costs will not change if a route increases or decreases service. It is the marginal operating costs which will be used to evaluate the transit alternatives. Table 15 shows that total farebox ratio is 8.4 percent for AT as a whole and the marginal farebox ratio is 13.1 percent. On a per route basis, both the Plymouth route and the Sacramento Express route have a marginal farebox ratio greater than 20 percent (26.5 and 22.1 percent, respectively). The DAR and the Ione route also have respectable marginal farebox ratios of 13.2 percent and 17.0 percent. The Shuttle has the lowest marginal farebox ratio, 8.8 percent.

A third farebox ratio calculation is presented for AT systemwide: “Adjusted Farebox Ratio”. This calculation uses unaudited figures and subtracts costs and revenue associated with new services as well as Sacramento Contract costs and adds advertising revenue, as allowed per TDA. The Fiscal and Compliance Audit has not yet been completed for this year, therefore this farebox ratio calculation is a placeholder estimate and should not be used to determine eligibility for TDA funds. Additionally, depreciation costs were not factored into the calculation (as allowed by TDA) because this figure will not be available until the Fiscal and Compliance Audit is complete. As presented in the table, the preliminary estimate for adjusted TDA farebox ratio is 12.9 percent, above the required 10 percent.

Other DAR Performance Measures

Amador Transit employs Trapeze software for DAR scheduling and dispatching. The software tracks the number of cancelled, missed and no-show trips. In 2012, the following statistics were recorded:

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 31

 No-shows - 420, 2.8 percent  Cancelled at door – 83, 0.5 percent  Cancelled same day – 761, 5 percent

An overview of on-time compliance for DAR can also be compiled. According to Trapeze report roughly 60 percent of DAR trips were on-time.

Amador Transit System Capital Assets

Amador Transit Fleet

Amador Transit’s current fleet is presented in Table 16. Amador Transit has a total of 13 revenue vehicles, two back up vehicles and one which is slated to be retired. Vehicles range in size from a six passenger van to a 36 passenger commuter vehicle for the Sacramento Express service. All vehicles, with the exception of the backup Suburban are wheelchair accessible. Six of the vehicles will have reached the end of their useful life by this year; another two vehicles will reach the end of their useful life by 2016.

TABLE 16: Amador Transit Fleet

Passenger Purchase End of Bus # Year Make Capacity Fuel Type Date Funding Source Status Useful Life(1) 1 2004 Chevrolet - Suburban 4x4 6 Gas Sep-06 Local Backup -- 2 2002 Glaval Concorde 32 Diesel Jan-03 Rural Transit Grant Program Revenue 2005 17 1998 Ford - El Dorado, Aerotech 240 20 Diesel Aug-98 Proposition 116 To be retired 2005 27 2002 Ford - Goshen GC2 Diesel 20 Diesel Mar-03 Rural Transit Grant Program Revenue 2009 28 2002 Ford - Goshen GC2 Diesel 20 Diesel Mar-03 Rural Transit Grant Program Revenue 2009 29 2006 Chevrolet - El Dorado Arrow Elite 320 28 Gas May-06 Federal Earmark Revenue 2013 30 2006 Chevrolet - El Dorado Arrow Elite 320 28 Gas May-06 Federal Earmark Revenue 2013 31 2009 Ford - Glaval E450 16 Gas Aug-09 Local Revenue 2016 32 1997 Dodge van 6 Gas Sep-09 Local Shop Vehicle -- 33 1997 Dodge van 6 Gas Sep-09 Local Backup -- 34 2009 GMC - Glaval C5500 36 Diesel Nov-09 Sacramento County Revenue 2016 35 2004 Freightliner - Trolley 31 CNG/Diesel Dec-09 Donated by City of Riverbank Out of service -- 36 2004 Freightliner - Trolley 31 CNG/Diesel Dec-09 Donated by City of Riverbank Out of service -- 301 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 16 DIESEL Jan-13 FTA Revenue 2023 302 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 16 DIESEL Jan-13 FTA Revenue 2023 401 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 17 DIESEL Jan-13 FTA Revenue 2023 402 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 17 DIESEL Mar-13 FTA Revenue 2023 403 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 17 DIESEL Mar-13 FTA Revenue 2023 404 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II 17 DIESEL Mar-13 FTA Revenue 2023

Source: Amador Transit Note 1: Useful life schedule based on FTA schedule: 10 years or 350,000 miles for a medium size heavy-duty bus; 7 years or 200,000 miles for medium-sized, medium duty; 5 years or 150,000 miles for a medium-sized light duty bus.

Amador Transit Passenger Facilities

Along the Amador routes, there are a total of 18 stops with amenities, as shown in Table 17. These include:

 Sutter Hill: Two shelters are located at SR 49 and Ridge Road – one at the northeast corner and the other at the southwest corner. A bench is located at Academy Drive and Bowers Lane.

 Jackson: Four shelters are located in Jackson – Argonaut Lane and Westview Drive, New York Ranch Road and Rollingwood, Court Street and Placer Drive, and Petkovich Park. One bench is located at 150 Main Street.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 32 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

 Pine Grove: Four shelters are located in Pine Grove – Pine Acres Resort, Gayla Manor, Ranch House Estates and Pine Grove Town Hall.

 Pioneer: There are three shelters located in Pioneer: Highway 88 and Silver Drive, Mace Meadows, and Amador Station. There is also a shelter located in the Buckhorn area, at the Payless IGA Market. Additionally, there is a bench at Highway 88 and Pioneer Creek Road.

 Ione: One formal bus shelter is located at the Ione Park-n-Ride on Main Street.

TABLE 17: Existing Amador Transit Facilities

Location Amenities Routes Served

ARTS Terminal, Martell Shelter All Office, Restroom, Sutter Hill Transit Center, Sutter Hill All Waiting Area 150 Main Street, Jackson Bench 2, 5 Academy Drive and Bowers Lane, Sutter Hill Bench 5 Highway 49 and Ridge Road, Sutter Hill (NE Corner) Shelter 5 Highway 49 and Ridge Road, Sutter Hill (SW Corner) Shelter 5 Argonaut Lane and Westview Drive, Jackson Shelter 2, 5 New York Ranch Road and Rollingwood, Jackson Shelter 5 Court Street and Placer Drive, Jackson Shelter 5 Pine Acres Resort, Pine Grove Shelter 2 Gayla Manor, Pine Grove Shelter 2 Ranch House Estates, Pine Grove Shelter 2 Highway 88 and Pioneer Creek Road Bench 2 Payless IGA Market, Buckhorn Shelter 2 Highway 88 and Silver Drive, Pioneer Shelter 2 Mace Meadows, Pioneer Shelter 2 Amador Station, Pioneer Shelter 2 Pine Grove Town Hall, Pine Grove Shelter 2 Ione Park-n-Ride, Main Street, Ione Bench 7 Petkovich Park, Jackson Shelter 2, 5 Source: Amador Transit, 2012

In 2012, the new Amador Transit passenger facility, the Sutter Hill Transit Center, was completed and began functioning as the main transit hub for the county. The site is located on Valley View Way and Bowers Road in Sutter Hill. The facility has space for six vehicles, as well as automobile parking. Passenger amenities include indoor and outdoor waiting areas with seating, restrooms and transit service information. In addition, the Amador Tourism Council operates out of this space, providing information on activities in the county for passengers and the general public. New bus stop signs with schedule information have been purchased and will be placed at high activity bus stops this year.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 33

Operations and Maintenance Facility

Operations and administration functions for Amador Transit are conducted at the old Amador Transit Terminal, located at 11400 American Legion Drive. The maintenance facility includes two maintenance bays, mobile lifts, and a small office space for the mechanics. Vehicle maintenance is in the process of purchasing additional equipment that will allow for more repairs to be done in house. Some vehicles are parked at the nearby Westover Field – Amador County Airport in an unsecured lot. The operations/maintenance facility is not entirely sufficient for AT needs; however improvements to the existing facility are expected to make this facility adequate for the foreseeable future.

Marketing Efforts

Since the previous Short-Range Transit Development Plan, Amador Transit has increased and improved transit marketing efforts. AT has developed a clear and informative website which displays bus schedules, a basic route map, rider alerts and other transit related information. AT has partnered with Google Transit to provide a trip planning tool on the AT website. Schedules and flyers are distributed at local businesses and grocery stores. AT coordinates with human service agencies regarding bus schedule changes. The mobility manager promotes AT services, new routes/changes through flyers, press releases and trainings, and is available for assistance and questions.

OTHER TRANSPORTATION SERVICES IN AMADOR COUNTY

A number of other transportation services operate in Amador County besides Amador Transit. From taxicab companies, to the school district and a number of social service providers, each is described in the following pages.

Visitor Tour

There are numerous tour companies that operate tour bus activities in Amador County. Tours include trips to local casinos, mines, farms, wineries, ghost towns, cemeteries and to the snow country. The largest of the tour companies is Gold Country Wine Tours, which operates out of Amador County.

Blue Mountain Transit

Blue Mountain Transit is a private van service, based in San Andreas, which contracts with VMRC to provide transportation to The Arc program in Sutter Hill. The vehicles pick up developmentally disabled clients at their homes in the morning and bring them to the site, returning them in the afternoon. In addition, Blue Mountain is available for charter service on weekends.

Amador Unified School District Transportation

The school district in Amador County serves approximately 2,000 students daily or 720,000 passenger- trips annually.

Taxicab Companies

Amador Pioneer Cab Company, located in Jackson, is one of two taxicab companies operating in Amador County. Pioneer operates one vehicle at a time. Fares are $2.75 per mile traveled. Delta Sierra Cab, located in Ione, operates 24 hours per day throughout the County. Current passenger fares are $2.75 per mile traveled.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 34 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. /Rideshare/ Programs

The Foothill Rideshare program was developed in response to increased population in Amador, Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties and the long commutes that are associated with the residents, particularly due to a low job to housing ratio in these areas. The program was a collaborative effort between the three counties and made possible through grants including Valley Clean Air Now and Caltrans. This program was recently discontinued so there are no carpool/rideshare/vanpool programs in the county at this time.

Calaveras Transit

Calaveras Transit offers five deviated fixed routes, one of which connects with Amador Transit at Raley’s in Jackson three times a day: 8:50 AM, 11:15 AM, 3:20 PM. Upon request, Calaveras Transit will drop passengers off directly at the Sutter Hill Transit Center to catch the afternoon Sacramento Express route.

Other Human Service Transportation Providers and Stakeholders

Amador Support, Transportation and Resource Services (STARS)

Amador STARS oversees cancer patient transportation services to radiation and chemotherapy treatments (on a case by case basis) in Sacramento, Stockton, Lodi, San Andreas, Roseville, and Rancho Cordova as well as offers some support services for cancer patients. The vans leave the STARS office at 7:15 AM and 8:15 AM five days a week. All drivers are volunteers and there are no costs to clients associated with this service.

Amador County Social Services

Under the umbrella of the Health and Human Services Department, Social Services provides the following programs: Child Protective Services, Adult Protective Services and In-house services. In addition to purchasing $1,500 to $2,000 in Amador Transit bus passes each year, the department uses county vehicles to provide transportation for program participants. Common destinations for Social Services clients include: Home to the Health and Human Services , Court, Amador Calaveras Counseling Services, Operation Care, medical appointments and errands. County vehicles cannot be shared with other non-county programs. Social Services staff has indicated that the department does not have sufficient staff to meet all the transportation needs of Social Services clients without the assistance of Amador Transit. Transportation needs for Social Service clients include more frequent service in the Jackson/Sutter Creek area.

The Amador County Behavioral Health

Behavioral Health clients may have mental health illnesses or substance abuse issues and require transportation from their homes (often in remote areas) to the County clinic. The department spends roughly $2,880 in AT bus passes each year. As a last resort, staff members will use county vehicles to transport high risk clients. Gas vouchers are also provided for those with access to a vehicle. Clients provided transportation directly by the department may require special needs or may not feel comfortable riding public transit; as such it would be difficult for the Behavioral Health department to coordinate with other human service agencies.

Valley Mountain Regional Center (VMRC)

VMRC provides a variety of services for people with cognitive and developmental disabilities. This includes day programs, advocacy, vocational assistance, and independent living counseling. VMRC is funded through the State Department of Developmental Services. VMRC purchases bus passes for consumers on

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 35 AT as well as contracts with Blue Mountain Transit to provide transportation to programs such as the ARC of Amador County.

The Arc of Amador and Calaveras County

The Arc provides support and services for developmentally disabled persons in Amador and Calaveras counties which enable them to live independently. Transportation is a key component of making the program work. Transportation to day programs and jobs are provided by Blue Mountain Transit or AT through funding from the VMRC. The Arc also operates several vehicles (some wheelchair accessible) to transport consumers for program related activities and medical appointments. According to staff, Blue Mountain Transit vans which provide transportation for Upcountry residents have reached capacity. Therefore, not every consumer can attend the program every day they wish. As such, Arc staff has indicated a need for additional DAR to the Upcountry area.

Mother Lode Job Training Agency

Mother Lode Job Training offers employment and training to residents of Amador County. They provide clients with either Amador Transit passes or mileage reimbursement. Transportation needs vary greatly depending on client load and whether or not clients have operable vehicles.

Common Grounds Senior Services, Inc.

Common Grounds Senior Services primarily provides transportation for seniors to doctor’s appointments but also trips to the grocery store, post office and other errands. Common destinations for seniors are Amador Physical Therapy and the medical offices on Court Street. The level of trips provided varies, with an average of 4 – 5 trips per day. Common Ground Senior Services will also provide out-of-county transportation to the VA Hospital or UC Davis, maybe 10 times a month. Two part-time staff members are available on-call to drive three agencies vehicles, one of which is a lift-equipped van. The transportation is partially funded through an Area 12 Agency on Aging grant.

Community Compass

The Community Compass is a behavioral management program, offering services to developmentally disabled residents of Amador County. Programs and services include social skills development, public transportation training, personal management, recreation/leisure skills, vocational assessment and training. Paid Community Compass staff drivers provides transportation free of charge to their clients to and from work, activities, and pick up/drop off at the client’s residence.

American Legion

The American Legion Post 108 provides ambulance services for a fee to residents of Amador and Calaveras Counties. A fleet of 10 vehicles are dedicated to Amador County transports. The American Legion carries roughly 400 – 450 transports per month. Fuel and routine maintenance is provided through the county. Driver training is conducted internally. American Legion has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Amador Transit. In the event of a mass casualty, AT will provide a larger vehicle for emergency transport services.

Jackson Rancheria

The Jackson Rancheria operates a hotel, RV Park, General Store and Casino off of New York Ranch Road between Ridge Road and SR 88. The property is not currently served by Amador Transit, although it is one of the major employers in the county and a popular tourist destination. Casino/hotel work shifts span the entire day but a large portion of employees work from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The Rancheria provides

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 36 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. transportation on the property between the Casino, RV Park, General Store, and hotel generally on-call with a few scheduled stops. Transportation is not provided off the property to downtown Jackson. Also, located on the Rancheria property (although not associated with the Casino) is the MACT Clinic which provides medical, dental, outreach, and behavioral health services for Native Americans as well as the general public.

Amador Tuolumne Community Action Agency (ATCAA)

ATCAA was formed through a Joint Powers Agreement between Amador and Tuolumne Counties in 1981 as the two counties independently did not meet the minimum 50,000 population level for Community Services Block Grants. The mission of the agency is to help residents of the two communities become self-sufficient and contributing members of society. ATCAA is a public entity which provides a wide range of services and programs from Head Start, court appointed advocates, to lifeline assistance for seniors.

ATCAA’s Housing Division provides foreclosure intervention, case management, smart money classes and emergency shelter for the general homeless population including individuals and families with children. The Housing Division purchases bus passes for clients (roughly $1,700) and operates a Dodge Van to transport clients to emergency medical appointments, after school activities, Sierra Wind Wellness and Recovery Center, DMV, court appointments etc. Roughly 700 one-way passenger trips are provided.

ATCAA operates two community centers: Upcountry and Comanche Lake. These are non-profit centers which offer a variety of resources and activities for all members of the community including: information and resource referral, family advocate services, computer/printer/internet access, after school programs and support groups. The division spends roughly four hours a month transporting clients to medical appointments and social services/behavioral health appointments.

Amador Senior Center

The Amador Senior Center is located at 229 New York Ranch Road in Jackson and provides a variety of supportive services for adults age 55 and older such as legal assistance, caregiver consult and support, notary, home repair, recreational activities, driver’s safety education as well as congregate meals. The Senior Center does not provide transportation as Common Ground Senior Services does.

Amador First Five

The mission of First Five is to promote, support and enhance children age 0 – 5. Through Proposition 10 grant funding First Five sponsors and provides programs which promote child care, oral health, parent involvement, school readiness and family safety. First Five does not directly provide transportation or purchase bus passes but their grantees do. In the past, First Five has also purchased gas cards for families unable to access services.

Creative Support Alternatives

This agency provides various support services which allow persons with developmental disabilities to live independently and/or participate more fully in the community. Currently Creative Support Alternatives serves 20 – 25 people in the Independent Living Services Program and 5 people in the BizCircles program. Staff indicated a need to increase service to some of the outlying communities and non- traditional work hours. Creative Support Alternatives is a vendor for the Valley Mountain Regional Center.

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 38 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 4 Land Use and Demographic Forecasts

This chapter presents a review of various forecasts of future conditions in Amador County, focusing on factors that pertain to potential transit needs. These forecasts of development and demographics will be used for an assessment of transit demand and ridership in the development of transit alternatives.

LONG RANGE PLANS AND FORECASTS

Planned Land Use and Developments

Amador County has experienced rapid growth over the past decade, with a focus on residential and commercial developments. The county, which is heavily dependent on tourism, is slowly developing other industries as well. Major casinos, such as the Jackson Rancheria, have been developed, with the potential for other casinos in the Ione and Plymouth areas. In the past decade, major commercial developments have been constructed in the Martell area, creating more need for services between Sutter Creek and Jackson. However, like many other areas in California, development has declined in recent years as a result of the economic downturn. The following is a summary of the more prominent and large-scale development projects that are in review or have been recently approved:

 Golden Vale: The Golden Vale subdivision includes 607 single- and multi-family residential units and commercial space on 383 acres in Martell. This project has not yet been submitted for formal action, and has only been presented in concept.

 Creekside at Jackson: Located in Jackson along the South Jackson SR 49 corridor, this project proposes 400 residential units on 277 acres. The project has been presented in concept and is awaiting formal submittal.

 Zinfandel: The Zinfandel proposal, located in Plymouth along the SR 49/SR 16 corridor, includes 350 residential units on 365 acres. The land for the project has been annexed and the tentative map, development plan design guidelines and development agreements have been approved.

 Gold Rush: The largest of the currently proposed or approved projects, this proposal would include 1,334 new residential units on 945 acres, 300 timeshare units at the Golf Course and a 60-room hotel, along the Ridge and SR 88 corridor in the Sutter Creek/Sutter Hill area. This project has been approved but has yet to be constructed.

 Gold Country Plaza at Sutter Hill: This commercial project located in Sutter Hill at the SR 49 and SR 104 intersection proposes 139,430 square feet of commercial space on 11.6 acres. The project has been approved.

 Shenandoah Ridge: This residential project consists of 137 single-family residential units, primarily semi-custom homes, on 148 acres. The site has been annexed into the City of Plymouth, and has received approval for the tentative map, development plan design guidelines and development agreement.

 Pine Acres North: This mixed-use development includes single-family and multi-family residences totaling 106 units on 44.2 acres in the community of Pine Grove. The project has received approval for the tentative map.

Additional projects are currently in process in the County. Amador County has identified a total of 408 residential units planned for development (beyond the major projects identified above), including 241

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 39 single-family residences and one 67-unit condo development. The majority of this development is occurring in the Pine Grove / Pioneer / Buckhorn area. Additionally, a condominium development and a single-family residential project (with 21 units) are planned for the Kirkwood resort area of the County. The recent purchase of the ski area by the Vail Corporation may also spur additional development in the Kirkwood area.

Demographic Forecasts

The California Department of Finance develops population projections for California and its counties. As presented in Table 18, the countywide population is expected to increase by 5.4 percent over the five year planning period or an increase of about 2,000 people. Population forecasts by age group are useful in considering future trends in demand for transit services. As the baby boomer generation retires, many are expected to move to the foothill counties such as Amador County. This trend is reflected in CA DOF population projections by age group. Table 18 demonstrates that the population less than 19 years of age is anticipated to decrease slightly over the next five years. The population from age 20 to 64 is expected to increase by only 0.8 percent. In contrast, the younger senior population (65 to 74) is expected to increase by 22.1 percent from 2014 to 2019 and the older senior population (75 and older) is expected to increase by 16.7 percent. Overall, these forecasts indicate substantial shifts in the demand for public transportation services over the long term, particularly towards increasing needs for seniors.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 40 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. % 2019 2014 - Change Change -3 -0.1% -53 -1.4% 169602 0.8% 16.7% 2019 2,004 5.4% 1,194 22.1% 2014 - 2014 - Change Change 2010 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 3,0794,083 2,890 3,870 2,839 3,861 2,803 3,804 2,821 3,809 2,837 3,800 2,888 3,816 3,378 3,602 3,674 3,757 3,879 4,025 4,204 37,853 36,833 36,949 37,286 37,762 38,283 38,837 22,833 21,114 20,944 20,998 21,093 21,180 21,283 TABLE 18: Amador County Population Forecast Population Amador 18: County TABLE hlrn( o9r)8%8%8%8%7%7%7%---- 9yrs) to (0 Children to (0 9 yrs) Youth (10 to 19 yrs) Children Youth (10 to 19yrs) Adult to (20 65 yrs) Younger Senior to (65 74 yrs) Older Senior (75+ yrs) 12%Source: CaliforniaDepartment Finance, of 11% DemographicResearch Unit 15% 60% 9% 11% 15% 57% 10% 10% 16% 57% 10% 10% 16% 56% 10% 10% 17% 56% 10% 10% 17% 55% 10% 11% 55% -- 11% ------Subtotal by Age Adult to (20 64 yrs) Younger Senior to (65 74 yrs) Older Senior (75+ yrs) 4,481Percent Total of 5,409 5,667 5,906 6,144 6,390 6,603 Total Population

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 42 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 5 Transit Needs and Survey Results

A key step in developing and evaluating transit plans is a careful analysis of the mobility needs of various segments of the population and the potential ridership of transit services. The discussion below summarizes relevant data collected in the previous chapters and reviews the potential transit needs for Amador Transit services

Unmet Transit Needs

The California TDA requires annual unmet transit needs hearings if a jurisdiction proposes to spend some TDA funds on streets and roads. The TDA is the primary source of funding for public transit in Amador County. In recent years, Amador County has not allocated TDA funds towards streets and roads. Therefore, an official unmet needs report was not required; however, ACTC still goes through the unmet transit needs process each year to receive public input on transit needs in the region and evaluate potential transit services.

At the April 2013 meeting, the ACTC adopted the following definitions of unmet transit needs and “reasonable to meet”:

An Unmet Transit Need is any deficiency in the system of public transit services, specialized transportation services, services or private transportation services within Amador County which has been identified by community members or through the regional planning process and which has not been funded and implemented. Unmet needs may also include desires for transportation services which are identified through the annual unmet need process including but not limited to the following:

 Amador County Transit Development Plan

 Amador County Coordinated Public transit Human Services Transportation Plan

 Amador County Long-Range Transit Development Plan

 ACTC recommendations for AT performance improvements

 Social Service Transportation Advisory Council (SSTAC) recommendations

 Other public comments or requests submitted during the ACTC’s annual transit needs hearing

An unmet transit need is reasonable to meet if the following conditions prevail:

 Amador Transit’s overall service (including administration and overhead) must achieve 10 percent farebox ratio.

 ACTC may allow routes to exist that provide between 6 and 10 percent provided the overall system maintains a 10 percent farebox ratio as mandated by the TDA.

 Transit services are “capped” by the amount of available TDA (LTF and STA) funds and other grants that are available in a given year.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 43 The 2013 Unmet Transit Needs process brought forth the following transit needs requests:

 Need transportation to outlying areas such as Camanche and Volcano to enable persons to attend rehabilitation programs through the County Probation Department.

 Additional Jackson-Sutter Creek Shuttles to close gaps in service and improve connectivity to other routes including Sacramento.

 Additional Ione and Upcountry Runs – Reduce wait time of up to six hours between runs and increase connectivity to other routes. This is more cost effective than expanding DAR.

 Expand Dial-A-Ride to Ione - to provide ADA paratransit service to Ione residents

 Service to River Pines 1 – 2 days per week – implemented

 Add two Sacramento runs to increase use by non-commuters for medical appointments and visitors to county. This would also increase connectivity to other routes and Calaveras Transit services.

 Saturday Service – Allow transit dependent residents to schedule weekend appointments, go shopping and get to events

 Evening Service – Increase service for non-traditional hour workers and after school activities

 Ambassador Program – Coordinate and train volunteers to ride the bus with prospective new transit riders.

 Lodi Service – Provide out-of –county transit service for dialysis and cancer treatment. Connect to Stockton and adjacent cities.

 Volunteer Driver Program – An alternative method of expanding transportation service for seniors and disabled.

 Pine Grove – Pioneer Circular Hopper – Provide transportation within Upcountry and connect to Jackson and Transit Center

 Improve connections with Calaveras Transit

 Improve connectivity for Plymouth resident

Human Service Agency Transportation Needs

The Amador County Coordinated Public Transit Human Service Transportation Plan is simultaneously being updated. As part of this process and in depth survey was distributed to a variety of human service agencies including both those who provide their own transportation and those purchase bus passes for clients. Results of the surveys provide a good overview of current gaps in public transportation service to meet the needs of human service agency clients and are summarized below:

 Weekend/Evening Service - Transportation to work for clients who have graveyard shifts or other non-traditional hours

 Increase connections to Calaveras County

 Service to the MACT Clinic at the Jackson Rancheria

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 44 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

 More service to outlying areas (Pioneer, Pine Grove, Camanche, Shake Ridge) (several)

 Demand response service to these outlying areas

 Transportation home from after school sports or afternoon social service appointments

 Transportation to dialysis and cancer treatments

Also important to consider in transportation planning is transportation needs stemming from the Medicaid/Medicare expansion as a result of the Health Care Reform Act.

Amador Transit On-Board Survey Results

In order to gain a better understanding of ridership and passenger activity, on-board passenger surveys were conducted on Amador Transit for two weeks from September 9 – 18, 2013. Surveyors passed out passenger questionnaires on all routes (including a few DAR runs) to identify travel characteristics and opinions on the service. A copy of the survey is attached as Appendix A. A total of 206 surveys were completed, which represents approximately 21 percent of the total boardings for the three days observed. As only 16 DAR surveys were completed, the on-board surveys are more representative of the fixed routes. The following is a summary of the main findings:

Question 1 – When asked how they got to the bus, the majority of respondents (47 percent) stated that they walked to the bus, followed by 20 percent that arrived by other means; 13 percent were dropped off, and 11 percent drove alone. See Figure 11 below.

Figure 11: How did you get to the bus today?

Dropped Off 13% 3% 20% Bicycled

1% Walked less than 10 Minutes 11% Walked More than 10 Minutes Drove Alone 5% 47% Wheelchair

Question 2 – Table 19 displays the boarding locations with at least 4 boardings during the survey period. The greatest number of respondents boarded at the Transit Center (22 boardings, 10.7 percent), while 16 respondents, 7.8 percent, stated that they boarded at Petkovich. Wal-Mart, Raley’s and Safeway were also common boarding locations.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 45 Table 19: Most Common Boarding Locations

#% Transit Center 22 10.7% Petkovich 16 7.8% Walmart 8 3.9% Raleys 8 3.9% Safeway 8 3.9% Davis St. 7 3.4% Jackson Hills 6 2.9% Hospital 6 2.9% Rolling Wood 5 2.4% Amador High 4 2.0% CVS 4 2.0% Rancho Murrietta 4 2.0% No Response 0 0.0% Other 107 52.2% Total 205 100.0%

Question 3 – Most common alighting locations are displayed in Table 20. When asked where they would be getting off the bus, 14 respondents or 7.3 percent stated ARC; another 13 respondents or 6.8 percent alighted at the Transit Center, and 12 respondents or 6.3 percent were getting off at Petkovich. Other common alighting locations were Wal-Mart and Raley’s.

Table 20: Most Common Alighting Locations

#% ARC 14 7.3% Transit Center 13 6.8% Petkovich 12 6.3% Walmart 10 5.2% Raleys 10 5.2% 10th and L 9 4.7% Safeway 6 3.1% Savemart 5 2.6% Sutter Hill 4 2.1% Social Services 4 2.1% Rancho Murrietta North 3 1.6% CVS 3 1.6% Rancho Murrietta 3 1.6% Other 95 49.7% Total 191 100.0%

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 46 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Question 4 – Passengers were asked to indicate if they would be transferring between buses as part of their trip; 30 percent indicated yes, while 70 percent indicated no.

Question 5 – The most common trip purpose for respondents was work (29.7 percent); followed personal business (20.5 percent), shopping (16.4 percent), school or college (15.1 percent), and home (7.8 percent). A small percentage of passengers (3.7 percent) indicated their purpose was for recreation / social reasons, and 1.8 percent stated the purpose of their trip was for medical reasons. Some respondents listed more than one trip purpose. (Figure 12)

Figure 12: Trip Purpose 35.0% 30.0% 25.0% 20.0% 15.0% 10.0% 5.0% 0.0%

Question 6 – Passengers were asked how they would make their return trip and the majority indicated it would be via Amador Transit (78.6 percent); while 8.8 percent noted it would be a one way trip, 7.7 percent said they would ride with someone, and 4.4 percent said they would walk. Less than one percent of respondents indicated they would hitch-hike while no respondents indicated they would take a taxi. (Figure 13)

Figure 13: How will you make return trip?

4.4% 0.5% Return on Amador Transit 7.7% One‐way trip 8.8% Ride with someone

Hitch Hike 78.6%

Walk

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 47 Question 7 – When asked how often they ride the bus, 61.1 percent of the riders answered 4-5 days per week, 26.3 percent 2-3 days per week, and 5.1 percent use it 1 day per week. Another 4.5 percent only ride the bus 1-4 days per month, while 3.0 percent use it less than 1 day a month. (Figure 14)

Figure 14: How often do you ride the bus?

4.5% 5.1%

1 Day/Week 1‐4 Days/Month 26.3% 2‐3 Days/Week < 1 Day/Month 61.1% 4‐5 Days/Week

3.0%

Question 8 – Respondents were asked to indicate how long they have been using the bus. The majority of the passengers (75.1 percent) said they had been using it for more than a year; 10.7 percent have been using it for 6 months to a year, 12.2 percent said they had been using it for less than 6 months, and 2.0 percent indicated they were first time users. (Figure 15)

Figure 15: How long have you been using the bus?

2.0% 12.2%

10.7% First Time Less than 6 Months 6 Month to 1 Year More than 1 Year

75.1%

Question 9 – When asked how they would have made the trip if Amador Transit was not available, the greatest proportion of respondents, 23.8 percent, said they would have not made the trip; 22.9 percent would have ridden with a friend/family, 18.6 percent would have driven themselves, and 16.7 percent said they would have walked, while another 9.0 percent would have hitchhiked. These proportions account for several respondents identifying more than one option. (Figure 16)

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 48 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Figure 16: If AT was not available, how would you have made trip? 25.0% 20.0% 15.0% 10.0% 5.0% 0.0% Drove Bicycled Walked Ride Hitch Hike Taxi Other Would not have made trip

Question 10 – Passengers were asked to answer the following: “If Amador Transit was not in operation, would you be able to stay in your current home, or would you have to move”? The majority of respondents (71.0 percent) could stay in their home, 12.4 percent would have to move, and 16.6 percent didn’t know. (Figure 17)

Figure 17: If Amador Transit was not in operation, would you be able to stay in your current home?

16.6%

Could stay in current home 12.4% Would have to move

Don't know 71.0%

Question 11 – When asked if they have a disability that limits driving, 35.7 percent answered yes, while 64.3 percent answered no.

Question 12 – Of the passengers surveyed, 36.4 percent are licensed drivers, while 63.6 percent do not have a driver’s license. This is likely a reflection of a disability that limits driving, as indicated in Question 11.

Question 13 – Roughly 72 percent of respondents indicated that there was not a vehicle they could have used for their trip.

Question 14 – Ridership by gender was nearly equal amongst males (48.4 percent) and females (51.6 percent).

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 49 Question 15 – The age range of the passengers is as follows: (Figure 18)

 Under 18 – 14%  19 to 25 – 10%  26 to 44 – 30%  45 to 61 – 24%  62 to 74 – 17%  75 or over – 5%

Figure 18: Age of Respondents

5.4% 13.5% 17.3% Under 18 9.7% 19 to 25 26 to 44 45 to 61 62 to 74 24.3% 75 and over 29.7%

Question 16 – Of the number of passengers responding to the status of their employment, 26.9 percent said they are employed full time, while 21.2 percent said they work part time; 15.5 percent stated being retired, followed by 12.4 percent who were students; 7.3 percent were unemployed, and 11.9 percent noted they were unable to work. (Figure 19)

Figure 19: Respondent Employment Status

2.1% 11.9%

26.9% 7.3%

15.5%

21.2% 12.4%

2.6%

Full‐Time Employeed Part‐Time Employeed Homemaker Student Retired Not Employeed

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 50 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Question 17 – Passengers were asked to identify the yearly income of all the people in their home: (Figure 20)

 Under $24,000 – 66.5%  $24,000 to $39,999 – 16.5%  $40,000 to $59,999 – 5.3%  $60,000 to $74,999 – 5.9%  $75,000 to $85,000 – 0.6%  Greater than $85,000 – 5.3%

The majority of respondent’s household income is less than federal poverty level for a family of four.

Figure 20: Respondent Household Income

0.6% 5.3% 5.9% Under $24,000 5.3% $24,000 to $39,999 $40,000 to $59,999 16.5% $60,000 to $74,999

66.5% $75,000 to $85,000 Greater than $85,000

Question 18 - Respondents were asked to rank on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = poor; 5 = excellent) several transit service elements; average rankings are as follows:

 Driver Courtesy – 4.7  On time performance – 4.4  Areas Served – 4.4  Bus comfort – 4.5  Cost of bus fares – 4.6  Bus cleanliness – 4.6  Printed information materials – 4.5  Telephone information services – 4.5  Bus stops and shelters – 4.5  Overall transit service – 4.6

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 51 Figures 21 - 30 display responses for transit each service element.

Figure 21: Driver Courtesy Figure 22: On‐Time Performance 80.0% 80.0% 60.0% 60.0% 40.0% 40.0% 20.0% 20.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Figure 23: Areas Served Figure 24: Bus Comfort 80.0% 80.0% 60.0% 60.0% 40.0% 40.0% 20.0% 20.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Figure 25: Cost of Bus Fares Figure 26: Bus Cleanliness 80.0% 80.0% 60.0% 60.0% 40.0% 40.0% 20.0% 20.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Figure 27:Printed Information Figure 28: Telephone Information 80.0% 60.0% 80.0% 60.0% 40.0% 40.0% 20.0% 20.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 52 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Figure 29: Bus Stops and Shelters Figure 30: Overall Transit Service 80.0% 80.0% 60.0% 60.0% 40.0% 40.0% 20.0% 20.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Question 19 – Of the improvements passengers would like to see, 30.1 percent would like Saturday service, 25.0 percent indicated additional service time and 13.3 percent new or extended routes. Some respondents would like to see Sunday service and later weekday service (10.5 percent). (Figure 31)

Figure 31: What improvements would you like to see? 35.0% 30.0% 25.0% 20.0% 15.0% 10.0% 5.0% 0.0% Additional New or Eariler Later Saturday Sunday Other Service Extended Weekday Weekday Service Service Time Routes Service Service

Question 20 – Additional comments are displayed in Appendix A

General Public Survey Results

Over the month of October a separate survey was distributed to general public Amador County residents through human service agencies, community centers, and on the internet. The purpose of this survey is to ensure that a wide range of Amador County residents have input on public transit, as opposed to just riders. Specifically surveys were distributed at the following locations:

 Social Services Transportation Advisory Council  First Five  Upcountry Community Council  Numerous churches  Cost Less Grocery Outlet  Pine Grove Coffee Shop  Common Grounds Senior Center  www.surveymonkey .com  Amador Transit Facebook page and website

A total of 469 surveys were collected.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 53 Question 1 – Of the 461 respondents to question 1, 87 people (18.9 percent) live in the community of Jackson/Martell; 72 people (15.6 percent) live in Pioneer; followed by 62 respondents (13.4 percent) who live in Ione. Additional respondents reside in Sutter Creek (59 people or 12.8 percent), Pine Grove (52 people or 11.3 percent) and Plymouth (49 people or 10.6 percent). Other communities represented include Fiddletown (21 respondents, 4.6 percent), Volcano (14 respondents, 3.0 percent), Camanche (7 respondents, 1.5 percent) and River Pines (6 respondents, 1.3 percent). An additional 3.3 percent of those surveyed (15 people) live in Calaveras County. (Figure 32)

Question 2 – The majority of the respondents were between the age of twenty-five and 74. Amador Transit has a larger proportion of senior passengers vs. youth. The age rannge of those surveyed is as follows: (Figure 33)

 Under 18 – 5.9%  19 to 25 – 4.2%  26 to 44 – 25.0%  45 to 61 – 26.5%  62 to 74 – 23.9%  75 or over – 14.5%

Question 3 – When asked if they had a vehicle available for travel, 69.7% answered yes, while 29.8% answered no.

Amador County Short-Rangnge Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 54 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Question 4 – Respondents were asked to indicate which communities they typically travel to for work, doctor and medical, school, recreation and social, grocery shopping, and banking. As shown in Figure 34, the Jackson/Martell area is by far the most common destination for all activvities, particularly for grocery shopping and medical appointments. Fewer than 80 percent of respondents stated they do their groccery shopping in Jackson/Martell while 61.5 percent stated that they travel there for medical appointments. Sutter Creek and Plymouth were common school locations (around 25 percent each). Saacramento was also a fairly common response for medical appointments (13 ppercent). Figuure 35 summarizes question 4 data by location. For example, for those respondents indicatinng that they travel to the Jackson/Martell area, 39.2 percent go there for grocery shopping, 21.2 percent for medical, and 15.9 percent for banking.

Question 5 – When asked how often they use Amador Transit, the majorrity of respondents (66.5%) indicated never; 10% use it less than once per month, 8.6% uuse it ten times or more per month, 8% use

Amador County Short-Rana ge Transit Development Plana , 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 55 it 1-4 times per month, closely followed by 6.9% that use it 5-10 times per month. As indicated in Fiigure 36, the majority of respondents to the general public survey are not Amador Transit riders.

Question 6 – Individuals were asked to answer the following, “If you don’t use Amador Transit or only ride infrequently, what factors limit your use? (Check all that aapply)”. The primary reason for not usiing Amador Transit is that they have a vehicle (24.7 percent or 200 responses). Bus frequency concerns were the next common answer (13.1 percent or 106 responses); followed closely by 12.1 percent or 98 people stating the bus doesn’t stop near their home. Another 10.1 percent or 82 individuals said the bus doesn’t run late enough; 7.9 percent/64 responses and 7.6 percent/62 responses respectively stated that the bus doesn’t goo where they need to go, or they were not aware of bus service. Other limiting factors were that individuals need to make multiple stops along the way (6.5 percent or 53 responses), the bus takes too long (5.9 percent or 48 responses), or the bus doesn’t start eaarly enough (4.2 percent or 34 responses). Only 2.3 percent or 19 responses were that the fair was too high, and only 1.1 percent or 9 respondents were limited due to a disability. See Figure 37.

Amador County Short-Rangnge Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 56 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Question 7 – Respondents were asked to answer if they had public transiit needs outside of Amador County in the following regions: Sacramento, Lodi, Stockton, oor the Bay Area. The majoority of those asked, did not provide a response. Of those that provided an answer, Sacramento was the primary area where public transit was needed (58.6 percent or 136 responses), mostly due to medical reasons (45 responses). Figure 38 displays out-of-county transit needs by purpose. In addition to Sacramento, the Bay Area was also a common destination for family and recreaation. Stockton was also a more common destination than Lodi, although it received significantly fewer responses thaan Sacramento.

Question 8 – Individuals were asked to specify if they would be able to get to work, doctor, school, or recreation/social outings without Amador Transit. The majority indicated yees to all, a reflection of the fact the majority of respondents are able to drive (Figure 39). It is worth noting the number of responses that would be unable to participate in these activities if Amador Transit were not available:

 Work 67 respondents, 23.8 percent  Doctor 68 respondents, 18.4 percent  School – 58 respondents, 24.7 percent  Recreation – 67 respondents, 21.1 percent

Amador County Short-Rana ge Transit Development Plana , 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 57

Question 9 – Lastly, when asked if public transit should be provided in Amador County, 93.4% answered yes, 1.2% said no, and 5.4% were undecided. (Figuure 40)

Question 10 – The final question of the survey provided respondents with the opportunity to explain how Amador Transit could better meet their transportation needs. Responses are listed in Appendix A.

Summary of Transit Needs of Amador County Residents

Taking in to account all the demogrraphic, public input and surrvey input reviewed in this document, the following findings can be made regaarding transit needs in Amaador County.

 High concentrations of Amador County residents who are more likely to be transit dependent (older adults, no vehicle, low income) are found in Jackson, Ione, and Buckhorn. The latter two areas are served less frequently by public transit.

 Amador County and the other foothill counties are expectted to feel the effects of the “Silver Tsunami” as the baby boomer generation retires to more rural areas. This will increase the need for transportation for seniors and disabled to medical appointments, shoppping and other daily needs in the future.

 Many human service agency clients who require demand response type service live Upcountry. Currently, only ADA individuals who live within a three-quarter mile radius of the fixed routes in these regions can receive a curb to curb deviation, otherwise no public transit is available.

 There are some out-of-county transit needs. Sacramento appears to have the highest demand. With an already established route, increasing frequency could help serve soome of these needs.

 Later service and weekend service are continually requested in all public input forums.

 The county’s top major employers (Jackson Rancheria and correctional facilities in Ione) are not served by public transit.

Amador County Short-Rangnge Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 58 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 6 Cost Benefit Analysis

Cost / Benefit Analysis is a standard economic method to assess the overall financial effectiveness of a service or program. It is particularly useful in evaluating public sector services, as the free market does not provide ongoing feedback as to whether the service provides a net benefit to society (with benefits outweighing costs). As an important public service, this document evaluates the costs versus benefits of the Amador Transit program. One specific goal of this analysis is to define the Benefit/Cost Ratio of Amador Transit: if this ratio exceeds 1.0, it indicates that benefits exceed costs, indicating that the program provides an overall net benefit.

Costs are relatively simple to calculate. At present, the total annual operating cost of Amador Transit is $1,237,000. This figure excludes capital items, such as bus replacement, bus shelters, office equipment, etc. This figure varies significantly on an annual basis, particularly with regards to the purchase of new or replacement buses. Over the last five years, the annual expenditures for capital items averaged $250,000. Added to the operating costs, the total annual average costs to provide Amador Transit service is approximately $1,487,000. Note that these figures include costs paid by entities beyond Amador County (such as the Federal Transit Administration) and thus reflect more than the local subsidy required to provide the service.

Benefits, however, are more difficult to define and quantify, and thus will be the focus of this discussion. At a general level, the direct benefits of rural public transportation systems are clear: public transit allows residents without a private vehicle to access medical appointments, shopping and other day to day activities, and allows residents with access to a vehicle to save money on transportation. There are also numerous indirect benefits and impacts of public transit. Examples include the additional cost of public assistance to those who are unable to find transportation to work, and health care costs associated with missed important medical appointments. It is important in an evaluation of a public transit system to also consider these secondary impacts.

This document reviews all types of impacts a rural public transit system has on society as a whole. The analysis includes a qualitative analysis of the cost/benefit of rural public transportation and where data is available, quantitative comparisons are made. The cost/benefit analysis is organized into the following general categories:

1. Reduced transportation costs

2. Independent living for seniors

3. Employment

4. Independence for those with intellectual/developmental disabilities

5. Impact on the local economy

6. Benefits of access to medical appointments, and

7. Other considerations.

As a basis for this analysis, a review was conducted of the literature regarding cost benefit analysis as it pertains to rural public transportation programs. A bibliography of all documents reviewed is presented at the end of this document. In particular, this analysis draws heavily upon case studies and research conducted as part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 34, Assessment of the Economic Impacts of Rural Transportation. The TCRP report references a variety of studies which have

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 59 analyzed the impact of not having public transit services. For one example: A study conducted in the Philadelphia region reviewed several options: rehabilitating the transit system, reducing services by 50 percent, shutdown of services within 10 years, and immediate permanent shutdown. It was estimated that rehabilitation and continuation of services provided a three to one benefit to cost ratio in transportation benefits alone and a nine to one ratio in economic benefits such as increased cost of business, reduced business access to labor markets, increased cost of living, reduced “quality of life” etc.

Benefits of Public Transit in Amador County

Reduced Transportation Costs for Sacramento Route Passengers

By taking public transit, Amador County commuters can reduce the amount of money they spend on transportation. There is a particularly high proportion of commuters on the AT Sacramento Route. A reasonable method of estimating the cost of driving a private vehicle is multiplying the IRS reimbursable rate of 55.5 cents per mile by the average one-way mileage of a Sacramento route passenger of 36 miles. Dividing by the average vehicle occupancy of 1.59 passengers per car (US Department of Energy, 2010), the estimated cost of a one–way commute person-trip to downtown Sacramento is $11.35. Multiplied by the estimated annual one-way passenger-trips for work purposes (based on on-board survey data), the Sacramento Route saves a total of $121,670 in avoided auto operating costs, all of which are a benefit of the transit program. The passenger fare revenues for commuters on this route total approximately $26,380 per year, indicating a direct savings to passengers of roughly $95,290.

Reduced Transportation Costs for Local Route Passengers

The same formula can be applied to AT local route passengers who per the on-board surveys were using AT to commute to work. An additional $22,700 in avoided fuel and private vehicle costs (transit benefit) was estimated. Subtracting fares of $14,300, equates to a cost savings for passengers of $8,400.

Independent Living for Seniors

An important indirect benefit of rural public transportation is providing older adults with the ability to live independently in their own home, even if they have lost the ability to drive or it has become unsafe to drive. Public transportation can provide seniors with access to medical appointments, food shopping, and recreation/social outings. In the long run, this prolongs the need to live in a nursing home, hospital or other more expensive institutions. The Gold Country region with its mountainous scenery and rural lifestyle is attractive to retirees and therefore, has a higher percentage of seniors than the state as a whole. As shown in Table 21, the California Department of Finance projects that in 2014, 42.2 percent of the Amador County population is age 55 or older. This is much higher than the statewide proportion of 24.4 percent. By the end of the five year planning period, the number of persons in Amador County age 55 or older is expected to increase to 46.1 percent or nearly half of the total population. Although persons age 55 to 75 are considered seniors, in general this age group can still drive.

As a person approaches the age of 75, they are more likely to have mobility issues or other driving limitations. Using the California Department of Finance data, it is estimated that there are 3,602 persons over 75 in Amador County in 2014, representing 9.7 percent of the total population. This number will increase to 4,204 persons or 10.8 percent of the population who may become transit dependent by 2019. A study published in the American Journal of Health in 2002 regarding driver life expectancies vs. actual life expectancy shows that 84 percent of men over 75 still drive and 60 percent of women over 75 still drive. This number drops to 54 percent and 22 percent, respectively as people reach age 85.

In today’s day and age, there is not the same support within a family to take care of aging adults as there was 50 years ago. Adult children often move far away from where they grew up to have families of their own, or retirees may move miles away from where they raised their children to enjoy a more

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 60 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. peaceful lifestyle. This makes it difficult for the adult children to care for their parents as they age. This also makes it more important for communities to have public transportation available for basic needs such as shopping, doctor’s appointments or periodic social activities. By continuing to live independently in their own home and have a link to some social interaction, seniors are also more likely to avoid depression and the loss of cognitive abilities.

Table 21 Senior Population in Amador County

Population Increase in 5 Years Age Group 2014 2019 #% 55-59 3,191 3,584 392 12.3% 60-64 3,359 3,516 157 4.7% 65-69 3,190 3,534 344 10.8% 70-74 2,219 3,069 850 38.3% 75-79 1,564 1,922 358 22.9% 80-84 950 1,203 253 26.6% 85-89 696 621 -75 -10.7% 90-94 299 347 48 16.0% 95-99 83 97 14 16.8% 100+ 10 13 4 39.8%

Total Seniors 15,561 17,906 2,345 15.1%

Total Seniors 75+ 3,602 4,204 602 16.7%

Total Amador County 36,833 38,837 2,004 5.4% Population Seniors % of Total 42.2% 46.1% Population

Statewide Seniors % 24.5% 26.8%

Source: CA Department of Finance

The Alliance for Aging Research has compiled a variety of research with respect to older adults and chronic disease. The Alliance for Aging Research Silver Book reports that by age 65, nearly nine out of ten Americans will have at least one chronic condition. According to their reports, the leading reasons for seniors losing their ability to live independently and require nursing home care are: dementia, osteoporosis or other mobility limitations, vision impairments and incontinence. According to the Census 2009 – 2011 American Community Survey, 13.7% of Amador County residents or 445 persons over the age of 75 have difficulty with independent living. Depending on the severity of the illness, seniors affected only by mobility limitations and/or vision impairments may still be able to conduct daily living activities such as meal preparation, taking medications, dressing/bathing but may be unable to drive to the store or the doctor. It would therefore be this segment of the senior population who would be affected most by the loss of public transit.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 61 On board surveys of all routes were conducted on Amador Transit between September 9 through 11, 2013. Passengers were asked to complete a survey for each one-way passenger trip. A total of 206 surveys were completed. This represents roughly 21 percent of total one-way passenger trips for the three day period. According to the on-board surveys, 2.3 percent of respondents on the fixed routes were over the age of 75. This equates to roughly 6 one-way passenger-trips. Only passengers with some type of disability which does not allow them to use the fixed route are eligible for the Dial-A-Ride (DAR) service. Approximately, 40 percent of registered DAR users, or 74 persons, are over 70 years old. Considering transit passengers on both the fixed route and DAR, it is estimated that 80 regular Amador Transit passengers are at least 70 years of age. Although there are some seniors who take public transit to save money or reduce vehicle miles traveled, general public survey responses indicate that most seniors will drive, if they have the ability to do so. Therefore it is reasonable to assume that the ability to live independently for these 80 transit passengers would be reduced significantly, if Amador Transit were unavailable.

There are various levels of care available for seniors who are unable to participate in one or more daily activities. A survey conducted by Genworth presents Cost of Care statistics for 2013 for Sacramento:

 Licensed homemaker services (assistance with cooking and errands) – Minimum $18 per hour, median annual rate of $50,336

 Licensed home health aide (“hands on care”, bathing and dressing) – Minimum $21 per hour, median annual rate of $54,912

 Assisted living facility (one bedroom) – Minimum $1,300 per month, median annual rate of $40,200

 Nursing home (semi-private room ) – Minimum $215 per day, median annual rate of $93,075

 Nursing home (private room) – Minimum $220 per day, median annual rate of $104,025

In the hypothetical scenario that Amador Transit is no longer available, 80 Amador Transit passengers could potentially lose their ability to live independently. The benefit of Amador Transit in this situation could be estimated as follows. The minimum monthly cost of some type of assisted living is roughly $1,300 per month. As living in one’s home still incurs some costs (even if the mortgage is paid), the TCRP report estimates that two-thirds of the cost of a nursing home/assisted living facility represents the avoidance costs attributable to the maintenance of independent living. Therefore, a conservative estimate of the benefit of Amador Transit with respect to independent living for seniors is ($1,300 x 2/3) x 12 months x 80 people or $832,000 per year. At the other extreme, using the same methodology the benefit of transit over a semi-private room at a nursing home is $4.9 million annually.

Statistics have shown that average nursing home patient runs out of money within six months and must go on Medicaid, placing the financial burden of care for the elderly on the general public. Even if the family has sufficient funds to pay for the care, the additional cost of health care due to the absence of public transit could be better used to stimulate the economy such as sending children to college or remodeling a home. The Silver Book, compiled by the Alliance for Aging Research and available on their website notes that the United States could save $26 billion per year if currently healthy older people were able to remain fully independent over the course of a single year.

Employment

According to the 2010 Census, 4.3 percent of households in Amador County do not have a vehicle available. Even if one vehicle is available, many household members may be unable to use the vehicle due to a mobility limitation, disability or simply the other members of the household need it. For these residents, public transit is their only means of transportation to work. Except those few residents that live

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 62 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. close to a major employment center, it is likely that there are few jobs within walking or cycling distance. As such, many of these individuals could become unemployed, in the absence of public transit and potentially require some type of public financial assistance to live. Therefore, an indirect benefit of public transit, in this case, is the income earned by these employable residents plus the reduced cost in public subsidy payments to these employable residents.

Two separate survey efforts were conducted that provide a good data source for estimating this indirect transit benefit. According to onboard survey data, 21 respondents (one-way trips) stated that they fit into the following categories, making them a potential candidate for public subsidies in the absence of public transit:

 Transit trip purpose was “work”, and

 Total income for their household was less than $24,000 per year, the federal poverty level for a family of four, and

 No vehicle was available for the trip

Of those respondents, 15 respondents or (23 percent of respondents with a work trip purpose) stated that if there were no Amador Transit they would have made the trip by either “getting a ride” (8 respondents), “hitch hiking” (2 respondents), “would not have made this trip” (4 respondents), or “other” (1 respondent). (Essentially respondents who stated they would drive or walk were eliminated). Although these methods of commuting to work may be feasible periodically or for a short period of time, it can be difficult to depend on rides or hitchhiking as a means of transportation to work.

According to a different set of surveys distributed to the general public at community centers, social service agencies, stores, churches etc. to obtain opinions about public transit from both riders and non- riders, 25 percent of respondents (or 66 people) stated that they would not be able to get to work if Amador Transit was unavailable. Of the 252 respondents who answered both the questions, “Do you have a vehicle available?” and “Without AT, would you have been able to get to work?” 47 people or 18.7 percent of those surveyed stated that they would not be able to get to work. This indicates that the findings from the on-board surveys represent a conservative estimate.

Therefore, it is reasonable to apply the 23 percent of on-board survey respondents identified above to average daily ridership to determine the number of passenger-trips which represent persons who would lose their job if Amador Transit was not available. Using on-board survey data, it is estimated that there are roughly 85 one-way passenger trips for work purposes on Amador Transit each day. Applying the 23 percent figure equates to 19.5 one-way passenger trips associated with persons who would likely become unemployed if Amador Transit were not available. However, not all transit passengers travel every day. Considering the average number of days per week that part-time and full-time workers may use AT to get to work (4.1) approximately 15 persons would be out of work without AT services.

An Amador County resident in this scenario may be eligible to receive subsidies from the CalWorks program (if there is at least one child in the household), CalFresh (food stamps) and General Relief programs (three months only). State reports and discussions with the Amador County Social Service Department indicate that the average monthly payment per person for these programs is roughly as follows:

 CalWorks - $400 for one adult and one child

 CalFresh - $150

 General Relief - $200

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 63 Without an income, persons are also more likely to apply for benefits under the Medi-Cal and Social Security programs. It is reasonable to assume that someone in this situation may receive a combination of the above benefits totaling approximately $750 per month or $9,000 per year per person.1 Multiplied by the number of persons results in a total savings in benefits generated by AT services of $135,000 per year.

Lastly, the total benefit of transit for employment can be estimated by adding the total income of the 15 individuals who would otherwise be unemployed without Amador Transit ($360,000) plus the avoidance of $135,000 in public subsidy payments to these individuals for a total of $495,000 per year.

It is worth noting that this benefit can be expected to grow in the future, as aging residents increasingly are working into their years when mobility becomes a challenge. About 18.5 percent of Americans age 65 and over were working in 2012, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is a nearly 8 percentage point increase from 1985, when just 10.8 percent of Americans over age 65 were still at work. In other words, the proportion of seniors that are working has increased by 78 percent since 1985. Coupled with the growth in the absolute number of seniors, providing working seniors with access to jobs will grow substantially in coming years.

Transportation for Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)

According to the US Census 2009 – 2011 American Community Survey, there are 1,897 persons in Amador County with a cognitive disability. Of these, 100 to 200 of these residents are known by human service agencies to use their services. It is estimated that 90 percent of these residents use Amador Transit for all types of trip purposes (work, medical, appointments, shopping, etc.) as they are unable to drive. Human service agencies such as The Arc of Amador and Calaveras, Community Compass, and Creative Support Alternatives provide programs and support services to help the disabled community to live and work independently. Services include a day program at The Arc Amador Campus, job training, independent living skills, community access, communication training and other services which allow consumers to live in their own apartment. Many agencies provide transportation to programs or the client’s job through subsidizing bus passes on Amador Transit, driving staff vehicles or hiring the services of a private transportation provider. While some transportation to medical appointments is also provided, this is discussed in a separate section. These organizations are funded through private donations, Department of Developmental Services (DDS), and other state and federal funds. If AT were not available, it would have serious consequences on the IDD community.

People served by organizations such as The Arc use Amador Transit to travel between their home and The Arc day program in Sutter Creek and to their jobs. The Arc encourages clients to use Amador Transit when feasible and available. If it is not possible to ride AT (such as if AT does not serve the client’s home), Valley Mountain Regional Center contracts with a private transportation provider to transport clients to their destination which costs around $45 - $55 per person per day. This is substantially more expensive than a round trip fare of $1 per day on Amador Transit on the local routes. One agency estimates that if public transit were not available, an additional $380,000 per year could be spent on transportation costs for existing consumers currently using Amador Transit.

Arc funding stems from both donations and state and federal funds via contracts with the Valley Mountain Regional Center. In times when additional state or private funding is unknown, it is possible that The Arc would be unable to afford the additional cost of transportation. In addition to these home – day program and home – work trips, consumers living independently rely on AT for every day transportation to the store etc.

1 This figure is conservatively low in comparison with the TCRP report, which indicates that total public subsidies of unemployed persons is half of the income they would receive if employed, or roughly $12,000 per year.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 64 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

If some of these clients were unable to access services or leave their homes, some consumers would no longer be able to live at their family home or independently, thereby requiring care at a full time care facility. The cost of living in a private facility with nursing services is approximately $70,000 per year. If a private facility is not financially feasible for the family, the annual per bed cost at one of the four state- run facilities is over $400,000 in tax payer money. There are roughly 65 of IDD consumers at one of the human service agencies. Even with the conservative assumption that just five of these consumers would have to move to a state run facility in the absence of AT, (multiplying by $400,000 per year) the transit benefit of providing public transit service to the IDD community is estimated to be $2,000,000 per year.

Many persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities are willing and able to work but they are unable to drive and must rely on public transit to get to work. Having an independent income reduces the need for public financial assistance as well as increases disposable income for the employee. This extra income is spent at local businesses in the county.

Conversations with staff from human service agencies that provide support services for the developmentally disabled emphasize the importance and financial advantage of providing services which allow this population to remain in their own home. In addition to cost savings, independent living services for the developmentally disabled empowers the individuals, as they have control of their life.

Medical Appointments

A common trip purpose for Amador Transit passengers is for medical/dental appointments. If Amador Transit service was not available, the negative impacts may not be severe initially but would increase over time. Missing multiple medical appointments could result in a visit to a hospital or more expensive procedures at a later date. While it is difficult to quantify the cost of hospital visits due to prolonged medical attention, but the average cost of an emergency room visit in the US is over $2,000. This far exceeds the combined cost of a preventative care office visit and the transportation to that appointment.

A study conducted by the Florida State College of Business made an attempt to quantify the return on investment of public transportation for medical trips. Based on this study, a conservative estimate was made that one out of one hundred trips (or 1 percent) trips on public transit for medical purposes prevents a one-day stay in the hospital. According to Becker’s Hospital Review, the average in-patient cost of a one-day stay in the hospital is $2,400 in California. One percent of the trips taken on the Amador Transit fixed routes are for medical purposes, while Amador Transit staff estimate that 5 percent of trips on the DAR are made for medical purposes. (Again, only ADA eligible passengers with some type of disability which prevents them from using the fixed route are eligible to ride the DAR.) This equates to a total of 1,200 passenger-trips on Amador Transit for medical purposes. Therefore, the benefit of providing medical trips on Amador Transit is calculated as follows: 1 percent x 1,200 annual trips for medical purposes x $2,400 = $28,800.

Another way to estimate the benefit of public transit for medical purposes is to determine the additional cost of non-public transportation to medical appointments. In the absence of a private vehicle or friends and family with a vehicle or public transit, it is assumed that some type of private transportation company would be hired by the patient or a human service agency to provide these 1,200 trips for medical purposes. The local taxi service charges $2.75 per mile. A roundtrip from Pioneer to Jackson would cost roughly $80 by taxi. It is estimated that the cost of a private transportation provider is around $45 - $55 per day per person (one round trip). The passenger fare on Amador Transit DAR is $4.00 for a roundtrip. Therefore the benefit of providing medical trips on public transit ranges from $51 per trip to $76 per trip or $61,200 to $91,200 for the year in avoided alternative costs.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 65 Traffic Safety

By providing an alternative to driving, Amador Transit provides a safe mode of transportation that, over time, saves lives. The National Safety Council indicates that the fatality rate for public transit systems across the nation averages 0.05 fatalities per million passenger-miles of travel, while that of auto passengers averages 0.50. Amador Transit passengers currently travel approximately 710,000 passenger- miles per year. Considering that an estimated 60 percent of passengers would travel by auto if not for Amador Transit (the remainder would either not make the trip or would bike/walk), elimination of Amador Transit would add 426,000 additional auto passenger-miles. Factored by the differing rates, travel on Amador Transit results in a fatality risk of 0.036 per year, while the alternate of travel by auto results in a fatality risk of 0.21 per year, or a difference of 0.175. In other words, Amador Transit services “save” roughly one life every five to six years, which would otherwise be lost to an auto accident.

The US Department of Transportation uses a value of $6,200,000 per life saved through safety improvements. Factored by the difference of 0.175 fatalities per year, this benefit has a value of $1,085,000 per year.

It should be noted that traffic safety benefits become more of an issue for persons over 75. Per data obtained through the Census from the National Safety Council, in 2009 the number of fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers is 18 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers for age groups 55 – 74 years old, increasing to 28 fatalities for every 100,000 licensed drivers age 75 and above. These older drivers are thus 56 percent more likely to be the victim of an auto accident, increasing the important of public transit as an alternative.

The Economic Multiplier Effect

In economics, the “multiplier effect” occurs when an activity brings new dollars into a region (such as federal subsidies received by Amador Transit) which leads to increased local consumption spending, increasing income further, and hence further increasing consumption. As an example, an AT driver using salary generated by the FTA 5311 program to buy dinner at a restaurant in Jackson helps to pay the salary of the restaurant staff, which in turn is used to purchase other goods and services in Amador County. A study conducted by HDR Economics for the Michigan Department of Transportation analyzed indirect benefits of public transportation in the state. The study estimated that for every 10 jobs created in the public transit sector, 6 additional jobs are created in the rest of the economy as a result of the multiplier effect.

While the exact multiplier varies by factors such as the proportion of spending that stays within the County, and thus may not be the same for Amador County, the economic principle remains. For example, if a commuter on the Sacramento Express route saves roughly $7,000 each year in transportation costs, the commuter can use that extra disposable income to upgrade or remodel their home. This provides additional work for a local contractor who in turn hires more laborers as his/her business grows. This in turn provides more jobs in Amador County and more workers spending money and local stores. Another example is employment for the developmentally disabled. As public transit options and service are expanded, there are greater work opportunities for residents with developmental disabilities. Typically this sector of the population is willing and able to work but unable to drive. With the extra income they earn, these residents may spend more money on going to movies or shopping, which in turn paves the way for more store clerks or movie theater employees etc. The extra income may also reduce the resident’s reliance on Supplemental Social Security. To keep this evaluation conservative, this secondary spending multiplier effect is not included in the calculations.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 66 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Other Considerations:

In addition to the categories discussed above, public transit has additional indirect impacts in larger more urbanized areas. The following additional categories were considered in this analysis, but were concluded to have a negligible actual benefit in Amador County:

 Traffic congestion - In areas such as the San Francisco Bay Area or even El Dorado County, the private auto trips taken off of the roadways as drivers choose to use the public transit service can make a noticeable reduction in traffic congestion and resulting traveler delays. The resulting time savings are typically considered in the assessment of transit benefits in urban areas. However, comparing the daily ridership on Amador Transit services (and associated reduction in private vehicle use) with daily traffic volumes, and given the relatively low level of traffic congestion in the region, the benefits to traffic congestion is considered not significant in this analysis.

 Air quality – Along the same lines, in an urban area, the reduction in vehicle trips resulting from public transit usage can have noticeable reductions in overall particulate matter and greenhouse gas emissions. The California Air Resources Board estimates that transportation accounts for over one- third of greenhouse gas emissions in the state. However, the small number of vehicle trips eliminated in Amador County by Amador Transit does not significantly impact ambient air quality in the region.

 Emergency Response Capabilities – Amador Transit’s staff, fleet and facilities are part of the regional emergency response network. In particular, these resources would be useful in the evacuation of a facility serving seniors or persons with disabilities in the event of a wildfire or other similar event. While an important benefit, there is no availability methodology to quantify this benefit.

 Allowing Residents to Stay in Amador County – Providing access to public services allows residents to remain in Amador County as opposed to moving to urbanized area with those services. This has the indirect effect of keeping more dollars in Amador County. Retired residents have a positive effect on the economy. A recent study conducted by the American Association for Retired People (AARP) in Pennsylvania indicates that through the multiplier effect, every $1 spent on Social Security equates to roughly $2 in local spending. As quantifying this benefit would require conjecture regarding the number of residents that would need to move out of the county in the absence of public transit service, this benefit is not quantified.

Human Service Agency Input

As part of the Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Transportation Plan Update, a survey was distributed to human service agencies serving Amador County asking a variety of questions with respect to the needs of their clients, transportation services they provide, and how their transportation program would be affected in AT were no longer available. A total of 10 agencies provided information for this section of the survey. Their responses are presented in the Appendix of the Coordinated Plan and summarized below.

What proportion of your clients access you site via AT?

 Less than 1 percent – ATCAA Housing Division, Superior Court, Senior Center, First 5, Amador STARS, ATCAA Upcountry

 Greater than 50 percent – Probation Department, The Arc

How many of these clients would be unable to access your site/services without AT?

 Very few - Superior Court, Senior Center, First 5, Amador STARS

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 67  Quite a few – The Arc (roughly 65 consumers), ATCAA Upcountry Community Center

If AT was unavailable, would your agency provide or be able to provide transportation or additional transportation for your clients?

 ATCAA Housing Division – Two more vehicles plus full time driver

 The Arc – Would contract with Blue Mountain Transit for a cost of $400,000 per year.

 Amador County Social Services – Would reassign case workers to transport clients, reducing time available to do their job.

 ATCAA Upcountry Community Center – One van operating three hours a day, three days a week. Don’t have this but would need this.

 Amador County Behavioral Health – Roughly an additional $30,000 per year would be spent on an additional driver and related vehicle costs.

 Common Grounds Senior Services – Do not have staff or funds to provide additional trips to clients who use AT DAR.

 Community Compass – Would vendor through a private company

If AT were unavailable, would some of your clients be unable to remain in their home?

 ATCAA – Many clients are homeless. Public transit is crucial for the homeless to obtain self- sufficiency.

 Amador Senior Center – Might see some clients move to a higher level of care, but most are high functioning.

 Probation Department – A large proportion of clients would end up in violation of probation, which leads to jail time.

 The Arc – The 65 clients who depend on AT for transportation, would likely not be able to access their jobs or the community and some will not be able to stay in their homes.

 ATCAA Upcountry Community Center – Many clients are unable to access the Motherlode Job Connection physical site but through the community center computers they can research job opportunities on line.

 Amador County Behavioral Health – Clients will find a way to get to the county clinic. This may mean more hitch-hiking or exceeding legal capacity of a private vehicle. Both of these methods have safety issues which are difficult to quantify.

 Common Grounds Senior Services – Do not have sufficient staff to drive people who use Amador Transit. These persons would have to take a taxi which is more expensive.

Federal grants and legislation requires that an attempt be made to coordinate public transit with transportation services provided human service agencies, taxi services, private transportation providers so as to maximize the funds available. If the human service agencies listed above were forced to expand their individual transportation programs to replace services provided by Amador Transit, it would result in an uncoordinated transportation network that would ultimately cost more than existing AT service.

Summary of Costs and Benefits

As shown in Table 22, the total quantifiable benefits of Amador Transit equal $4,961,880 per year. These benefits exceed the total costs of Amador Transit by $3,474,880. Calculating the ratio of benefits to costs

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 68 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. yields a factor of 3.34. In other words, every $1 spent in operating or purchasing capital assets for Amador Transit generates $3.34 in benefits.

It is important to note that the costs include all capital and operating costs for Amador Transit, including those funded by federal and state subsidy programs. As such, the local subsidy is substantially lower than the figures shown (particularly for the capital costs). As the bulk of the benefits occur locally, overall the benefit/cost ratio specific to those costs and benefits incurred within Amador County would be greater than shown in Table 22. Similarly, inclusion of a multiplier factor to reflect that new dollars brought into Amador County to fund transit services “turn over” multiple times would increase the overall benefits.

TABLE 22: Amador Transit Benefit / Cost Analysis Quantifiable Benefits Only

BEST ESTIMATE

ANNUAL COSTS Annual Operating Costs $1,237,000 Average Annual Capital Costs $250,000 TOTAL $1,487,000 ANNUAL BENEFITS Fuel Savings: Sacramento Commuters $95,290 Fuel Savings: Local Route Commuters $8,390 Seniors Able to Live Independently $832,000 Employment Benefits (Salary and Avoided Social Service Costs) $495,000 Transportation for Persons with Developmental Disabilities Avoided Public Nursing Home Costs $2,000,000 Increased Agency Transportation Costs $380,000 Subtotal $2,380,000 Medical Trips (Avoided Alternative Transportation Costs) $61,200 Traffic Safety (Avoided Fatalities) $1,090,000 TOTAL $4,961,880 BALANCE: BENEFITS MINUS COSTS $3,474,880 BENEFIT / COST RATIO 3.34

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 69

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 70 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 7 Amador Transit Alternatives

The basis for any transit plan is the development of an effective and appropriate service strategy. The types of service provided, their schedules and routes, and the quality of service can effectively determine the success or failure of a transit organization.

Following an examination of the existing conditions of transit service and potential needs / demand for transit service, a number of service alternatives have been developed to meet these needs, and are evaluated and presented in this chapter. The service alternatives are specifically intended to present multiple options, with varying levels of financial impacts to Amador Transit. Each service alternative is described, including operating characteristics, capital needs and financial characteristics. These alternatives focus on high priority transit improvements for the next five years. Figure 41 and Table 23 present an overview of all the transit service alternatives. As part of this alternatives analysis AT’s operating costs were estimated based on the percentage increase in costs from the FY 2012-13 actual budget to AT’s most recent FY 2014-15 budget. Cost factors applied to the alternatives analysis for FY 2014-15 are as follows:

 Cost per Hour - $42.20  Cost per Mile - $1.88  Administrative Cost - $494,126.73

SERVICE ALTERNATIVES

Service to the MACT Clinic and Jackson Rancheria Alternatives

The MACT Health and Dental Clinics serve roughly 100 patients per day. Clinic staff indicated that the majority of patients do not have a vehicle available to them or are unable to drive. The Clinic is the only local office which accepts Denti-Cal. AT DAR currently will transport ADA eligible passengers to the MACT Clinic. Roughly five one-way trips per month are provided on the DAR service to the MACT Clinic. DAR only serves the Jackson Sutter Creek area and is limited to persons with disabilities or with health related conditions which prevent them from using the fixed route. The MACT Health and Dental Clinics serve many low income residents who may not fit into the ADA criteria. Therefore it is likely that there is significantly more demand for transit service to the MACT Health and Dental Clinics than what is currently provided by DAR. Input from human service agencies as part of this transit plan update and the Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Plan update confirm the need to serve the MACT Health and Dental Clinics.

Although not part of the Rancheria, the MACT Clinic is located on Rancheria property. With 1,000 to 5,000 employees, the Jackson Rancheria is one of the largest employers in the County. General public transit does not serve the Rancheria. Rancheria employee shifts vary but generally fit in to the following three time periods: 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, 4:00 PM to midnight, and midnight to 8:00 AM. Given current AT hours, it would only be feasible to serve employees working the first shift from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM with public transit.

The Jackson Rancheria and MACT Medical and Dental Clinics are located on Dalton Road roughly 2.5 miles north of SR 88. The two facilities are roughly one mile of driving distance apart. Two different scenarios were considered as part of this alternative: 1) Add service to the MACT Clinic/Rancheria to the existing Upcountry route and 2) Establish a separate service.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 71 Buckhorn Miles Amador Station Amador 4.5

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 72 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Annual Annual Subsidy Operating -- $10,000 Annual Farebox Revenue

y One-wa ( 25.0 1,300 $1,500 $32,900 Daily Annual Ridership (1) Annual Annual Cost Cost $34,400 Operating Miles Vehicle- In-Service Driver Driver Hours Deadhead Deadhead Annual ServiceAnnual Quantities Hours Vehicle- In-Service Days Days per Year Miles Vehicle- In-Service Driver Driver Hours Deadhead Service Quantities y Dail 1.9 0 33.0 250 475 0 8,250 $35,500 8.6 2,200 $4,500 $31,000 1.12 0.27 29.5 250 279 67 7,385 $28,400 4.4 1,100 $2,000 $26,400 0.80 0.53 22.8 156 125 83 3,557 $15,400 5.0 800 $1,600 $13,800 0.470.13 0 0 10.02.13 4.8 250 0.27 250 117 60.9 33 250 0 532 0 2,500 67 $9,600 1,200 15,233 $3,700 4.0 $53,800 1,000 1.0 5.2 $2,000 300 1,300 $7,600 $610 $2,700 $3,090 $51,100 3.006.00 0.13 0.00 89.8 179.5 250 250 750 1,500 33 0 22,443 44,886 $75,100 $147,500 8.4 14.0 3,500 2,100 $8,600 $5,200 $138,900 $69,900 5.23 0.53 179.5 250 1,308 133 44,886 $145,000 31.2 7,800 $19,200 $125,800 8.00 -- -- 52 416 -- -- $10,000 -- -- 1.502.233.73 0.27 0 40.0 0 59.1 52 118.3 52 52 78 116 194 14 0 2,080 0 3,072 $7,800 6,152 $10,700 $19,700 5.2 7.7 7.7 300 400 400 $600 $700 $800 $7,200 $10,000 $18,900 8.35 0.27 159.0 52 434 14 8,268 8.00 0.27 46.6 52 416 14 2,425 $22,700 25.0 1,300 $1,300 $21,400 31.82 0.80 423.03 52 1,654 42 21,997 $105,300 71.2 3,700 $4,900 $100,400 Hours Vehicle- In-Service (2) s/Week y Total: Saturday Service Saturday Total: Serve Rancheria/MACT Clinic Directly, Upcountry All Runs, Revised Schedule Run, Run Revise Schedule for Mid-Day Mid-Morning 1 Add Run Mid-Morning 1 Add Limited and PM Express AM Additional Runs Shuttle Service: 1 vehicle 8 hours a day Increaseds 1: costs Note operating by2 percent per year fromFY2012-13 dispatcher loaded cost Fully 2: ofNote per $24.10 hour. Serve MACT ClinicServe MACT Only, One Upcountry Run, Revised Schedule JacksonMeet Rancheria at General Store Separate Clinic MACT Service, Afternoon Two runs, Mid 3 Da OneAdd Run Mid-Day Add TwoAdd Runs Mid-Day - Ione - Upcountry One DAR bus, operating 8 hours a day Costs Dispatch Additional Two Runs/DayTwo on Other Local Routes - Plymouth TABLE 23: Amador 23: ServiceTransit Alternatives TABLE Sacramento Service Sacramento Upcountry - Additional Run - Additional Upcountry Service to MACT Rancheria Clinic/Jackson Saturday Service Saturday Ione- Run Additional

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 73 Service MACT Clinic/Rancheria Directly on Each Upcountry Run, Revised Schedule

In order to consider an upper bound of transit service to the MACT Clinic, the first scenario analyzed in Table 23 reviews the possibility of the Upcountry Route turning up Dalton Road from SR 88 and serving the MACT Clinic on each run in both directions, for a total of six trips to the clinic. This is the most expensive option and if operated five days a week would cost on the order of $35,500 to operate annually. In addition to providing transportation to Upcountry residents to medical appointments and shopping in Jackson mid-day, the existing Upcountry schedule is designed to serve commuters and school children. As such, the downhill Upcountry run arrives at Sutter Hill Transit Center (after picking up Upcountry residents) at 7:40 AM. In order to best serve Jackson Rancheria employees the service would need to arrive at the Rancheria before 8:00 AM and leave just after 4:00 PM. Rancheria employees living in Upcountry would be well served by the new extension of the Upcountry route to the existing schedule. However, if most employees live in the greater Jackson area, the schedule would need to be adjusted (morning run – one hour later and evening run – one hour earlier). The schedule change would likely affect commuters and schoolchildren in Upcountry who need to be in Jackson before 8:00 AM. For the purposes of this alternative, it was assumed that the Upcountry route morning run would depart roughly one hour later and the Upcountry route evening run would depart roughly one hour sooner. The following factors were considered in estimating ridership for this alternative:

 Employee trips between Jackson and Rancheria

 The number of patients seen daily at the MACT clinics multiplied by an estimated transit mode split for elderly/disabled persons to medical appointments

 Visitors to the Rancheria traveling to Jackson

 Decrease in existing Upcountry ridership due to schedule change

Overall, it is anticipated that service to the MACT Clinic/Jackson Rancheria would carry 2,200 additional one-way passenger-trips per year but cost an additional $31,000 in operating subsidy. The schedule changes would also impact many existing Upcountry Route riders. The revised schedule would also require adjustment of driver shifts as the Upcountry Route is interlined with other routes.

Service MACT Clinic Only on One Upcountry Run, Revised Schedule

A less expensive option is to only serve the MACT Clinic Directly on the mid-day run of the Upcountry route, for a total of two round trips to the clinic. Although the bus would not directly serve the Casino entrance a could be designated at the corner of Dalton Road and the Casino Entrance Road. Commuters to the Rancheria are not considered in this alternative as the service would only allow for a few hour work day. As the MACT Clinic is closed between Noon and 1:00 PM, the schedule of the mid-day run would need to be adjusted (roughly one hour earlier) so that passengers could arrive at the clinic by 10:30 AM and catch the Upcountry bus on the return trip just before Noon. The potential for ridership generated by the MACT Clinic was reduced from the previous alternative to reflect the fact that patients would only have a one hour window for their appointments. In total, this alternative is anticipated to carry roughly 1,000 one-way passenger trips and require a $7,600 annual operating subsidy.

Meet Jackson Rancheria Service at General Store

The least expensive option would be to collaborate with the Jackson Rancheria and meet Rancheria buses at the General Store/RV Park located in between SR 88 and the Rancheria. The consultant made multiple efforts to address this possibility with Rancheria staff. At present, no one has been able to indicate whether or not this would be an option. If the Rancheria agreed to carry passengers transferring at the General Store to the Rancheria on a set schedule, it is also unknown if the Rancheria would agree to

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 74 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. serve the MACT Clinic. If the Rancheria was unable to directly serve the MACT Clinic, it is assumed that this service would carry very few passengers as the result of a transfer and nearly a one mile walk to the clinic. However, in the interest of future coordination, this alternative was reviewed despite unknown variables.

It is estimated that meeting Rancheria buses at the General Store would cost an additional $3,700 in annual operating subsidy and carry around 300 one-way passenger trips per year, if the MACT Clinic could be served by Rancheria transportation.

Separate MACT Clinic Service, Two Mid-Afternoon Runs

In order to avoid complications associated with changing the Upcountry route schedule a separate service to the MACT Clinic is reviewed. At least two round trips from the Sutter Hill Transit Center would be required that were spaced 1 to 2 hours apart to allow for sufficient time for medical appointments. In an effort to reduce costs, the service could be operated only three days a week. In order to limit deadhead hours, the MACT Clinic service could be provided by a DAR vehicle already in service. The separate MACT Clinic Service would cost on the order of $13,800 in operating subsidy and carry roughly 800 one-way trips per year.

Upcountry Service – One Additional Run

Increased service to the Upcountry region is one of the most requested Amador Transit improvement suggestions. This is also a top priority for the SSTAC. Currently, the Upcountry bus travels between the Sutter Hill Transit Center and Amador Station on SR 88 east of Pioneer three times a day. The schedule is designed to serve some commuters, students, as well as other residents with medical appointments or errands. The first bus departs Sutter Hill at 5:45 AM, reaches Amador Station at 6:34 AM, and returns to Sutter Hill/Jackson by 7:40 AM. The next departures from Amador Station are at 11:50 PM and 5:14 PM. In other words, the schedule allows for Upcountry residents to spend roughly three hours in Jackson but total transportation time from beginning to end of the trip is around five hours. Additionally, the first departures from Upcountry are around 6:30 AM to 7:00 AM. Potential transit passengers who have already been approved for ADA deviation service have indicated they are unable to use the Upcountry route because of the long time gaps between runs and because the morning run is too early. According to on-board surveys conducted as part of this study, roughly 70 percent of morning run passengers are students or residents commuting to work. For this reason, the schedule for the morning run should remain unchanged, with an arrival time in Jackson from Upcountry just before 8:00 AM.

An additional mid-morning run (departing Sutter Hill Transit Center around 7:45 AM and departing Amador Station around 8:45 AM) would provide a later time for elderly residents to travel into Jackson as well as provide more options for those Upcountry residents needing to spend only two hours in Jackson. According to AT staff, there are 36 ADA qualified residents living in the Pioneer and Pine Grove area. Therefore, additional time was built into the route running time to account for ADA deviations. In an effort to spread the four Upcountry runs evenly throughout the day, the existing mid-day run (10:45 AM departure from Sutter Hill Transit Center) could be shifted one hour later. Under this schedule, total travel time for a roundtrip between Upcountry and Jackson would be reduced to four hours.

One additional roundtrip on the Upcountry route will cost roughly $53,800 annually to operate, based on FY 2014-15 costs. Ridership on the new round trip was estimated using an elasticity analysis. This elasticity analysis is based on the principals of micro-economics, evaluating the proportionate change in ridership that corresponds to a proportionate change in service quality (such as in-vehicle travel time) based on an “elasticity factor” observed for similar changes in service quality in similar settings. The negative value of the elasticity factor reflects that the service quality factor and ridership are negatively proportionate – for example when vehicle travel time increases, transit ridership decreases. As an example, an elasticity factor of -0.50 indicates that a 1.00 percent increase in vehicle travel time would

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 75 result in a 0.50 percent decrease in ridership. Using the elasticity analysis, it is estimated that an additional 1,200 one-way passenger trips would result. For comparison purposes, if each of the ADA qualified Upcountry resident made one additional trip to Jackson every other week because of the new schedule options, roughly 1,800 new one-way passenger trips would result. Therefore, 1,200 additional passenger-trips appear to be a reasonable and conservative estimate. The new run would increase fare revenue by roughly $2,700, resulting in an operating subsidy of $51,100.

Expand Deviation Service Area for Residents with Disabilities

DAR service to Upcountry has been repeatedly requested by residents. Generally, demand response curb to curb service is not as efficient as fixed route service, particularly for long distance trips to/from Upcountry. An alternative way to meet the needs of ADA eligible residents in Upcountry would be to expand the allowable paratransit deviation fixed route service area beyond the three-quarter mile boundary currently required by ADA for the mid-day runs only. As this service would go above and beyond the requirements of ADA, it would be eligible for funding through the FTA 5310 grant program. Expanded deviations could be charged a higher fare to help offset increased costs.

Ione Alternative – One Additional Daily Roundtrip

Another top priority for the SSTAC is additional service to Ione. As demonstrated in the existing conditions section, Ione has a relatively high number of transit dependent residents. In terms of transit performance, the Ione route is one of the more productive services at Amador Transit: in the past fiscal year it carried 8.6 one-way passenger trips per vehicle service hour. The Ione Route currently offers three round trips, departing the Sutter Hill Transit Center at: 7:45 AM, 11:20 AM, and 3:30 PM. The morning and afternoon route carry an average of 11 and 12 boardings per round trip while the mid-day run carries only an average of 3.5 boardings per round trip. On-board surveys indicate that 25 percent of passenger-trips are ARC or Compass clients and those passengers typically ride the morning and afternoon runs. If AT were to operate a fourth Ione run, it is likely that it would carry residents going shopping or for other personal business as opposed to human service program participants. The additional run could be scheduled so as to spread service evenly through the day.

In 2007, the Ione Route operated four round trips. Ridership data shows that the two mid-day runs carried around 1,100 to 1,300 one way passenger-trips per year while the morning and evening run carried 2,500 to 3,300 one-way passenger trips per year (similar to current ridership on these runs). The current mid-day run only has ridership of around 900 one-way passenger-trips. All these factors, along with an elasticity analysis were taken into account to estimate ridership on a fourth Ione run in 2015. Results in Table 23 demonstrate that the additional round trip would carry 1,100 passenger-trips and require an operating subsidy of $26,400.

Expand Deviation Service Area for Residents with Disabilities

As in the Upcountry region, mobility for Ione residents with disabilities could be improved through an expanded ADA paratransit service area. Currently there are 19 ADA registered passengers living in Ione and DAR service to Ione is one of the SSTAC top priorities. An expanded paratransit service area would be eligible for FTA 5310 funding and an appropriate fare structure should be outlined which helps offset increased costs.

Sacramento Service Alternatives

Add Limited Stop Express Runs

Employers are offering more flexibility in their employee’s work schedules, including major Sacramento employers like the State of California. This includes the ability to begin work earlier than the standard

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 76 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. 8:00 AM schedule, where employees in turn can end their day at an earlier hour. For commuters that rely on public transit, this can pose a problem if the route does not offer multiple options. Furthermore, experience at other commuter transit services indicate that passengers prefer to have some flexibility in their travel options (such as to accommodate a late meeting or a quick shopping walk trip downtown). Amador Transit currently provides only one round AM and one PM round-trip per day, serving the 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM workday. One alternative to explore would be offering an “express run” to Sacramento that would provide commuters with a 7:00 AM arrival to work and 4:00 PM return departure.

Table 24 shows a potential schedule for an Express service between Amador County and Sacramento, with the shaded columns representing the new runs. A review of peer systems serving downtown Sacramento shows that an arrival time into Sacramento before 7:00 AM is relatively popular among passengers, with enough time for employees to walk to their destination in the downtown area. For the return trip, a departure 10 to 15 minutes after the 4:00 PM hour would accommodate employees that start the day earlier and still work a standard 8 hour day.

The bus would only serve the “major” stops along the existing route, including Sutter Hill Transit Center, Rancho Murrieta (both north and south), and four stops in Sacramento – University / 65th Street, L Street / 29th Street, L Street / 14th Street and J Street / 3rd Street. These stops would provide connections to other transit services, including Sacramento RT Light Rail (to both Amtrak and Greyhound services) and the YoloBus route to the Sacramento Airport, as well as to the employment center of downtown Sacramento. Allowing for connections to other intercity services is a key factor in the ability to receive FTA 5311(f) funding.

TABLE 24: Potential Limited Express Sacramento Service Schedule

T Sutter Hill Transit Center 5:35 AM 6:15 AM 2:45 PM 3:30 PM o Drytown -- 6:23 AM -- 3:38 PM

DeMartini -- 6:30 AM -- 3:45 PM S a Rancho Murrieta So. 5:54 AM 6:42 AM 3:04 PM 3:57 PM c Rancho Murrieta No. 6:01 AM 6:49 AM 3:11 PM 4:04 PM r University & 65th (Amtrak and Light Rail) 6:29 AM 7:17 AM 3:39 PM 4:32 PM a L / 29th (Sutter Medical Center) 6:38 AM 7:26 AM 3:48 PM 4:41 PM m e L / 14th (YoloBus) 6:43 AM 7:31 AM 3:53 PM 4:46 PM n L / 7th -- 7:34 AM -- 4:49 PM t L / 4th -- 7:37 AM -- 4:52 PM o J / 3rd 6:50 AM 7:39 AM 4:00 PM 4:54 PM

J / 3rd 7:00 AM 7:50 AM 4:10 PM 5:05 PM T J / 11th -- 7:55 AM -- 5:11 PM o J / 14th (Convention Cntr) 7:07 AM 7:58 AM 4:19 PM 5:15 PM

J / 28th (Sutter Medical Center) 7:10 AM 8:01 AM 4:24 PM 5:20 PM A University & 65th (Amtrak and Light Rail) 7:16 AM 8:07 AM m 4:32 PM 5:28 PM a Hwy 16 -- 8:18 AM -- 5:39 PM d Rancho Murrieta No. 7:44 AM 8:39 AM 5:04 PM 6:00 PM o Rancho Murrieta So. 7:50 AM 8:46 AM 5:11 PM 6:07 PM r Drytown -- 9:00 AM -- 6:21 PM

Sutter Hill Transit Center 7:57 AM 9:09 AM 5:20 PM 6:30 PM

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 77

As shown in Table 23, adding these limited runs could generate approximately 7,800 additional passenger-trips per year, or 31 passenger-trips per day. The service would cost roughly $162,900 more to operate, and based on the new ridership, would generate $19,200 in additional farebox revenues. As a result, the actual operating subsidy required to run this service would be $125,800 annually.

Add One Midday Run

Service to Sacramento is not only needed for commute trips, but for medical and other appointments, shopping trips, and connections to the Sacramento airport, Amtrak and Greyhound. As such, providing at least one additional run during the middle of the day may provide options to persons needing to travel to Sacramento, but who do not need to leave at the early morning hour.

Amador Transit previously operated three runs per day between Amador County and Sacramento. Beginning in 2007, the service included a midday run that offered non-commute trip options to Sacramento. The run departed Sutter Hill at 9:55 AM and traveled to the Light Rail Station at University and 65th Street (AT was not permitted to travel into downtown during this time). The first year that the service was in operation, the total ridership of the midday run was approximately 11 percent of total ridership; this grew to over 15 percent in 2008. Unfortunately, data collection for 2009 was not accurate and there is no information available. However, despite the growth in the run, Amador Transit did not continue to operate the run and returned to only offering service once in the morning and once in the afternoon in 2010. One reason that ridership may not have been as high as expected could be due to the route not serving the downtown core.

As ridership patterns and transit needs have changed over the past five years, it may be worthwhile to reinstate the midday run on the Sacramento Express service. Table 25 provides a sample schedule of midday options (note that there are two midday runs, as the Table applies to this scenario and the following scenario below). The shaded columns represent options for the midday run, including one that is a later morning departure and one that departs in the noon hour. These runs would make all stops and would serve downtown, if possible. There are some downfalls to operating a single midday run, with the most common being that there is only one return option, in which case the schedule may not allow enough time in Sacramento for errands, appointments, etc.

Under this scenario, it is estimated that adding in a midday run would increase ridership by roughly 2,100 one-way passenger trips, as shown in Table 23. This figure was based on the previous ridership information on the midday run, and factored up to assume general ridership growth. This increased ridership would generate approximately $5,200 in new farebox revenues, and would cost on the order of $75,100, resulting in a subsidy requirement of $69,900.

Add Two Midday Runs

Another option would be to add in two midday runs, which would give passengers more options to travel into Sacramento as well as on the return trip. Again, Table 25 provides a sample of what a two midday run schedule could look like. The schedule should ideally include one later morning and one early afternoon departure from Amador County.

As shown in Table 23, ridership would increase by roughly 30 percent or by 3,500 passenger-trips annually. This equates to roughly 14 passenger-trips per day, split between the two midday runs. To operate two additional runs, the operating costs would increase by $147,500 per year. The additional ridership would generate approximately $8,600 in farebox revenue, thereby reducing the subsidy required to $138,900 annually.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 78 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 25: Potential Mid-day Sacramento Service

T Sutter Hill Transit Center 6:15 AM 9:20 AM 12:25 PM 3:30 PM o Drytown 6:23 AM 9:28 AM 12:33 PM 3:38 PM

DeMartini 6:30 AM 9:35 AM 12:40 PM 3:45 PM S a Rancho Murrieta So. 6:42 AM 9:47 AM 12:52 PM 3:57 PM c Rancho Murrieta No. 6:49 AM 9:54 AM 12:59 PM 4:04 PM r University & 65th (Amtrak and Light Rail) 7:17 AM 10:22 AM 1:27 PM 4:32 PM a L / 29th (Sutter Medical Center) 7:26 AM 10:31 AM 1:36 PM 4:41 PM m e L / 14th (YoloBus) 7:31 AM 10:36 AM 1:41 PM 4:46 PM n L / 7th 7:34 AM 10:39 AM 1:44 PM 4:49 PM t L / 4th 7:37 AM 10:42 AM 1:47 PM 4:52 PM o J / 3rd 7:39 AM 10:44 AM 1:49 PM 4:54 PM

J / 3rd 7:50 AM 10:55 AM 2:00 PM 5:05 PM T J / 11th 7:55 AM 11:00 AM 2:05 PM 5:11 PM o J / 14th (Convention Cntr) 7:58 AM 11:03 AM 2:08 PM 5:15 PM

J / 28th (Sutter Medical Center) 8:01 AM 11:06 AM 2:11 PM 5:20 PM A University & 65th (Amtrak and Light Rail) 8:07 AM 11:12 AM m 2:17 PM 5:28 PM a Hwy 16 8:18 AM 11:23 AM 2:28 PM 5:39 PM d Rancho Murrieta No. 8:39 AM 11:44 AM 2:49 PM 6:00 PM o Rancho Murrieta So. 8:46 AM 11:51 AM 2:56 PM 6:07 PM r Drytown 9:00 AM 12:05 PM 3:10 PM 6:21 PM

Sutter Hill Transit Center 9:09 AM 12:14 PM 3:19 PM 6:30 PM

Saturday Service

Saturday Service is a common request at public input forums for transportation needs. AT service on weekends would serve residents with non-traditional work schedules as well as provide seniors and other transit dependent individuals with a greater quality of life through access to services and recreation on weekends. Typically, transit services operate a shorter span of service on Saturdays. A reasonable operating plan to provide Saturday service in Amador County is as follows:

 Operation of one bus on the Shuttle over an eight-hour span of service (such as 9 AM to 5 PM)

 Operation of DAR over the same eight hour span of services

 Operation of two runs each on the Ione Route, Plymouth Route, and Upcountry Route

In general, Saturday transit ridership is around 50 to 60 percent of average weekday ridership. This estimate was used in this alternative and reduced for the Ione and Plymouth routes as passenger-trips from weekday human service programs represent a significant proportion of trips on these routes. It is estimated that in FY 2014-15 Saturday Service would cost $ 105,300 in annual operating subsidy and carry roughly 3,700 one-way passenger-trips.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 79 Jackson – Sutter Creek Shuttle

The Long Range Transit Development Plan recommends providing a third bus on the Shuttle so that more consistent “clock headways” could be provided on all portions of the route. This is more convenient for passengers and would also provide more frequent service. In the short term, minor schedule and route adjustments should be reviewed so as to improve service in the Jackson area. Additionally, the Shuttle map and schedule flyer should be reviewed for accuracy and revised to reduce confusion. Placing directional arrows on the map would greatly improve readability of the route for a new or potential rider.

Service Alternatives Performance Analysis

Using the information presented above, a performance analysis was conducted that allows a convenient comparison of the various service alternatives. This performance analysis, based on a series of five standard transit performance measures, is shown in Table 26. The Table does not consider discretionary grant funding such as FTA 5311(f) funds which could be used to pay for the Sacramento service alternatives. A review of this table indicates the following:

 The Passenger-Trips per Vehicle-Hour of Service ranges from a high of 9.6 for the Separate MACT Clinic service, to a low of 2.2 for Saturday service and Sacramento mid-day one run service. These values are also shown in Figure 42. Overall, the better performing alternatives are for service to the MACT Clinic followed by Limited Express runs on the Sacramento Commuter service.

 Another measure of productivity is the Passenger-Trips per Vehicle-Mile of Service. This ranges from a high of 0.4 for serving the MACT Clinic on one of the Upcountry runs to a low of 0.08 on the Sacramento Service Two Mid Day Runs.

 A key measure of cost efficiency is the Cost per Passenger-Trip. A lower value reflects a “better” or more efficient alternative. These values range from a low of $9.60 for the Serve MACT Clinic on one run to a high of $42.14 for the Sacramento two mid-day runs.

 Perhaps the best overall measure of efficiency is the Subsidy per Passenger-Trip. This directly relates the key public input (funding) with the key output of a transit service (passenger-trips). As indicated in Figure 43, the best alternative by this measure is the Service the MACT Clinic Directly One Run alternative, requiring $7.60 in subsidy per passenger-trip. It should also be noted that this alternative would require adjustments to the existing Upcountry schedule. On the other extreme, two mid-day runs on the Sacramento Route would require a subsidy of $39.69 and an additional Upcountry run would require $39.31 per passenger-trip.

 Finally, the Marginal Farebox Return Ratio is calculated as the ratio of farebox revenues to operating costs. The “best” alternative by this measure is the serving the MACT Clinic directly One Run, whereby 21 percent of costs are recovered through the farebox. On the other hand, the additional run Upcountry and Saturday service would only generate revenues covering 5 percent of the marginal costs.

Overall, this performance analysis indicates that service to the MACT Clinic/Rancheria has the better performance measures. This is largely a result of the fact that serving the MACT Clinic would not require a significant increase in vehicle service hours and miles and the large majority of clinic patients are transit dependent. Although increased service to Upcountry and Ione do not perform as well in comparison, these public transit service expansions have been identified as top priority by the SSTAC. As the Sacramento service expansion alternatives will provide Amador residents with access to intercity transit services, these alternatives could be funded with FTA 5311(f) grants.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 80 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

Table 26: Service Alternative Performance Analysis

Performance Measure

Marginal Marginal Marginal Cost Marginal Passenger- Passenger- per Subsidy per Marginal Trips per Trips per Passenger- Passenger- Farebox Alternative Vehicle-Hour Vehicle-Mile Trip Trip (1) Return Ratio Existing Service 6.0 0.3 $11.87 $10.31 13%

Recommended Standard Local Service 6.0 -- -- $10.50 5% Commuter Service 6.0 -- -- $10.50 8%

Service to MACT Clinic/Jackson Rancheria Serve Rancheria/MACT Clinic Directly, All Upcountry 4.6 0.27 $16.14 $14.09 13% Runs, Revised Schedule

Serve MACT Clinic Only, One Upcountry Run, Revised 8.6 0.40 $9.60 $7.60 21% Schedule

Meet Jackson Rancheria at General Store 9.0 0.25 $12.33 $10.30 16%

Separate MACT Clinic Service, Two Mid Afternoon runs, 3 6.4 0.22 $19.25 $17.25 10% Days/Week

Upcountry - Additional Run Add 1 Mid-Morning Run, Revise Schedule for Mid-Day Run 2.4 0.09 $41.38 $39.31 5%

Ione- Additional Run Add 1 Mid-Morning Run 3.9 0.15 $25.82 $24.00 7%

Sacramento Service Add Two Mid-Day Runs 2.3 0.08 $42.14 $39.69 6%

Add One Mid-Day Run 2.8 0.09 $35.76 $33.29 7%

Additional AM and PM Limited Express Runs 6.0 0.17 $18.59 $16.13 13%

Saturday Service Shuttle Service: 1 vehicle 8 hours a day 3.0 0.16 $26.46 $25.31 4% Two Runs/Day on Other Local Routes - Plymouth 3.8 0.14 $26.00 $24.00 8%

- Ione 3.4 0.13 $26.75 $25.00 7% - Upcountry 2.1 0.07 $49.25 $47.25 4% One DAR bus, operating 8 hours a day 3.1 0.54 $17.46 $16.46 6%

Total: Saturday Service 2.2 0.17 $28.46 $27.14 5%

Pink shading indicates "meets or exceeds standards".

Note 1: Does not accound for potential discretionary grant funding

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 81 Figure 42: Service Alternatives ‐ Passengers per Hour

Saturday Service 2.2

Sacramento ‐ Limited Express Runs 6.0

Sacramento ‐ One Mid‐Day 2.8

Sacramento ‐ Two Mid‐Day 2.3

Ione ‐ Additional Run 3.9

Upcountry ‐ Additional Run 2.4

Separate MACT Clinic Service 6.4

Meet Jackson Rancheria at General Store 9.0

Serve MACT Clinic Directly, One Run 8.6

Serve Rancheria/MACT Clinic Directly, All Runs 4.6

0.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.0

Figure 43: Service Alternatives Subsidy per Trip

Saturday Service $27.14

Sacramento ‐ Limited Express Runs $16.13

Sacramento ‐ One Mid‐Day $33.29

Sacramento ‐ Two Mid‐Day $39.69

Ione ‐ Additional Run $24.00

Upcountry ‐ Additional Run $39.31

Separate MACT Clinic Service $17.25

Meet Jackson Rancheria at General Store $10.30

Serve MACT Clinic Directly, One Run $7.60

Serve Rancheria/MACT Clinic Directly, All Runs $14.09

$0.00 $5.00 $10.00 $15.00 $20.00 $25.00 $30.00 $35.00 $40.00 $45.00

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 82 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc.

CAPITAL ALTERNATIVES

Transit Maintenance and Operations Facility Improvements

As the Amador County fleet expands, and possible vehicles with different engine types / fuel types are introduced, the maintenance facility will need to be modified and expanded. The current facility is not equipped to service an expanded fleet, and as is, could be considered deficient due to space restraints. Upgrading the maintenance facility would need to include upgrades to the transit administrative offices as well, so as to allow more space for maintenance operations and to accommodate future staff expansion (such as drivers, maintenance and administrative personnel).

The current facility can be upgraded to meet the needs of the transit program for at least 10 years at the existing location. To make the facility adequate for this timeframe, the following improvements would be required:

 Installation of an oil / water separator device

 Installation of a wash station

 New 30-foot bus bay with a lift

Fleet Requirements

The replacement of vehicles is typically dependent upon the “useful life” of the vehicle, which is defined by Caltrans as 7 years or 200,000 miles (medium-sized, medium-duty transit buses, approximately 30 feet) or 5 years or 150,000 miles (medium-sized, light duty transit buses approximately 25 to 35 feet). AT has developed a fleet replacement schedule for the near term shows that the average life of buses used in the system is 4 years (Table 27). Four vehicles are currently due for replacement.

Table 27: AT Fleet Replacement Schedule - Revenue Vehicles

Veh # Year Make/Model Fuel Purchase Replacement Year Potential Funding Source

2 2002 Glaval Concorde DIESEL Jan-03 2010 FTA 5311(F)

29 2006 Chevrolet - El Dorado Arrow Elite 320 GAS May-06 2013 **PTIMSEA

30 2006 Chevrolet - El Dorado Arrow Elite 320 GAS May-06 2013 **PTIMSEA

31 2009 Ford - Glaval E450 GAS Aug-09 2014 **PTIMSEA

34 2009 GMC - Glaval C5500 DIESEL Nov-09 2016 FTA 5311(F)

35 2004 Freightliner - Trolley CNG/DSL Dec-09 Repower - MAP21 Repower - MAP21

36 2004 Freightliner - Trolley CNG/DSL Dec-09 Repower - MAP21 Repower - MAP21

301 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Jan-13 2018 FTA 5311

302 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Jan-13 2018 FTA 5311

401 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Jan-13 2018 FTA 5311

402 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Mar-13 2018 FTA 5311

403 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Mar-13 2018 FTA 5311

404 2013 Chevrolet - Glaval Titian II DIESEL Mar-13 2018 FTA 5311

** Funding Source Secured.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 83 In addition to vehicle replacement, certain service alternatives will require the purchase of additional vehicles. For the Limited Express Sacramento Service alternative, Amador Transit would need to purchase a new vehicle which meets FTA 5311(f) requirements of capacity for luggage. Additionally, the procurement of a mini-van with a wheel chair ramp for DAR service may have lower maintenance and fuel costs which can more efficiently meet DAR needs.

FARE ALTERNATIVES

One option to increase funding would be to increase the passenger fares. Determining an appropriate fare structure not only satisfies the need to meet the minimum required farebox return ratio, but can also encourage passengers to use the service most appropriate to their needs. Setting fares too low creates the risk of not meeting mandated farebox ratios and bypassing an important support for transit, while setting fares too high can discourage transit use, particularly for low-income passengers who may be the most dependent on transit.

Peer Transit Fare Comparison

As shown in Table 28, Amador Transit’s current fixed route fares are similar to other rural transit agencies. However, the base fare for the Shuttle routes of $1.00 is below the average of the transit agencies reviewed ($1.34). In addition, many of these peer agencies have some type of zone fare system. such as Gold Country Stage in Nevada County and Calaveras Transit.

Table 29 presents a comparison of fares for commuter services. As shown, Amador Transit’s base commuter fare of $5.50 is equal to $0.12 per mile. This is on par with the peer average of $0.13 per mile. AT is unusual in that it does not offer a monthly pass.

Three Zone Fixed Route Fare Structure

Many transit systems that operate in rural areas have established a “zone fare” system, in which longer passenger-trips require higher fares. Typically, a set boundary is established between fare zones, with an additional charge incurred for crossing the boundary. In addition to generating additional revenue (which can help to attain minimum farebox ratio requirements), this can be seen as more equitable, in that persons using more transit resources pay a higher cost. Amador Transit already has, in effect, a zone system in that the fares for the Shuttle Route are lower than the fares for the longer rural routes. On the rural routes such as Upcountry, however, a passenger’s fare does not vary depending on the length of their individual trip. Implementing zone fares may be an alternative for Amador Transit in order to increase revenues while having less impact on ridership than across the board fare increases.

Of the non-commuter routes, the Upcountry route travels the longest distance, roughly 24 mile one way. The other fixed routes travel a distance of roughly 10 miles one-way. Therefore a reasonable zone fare system would be to include the Jackson-Sutter Creek Shuttle as Zone One, establish a boundary of 10 miles from the transit center for Zone Two and the remainder of the service area as Zone Three. More specifically, travel from the Sutter Hill Transit Center to stops above Tabeaud Road in Pine Grove on the Upcountry route would be subject to Zone Three fares. For travel in the east to west direction, Ridge Road would be the western boundary of Zone 3. Travel within any one zone would pay $1.00 per one- way trip, while passengers travelling between two zones would pay $2.00 and passengers travelling between three zones (between Zone One and Zone Three) would pay a $3.00 one-way fare ($6.00 roundtrip) instead of the current $2.00 one-way fares. The senior, youth and disabled 50 percent discounts would still apply. Route deviations (for ADA eligible passengers) for two zone travel would be $3.00 per trip. This model is similar to the Gold Country Stage zone fare system in Nevada County where, a one-way trip in Zone 1 is $1.50 and Zone 2 is $3.00.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 84 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. -- n/a n/a n/a Free (under 6) n/a Free (under 6) n/a $40.00 $20.00 $45.00 (students) $20.006-18) (age n/a $52.14 $32.13 -- Day PassDay Pass Monthly n/a n/a $60.00 $30.00 $30.00 (k-12) n/a n/a $30.00 n/a n/a $45.00 n/a n/a $4.00 n/a $75.00 $40.00 $4.50 $2.25 $45.00 $22.50 Free (under 6) $4.44 $4.00 n/a $50.00 $36.00 Free (under 12) Multi Zone/Other Zone/Other Multi $2.00 for non-shuttle local routes; $1.00 for discount discount for $1.00 local routes; non-shuttle for $2.00 children under ride 6 free passengers; Booksavailable ranging between $2.50-$10.00tripper depending on destination $3.00, $7.50 day pass,$90.00 monthly Discount: $1.50, $3.75 day pass, $45.00 monthly Regional $1.50 Discount Regional:$1.00 -- n/a $0.25 additional per zone (about 10 miles between zones) $5.25 n/a $60.00 Single Zone $1.00 $1.00$2.00 $1.00 $1.00 $1.50 $0.75$1.50 $0.75 (K-12) $1.00$1.50 Free (under 12) DAR available at $3.00 per trip and $7.00 day $0.75 pass $1.25 Free (under 6) $0.75$0.50 Free (under 5) $0.50 DAR $3.00, regional $2.25, out-of-county $5.00 $1.50 Free (under 6) $1.34 n/a $0.82 Free (under 6) Out-of-county $2.00 Table 28: Transit Agency Fare Comparisons - Fixed Route Service Fixed Route ComparisonsFare - Agency Transit Table 28: Transit Amador Transit Calaveras Transit Dorado El Tuolumne County Gold Stage Country Transit Lake eXpress Area Rural Tehama (TRAX) Glenn Ride Average Agency General Discount Children General Discount General DiscountAgency Children General Discount Children General Note: Discount fare youth Discount isNote: typicallysometimes senior (65+)disabled, and

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 85 TABLE 29: Peer Sacramento Commuter Fares

Yuba El Dorado Placer San Amador Sutter County Solano County Joaquin Peer Transit Transit Transit Express Transit RTD Average

Base Fare (1-way trip) $5.50 $4.00 $5.00 $5.75 $5.75 $7.00 $5.50

Monthly Pass -- $128.00 $180.00 $130.00 $178.50 $160.00 $155.30

Typical 1-Way Trip Length (Miles) 46 42 30 43 49 46 42

Base Fare per Mile $0.12 $0.10 $0.17 $0.13 $0.12 $0.15 $0.13

Cost per Mile for Monthly Passholder -- $0.08 $0.15 $0.08 $0.09 $0.09 $0.10 Commuting 20 Days/Month

Source: Individual transit program websites.

Currently, Amador Transit does not offer free transfers for passengers. If a general public passenger rides the Upcountry bus from Pioneer to the Petkovich Park and transfers to the Shuttle route, their total fare between the two routes is $3.00 one-way, or $6.00 roundtrip. If the current transfer policy remained in place, passengers would be paying $4.00 per one-way trip, or $8.00 for a roundtrip on portions of the Upcountry routes (passengers boarding beyond Pine Grove). Another option is to offer a day pass anywhere within the service area for $6.00.

Table 30 presents annual ridership and fare revenue impacts of different fare alternatives applied to existing AT services. Table 31 analyzes the performance of these fare alternatives by reviewing: passenger-trips per hour, subsidy per trip, and TDA adjusted farebox ratio. Applying a fare elasticity analysis, it is estimated that implementing Zone 3 fares will result in roughly 600 fewer one-way passenger trips. However, fare revenues are anticipated to increase by roughly $3,200 annually. As shown in Table 31, Zone 3 fares will only increase adjusted farebox ratio to 11.5 percent from 11.2 percent in a status quo scenario.

Fare Increase

AT’s base fare is slightly lower than the peer average and there has not been a systemwide fare increased for several years. In the interest of maintaining farebox ratio comfortably above the 10 percent minimum, it is worth reviewing the effect of fare increases beyond the implementation of a Three Zone System. A variety of fare increase scenarios were also analyzed in Tables 30 and 31.

Establish Zone 3 Fare, Increase Zone 2 Fare

The next step beyond implementing a higher fare for only Zone 3 passengers would be to raise the fare for both Zone 3 and Zone 2. In other words, passengers travelling on the local fixed routes within Zone 2 would pay $2.50 per trip as base fare (25 percent increase). In this scenario roughly 1,700 fewer passenger-trips would be made as a result of the higher fare but an additional $7,300 in fare revenue would be collected. In terms of performance, there is still not a significant difference from the status quo scenario. Adjusted farebox ratio would increase to 11.8 percent from 11.2 percent while passenger-trips per hour would decrease to 6.1 from 6.3.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 86 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. % 2.9% 6.7% 12.3% 13.7% Change Increase Change With Fare Fare With Total AnnualTotal Fare Revenues Existing $108,500 $111,700 $3,200 $108,500 $115,800 $7,300 $108,500 $121,800 $13,300 $108,500 $123,400 $14,900 % -0.9% -2.4% -7.2% -7.7% Change Increase Change With Fare Fare With Total AnnualTotal Ridership Existing Base Fares Base $2.00 $3.00 $5.50 69,600 69,000 -600 $2.50 $3.00$2.50 $5.50 $3.00$2.50 69,600 $5.50 $3.00 67,900 69,600 -1,700 $6.00 64,600 -5,000 69,600 64,239 -5,361 $2.00 $2.00 $5.50 $2.00 $2.00 $2.50 $2.50 $2.00 $1.00/ $1.00/ $1.25/ $1.25/ Zone 1Zone 2 Zone 3 Zone $1.00/ Note: All assume proportionate increases in applicable pass costs pass applicable in increases proportionate All assume Note: TABLE 30: Analysis of Fare Increase Alternatives Fare AnalysisIncrease of 30: TABLE Note 1: Zone 1 fare:Note Shuttle/DAR AnalysisNote: assumes status quo service FY 2014-15 in Fare Option Sacramento Establish 3 Fare Zone Establish 3 Fare / Fare Zone 2 Zone in Increase Establish 3 Fare / Fare Zone 2 & 1 Zones in Increase Establish 3 Fare / Fare Zone / 2 & 1 Zones in Increase Commuter Fare Increase Existing Fares Existing

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 87

Table 31: Fare Alternatives Performance Analysis

Total Systemwide Estimated Passenger- Subsidy per Adjusted trips per Passenger- Farebox Hour trip Ratio(1)

Status Quo - FY 2014-15 6.3 $18.27 11.2%

Establish Zone 3 Fare 6.2 $18.39 11.5%

Establish Zone 3 Fare / Fare Increase in Zone 2 6.1 $18.63 11.8%

Establish Zone 3 Fare / Fare Increase in Zones 1 & 2 5.8 $19.49 12.3%

Establish Zone 3 Fare / Fare Increase in Zones 1 & 2 / 5.8 $19.57 12.4% Commuter Fare Increase

Note: Assuming FY 2014-15 operating costs and ridership levels. Operating costs, ridership and fare revenues is based on actuals Jul 13 - Mar 14 and the percent increase in AT FY 2014-15 budget. Note 1: This % represents LSC's estimate. Actual farebox ratio for TDA purposes w ill be determined by Fiscal Auditor.

Establish Zone 3 Fare, Increase Zone 1 & 2 Fare

Under this scenario, a one-way trip on the Jackson Sutter Creek Shuttle would cost $1.25 or 25 percent more than the existing fare and DAR would be raised to $2.50 from $2.00. The fare changes evaluated above for Zone 2 and 3 would also be implemented. Ridership is anticipated to decrease by 5,000 passenger-trips while fare revenue would increase by $13,300. Overall adjusted farebox ratio would reach 12.3 percent but overall productivity or passenger-trips per hour would fall to 5.8. The subsidy required per trip would also increase to $19.49 from $18.27 (status quo).

Systemwide Fare Increase - Establish Zone 3 Fare, Increase Zone 1 & 2 Fare, Commuter Increase

The final fare alternative is to raise fares for all of AT services. In addition to the changes discussed thus far, the fare on the Sacramento Commuter route would increase to $6.00 from $5.50. Under this scenario, ridership would decrease by around 5,300 one-way passenger trips and fare revenue would increase by $14,900. The effect on systemwide performance (Table 31) would be very similar to the previous Establish Zone 3 Fare, Increase Zone 1 & 2 Fare alternative. Farebox ratio would only be slighter higher at 12.4 percent vs. 12.3 percent.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 Page 88 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Chapter 8 Transit Development Plan

This Transit Development Plan is intended to guide the improvements of public transit services in Amador County for Fiscal Years 2014-2015 through 2018-2019. Much of the analysis used as a basis for the plan is presented in previous chapters; the reader is encouraged to refer to previous chapters for additional information and discussion regarding the various plan elements presented below. The Transit Development Plan will be amended annually to reflect changes in unmet transit needs as well as the progress made implementing the proposed service improvements.

The various Service, Capital, Institutional and Management, and Financial elements of the TDP are presented in the sections below, followed by an Implementation Plan to guide transit improvements. Together, these elements will increase access to transit services, improve the reliability and convenience of transit services, fully meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and ensure that Amador Transit services are financially sustainable. This plan is contingent upon many factors, including future funding availability, changes in development and population, and other factors (notably the cost of gasoline) that could substantially change the demand for public transit services in the future.

SERVICE PLAN

The following are plan elements to improve transit services based on identified needs, available funding and the ability for the transit system as whole to meet the minimum 10 percent farebox ratio. Tables 32 – 34 present estimated annual operating costs, ridership and fare revenues, respectively for the various plan elements. Amador Transit’s FY 2014-15 operating costs were based on the most recently available Amador Transit budget. Amador Transit’s budgets reflect a 6.3 percent increase from FY 2012-13 to FY 2013-14 and a 5.0 percent increase in costs from FY 2013-14 to FY 2014-15. For the remaining years of the planning period, a two percent inflation rate is assumed. Ridership and fare revenue estimates for FY 2015-16 to FY 2018-19 assume a population growth rate of two percent per year. Although, countywide, the population is expected to increase by only one percent per year, the number of seniors in Amador County is expected to grow by three percent per year.

TABLE 32: Amador County TDP - Estimated Operating Costs

Projected Projected Projected Projected Projected 5-Year Plan Plan Element FY14-15 FY15-16 FY16-17 FY17-18 FY18-19 Total

Base Case Operating Cost (1) $1,380,600 $1,408,200 $1,436,400 $1,465,100 $1,494,400 $7,184,700

Plan Elements Zone Fares/Raise Day Pass ------MACT Clinic Service - 2 RT/3 days/wk $0 $15,700 $16,000 $16,300 $16,700 $64,700 Expand Sacramento Service (3) $0 $150,500 $153,500 $156,500 $159,700 $620,200 Ione - One additional roundtrip $0 $0 $0 $30,100 $30,700 $60,800 Upcountry - One additional roundtrip $0 $0 $0 $0 $58,200 $58,200 Subtotal Plan Elements $0 $166,200 $169,500 $202,900 $265,300 $803,900

Net Operating Costs(2) $1,380,600 $1,574,400 $1,605,900 $1,668,000 $1,759,700 $7,988,600

Note 1: FY 14-15 costs based on FY 13-14 actuals and AT projections. Note 2: FY 15-16 going forw ard assumes 2% annual inflation rate. Note 3: Higher cost service expansion alternative assumed, pending results of detailed study.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 89 The following plan elements should be implemented only if financial projections meet or exceed expectations. This plan is consistent with the adopted Long Range Transit Development Plan and ACTC Board guidance. The following elements are graphically displayed in Figure 44.

TABLE 33: Amador County TDP - Estimated Annual Ridership

Projected Projected Projected Projected Projected 5-Year Plan Plan Element FY14-15 FY15-16 FY16-17 FY17-18 FY18-19 Total

Base Case Ridership (1) 69,601 70,992 72,412 73,860 75,337 362,202

Plan Elements Zone Fares/Raise Day Pass -600 -610 -620 -640 -650 -3,120 MACT Clinic Service - 2 RT/3 days/wk 0 540 750 850 870 3,010 Expand Sacramento Service 0 2,360 3,280 3,710 3,790 13,140 Ione - One additional roundtrip 0 0 0 770 1,190 1,960 Upcountry - One additional roundtrip 0 0 0 0 930 930 Subtotal Plan Elements -600 2,290 3,410 4,690 6,130 15,920

Net Ridership 69,001 73,282 75,822 78,550 81,467 378,122 Net Impact of TDP Elements -1%3%5%6%8% 4%

Note 1: Assumes 2% annual ridership grow th consistent w ith population grow th.

TABLE 34: Amador County TDP - Estimated Farebox Revenues

Projected Projected Projected Projected Projected 5-Year Plan Plan Element FY14-15 FY15-16 FY16-17 FY17-18 FY18-19 Total

Base Case Fare Revenue (1) $108,500 $110,700 $112,900 $115,200 $117,500 $564,800

Plan Elements Zone Fares/Raise Day Pass $3,200 $3,300 $3,300 $3,400 $3,500 $16,700 MACT Clinic Service - 2 RT/3 days/wk $0 $1,100 $1,500 $1,700 $1,700 $6,000 Expand Sacramento Service $0 $5,800 $8,100 $9,100 $9,300 $32,300 Ione - One additional roundtrip $0 $0 $0 $1,400 $2,200 $3,600 Upcountry - One additional roundtrip $0 $0 $0 $0 $1,900 $1,900 Subtotal Plan Elements $3,200 $10,200 $12,900 $15,600 $18,600 $60,500

Net Revenues $111,700 $120,900 $125,800 $130,800 $136,100 $625,300

Note 1: Assumes 2% annual ridership grow th consistent w ith population grow th.

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Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 91 Implement Zone Fares and Day Pass

A zone fare system is recommended to be implemented the first year of the planning period. This plan element will create greater equality for passengers in terms of cost per mile paid as well as help maintain a 10 percent farebox ratio. A zone fare system would consist of the following:

 Zone 1: The existing Jackson-Sutter Creek Shuttle service area. This would not include the new MACT Clinic service.

 Zone 2: Local fixed routes within a 10 - 13 mile distance of the Transit Center. This includes all existing local fixed routes with the exception of the Upcountry route east of Pioneer.

 Zone 3: Beyond the 13 mile travel distance from the Transit Center. This includes the communities of Pioneer and Buckhorn on the Upcountry route, the River Pines Route beyond Plymouth as well as any future extension of the Ione route beyond Ione and Buena Vista. For passengers travelling between Pine Grove/Buckhorn and destinations west, the westbound boundary of the zone would be Ridge Road while the eastbound boundary would be Tabeaud Road. This allows Upcountry residents to travel between Pine Grove and Pioneer without paying a two zone fare.

Fare prices will be as follows:

 Travel within any one zone - Cost will be $1.00 per one-way passenger-trip for all passengers.

 Travel between two zones - Cost will be $2.00 per trip for general public passengers, $1.00 per trip for reduced fare passengers, and $2.00 per trip for a qualified ADA route deviation.

 Travel between three zones – Cost will be $3.00 per trip for general public passengers, $1.50 per trip for reduced fare passengers, and $3.00 per trip for a qualified ADA route deviation.

AT currently does not offer free transfers between routes but does offer an unlimited ride day pass for $4.00. In other words passengers travelling from Pioneer to the Petkovich Park and then transferring to the Jackson Sutter Creek Shuttle costs $3.00 per one-way trip and $6.00 per round trip. Therefore purchasing a day pass for $4.00 is more economical. Under this new fare structure, it would be reasonable to offer a day pass for $6.00. This still offers (for example) a Pioneer resident making a round trip to Jackson a discount from the base fare, as a round trip would cost $8.00.

Under this fare structure, it is forecast that AT will meet the minimum 10 percent farebox ratio for the entire planning period.

Increase Intercity Connections to Sacramento through a FTA 5311(f) Grant

Sacramento is the closest major urban center and intercity transportation hub to Amador County. Amador Transit currently offers two round trips to downtown Sacramento from the Sutter Hill Transit Center, primarily for commuters, at times not convenient to intercity travelers. Amador residents travel to Sacramento for other purposes besides commuting: to access intercity transit services such as Amtrak and Greyhound, specialized medical appointments, and shopping. Chapter 7 presented a variety of service options and schedules to increase service on the Sacramento route to meet all these needs.

It is recommended that AT apply for a FTA 5311(f) grant to increase intercity transit service to Sacramento. Prior to submitting a FTA 5311(f) application, the transit operator is required to conduct a feasibility study. A FTA 5311(f) grant application has been submit to conduct the feasibility study. It is assumed in this plan that the feasibility study will more deeply explore the Sacramento service options discussed in Chapter 7 and recommend a preferred option that will become the basis for the grant

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) Page 92 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. application. As such, Table 32 – 34 presents the most conservative estimate (most expensive) of the cost and ridership impacts of expanded Sacramento service as a placeholder.

Sacramento Service Monthly Pass

It is also recommended that AT explore monthly pass options for the Sacramento Route in the Feasibility Study. A Sacramento Commuter riding the Sacramento Route five days a week, spends roughly $220 in fares each month. As demonstrated in Table 29, Peer Commuter Fares, the peer average for a commuter monthly pass is $155.30. Not only would a Sacramento monthly pass provide a discount for frequent riders but offer the convenience of not having to carry exact change each day. This could increase ridership.

Upcountry – One Additional Roundtrip

Increased service to the Upcountry region is one of the most requested AT improvement suggestions in all public input formats. The current schedule requires Upcountry residents to spend a total of five hours of travel time in order to complete a round trip to Jackson. According to AT records, there are 36 ADA qualified residents in Pioneer and Pine Grove, many of which do not use public transit. An additional mid- morning roundtrip between the Sutter Hill Transit Center and Amador Station with ample time in the schedule for three-quarter mile deviations would provide increased mobility for Upcountry residents. The existing Upcountry schedule could be adjusted to spread the runs evenly throughout the day; however, the existing morning run should continue to arrive in Jackson just before 8:00 AM, so as to accommodate workers and students.

Total cost of one additional roundtrip on the Upcountry service is estimated at $51,258 in FY 2015-16 and will carry around 930 additional one-way passenger-trips during the first year of service.

As a result of the ACTC’s Fiscal Year 2015/16 Unmet Transit Needs process one additional Upcountry roundtrip bus run will be added to Amador Transit’s schedule beginning in Fiscal Year 2015/16. The Upcountry area has seen an increase in ADA qualified riders, Amador Transit reported during the Unmet Transit Needs process there are now over 50 ADA qualified residents living Upcountry (pg. 75 in Chapter 7 of TDP had stated the Upcountry area had 36 ADA qualified residents).

Purchase Accessible Van(s) for the Amador Rides Volunteer Transportation Program

The Amador Rides Volunteer Transportation Program is designed to help Amador County residents meet their health care needs by coordinating volunteer drivers who currently use their own personal vehicles to help members of the community who have no other means of transportation get to health care related appointments. Purchasing accessible vans will allow the volunteer program to meet the needs of riders who cannot transfer to a vehicle seat. Vans will also produce more volunteers as some people have stated they would like to volunteer however they are unable or not willing to use their own vehicle. Amador Transit submitted a FTA 5310 grant application on February 2, 2015 for one accessible minivan and $20,000 in operating assistance for the Amador Rides program in fiscal years 2015 through 2017.

Expand Dial-a-Ride (DAR) Service Area in Jackson & Sutter Creek to Include Ridge Road to Surrey Junction and New York Ranch Road to State Route 88.

Dial-a-Ride provides affordable access to health care, shopping, grocery stores, county services, activities, entertainment, and more. As of February 2015 Amador Transit has 5 ADA clients in Surrey Junction, who currently do not have access to Dial-a-Ride. The annual cost of expanding Dial-a-Ride services to include Ridge Road and Climax Road in FY 2015/16 is $10,444. At their February 19, 2015

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 93 meeting the Amador County Transportation Commission approved the Dial-a-Ride service area expansion to include Ridge Road and Climax Road beginning in FY 2015/16.

Purchase an Accessible Mini-Van for Dial-A-Ride (DAR)

Amador County currently has the highest aging/disabled demographic in the State of California. In 2014, it is 38% of the current population; while the State of California average is 21%. Amador Transit currently has to rely on accessible buses which are unable to access some areas of the County due to their larger size. Purchasing an accessible mini-van will reduce DAR operating costs and allow transportation for elderly and disabled whom are currently inaccessible by the larger bus.

Route Plymouth Run Through Sutter Creek and Amador City

Prior to 2010, all Plymouth routes operated through Sutter Creek and Amador City. As a cost savings measure, in 2010 service was removed from Old Highway 49 and rerouted to the State Route 49 Bypass. Reinstating the previous route through Sutter Creek and Amador City will add service to Amador City where there is currently no bus service. As of February 2015 Amador Transit has five ADA qualified riders in Amador City. Rerouting the Plymouth routes will have an annual cost of $6,375.40. At their February 19, 2015 meeting the Amador County Transportation Commission approved restoring service to Amador City by rerouting Plymouth bus service through Sutter Creek and Amador City.

Operate One Additional Daily Ione Route Roundtrip

Increased service to Ione has been the subject of many requests, including from the SSTAC. The Ione Route service area has a relatively high number of transit dependent residents. If funding levels meet expectations in this plan, AT should operate one additional round trip on the Ione Route, starting near the end of this planning period. This would provide transit dependent residents in Ione with more opportunities to access needed shopping and medical services in Jackson. Estimated operating cost of one additional run in FY 2017-18 is $30,100 and is anticipated to carry roughly 770 one-way passenger trips during the first year of service.

CAPITAL PLAN

Capital Plan elements are presented in Table 35, and discussed below.

Fleet Replacement and Expansion

In order to maintain a safe and efficient transit fleet, vehicles should be replaced after they reach the end of their useful life. Vehicles which were purchased using FTA grant funds should be replaced according to the “useful life standards” in the FTA 5311 Handbook. The AT fleet replacement schedule presented in Table 35 is based on the FTA standards. In addition to replacing used vehicles, AT will need to purchase a new intercity transit vehicle with luggage racks for the expanded Sacramento Intercity service. The FTA 5311(f) grant program includes grants for capital purchases. The plan also calls for a new DAR minivan in accordance with strategies to expand DAR service in the Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Transportation Plan. A new staff vehicle will be required during the planning period. AT also intends to repower the classic trolley using Map-21 – State of Good Repair funding.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) Page 94 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 35: Amador County TDP - Capital Plan

Projected Projected Projected Projected Projected 5-Year Plan Plan Element FY14-15 FY15-16 FY16-17 FY17-18 FY18-19 Total

MOA Facility Improvements $50,000 $0 $0 $0 $2,000,000 $2,050,000 Vehicle and Fleet Replacement $250,000 $130,000 $635,000 $0 $450,000 $1,465,000 Staff Vehicle $0 $23,000 Tablets for Data Tracking (1) $22,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $22,000 Repower Trolleys $0 $0 $500,000 $0 $0 $500,000 Intercity Transit Feasibility Study $70,000

Total Capital Elements $392,000 $153,000 $1,135,000 $0 $2,450,000 $3,537,000

Computer Tablets for Data Tracking

The most recent Triennial Performance Audit for AT noted that AT’s current method of manually tracking operating data such as passenger-trips and fare revenue does not allow for a good method of tabulating fare revenue by route or by passenger type. This is particularly important in terms of determining performance of existing and/or future routes. Computer tablets will simplify the data collection process for drivers and allow for a wider variety of categories to record data for a relatively low cost. It will ultimately provide better data for transit decision making.

Transit Maintenance and Operations Facility Improvements

During the first year of the planning period, AT plans to solicit a Request for Proposal for the construction of a new maintenance and operations facility. The current facility is not equipped to service an expanded fleet. As noted in the alternatives section and the Long-Range Transit Plan, a new facility should include an oil/water separator, a wash station, and a new bus bay with a lift. The cost of the facility is anticipated to be around $2,000,000 and could be funded with MAP-21 State of Good Repair funds and Proposition 1B funds as a local match. Construction of the new facility will not begin until the final year of the planning period.

FINANCIAL PLAN

The results of Tables 32 through 35 were used to develop the Financial Plan, as presented for each of the five years of the Short Range Transit Plan period in Table 36. As shown in the table, operating costs of all plan elements (Table 32) are added to base case costs of operating AT and then compared to anticipated operating revenues to determine the available balance. In addition to passenger fare revenues, operating revenues are anticipated to come from the following funding sources:

 Local Transportation Funds (LTF) are the key local source of transit operating funds, currently generating roughly 60 percent of the funds used to operate services. These funds are assumed to increase with inflation (2 percent per year), as well as with population growth (1 percent per year).

 State Transit Assistance (STA) funding is assumed to remain steady throughout the planning period.

 Federal Transit Administration (FTA) 5311(f) Intercity Services combined with Toll Credits funding is assumed to pay for the entire cost of expanded intercity service to Sacramento. If this discretionary grant source is not obtained, that plan element should not be implemented.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 95

 FTA Section 5311 funds are based on current estimates and are assumed to increase by 2 percent per year in subsequent years to reflect inflation and 1 percent to reflect population growth.

 AT has previously secured FTA 5316 (JARC) and 5317 (New Freedom) grants for FY 2014-15. These grants have been discontinued.

 Projects previously eligible under the FTA 5317 (New Freedom) program are now included in the FTA Section 5310 fund program under MAP-21. Going forward, any money received through this discretionary grant program will pay for projects derived from the Coordinated Public Transit Human Services Transportation Plan.

 Advertising revenues are assumed to increase with the assumed 2 percent rate of inflation.

 The amount that Sacramento County pays AT for the operation of the Sacramento Route outside of Amador County is assumed to increase at 2 percent per year with inflation.

 Rural Transit Assistance Program (RTAP) funds are assumed to remain steady throughout the planning period.

As shown in Table 36, these funding sources resulted in excess operating funds, which were then allocated to Operating Reserves and the Capital Fund. (To guard against a sudden reduction in LTF funds, AT should maintain an operating reserve of at least three months of operating costs.) In each fiscal year, total operating funds exceed operating costs in amounts sufficient to maintain the operating reserve as well as build a health capital fund for capital plan projects.

As presented in the bottom portion of Table 36, this analysis indicates that positive fund balances can be maintained through the plan period for the Capital Fund. This includes the local match requirement for the maintenance and operations facility and all other capital plan elements. Capital revenues will be obtained from the following sources:

 Proposition 1B PTMISEA (Public Transportation Modernization, Improvement and Service Enhancement Account) funds are allocated to fund a wide range of facility and technology improvements, per the adopted Capital Improvement Plan.  MAP -21 State of Good Repair funds can be applied to capital projects which maintain a system in a state of good repair including projects such as rolling stock, maintenance and operations facilities.

 FTA 5311(f) funds combined with Toll Credits will be used to purchase a new intercity transit vehicle for the Sacramento Route plan element.

 FTA 5310 discretionary grant funds will be applied for to purchase a new DAR minivan.

The final line of Table 36 demonstrates that systemwide TDA farebox ratio requirements will be met each of the five years.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) Page 96 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. TABLE 36: Amador County TDP - Financial Plan

Projected Projected Projected Projected Projected 5-Year Plan Plan Element FY14-15 FY15-16 FY16-17 FY17-18 FY18-19 Total

OPERATING PLAN Base Case Costs $1,380,600 $1,408,200 $1,436,400 $1,465,100 $1,494,400 $7,184,700 Operating Plan Elements $0 $166,200 $169,500 $202,900 $265,300 $803,900 Total Operating Costs $1,380,600 $1,574,400 $1,605,900 $1,668,000 $1,759,700 $7,988,600 Operating Revenues Passenger Fares $111,700 $120,900 $125,800 $130,800 $136,100 $625,300 TDA - LTF $776,160 $799,600 $823,700 $848,600 $874,200 $4,122,260 TDA - STA $190,000 $190,000 $190,000 $190,000 $190,000 $950,000 FTA 5311(f) / Toll Credits (1) $70,000 $144,700 $145,400 $147,400 $150,400 $657,900 FTA Section 5311 $250,000 $262,700 $276,000 $290,000 $304,700 $1,383,400 FTA 5316, 5317 (secured grants)(2) $290,000 ------$290,000 FTA 5310 (new discretionary grants)(3) All FTA 5310 Assumed Allocated to Coordinated Plan Projects $0 Advertising Contract $38,000 $38,760 $39,535 $40,326 $41,132 $197,754 Sacramento County Contract $78,000 $79,560 $81,151 $82,774 $84,430 $405,915 RTAP $2,000 $2,000 $2,000 $2,000 $2,000 $10,000 Total Operating Revenues $1,805,900 $1,638,200 $1,683,600 $1,731,900 $1,783,000 $8,642,600 Balance Available for Transfer to Capital Fund or Reserves $425,300 $63,800 $77,700 $63,900 $23,300 $654,000 Transfer to Operating Reserves $50,000 $0 $6,500 $16,000 $22,400 $94,900 Transfer to Capital Fund/Local Match for Coordinated Plan $375,300 $63,800 $71,200 $47,900 $900 $559,100

CAPITAL PLAN Capital Costs $392,000 $153,000 $1,135,000 $0 $2,450,000 $4,130,000 Capital Revenues Prop 1B PTMISEA $497,000 $130,000 $0 $0 $450,000 $1,077,000 MAP - 21 - State of Good Repair $0 $0 $400,000 $0 $1,600,000 $2,000,000 FTA 5311(f)/Toll Credits $0 $0 $500,000 $0 $0 $500,000 FTA 5310 $0 $0 $108,000 $0 $0 $108,000 Total Capital Revenues $497,000 $130,000 $1,008,000 $0 $2,050,000 $3,685,000 Annual Balance: Transfer to/from Capital Fund $105,000 -$23,000 -$127,000 $0 -$400,000 -$445,000

OPERATING RESERVE(4) Beginning Balance $345,000 $395,000 $395,000 $401,500 $417,500 $1,954,000 Transfer from Operating Revenues $50,000 $0 $6,500 $16,000 $22,400 $94,900 End Balance $395,000 $395,000 $401,500 $417,500 $439,900 $2,048,900

CAPITAL FUND Beginning Balance $457,345 $937,645 $978,445 $922,645 $970,545 $4,266,625 Income - Transfer from Revenues $375,300 $63,800 $71,200 $47,900 $900 $559,100 Expenses - Transfer to Capital Revenues $105,000 -$23,000 -$127,000 $0 -$400,000 -$445,000 End Balance $937,645 $978,445 $922,645 $970,545 $571,445 $4,380,725

ESTIMATED FAREBOX RATIO(5) 11.5% 10.7% 10.8% 10.8% 10.6%

Note1: Assumes FTA 5311(f) grant aw ard and assumed maximum level of service alternative. This is a discretionary grant and plan element w ill not be implemented if grant is not aw arded. Note 2: The FTA 5316 (JARC) program is now part of the FTA 5311 formula funding grant program. FTA 5317 (New Freedom) is now part of the FTA 5310 discretionary grant program. Note 3: Discretionary grant program for elderly and persons w ith disabilities. If aw arded grants, funds w ill go tow ard Coordinated Plan projects such as volunteer driver program and expanded paratransit service.

Note 4: Assumes maintaining 3 months operating costs in reserves. Note 5: This % represents LSC's estimate. Actual farebox ratio for TDA purposes w ill be determined by Fiscal Auditor. Cost and revenue estimates are conservative; therefore farebox ratio may be underestimated. New service w ill only be added if overall system 10% farebox performance can be met.

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 97 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

FY 2014-15

 Implement Zone Fare System/ $6.00 Day Pass  Conduct Intercity Feasibility Study  Issue RFP for new Maintenance and Operations Facility  Replace 2 Chevrolet Aero Elites  Purchase computer tablets for data tracking

FY 2015-16

 If awarded FTA 5311(f) grant, implement Sacramento Intercity Service as recommended in Feasibility Study  Replace the Ford Glaval  Replace Shop Vehicle  Add one more run on the Upcountry route  Purchase Accessible Van(s) for the Amador Rides Volunteer Transportation Program  Purchase Accessible Van for the Dial-A-Ride Program  Expand Dial-a-Ride Service Area in Jackson & Sutter Creek to include Ridge Rd to Surrey Junction, New York Ranch Rd to State Route 88  Route Plymouth Run Through Sutter Creek and Amador City  Apply for FTA 5311(f) funding for Intercity Service  Replace Sacramento Intercity Bus

FY 2016-17

 Monitor ridership, cost and farebox ratio for newly implemented plan elements  Replace transit buses  Repower Trolleys

FY 2017-18

 Monitor ridership, cost and farebox ratio for newly implemented plan elements  Implement one additional round trip on the Ione Route

FY 2018-19

 Replace 6 transit buses  Begin construction of new Maintenance and Operations facility  Monitor ridership, cost and farebox ratio for newly implemented plan elements

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 (Chapter 8 Amended 3/25/15) Page 98 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Bibliography

Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 34, Assessment of the Economic Impacts of Rural Transportation, 1998

American Journal of Health, Driving Life Expectancy of Persons Aged 70 Years and Older in the United States, 2002

Alliance for Aging Research, Independence for Older Americans: An Investment for Our Nation’s Future

Alliance for Aging Research, Silver Book Almanac, www.silverbook.org

Genworth 2013 Cost of Care Survey, Home Care Providers, Adult Day Care Facilities, Assisted Living Facilities, Nursing Homes

Noozhawk, Tim Durnin: Gov. Brown Shortsighted in Cutting Funds for Developmentally Disabled, 2013

Caldwell, Srebotnjak, Wang, Hsia, National Institute of Health, “How much will I get charged for this?”, Patient Charges for Top Ten Diagnoses in the Emergency Department

Community Transportation Association of America, Senior Transportation Toolkit and Best Practices

Cronin, Florida Transportation Disadvantaged Programs Return on Investment, The Marketing Institute Florida State University, 2008

Becker’s Hospital Review, www.beckershospitalreview.com

HDR Decision Economics, Michigan Department of Transportation, Economic and Community Benefits of Local Bus Service, 2010

Amador County Short-Range Transit Development Plan, 2014 LSC Transportation Consultants, Inc. Page 99

Appendix A Survey Efforts

Amador Transit Survey Form Please help Amador Transit improve services by answering this survey and returning the form as you leave the bus. All responses are confidential. Thank you! PLEASE FILL OUT THIS FORM EACH TIME YOU GET ONE Mark only one response for each question

1. How did you get to the bus today? 10. If Amador Transit was not in operation, would you be  Dropped off  Bicycled able to stay in your current home, or would you have  Walked less than 10 minutes to move?  Walked more than 10 minutes  Could stay in current home  Drove alone  Wheelchair  Would have to move  Don’t know  Other (explain) ______11. Do you have a disability that limits driving? 2. Where did you get on this bus?  Yes  No Name of bus stop:______12. Do you have a driver’s license? Street: ______ Yes  No 3. Where will you get off this bus? 13. Was there a vehicle that you could have used for this Name of bus stop:______trip instead of the bus?  Yes  No Street: ______14. Are you:  Male  Female 4. Are you transferring between buses as part of your 15. What is your age? trip?  Yes  No If yes, what routes  Under 18  19 to 25  26 to 44 ______ 45 to 61  62 to 74  75 or over 5. What is the main purpose of this trip? 16. What is your employment status?  School/College  Shopping  Full-time employed  Part-time employed  Personal Business  Doctor / Dentist  Homemaker  Student  Work  Recreation/Social  Retired  Not employed  Other ______ Unable to work 6. How will you make your return trip? 17. What is the yearly income of all the people in your  Return on Amador Transit home?  I’m going one way only  Ride with someone  Under $24,000  $60,000 to $74,999  Hitch hike  Take the school bus  $24,000 to $39,999  $75,000 to $85,000  Drive my car  Walk  Taxi  $40,000 to $59,999  Greater than $85,000 7. How often do you ride the bus? 18. Please indicate your opinion of the fixed route service  1 Day/Week  1-4 Days/Month from 1 to 5 using the list below (please circle your answer  2-3 Days/Week  Less than 1 Day/Month or leave blank if you have no opinion):  4-5 Days/Week Poor Excellent 8. How long have you been using the bus? a. Driver courtesy 1 2 3 4 5  First Time  Under 6 months b. On time performance 1 2 3 4 5  6 months to a year  More than a year c. Areas served 1 2 3 4 5 9. If Amador Transit was not available, how would you d. Bus comfort 1 2 3 4 5 have made this trip? e. Cost of bus fares 1 2 3 4 5  Drove  Bicycled  Walked f. Bus cleanliness 1 2 3 4 5  Ride with friend/family  Hitch hike g. Printed information materials 1 2 3 4 5  Taxi  Other  Would not have made this trip h. Telephone information services 1 2 3 4 5 i. Bus stops and shelters 1 2 3 4 5 ii. Overall transit service 1 2 3 4 5

19. What service or customer improvements would you like to see?  Additional service time – if so, when?______ New or extended routes – if so, where?______ Earlier Weekday Service  Later Weekday Service  Saturday Service  Sunday Service  Other______20. Other Comments: ______

Thank you for helping us to improve Amador Transit bus service by participating in this survey! Amador County Transit On-Board Survey Comments

Better shock and turn on air flow Better shocks, disjointed schedule for going shopping Bus only goes to Sutter T.C. from Ione so have to get picked up Can't get to early bus to Sacramento and can't get back to Pine Grove on same day Comanche run and more and later Up Country, had to change whole schedule due to Up Country bus being cancelled Company and drivers go out of their way to keep us safe Consider alternative route to Sacramento to expedite trip, also reduce number of stops in downtown Sacramento to make trip shorter Did not understand transfer fee Driver often chats with passengers which can be unsafe Drivers make sure get to location safe Have monthly pass for state employees and fix/clean rattling windows I hope drivers continue to enhance passenger safety Internet site was helpful, would not be able to work in Pine Grove if no transit Less expensive ticket Like better than school bus Stick to schedule, improve bus upkeep, less conversations with drivers, wait till rider are in cars on Sac run Loved Don, liked website, hard since you quit Volcano MACT medical Make easier to qualify for Dart, wheelchair users should automatically qualify More stops in Sacramento and more signs New shocks New to the system No weekends makes hard to shop on weekends Often no shelters, Kennedy Meadows not wheelchair accessible Older buses are gross, need more signs to show where to stand for stop On call service Overall great job Perfect! (2) Driver plays radio too loud with songs with explicit sexual lyrics, windows rattle Route to farmers markets Smells like smoke Some drivers are not timely Sticky floors and seats Thank you! The bus is great Vacuum seats and clean interior of bus daily Waiting times vary a lot, hard to coordinate some places Weather shelter at Jackson Gate stop Wifi is sporadic and too frustrating to use Works great Would like a light at DeMartini/Jackson Hwy especially in winter Increase frequency and span of service and you will see increase in ridership. Many people do not work Monday through Friday 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Is The Bus Taking You Where You Need To Go?

Amador County Transportation Commission and Amador Transit are preparing a transit plan for our county, and would like your input on transit services and travel needs. Please take a few moments to answer the following questions so that our transit services can best meet the needs of the community:

1. What community do you live in (check one)?

 Jackson  Sutter Creek  Pine Grove  Plymouth  Pioneer  Ione  Camanche  Martell  Volcano  River Pines  Fiddletown Other______

2. How old are you (check one)?

 18 and under  19 to 25  26 to 44  45 to 61  62 to 74  75 or older

3. Do you have a vehicle available for travel (check one)?

 Yes  No

4. What community or city do you typically travel to for:

Work Recreation/Social Doctor/Medical Grocery Shopping School Banking

5. How often do you use Amador Transit (check one)?

 Never  Less than 1 time per month  1 – 4 times per month  5 – 10 times per month  10+ times per month

6. If you don’t use Amador Transit or only ride infrequently, what factors limit your use? (check all that apply)

 The bus does not stop near my home  The fare is too high  The bus doesn’t go where I need to go  I’m not aware of the bus service  The bus doesn’t run often enough  I have a vehicle  The bus does not run late enough  I make multiple stops along the way  The bus does not start early enough  Other  The bus takes too long ***Turn Over***

7. Do you have public transit needs outside of Amador County? For what purpose?

 Sacramento? Purpose:  Lodi? Purpose:  Stockton? Purpose:  Bay Area? Purpose:

8. If Amador Transit were not available, would you be able to get to:

Work?  Yes  No Doctor?  Yes  No School?  Yes  No Recreation/social outings?  Yes  No

9. Do you think public transit should be provided in Amador County?

 Yes (Please explain)  No  Don’t know

10. How could Amador Transit better meet your transportation needs? Please describe.

Thank you!

If you would like to discuss your answers or become a part of the Amador County Short Range Transit Plan Update mailing list to hear about public workshops and meetings, please email or call Genevieve Evans at:

Genevieve Evans LSC Transportation Consultants Inc. PO Box 5875 2690 Lake Forest Road Tahoe City, CA 96145 530-583-4053 [email protected]

How could Amador Transit better meet your transportation needs?

Increase certain runs ‐ additional upcountry and increase destinations ‐ Castle Oaks Golf Course. Better schedules. Print too small and should be printed up and down instead of sideways. Too hard to read! Would like a bus to Lodi. Would like a bus for our city functions like theater and fairs, etc. More routes vs budget to do vs numbers who make it Weekend SVC Could start earlier and run later and weekends. Would be very helpful and lower fares. If it lowers cost by monthly pass than if pay in daily Add a third Sacramento bus Don't know enough about it to answer I am encouraged that, as new issues continue to arise, Amador Transit will continually meet the challenges to cope with them. Night service when there are public meetings (evenings) or events along the Hwy 49 corridor. Meeting times and public transit could be better coordinated; i.e. BOS meeting start when buses arrive at County Administration Building and meetings end with scheduled bus departures. Does not run at night. Less time now in scheduling. Bus doesn't stop at hospital. Just goes in the circle. Doesn't wait to see if any seniors are waiting inside. Needs to be more reliable. More stops/pickup times and be on schedule. Once she gets a smaller oxygen bottle, she will be able to use public transit. Bus scheduling does not meet needs.(2) We use Common Grounds. Used Common Grounds today for doctor. Difficult to make appointments with doctors based on availability dates for Common Grounds. Use Common Grounds Stay home. Daughter drives me to doctor appointments. Never taken it before. Family takes me. Have used Common Grounds. Very pleasant. Common Grounds has taken me to my appointments before. Pick me up at home if I needed it. Usually do not go with daughter. Don't know. No use for it. Good for folks who need it. Have used Common Ground to take me to appointments. Very nice, lovely lady who drove me. Use Common Ground for rides to doctor. Use Common Ground shuttle services. Do not use Amador Transit. Use Common Ground transportation. It is a great service when needed. Cannot get into trucks/buses ‐ cannot hang onto handles. Need lower car. Have family that takes me and Common Grounds picks me up. Don't need it. Too difficult to get around. Use Common Grounds transportation (3) Never on time. Long waits ‐ sit forever waiting. Use Common Grounds services for transportation. Do not use transportation ‐ stay home. Cannot walk far. Use senior services transportation. Move bus stops that are not too far to walk Built the terminal on the wrong side of Jackson. Too far away. Use Common Grounds shuttle. Yes, they certainly need to get around to homes. Use Common Ground when I cannot find a ride. Have used Common Ground services before Come pick up at house! Use Common Ground services. Love Common Ground and all the services they provide. Thank you for what you do. Pick up at home. Do not take public transit. Able to drive myself. Basically need to have a schedule. Daughter brings me to where ever I need to go. If daughter can't, do not go anywhere. I would like to use AT instead of driving so a regular route out of County could be a great option. Making it familiar to use. Will eventually use public transit. Eyes going bad. Only problem is walking to the bus stop uphill 2 blocks. Not sure how it would work. We go grocery shopping and have to buy groceries for 2 weeks. Running later By having a stop at the VA Hospital in Sacramento Satisfied(2) Make bus schedule available to more people, have stops in popular areas Provide more upcountry services by using small vehicles to connect to main routes Frequent times to Sacramento Metro Should have transportation for veterans to Mather Hospital Have service 5 days a week to outlying areas More trips to make faster commute Add more routes to and from Ione, Pine Grove, Pioneer and increase bus stops in those areas More frequent service in Ione Run on Saturdays and Sundays, run to Sacramento on Saturdays and Sundays Run on the weekends Run more and later When had to ride bus, had hard time using because of infrequent bus schedule, make it more available Run every half hour Weekend service! Weekend service as same as during week Bus service on weekends in all areas Would use if it ran close to my home Have weekend service Have route to Lodi, Lockford, and Stockton Delta College Run more often, more routes, get something like "dial‐a‐ride", some buses fixed routes, some buses "dial‐a‐ride" I like the social aspect of public transportation Easier to take kids places Need connection from regular bus to Sacramento express bus Have bus come up to Fiddletown to take me to Jackson for appointments for kids and go grocery shopping More frequently and on weekends Need noon Plymouth bus Have a bus going to Fiddletown and easy to get on with a walker, have parking near bus stops Don't need it for now but getting older so maybe soon, needs to go to Martell more, not enough from Plymouth Weekend service Earlier and later service. Have the bus drivers wait a little longer at each stop Saturday schedule Get to Raleys earlier because sometimes the bus drivers don’t wait for people (amador) they leave before people show up for the bus. Sometimes I have to wait for an hour for another bus it makes me late for work sometimes More routes from Ione to Jackson Have a covered bus stop at Walmart You guys are doing a good job Have more buses come into Ione. The bus drivers always help me with my bus hours Since I cannot drive, it would help me with many things, driving, grocery, work, and being able to live a more normal active life Better time and more options to Sacramento and Plymouth More times more places Better bus stops. Better marked bus stops. Lights at bus stops. Better information campaigns No bus schedule at stop on corner of west main/116 – need two more runs so the old people don’t have to wait so long. Need schedules & shade & lights at bus stops Later bus service to/from Jackson and Ione Pick up & drop off / parking near bus stops, maybe a dedicated section at Ione market plaza More runs, better sinage, a bus from Ione that goes commuter van that catches Sacramento bus on route I don’t know where the bus stops are or when the busses leave Later runs, more direct routes Saturday for work and shopping runs to go down New York Ranch road Josey’s place needs more runs – weekend runs More later runs, Saturday runs Go to Sacramento from Ione No idea Use the bigger transit systems like Chicago Need to know more so I can use the bus effectively Runs out to where I live Question Ford transit 30mpg for going to places like the Sacramento bus from Ione Don’t know yet Front door to Rollingwood estates Love dial‐a‐ride Weekend routes, better information campaign More trips upcounty later and earlier. Run on weekends. Sue M is my favorite driver No train connections to Sacramento/airport all hours Movie day bus from school to Clinton Wider area of coverage Go to Mather field VA Go to New York fitness, senior center, San Andreas Doing very well An upcountry bus connect to sac bus – upcountry bus connections at least once a week – if mid‐day Plymouth run is missed due to being late out of the clinic you can’t catch the upcountry WEEKENDS WEEKENDS WEEKEDNS Better coverage and more routes per day Run 7 days a week Leaving Ione at 720 and get to Jackson Want a run to Surry ridge New to the area More often If I didn’t have a car, I would have to use this thing Weekends Maybe for events on the weekends and music Better and more routes to Calaveras Weekends and later routes I'm getting ready to junk my car Used to ride the bus to work More routes Amador County to Folsom for school and outlets More coverage in Calaveras Go to west point If I would have known – now I do, I'll try it New York Ranch road to casino Later runs up country Later and weekend service Need a bus to going up climacs and Ridge Rd Take upcountry route, go up to black station, weekend service at “least” on Saturday Weekend service please Need to know more No busses to West Point Go to West Point Routes to Calaveras More stops and routes More, later up country doesn’t work for jobs Weekends and Saturdays Not any real need, more runs to Sacramento later at night More service route better information for seniors and dial‐a‐ride Drive up Tabeau Rd Go down New York Ranch Rd Rides for free Need more information More routes, more frequent, run later for after school practice and study groups and activities More stops weekend routes Trips to Kirkwood during ski season Doing fine now Later from Ione, transit times didn’t line up to get my son to school Better information and weekend runs It was convenient when they had later runs – not enough runs now Later runs so we could have dinner out Like to see wine tasting tours from Sacramento Come to Fiddletown(2) Make it known Better information campaign, special event busses Later busses so I could go have a few drinks and not worry about dui Bus from Plymouth to Folsom via La Trobe school, intel Better information campaign More dial‐a‐ride shuttle for out of the way areas Running more often No fee for ride etc HAVE BUS ARRIVE ON TIME !! If it came closer to where my stop is Two more buses at more times, not make so many stops, have more seats on the bus, run later in the day (like run 24/7) lower the prices, stop closer to people’s homes I would take it if the bus for the upcountry came earlier then 3:50 because if I'm going to be getting a job then I need to get there sooner. Drop me off closer to my house If it was free, and was faster, and had more stops, and if there were multiple buses at different times that had the same stops, and if the bus showed up earlier so people didn’t have to wait for hours Have longer hours If it was free Run more and later go further and longer More frequent times during the day More frequent stops, weekends, close to home Better connection with Calaveras County Bus should stand by for 10 minutes or have buses coming round more often because most times just need to run in to do something quickly and then have to wait 45 minutes for next bus, also weekend and nights transit is needed SAA Ione needs more buses, does not run often enough, can't get a job or get to school bus Camanche needs a bus. San Andreas ROP to Calaveras H.S. stops a long way from school for students who must carry supplies, also pick up is too early Could help provide safer transportation for public schooling transportation Come to River Pines twice a day, once in the AM and once in the PM Have a bus stop at Amador City Lower cost and more trips upcountry Late pickup for high school students who play sports, many aren't able to play sports because of transportation needs If it were able to get my children to and from after school sports If my car breaks down and there is a route to work I could get there with no worries More stops, more frequent better service for upcountry More frequent runs in Pioneer Don't make people walk so far to bus More frequent times, needs Saturday schedule Need service from football practice to Pine Grove, could use a mid‐day or late morning bus to Jackson that had an afternoon bus back up to Pine Grove for a short day in Jackson More frequent and convenient times to Jackson, especially senior center Pick up and drop off at high school for after school activities Need to have later buses that go up country Send me easy to read schedule Come closer to my home in Pine Grove, I am disabled and can't walk to the bus stop Later hours Thank goodness for bus! More service routes in Pioneer More frequent times, buses are scheduled too far a part in time frame Have more routes More service times, I'm sick and can't wait long Need more time available, more stops, dial a ride needs to actually stop and drop off where needed Let the community know what you have to offer Had to quit job due to no transportation, need more buses to Camanche More buses Earlier or later service Need dial a ride in outlying areas like Fiddletown Bring to Plymouth and Fiddletown area Have transit available throughout the week Have transit 5 days a week More than two stops a day in Plymouth Saturday and Sunday bus runs Run nights and weekends