To: Chair and Members Community and Planning Services Committee From: Jacquie Evans Transportation Network Coordinator Summer Valentine Director of Planning Date: July 23, 2020 Subject: Five-Year Transportation Needs Assessment and Growth and Sustainability Plan – Project Update Report: CPS-6-2020-2 ________________________________________________________________________ Recommendation THAT the final Community Transportation Plan (CTP) attached to Report CPS-6-2020-2 as Appendix I be endorsed; AND THAT staff be directed to implement the CTP in accordance with the Work Plan attached to Report CPS-6-2020-2 as Appendix II; AND THAT District staff be authorized to proceed with a Request for Proposals for the procurement of a qualified transportation service provider to provide the rural, accessible transportation program, as described in the CTP and Work Plan, in accordance with the District’s Procurement By-law; AND THAT the Commissioner of Community and Planning Services and the CAO be delegated authority to award the contract to the successful bidder; AND THAT the required contract be to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Community and Planning Services in consultation with the District Solicitor; AND THAT the Commissioner of Community and Planning Services and the CAO be authorized to execute the contract, and any related documents necessary to initiate and operate the program, on behalf of the District. Origin On February 20, 2020, Report CPS-2-2020-1 and the accompanying presentation to the Community and Planning Services Committee (CPSC) provided an update on the Five-Year Transportation Needs Assessment and Growth and Sustainability Plan (the Page 1 Community Transportation Plan or CTP) project. CPSC members provided feedback on the consultant’s preliminary recommendations for community transportation programming in the District. The consultant, Transit Consulting Network (TCN) has now compiled the results of all research and community engagement activities and has delivered the final CTP (Appendix I). Background TCN was tasked with developing a CTP that would address six key areas related to community transportation in the District including: 1. Individual Transportation Solutions; 2. Accessible Rural Transportation Solutions; 3. Provision of East-West Connectivity; 4. Expansion of the Inter-Community Corridor 11 Bus; 5. Seamless Transportation Networks in Muskoka; and 6. Long-Term Growth and Financial Sustainability. TCN began working on the CTP project in fall 2019, which consisted of three key phases: • Phase 1: Review Existing Transit Services and Best Practices and Undertake Community Engagement; • Phase 2: Identify Preferred Transportation Options; and • Phase 3: Develop Transit Ridership Growth and Sustainability Plan. All three phases of the project are now complete and are summarized in the final CTP. Analysis The CTP outlines the results of research conducted by TCN on best practices in rural transportation, the current state of public transportation in the District, and an extensive community engagement and needs assessment process. This research has informed detailed recommendations in the CTP that address all six priority areas. In accordance with the Community Transportation Grant (CTG) funding categories, the CTP outlines suggested improvements and enhancements to the inter-community (long-distance) Corridor 11 Bus service and recommends the implementation of a local transportation program, all of which can be implemented in the short term within the CTG budget. The CTP also provides suggestions for program expansion and growth over the longer term, beyond the end of the CTG program. Short-Term Pilot Programs The CTP includes recommendations for short-term programming which could be delivered with existing funding and budget to the end of the CTG period (i.e. mid 2023). These would be considered “pilot programs” for the duration of the CTG time period, and their continuation beyond that would depend on their success, the introduction of adequate ridership growth and financial sustainability measures, and/or future grant opportunities. Page 2 The proposed pilot programs include TCN’s recommended improvements to the Corridor 11 Bus service and a new rural service that is designed to provide east-west connectivity across the District in a manner that can be tailored to meet many individual and accessible transportation needs. Recommended rural routes include: 1) MacTier to Huntsville with service through Port Carling, Bracebridge, and Baysville; and 2) Midland to Bracebridge with service through Port Severn, Honey Harbour, Bala, and Gravenhurst. The vehicle would travel along these fixed routes with set stops along the way, making two round trips per day, and serving each route one day per week. The vehicle would also have the ability to “flex” off these routes for a maximum of five minutes in response to a request for a pick up or drop off, providing a door-to-door service for those who would have difficulty accessing a set stop. An operator for the new rural service would be procured in accordance with the appropriate policies and procedures. Hammond Transportation was the successful proponent of a recent request for proposals for the provision of the Corridor 11 Bus service, and they would continue to operate that service for at least four years and implement the recommended refinements. Recommended changes to the Corridor 11 Bus service include: 1) Integration with the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC) Bus service, by marketing the ONTC as an alternative to the Corridor 11 Bus to provide residents with additional travel options and moving Corridor 11 Bus stops to align with those of ONTC; 2) Elimination of the service between Orillia and Barrie and reinvesting those service hours to create three daily round trips between Huntsville and Orillia; and 3) Adding two stops in Gravenhurst and one in Huntsville, and removing one stop in Bracebridge to ensure more equitable distribution of access to the Corridor 11 Bus within the larger communities. As outlined in the CTP, consideration would be given to how to best integrate these pilot programs with each other and with the various services that currently operate within and beyond the District (e.g. the Ontario Northland Bus, Bracebridge and Huntsville Transit, Simcoe Linx, etc.) to help create a seamless transportation network. Staff would recommend the implementation of the short-term pilot programs as described in the CTP, in accordance with the attached proposed Work Plan (Appendix “II”). The Work Plan includes a detailed outline of required tasks, anticipated deliverables, and an estimated timeline. The most immediate priority would be the initiation of a request for proposals (RFP) process for the new rural service. Service requirements and deliverables outlined in the RFP would be similar to those in the recent RFP for the Corridor 11 Bus service. Page 3 Long-Term Ridership Growth and Financial Sustainability The CTP also includes detailed ridership growth strategies to help improve program financial sustainability and provides a discussion on various additional funding opportunities. Key strategies that should be considered for implementation in the short- term include continued cooperation with other transportation service providers and volunteer-based agencies, improved marketing, providing real-time passenger information, and providing a travel training course for residents. As outlined in the proposed Work Plan, staff would explore which growth strategies could be implemented with existing resources and what other funding might be available, with a view to ensuring program sustainability beyond the end of the CTG. Should the District wish to invest additional financial resources (i.e. additional levy dollars) in community transportation programming at any time, TCN has provided a variety of priority ranked suggestions for enhancements that could be implemented to expand programs either during or after the pilot projects, along with cost estimates. The CTP recommends that the focus should be on expanding the Corridor 11 Bus service with the addition of service on weekends and/or one morning and one afternoon trip between Gravenhurst and Huntsville. The rural service could be expanded to three round trips per day, or an additional day of service per week could be added on each route. Lastly, an on-demand service could be considered to serve areas not covered by other services but would likely be costly to operate. COVID-19 Pandemic Considerations The CTP project was initiated well before the COVID-19 pandemic and related State of Emergency in Ontario. The CTP does not discuss potential impacts of the COVID-19 situation on transportation programming in the District. However, staff would recommend proceeding with the implementation of the pilot programs for several reasons. Public transportation has been considered an essential service in the Province of Ontario throughout the pandemic emergency. The Minister of Transportation has stated that Ontario’s public transit systems are vital as the Province re-opens, and detailed, evidence-based guidelines have been provided to help ensure safety on public transit as it relates to COVID-19. Staff have collaborated with Hammond Transportation, the operator of the District’s Corridor 11 Bus service, to implement as many of these measures as possible on that service, and would do the same for the new rural service. Many residents’ financial, mental, and physical well-being have been negatively