DIGITAL------The Minnesota Transit Tour
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DIGITAL------------------ The Minnesota Transit Tour www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 1 FEATURES DEPARTMENTS 4 From the Editors Roseau Publisher FAR North Transit 6 Voices from the Community Dale J. Marsico, CCTM Page 38 Editor-in-Chief Gilbert Scott Bogren Arrowhead Transit 8 EXPO 2013 Recap Page 42 Editor Hibbing Rich Sampson Hibbing Area Transit 11 MINNESOTA TRANSIT TOUR Contributors Page 46 Ron Baumgart Duluth Charles Dickson Bemidji Duluth Area Transit 55 Transit Notes Anthony Frederick Paul Bunyan Transit Ted Ward Page 50 About Us Page 34 58 60 Perspectives Circulation Please direct all circulation questions to [email protected] DigitalCT staff’s hand-drawn map of the Minnesota Transit Tour Finance Don Browner St. Cloud Editorial Offices 1341 G Street, NW - 10th Floor Metro Bus Washington, DC 20005 Page 29 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ctaa.org/ct Twin Cities St. Paul Advertising Sales Metro Transit MNDOT Commissioner Charlie Zelle Bill Shoemaker, A.H.I. Page 16 Page 13 118 Church Street, P.O. Box 519 Selbyville, DE 19975 Phone: 302.436.4375 Fax: 302.436.911 St. Peter Email: [email protected] St. Peter Transit Page 26 www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 2 Complete Technology Platform for Passenger Transportation. Used by More than 550 Agencies. End-to-End Solution. Amazing Customer Support. FixedF Route Real-R Ɵme Traveler InformaƟon DemandD Response MobilityM Management FleetF Management MMobile Data SoluƟons BusinessB AnalyƟcs VehicleV Asset Management www.ctaa.org CONTENTSProudly Serving CTAA Member Organizations3 888-840-8791791 routematch.com From the Editor-in-Chief Transit Across Minnesota Click anywhere on the above image to view Editor-in-Chief Scott Bogren and Editor Rich Sampson share their reflections on their transit tour across Minnesota. www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 4 Trapeze CommunityConnect THE NEXT GENERATION SYSTEM FOR COORDINATING TRANSPORTATION Watch the Video! www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 5 Voices from the Community Summer 2013 In this edition of DigitalCT, The CTPodcast page features two important conversations. To subscribe to the CTPodcast, go to http://ctpodcast.blogspot.com/ or search “The CTPodcast” in iTunes. Click on the microphone beside each entry to listen! The CT Podcast Ron Baumgart, Executive Director, River The Community Transportation Podcast is a new information tool from Cities Public Transit, Pierre, South Dakota the Community Transportation Association of America. Take a listen as Ron Baumgart was named the 2013 Com- munity Transportation Manager of the Year CTAA Communications Director Scott Bogren discusses some facet of at the CTAA EXPO last month in Albuquerque. community and public transportation with experts in the field. The CT Ron shares his perspective on effective transit Podcast is a great way to learn about key issues, innovations, breaking management in this multi-faceted podcast dis- news and fresh approaches. You can access the CT Podcast in two ways: cussion. From looking at his agency’s service through the eyes of a customer to surrounding 1. The CT Podcast Blog Page himself with the best staff possible, Ron offers his transit management insights here. 2. Subscribe to the CT Podcast on iTunes. Ted Ward, 2013 National Community Transportation Driver of the Year Here’s who has joined the Podcast this month: Last month in Albuquerque, NM, Ted Ward Americans For Transit’s Andrew Austin — an operator under contract with MV Trans- portation at Austin’s Capital Metro — won Just two weeks young, Americans For Transit (A4T) is dedicated to orga- the body-on-chassis bus division at the 2013 nizing and mobilizing transit riders. National Community Transportation Roadeo Reconnecting America’s Sasha Forbes and was named the Otis Reed Jr. Driver of the Two weeks ago, Reconnecting America released an excellent report, Put- Year. Ward has been driving in Austin for more than two decades, focusing on serving people ting Transit to Work in Main Street America: How Smaller Cities and Rural with disabilities. “My job is a joy,” he says. He Places are Using Transit. joins the CT Podcast to discuss his work, the Treasure Valley Transit’s Terri Lindenberg roadeo and more. CTAA’s 2012 Rural Community Transportation System of the Year is Trea- sure Valley Transit, an 8-county transit system serving Southwest Idaho Jarrett Walker, Author, Human Transit Jarrett Walker, author of the book, Human Transit, as well as the Human Transit blog. www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 6 www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 7 EXPO 2013 Recap EXPO 2013 was held June 2 – 7 in Albuquerque, N.M. More than 1,200 attendees participated in the week-long event. Here are some of the images and award winners from another fantastic EXPO! Urban Community Transportation System of the Year: Meadowlink, Wood-Ridge, New Jersey Rural Community Transportation System of the Year: Southern Nevada Transit Coalition-Silver Rider, Laughlin, Nevada Community Transportation Manager of the Year: Ron Baumgart, River Cities The combination of sun, clouds and smoke from nearby wildfires Transportation, Pierre, South Dakota presented a surreal scene over the Santa Fe Valley (above) as captured by the lens of DigitalCT Editor-in-Chief Scott Bogren. FTA State Agency/Association of the Year: Administrator Peter Rogoff again spoke to EXPO attendees (below). New Mexico Department of Transportation Rail and Transit Division Dr. and Mrs. William and Budd Bell Award: United We Ride Ambassadors Dr. Aaron Henry Leadership Award: Children’s Health Fund, New York City George Rucker Memorial Award: National Tribal Transit Association Founder’s Award: Patricia Weaver, Lawrence, Kansas www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 8 EXPO 2013 Recap 2013 National Community Transportation Roadeo Award Winners Otis Reed, Jr. Driver of the Year: Ted Ward, MV Transportation, Austin Texas BOC Winner: Ted Ward, MV Transportation, Austin Texas Van Winner: Raymond Aylmer, Gulf County ARC & Transportation, Port St. Joe Fla. Mini Van Winner: Josemaria Mendoza, Access Services, El Monte Calif. Rookie of the Year: Robert Howard, Spokane Transit Authority, Spokane Wash. Top left: BOC Course Captain Gary Schiavone leads the BOC drivers in a walk-through of the course during the National Community Transportation Roadeo; above: Otis Reed Jr. Driver of the Year winner Ted Ward was featured on a bus wrap on a Capital Metro vehicle in Austin commemorating his championship; bottom left: Lt. General Russel Honore delivered an address to an EXPO General Session on the importance of emergency preparedness. www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 9 Community Development Transportation Lending Services Financing Transportation Facilities & Multimodal Centers The perfect compliment to Digital CT is our bi-weekly E- CDTLS can provide funding in Financing available with negotiable Newsletter, CT Fast Mail. Delivering the latest news on transit A special loan support of transportation facil- terms and low interest rates. fund to develop ity construction or renovation. policy from the nation’s capitol, developments from across the Across the country local transit Eligible Applicants: Private com- transportation services are building facilities panies, non-profit organizations, country, research and analysis publications and information on facilities and and promoting economic devel- and state or local governments resources and technical assistance from the Community Trans- opment through transportation. supporting community transporta- multi-modal Sustainable economic develop- tion and intermodal activities. portation Association and other partners, CT Fast Mail is the centers to improve ment can be dependent on an most direct location for the most relevant news and updates in community intermodal transportation system Criteria: Adequate collateral and that includes rail or bus. Financing a priority of promoting economic the industry. mobility and is meant to facilitate or enhance development in low-income areas. enhance economic community transportation activi- ties and to promote intermodal For further information or a loan And it’s free to sign-up! Simply send an email to fastmail@ctaa. development activities and mobility. application contact: org and you’ll be connected with the next issue of CT Fast CDTLS is dedicated to improv- Dale J. Marsico, CCTM PLANNING & Mail. In the meantime, view the latest edition at www.ctaa.org. ing mobility opportunities and 1341 G Street, NW, 10th Floor TECHNICAL enhancing economic development Washington, DC 20005 ASSISTANCE through community transportation. Tel: 202.415.9682 Fax: 202.737.9197 AVAILABLE Why use CDTLS? E-mail: [email protected] • Flexible financing options Web: www.ctaa.org • Negotiable interest rates • Key partnerships EQUAL OPPORTUNITY LENDER TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES & MULTI-MODAL CENTERS & MULTI-MODAL FACILITIES TRANSPORTATION www.ctaa.org CONTENTS 10 Minnesota Transit Tour Summer 2013 The Minnesota Transit Tour The full sweep of Minnesota and its many collectively, consisted of nothing more than Range in the northeast section. The 12th larg- community and public transit providers is neighbors helping neighbors. est state, a trip from the southern to north- not doable in a single week. There are just ern ends of the state will likely cover more too many — more than 70 in total — and the About Minnesota than 400 miles. In the span of our Minne- state’s too big. Our goal was to visit as many Minnesota’s transportation history originat- sota transit tour, we covered nearly 1,000 as possible in four-and-a-half days, attempt- ed with its lakes and waterways. The name, miles. In this expanse, the power of Mother ing to find