Outline of Model Joint Powers Agreement to Coordinate
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Draft Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study June 2010 The preparation of this report was financed through transportation planning funding provide by the Humboldt County Association of Governments, as the designated Regional Transportation Planning Agency, and the State of California. Table of Contents Executive Summary i I. Introduction 1 II. Analysis of Existing Dial-A-Ride/Dial-A-Lift 1 III. Public Outreach Summary 9 IV. Consolidation Models and Case Studies 15 V. Financial Analysis 27 VI. Recommended Direction 33 VII. Public Comments 36 Appendix A Consolidation Case Studies 43 Appendix B Source Document Reference List 65 Appendix C Dial-A-Ride Fact Sheet for Email Blast 67 Appendix D Email Distribution List for Email Blast of Fact Sheet 70 Appendix E Press Release inviting residents to attend the special meeting of the Social Service Transportation Advisory Council at the Humboldt Municipal Water District in Eureka. Meeting notes transcribed by the consulting team. 74 Appendix F Tribal Interview Letter and Questionnaire, and Final Interview Reports 78 Appendix G Examples of Interagency Agreements to Enhance Coordination 94 Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study June 2010 List of Figures Figure 1: Map of Greater Humboldt Bay Area Paratransit Service Area 2 Figure 2: Current DAR/DAL Administrative Structure 4 Figure 3: Current Contract Provisions for DAR/DAL 6 Figure 4: Reporting Data Requirements in Existing DAR/DAL Contracts 8 Figure 5: Current DAR/DAL Administrative Structure 19 Figure 6: Brokerage Model 20 Figure 7: Coordination Model 21 Figure 8: Consolidation Model 22 Figure 9: CTSA Model 23 Figure 10: Volunteer Based Model 24 Figure 11: Attributes of Models to Humboldt Bay Area DAR/DAL 26 Figure 12: Annual Operations Cost, Existing Dial-A-Ride Services 27 Figure 13: Existing DAR/DAL Performance Data 28 Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study June 2010 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG) retained PMC, in association with Diversified Transportation Solutions and Janet P. Eidsness Consulting, to assess the potential for a consolidation of dial-a-ride/dial-a-lift (DAR/DAL) services in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area which includes the cities of Eureka and Arcata, the unincorporated community of McKinleyville, and other surrounding unincorporated areas served by the Care-A-Van service. This study is the result of a recommendation from the most recent Transportation Development Act performance audit of HCAOG. As part of developing the study, this document provides a discussion of several demand response transit models that may have applicability to the DAR/DAL consolidation effort in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area (study area). A series of case studies were researched and summarized to depict how each model is utilized in a paratransit delivery setting. Each model is then applied to the local Humboldt jurisdictions and transportation providers in the study area to provide perspective on the possible interactions among the agencies and organizational changes that may occur. These models are measured against a benchmark comprised of the current service delivery approach. DAR/DAL is funded by four local jurisdictions: City of Eureka, Humboldt County, City of Arcata (including McKinleyville/Humboldt County) and HCAOG (for expanded service to the surrounding unincorporated areas). Although the service is provided through three separate contracts (Eureka, Arcata, and Care-A-Van), the HCAOG Service Coordination Committee has been successful in providing the forum for establishing several uniform standards within the study area, including branding, seamless transport between jurisdictions, reservations, and ticket fare structure. Outreach with local stakeholders and the community was conducted to provide input on the concept of consolidation as it relates to the administrative structure of current demand response services. Three separate outreach efforts were undertaken, the first being in-person interviews with personnel directly involved with transit. The second outreach effort was a public workshop held on December 16, 2009 at the Humboldt Municipal Water District in Eureka as part of a special meeting of the HCAOG Social Services Transportation Advisory Council. Community members were invited to the workshop to learn about the consolidation options and provide comment. The third outreach effort was the conduct of in-person interviews with four Native American Tribes closest to the study area. A series of questions was asked about the each tribe’s provision and use of paratransit services, and about the alternative structures presented in the study. Five alternative consolidation models for dial-a-ride service were identified, plus the status quo of existing services. They include the following: Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study i June 2010 Existing Service Structure (Status Quo) Brokerage Coordination Consolidation Consolidated Transportation Services Agency (CTSA) Volunteer-Based Programs Each consolidation model presents their own unique set of conditions that could affect the cost of providing services. By assuming full consolidation with one operator providing the service, a more uniform operating cost would be generated for all DAR in the study area, resulting in a potential condition such that some local jurisdictions would potentially pay more for their share of service under consolidation, while others would potentially pay less. This outcome where one local jurisdiction is perceived to benefit at the expense of another will likely create political unwillingness to advance full consolidation. Given the recent history of the local agencies being able to successfully coordinate DAR without actual consolidation, it would be prudent for the local agencies and transit providers to continue on the existing path of coordination, not consolidation, while maintaining separate policy control and governance of their DAR systems. This would continue to allow flexibility in how service is planned and delivered, and how the service is funded. Recommended strategies are provided to further improve the current coordination efforts of the DAR/DAL providers in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area. They include the establishment of a Dial-A-Ride Technical Advisory Group to specifically address DAR policy and coordination issues; standardize some administrative functions; and coordinate dial-a-ride within the framework of countywide mobility. Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study ii June 2010 I. INTRODUCTION Humboldt County Association of Governments (HCAOG) retained PMC, in association with Diversified Transportation Solutions and Janet P. Eidsness Consulting, to assess the potential for a consolidation of dial-a-ride/dial-a-lift (DAR/DAL) services in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area which includes the cities of Eureka and Arcata, the unincorporated community of McKinleyville, and other surrounding unincorporated areas served by the Care-A-Van service. This study is the result of a recommendation from the most recent Transportation Development Act performance audit of HCAOG. As part of developing the study, this document provides a discussion of several demand response transit models that may have applicability to the DAR/DAL consolidation effort in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area (study area). A series of case studies were researched and summarized to depict how each model is utilized in a paratransit delivery setting. Each model is then applied to the local Humboldt jurisdictions and transportation providers in the study area to provide perspective on the possible interactions among the agencies and organizational changes that may occur. These models are measured against a benchmark comprised of the current service delivery approach. II. ANALYSIS OF EXISTING DIAL-A-RIDE/DIAL-A-LIFT DAR/DAL is considered paratransit, which provide demand-responsive, door-to-door transportation to those residents such as seniors and disabled persons who are unable to use fixed-route bus transit services. Within the study area are three paratransit services comprised of Eureka Dial-A-Ride, Arcata Dial-A-Ride and Care-A-Van. The communities/areas that receive paratransit service in the Greater Humboldt Bay Area are listed below. A map is also provided for a visual depiction of the service area (Figure 1). •City of Arcata •King Salmon •City of Eureka •Manila •Bayview •McKinleyville •Cutten •Myrtletown •Elk River •Old Arcata Road •Eureka-Arcata U.S. 101 Corridor •Pine Hills •Fields Landing •Ridgewood Heights •Humboldt Hill •Samoa •Indianola •Spruce Point Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study 1 June 2010 Figure 1 Map of Greater Humboldt Bay Area Paratransit Service Area Humboldt County Dial-A-Ride/Lift Consolidation Study 2 June 2010 DAR/DAL is funded by four local jurisdictions: City of Eureka, Humboldt County, City of Arcata (including McKinleyville/Humboldt County) and HCAOG (for expanded service to the surrounding unincorporated areas). Although the service is provided through three separate contracts (Eureka, Arcata, and Care-A-Van), the HCAOG Service Coordination Committee has been successful in establishing several uniform standards within the study area, including branding, seamless transport between jurisdictions, reservations, and ticket fare structure. The transit providers have separate service contracts between two private operators - City Ambulance of Eureka (CAE), and the non-profit Humboldt Community Access and Resource Center (HCAR).