<p> 1 STATE OF MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 2 MARYLAND TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION</p><p>3</p><p>4 BaltimoreLink Public Hearing</p><p>5</p><p>6 </p><p>7</p><p>8 5201 Park Heights Avenue 9 Baltimore, Maryland 2115</p><p>10 January 19, 2017</p><p>11</p><p>12</p><p>13</p><p>14</p><p>15</p><p>16 DANYELL DIGGS, Hearing Officer</p><p>17 ELENI FLANNERY, Hearing Secretary </p><p>18</p><p>19</p><p>20</p><p>21</p><p>22</p><p>23</p><p>24 Proceedings recorded by electronic sound recording; 25 transcript produced by Free State Reporting, Inc.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902</p><p>1 I N D E X </p><p>2 Page</p><p>3 Opening remarks by Danyell Diggs 3</p><p>4 Rules and procedures by Eleni Flannery 4</p><p>5 Speakers:</p><p>6 Councilwoman Middleton 7</p><p>7 Maxine Webb 10</p><p>8 Michael May 13</p><p>9 Valerie Smith 14</p><p>10 Jeanette Snowden 15</p><p>11 P. Freeman 19</p><p>12 April Coccagna-Graham 20</p><p>13 Minerva Eaton 22</p><p>14 Maria Johnson 24</p><p>15 Logan Mitchell 28</p><p>16 Michael Hairston 34</p><p>17 Beora Clark 38</p><p>18 Nate Singer 41</p><p>19 Logan Mitchell 43</p><p>20</p><p>21</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 3</p><p>1 P R O C E E D I N G S</p><p>2 MS. DIGGS: Good evening. Let the record show </p><p>3 it is now 6 p.m. on the 19th of January 2017. I call to </p><p>4 order this public hearing, conducted by the Maryland </p><p>5 Transit Administration, as required by Title 7 of the </p><p>6 Maryland Transportation Article. The Maryland Transit </p><p>7 Administration, also known as MTA, is a transportation </p><p>8 business unit of the Maryland Department of </p><p>9 Transportation.</p><p>10 Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I'm </p><p>11 Danyell Diggs, the MTA's Deputy Director for the Office </p><p>12 of Planning, serving as the Hearing Officer this evening.</p><p>13 The Hearing Secretary today is Eleni Flannery. I welcome</p><p>14 you to the 14th and final public hearing and I thank you </p><p>15 for taking the time to attend. If you have not already </p><p>16 done so, please silence your cell phones now. </p><p>17 The purpose of this hearing is to accept </p><p>18 testimony pertaining to the Maryland Department of </p><p>19 Transportation's Maryland Transit Administration's </p><p>20 proposed service changes for the next phase of </p><p>21 implementation of the BaltimoreLink transit network </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 4</p><p>1 redesign. The proposed changes would become effective on</p><p>2 or about Sunday, June 18th, 2017. Full details of the </p><p>3 proposed changes are presented in a two-volume document </p><p>4 available at the registration table.</p><p>5 The role of the Public Hearing Officer and the </p><p>6 Secretary is strictly to take testimony. We are unable </p><p>7 to answer questions while this hearing is in progress. </p><p>8 Please address any questions you may have to the MTA </p><p>9 representatives just outside of this room.</p><p>10 The Maryland Transit Administration is </p><p>11 committed to ensuring no individual is excluded from </p><p>12 participation in, or denied the benefits of its transit </p><p>13 services and programs on the basis of race, color, or </p><p>14 national origin as protected by Title VI of the Civil </p><p>15 Rights Act of 1964.</p><p>16 Ms. Eleni Flannery will now state the rules and</p><p>17 procedures for this hearing.</p><p>18 MS. FLANNERY: Good evening. The procedures </p><p>19 for this hearing are as follows:</p><p>20 1. Individuals desiring to testify should </p><p>21 register in the lobby area.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 5</p><p>1 2. Speakers are required to provide their name</p><p>2 and address. If representing a group, its name and </p><p>3 address should also be provided.</p><p>4 3. For this hearing, all statements should be </p><p>5 directed to the Hearing Officer and must be related to </p><p>6 the Subject matter of the hearing, as outlined in the </p><p>7 proposal.</p><p>8 4. Questions should be addressed to MTA </p><p>9 representatives outside of this room. The Hearing </p><p>10 Officer cannot respond to questions while the hearing is </p><p>11 in progress.</p><p>12 5. Speakers are required to limit their </p><p>13 statements to 3 minutes.</p><p>14 6. These proceedings are recorded by a court </p><p>15 stenographer.</p><p>16 7. Prepared statements or literature </p><p>17 pertaining to the subject of the proposal may be </p><p>18 submitted to the Hearing Officer or to the MTA Office of </p><p>19 Customer and Community Relations.</p><p>20 For those who prefer to submit comments in </p><p>21 writing rather than verbally, comment forms are available</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 6</p><p>1 at the registration table. MTA staff is available to </p><p>2 offer assistance. Comment forms can also be downloaded </p><p>3 by visiting www.BaltimoreLink.com.</p><p>4 Written statements may be submitted for the </p><p>5 hearing record, by:</p><p>6 1. Submitting to MTA staff at the registration</p><p>7 table;</p><p>8 2. Mailing to the address listed on the </p><p>9 comment form; or </p><p>10 3. Emailing comments to </p><p>11 [email protected] with "Written Testimony"</p><p>12 as the subject heading.</p><p>13 All testimony received by the February 21st, </p><p>14 2017, deadline will be considered before the proposals </p><p>15 are finalized.</p><p>16 MS. DIGGS: Notices regarding this hearing were</p><p>17 published in 2016 as follow: December 5th & 12th in the </p><p>18 Baltimore Sun; December 27th in The Jeffersonian; </p><p>19 December 28th - The Towson Times; December 29th - The </p><p>20 Dundalk Eagle and The East County Times; December 30th - </p><p>21 The Sun's Weekend, and El Tiempo Latino; </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 7</p><p>1 Notices published in 2017 include: January 4th </p><p>2 in the The City Paper; January 6th in the The Afro </p><p>3 American, The Sun's Weekend, The Baltimore Times and The </p><p>4 Jewish Times; January 9th in The Baltimore Sun; January </p><p>5 11th in The Catonsville Times and The Arbutus Times.</p><p>6 At this time, I would like to invite elected </p><p>7 officials to comment. </p><p>8 First on the list we have Councilwoman </p><p>9 Middleton.</p><p>10 COUNCILWOMAN MIDDLETON: Good evening. </p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Good evening.</p><p>12 COUNCILWOMAN MIDDLETON: I'm Councilwoman </p><p>13 Sharron Green-Middleton. I represent the 6th District. </p><p>14 And I have a couple statements I want to add that have </p><p>15 come from my constituency, particularly in the 6th </p><p>16 District. Some of them are statements and some is </p><p>17 questions.</p><p>18 Number one, has the MTA considered extending </p><p>19 the Hamden shuttle from its current area at the Woodberry</p><p>20 light rail station up through Park Avenue to Green Spring</p><p>21 Avenue, North to Sinai? </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 8</p><p>1 This would pick up two major employers, Sinai </p><p>2 and Kennedy Krieger, and connect them directly with the </p><p>3 central light rail line along with the merchants in </p><p>4 Hamden and the rotunda. I am sure the employees could </p><p>5 benefit by having the option to commute via light rail, </p><p>6 thus reducing the parking demands at both institutions, </p><p>7 traffic on Green Spring; not to mention, increasing the </p><p>8 likelihood that some may venture over to Hamden, the </p><p>9 rotunda, or 33rd Street for lunch, dinner with this </p><p>10 direct connect.</p><p>11 Number 2, if the above route does not work for </p><p>12 some reason, why not extend the No. 31 from its terminus </p><p>13 at Sinai to Polly Western via Green Spring and West Cold </p><p>14 Spring Lane. Here again, it connects the central light </p><p>15 rail line with at least one of these two employees, </p><p>16 Sinai. And even if the Hamden shuttle is only extended </p><p>17 to Kennedy Krieger it provides the same net effect of </p><p>18 connecting both institutions. Under both scenarios you </p><p>19 also now connect KIPP, which is a school, to the central </p><p>20 light rail as well. </p><p>21 And Number 3, this is more long term but no </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 9</p><p>1 less important. Please, please, please find a way to run</p><p>2 a Penn station to Hunt Valley peak hour light rail train </p><p>3 by completing the northbound switch off of the Penn cert.</p><p>4 There are increasing number of passengers in </p><p>5 both the county and the city that are commuting in the </p><p>6 D.C. -- into D.C. from both points north. The MTA is </p><p>7 neglecting an opportunity to encourage people to use the </p><p>8 light rail when traveling to both points south of the </p><p>9 city by not investing in the small segment of rail.</p><p>10 These same commuters now clog 695 and 83 to </p><p>11 make people daily, who -- but for having to get off and </p><p>12 either walk or wait for the Penn shuttle to reverse its </p><p>13 Penn station, are discouraged from using the service. </p><p>14 The city is investing millions in the Jones Falls bike </p><p>15 trail which, along with the MTA's bike train, makes a </p><p>16 wonderful incentive for people to commute into D.C. And </p><p>17 by having these direct connects would only serve as an </p><p>18 encouragement.</p><p>19 And the very last thing, the No. 33 that picks </p><p>20 up students at Polly Western in the evening, we </p><p>21 definitely need more buses. Because some of those </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 10</p><p>1 students wait for an hour, hour and a half because the </p><p>2 buses are extremely crowded. And I get calls daily from </p><p>3 those students waiting, and you know it gets dark at </p><p>4 night. So that's extremely important for the safety of </p><p>5 the students. </p><p>6 And that's the end of my testimony.</p><p>7 MS. DIGGS: Okay. Thank you. Next we have </p><p>8 Ms. Webb. I think you're representing also the 5th </p><p>9 District.</p><p>10 MS. WEBB: Good evening.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Good evening.</p><p>12 MS. WEBB: My name is Maxine Webb. I am the </p><p>13 community liaison for 5th District Councilman Isaac Yitzy</p><p>14 Schleifer. I'm also the president of the Glen </p><p>15 Neighborhood Improvement Association. And I would like </p><p>16 to say on behalf of all of Councilman Schleifer's </p><p>17 district, the key issues would be, please make sure that </p><p>18 transportation where there are senior buildings are </p><p>19 adequate. Because our elders are often -- some of their </p><p>20 buildings may have shuttle buses, some of them do not. </p><p>21 But often our elders are doing what they need to do via </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 11</p><p>1 public transportation. It is important for their bus </p><p>2 shelters to be clean and safe, well lit, and those buses </p><p>3 to run in a timely fashion, because many of our elders </p><p>4 can't stand for extended periods of time. That's number </p><p>5 one.</p><p>6 Also, where there are schools. As the </p><p>7 councilwoman stated, that is another concern to make sure</p><p>8 that our kids are safe while standing at the bus stops, </p><p>9 because some of them may be in extracurricular activities</p><p>10 and they may be coming home when it's dark. And, you </p><p>11 know, parents are concerned and we want our kids to be </p><p>12 able to function and do things after school, which keeps </p><p>13 them busy and out of trouble. And for the single </p><p>14 parents, they don't have to worry about where their </p><p>15 children are because they're doing something </p><p>16 constructive, but they do need to get home.</p><p>17 Also, where there may be shopping centers or </p><p>18 food stores, all of these things are important to all of </p><p>19 our residents that do not own cars. And we do have </p><p>20 single dads, single moms, who public transportation is </p><p>21 the only means of transportation that they have. </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 12</p><p>1 And, again, it's important that it's adequate, </p><p>2 safe and prompt. Because often when the buses are late </p><p>3 and they're not able -- you know, nobody is telling them </p><p>4 why a bus is late. We've got people who are being late </p><p>5 for work, and this is adding to more frustration. And </p><p>6 also making sure that they can link to light rail or the </p><p>7 subway in a timely manner. Because 15 minutes can turn </p><p>8 the day upside down when a single parent has to get a </p><p>9 child to daycare and then on to work. </p><p>10 So with those things, we know that you're going</p><p>11 to take all those good things under advisement. And </p><p>12 we're here if you all need us to come back and assistance</p><p>13 with anything to get the job done. And we thank you.</p><p>14 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. Next we have -- I </p><p>15 believe it's Mr. Max. And I'm not sure if you're --</p><p>16 MR. MAY: May --</p><p>17 MR. DIGGS: May. I'm sorry. You represent </p><p>18 city council district.</p><p>19 MR. MAY: Yes.</p><p>20 MR. DIGGS: Okay. If you'll let us know which </p><p>21 district.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 13</p><p>1 MR. MAY: Well, I work for Councilwoman --</p><p>2 MR. DIGGS: Sure. Yep. State your name.</p><p>3 MR. MAY: Good evening. My name is </p><p>4 Michael May. I am a representative who works for </p><p>5 Councilwoman Sharon Green-Middleton of the 6th Council --</p><p>6 District. And as her representative or liaison I have </p><p>7 frequently -- or one of my primary responsibility, </p><p>8 obviously, is to attend the association meetings within </p><p>9 the 6th District. </p><p>10 And one of the concerns that I've heard </p><p>11 throughout the district, and the many meetings I've </p><p>12 attended, is that they would like for the MTA to have </p><p>13 more local -- more meetings like this one and have better</p><p>14 communication with the public where they feel as though </p><p>15 that they aren't hearing or getting any kind of </p><p>16 communication with respect to any new changes and/or </p><p>17 updates. </p><p>18 So for future reference -- again, this is </p><p>19 something the citizens have shared throughout what I've </p><p>20 heard at various meetings of the association is, that the</p><p>21 MTA is doing a better job of publically getting the word </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 14</p><p>1 out about any and all changes. That's it. Thank you.</p><p>2 MS. DIGGS: Thank you.</p><p>3 MR. WEBB: Sure.</p><p>4 MS. DIGGS: Are there any other elected </p><p>5 officials who would like to comment at this time?</p><p>6 Okay. When I call your name, please step up to</p><p>7 the microphone, state and spell your name and provide </p><p>8 your address for the record.</p><p>9 MS. DIGGS: Ms. Valerie Smith. Wait one </p><p>10 second. </p><p>11 MS. SMITH: Yes, my name is Valerie Smith and I</p><p>12 do sometimes catch the regular bus. And because I have a</p><p>13 disability sometimes the drivers refuse to, refuse to </p><p>14 pick me up, and I have to argue with them. And sometimes</p><p>15 there's no pathway. You have to go out in the street to </p><p>16 get to the bus stop. That's unsafe for not only for </p><p>17 elderly people who use walkers, canes, it's unsafe for us</p><p>18 also. So please, when you all do change the routes, </p><p>19 please make sure that there's a pathway for us to catch </p><p>20 the bus, for us to be safe and we be all right. Thank </p><p>21 you.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 15</p><p>1 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. Next is Mr. Rice. </p><p>2 Please remember to state your name and spell </p><p>3 your name and provide your address for the record.</p><p>4 Is there a Mr. Rice? Sir, can you get to the </p><p>5 microphone. Yes. Thank you.</p><p>6 MR. RICE: McKinley Rice, 3055 Spalding Avenue.</p><p>7 MS. DIGGS: You want to provide your -- you </p><p>8 want to provide your testimony?</p><p>9 MR. RICE: (Not on microphone). No, I -- going</p><p>10 on.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Okay. Thank you. Ms. Jeanette </p><p>12 Snowden.</p><p>13 MS. SNOWDEN: Good evening. My name is </p><p>14 Jeanette Snowden. I'm an Upton resident and I live at </p><p>15 704 Dolphin Street. Some of the things that I would like</p><p>16 to share with the MTA are, (1) I would like to see the </p><p>17 seating on the various buses and even the subway that </p><p>18 arrive -- if they could go to pleather or leather. We </p><p>19 have a large population of homeless people involved in </p><p>20 the city, and I don't think we have an adequate response </p><p>21 to their dilemma. And they don't always have access to </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 16</p><p>1 bathrooms and they're riding these public transportation </p><p>2 places, they are wetting that fabric. And it's very </p><p>3 unpleasant for someone who comes into the bus or the </p><p>4 subway to not be aware that that fabric is wet. So </p><p>5 that's a suggestion. </p><p>6 Number 2, and this is no disrespect to anyone </p><p>7 with a disability. If we're going to continue with a </p><p>8 public transportation system that accommodates those </p><p>9 people with wheelchairs, broken bones, whatever, I don't </p><p>10 understand the design. I don't understand why a person </p><p>11 using the transport system, you know, the bus, doesn't </p><p>12 have a large space where he or she's body is not exposed </p><p>13 in the aisle. I just think that's a very bad design. I </p><p>14 think the person should be adequately protected in a </p><p>15 space where they -- and not be -- as the present design </p><p>16 exists they sit maybe at the front with their -- I seen a</p><p>17 man with I don't even know what to call the contraption, </p><p>18 but it's holding the bone together because it's broken in</p><p>19 several places, ride the bus with his apparatus out in </p><p>20 the aisle way. The bus became crowded. I imagine that's</p><p>21 a tremendous pain with other clients who are riding the </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 17</p><p>1 bus bump him. I'm just expressing what I'm saying.</p><p>2 I would also like the MTA administrators be </p><p>3 required to ride the bus, the subway and the light rail </p><p>4 maybe once a week, maybe once a month. I would like to </p><p>5 see it be once a week, because I really don't think some </p><p>6 of them are really in touch with the issues that people </p><p>7 who ride it every day, you know, aren't experiencing. So</p><p>8 that they have a sensitivity to what people are seeing </p><p>9 and experiencing.</p><p>10 I would like the MTA police to get off of their</p><p>11 behind and do a better job -- I'm not trying to be </p><p>12 disrespectful. Do a better job of walking through the </p><p>13 platform. There are young people who are lighting up </p><p>14 little cigarillos, marijuana. They're not always -- not </p><p>15 always -- they're not always disrespectful, but sometimes</p><p>16 they don't, you know, they don't appreciate you saying, </p><p>17 people don't smoke that down here. But maybe the </p><p>18 presence of the police could, you know, remind them this </p><p>19 is not done in this space.</p><p>20 MS. DIGGS: Okay.</p><p>21 MS. SNOWDEN: I just --</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 18</p><p>1 MS. DIGGS: Actually your time is up.</p><p>2 MS. SNOWDEN: Okay. Thank you.</p><p>3 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. </p><p>4 MS. SNOWDEN: Thank you for the opportunity.</p><p>5 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. I think -- I believe </p><p>6 it's Ms. Freeman. Is there a Freeman? Last name --</p><p>7 MR. FREEMAN: Freeman.</p><p>8 MS. DIGGS: Freeman. Okay. Mr. Freeman. </p><p>9 Sorry about that.</p><p>10 MR. FREEMAN: That's all right.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: I didn't understand the </p><p>12 handwriting.</p><p>13 MR. FREEMAN: Okay.</p><p>14 MS. DIGGS: If you could spell your name.</p><p>15 MR. FREEMAN: F-r-e-e-m-a-n. So I can go </p><p>16 ahead.</p><p>17 MS. DIGGS: Yup. Spell your name as well as </p><p>18 your address for the record.</p><p>19 MR. FREEMAN: Okay. Thank you. 3531 Haywood </p><p>20 Avenue, Apartment No. 1.</p><p>21 MS. DIGGS: Thank you.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 19</p><p>1 MR. FREEMAN: Yeah, piggyback off of what some </p><p>2 of the people said. Yeah, they do need somebody there </p><p>3 that's in an authoritative position like the police or </p><p>4 something like that. Some of the people that get on </p><p>5 that -- on the train, and sometimes the way they act is </p><p>6 just downright ridiculous; starting fights, doing things </p><p>7 that you wouldn't even do in the street and they're doing</p><p>8 it right on the bus. </p><p>9 Bus drivers don't say nothing half the time. </p><p>10 Half the time they're rude and nasty, you know, and </p><p>11 they're scared, you know. So, yeah, something needs to </p><p>12 be done about that definitely.</p><p>13 MS. DIGGS: Okay.</p><p>14 MR. FREEMAN: And the thing with the </p><p>15 disabilities thing, I seen many a times before where they</p><p>16 pass somebody by and told them that the lift wasn't </p><p>17 working or something like that, and then turn around and </p><p>18 get to the end of the thing and then all of a sudden now </p><p>19 the lift work. They done left somebody sitting out there</p><p>20 in the cold waiting for the next bus because that's what </p><p>21 they told them, oh I'm sorry you got to catch the next </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 20</p><p>1 one coming behind. That's not doing nobody no good. </p><p>2 And if you pay your money or whatever it is you do, you </p><p>3 should receive better service than that. Thank you so </p><p>4 much.</p><p>5 MS. DIGGS: Thank you.</p><p>6 MR. FREEMAN: You all have a good evening.</p><p>7 MS. DIGGS: You too. The last name is Graham. </p><p>8 And I would just --</p><p>9 MS. GRAHAM: April -- butcher my last name, </p><p>10 it's Coccagna-Graham, April.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Okay. And I just want to reiterate</p><p>12 that we want to make sure the testimonies are relevant to</p><p>13 the BaltimoreLink proposed network design for the </p><p>14 hearing.</p><p>15 MS. GRAHAM: My name is April Coccagna-Graham. </p><p>16 My address is 6518 Langdale Road. I am representing as a</p><p>17 private citizen. I am having a problem that -- with No. </p><p>18 55 eastbound bus to no avail. I may not use the proper </p><p>19 vernacular for this meeting because it's upsetting to me.</p><p>20 I have -- either the bus is supposed to come at</p><p>21 7:08, it does not come. Some days it doesn't show up </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 21</p><p>1 until 7:57. I've talked with a wonderful supervisor </p><p>2 named Mr. Melvin Stukes and I even left a message for his</p><p>3 supervisor, Ms. Patricia Giles (ph.), they know me well.</p><p>4 My daughter, who attends a magnet school, takes</p><p>5 this bus. The other day she was out there waiting for </p><p>6 this bus before 7:00 in 25 degree weather, and again the </p><p>7 bus still does not show up. They've even called the bus </p><p>8 yard, had a supervisor go out, the bus does not show up. </p><p>9 We provide the block number, we provide the vehicle </p><p>10 number, the bus still does not show up and it's left in a</p><p>11 loop. </p><p>12 My daughter is an A student in a magnet </p><p>13 program, honor student, and now she is being penalized. </p><p>14 The first from 6th grade to entering school she's been </p><p>15 late one time. This year she's been late eight times </p><p>16 because this bus has not shown up. And she is not the </p><p>17 only child that is getting to school late for this bus.</p><p>18 I've provided emails, phone numbers, have been </p><p>19 in contact to no avail. Talk to Mr. Stukes, ask him if </p><p>20 he knows who Ms. Graham is. I'm not rude, I'm not </p><p>21 screaming, I'm not hollering, I just want this bus to </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 22</p><p>1 show up within 10 minutes, 15 minutes. But to show up 45</p><p>2 minutes late, people are on this bus late for doctor's </p><p>3 appointments, late for school, late for anything. </p><p>4 They're late because the 7:08 bus doesn't show up. This </p><p>5 morning it showed up at 7:40 this morning. </p><p>6 What more can I do as a parent? I don't even </p><p>7 live in this area. I just drove 40 minutes to get here </p><p>8 to make this last meeting that Mr. Stukes just provided </p><p>9 me. I am going the extra mile. I'm not mad at anyone. </p><p>10 I don't want to see anyone reprimanded, I just want the </p><p>11 bus to show up within 10 minutes, because it is causing </p><p>12 her problems at school being in the magnet program.</p><p>13 I don't think anyone would like it if their </p><p>14 child stood out there for 45 minutes and possibly lose </p><p>15 her spot in a magnet program because she can't make it to</p><p>16 school on time. And I work. Please help. Please. </p><p>17 Thank you very much.</p><p>18 MS. DIGGS: I believe it's Ms., Ms. Eaton. </p><p>19 Please make sure your testimonies are relevant to the </p><p>20 proposed network design as it relates to this hearing.</p><p>21 MS. EATON: Good evening. My name is Minerva </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 23</p><p>1 Eaton, E-a-t-o-n. I'm the president of Hilltop 4100 </p><p>2 Neighborhood Association.</p><p>3 First of all, I would like to thank you for </p><p>4 replacing the shelter at the Rodgers Avenue station, it </p><p>5 was vandalized three times, and in due time it was </p><p>6 replaced, so I thank you for that.</p><p>7 We have some major concerns about the Rogers </p><p>8 Avenue station and the route there, which is the 44 bus. </p><p>9 First, I would like to talk about the cleanup provided at</p><p>10 the station. The rats are taking over the station. </p><p>11 There's a lot of trash. I know that the -- works every </p><p>12 day, but it's not -- they don't do a very good job. And </p><p>13 one of my neighbors sitting right here, Ms. Edina Gordon </p><p>14 (ph.), she cleans up that area every single day no matter</p><p>15 what the weather. I would like for that area to be </p><p>16 monitored at least twice a day for cleanup, because it is</p><p>17 a heavily congested route, not only for seniors but with </p><p>18 school-age children.</p><p>19 Another area is the safety. We have a problem </p><p>20 with guys dealing drugs in that area near the -- under </p><p>21 the bridge, which is the CSX, which is right next to the </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 24</p><p>1 MTA stop. And also we have a little cubbyhole there </p><p>2 where they are dealing drugs. So MTA promised at a </p><p>3 meeting that I had that they were going to supply a guard</p><p>4 there, but we hardly ever see the guard there, and we </p><p>5 need somebody there 24/7. </p><p>6 Beautification, the row of plants that were </p><p>7 originally placed there, they are really dry rot from </p><p>8 weather or whatever. Kids pulling them away from the, </p><p>9 from the -- around the sides, so that needs to be fixed. </p><p>10 One last comment, the 44 bus, speeding on </p><p>11 Rogers Avenue. I live on Rogers Avenue and in the middle</p><p>12 of the night they -- the buses come so fast they're </p><p>13 shaking my house. We've had five houses, five ceilings </p><p>14 to collapse in the area. Something needs to be done. So</p><p>15 work with Hilltop 4100 Neighborhood Association, we'll be</p><p>16 glad to work with you on these issues. Thank you.</p><p>17 MS. DIGGS: I believe it's Ms. Maria Johnson. </p><p>18 If you could state your name and address for the record. </p><p>19 And remember that the purpose of this hearing is to </p><p>20 provide comments on the Maryland Transit Administration's</p><p>21 new Baltimore --</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 25</p><p>1 MS. JOHNSON: My name is Maria --</p><p>2 MS. DIGGS: -- Link network design.</p><p>3 MS. JOHNSON: My name is Maria Johnson and I </p><p>4 represent the Mount Washington Community.</p><p>5 MS. DIGGS: One second. We're going to adjust </p><p>6 the microphone for you.</p><p>7 MS. JOHNSON: Thank you.</p><p>8 MS. DIGGS: Thank you.</p><p>9 MS. JOHNSON: Good evening and thank you. My </p><p>10 name is Maria Johnson, and I live and I represent the </p><p>11 Mount Washington Community, the No. 58 line. And I know </p><p>12 you're here about the BaltimoreLink, but as you can see </p><p>13 with the comments, it's not really going there because we</p><p>14 need MTA to come and just meet the people. Like this </p><p>15 little -- a lot of people just shared, come and get on </p><p>16 the bus with us, come to the bus stops, because there are</p><p>17 issues that have been unresolved for a long, long time. </p><p>18 I've been to many hearings, I have documented letters </p><p>19 that I take down to 6 St. Paul, you know, addressing </p><p>20 certain issues, you know, no-show buses, whatever. They </p><p>21 need to meet with us. </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 26</p><p>1 It is so -- it took me from 5:00 until after 6 </p><p>2 to get here because the trains, you know, were having </p><p>3 problems, they were double-tracking metro, and I could go</p><p>4 on and on about that. But it's just that a lot of people</p><p>5 can't get to these hearings to express what's going on. </p><p>6 And you can see where these issues are just building up, </p><p>7 building up, building up. </p><p>8 The Baltimore Link, from what I understand what</p><p>9 it's doing with the elimination of all of these bus </p><p>10 stops, that is not going to resolve the problem, because </p><p>11 people need to get to and from work. We're not on </p><p>12 welfare, we go to work, we come home we take care of our </p><p>13 families. We're not out in the streets causing trouble. </p><p>14 And, you know, it's -- a lot of people don't need the </p><p>15 elimination of these bus stops, which take them longer to</p><p>16 get home, longer to pick up their children at daycare. </p><p>17 And, you know, it's not constructed correctly, it really </p><p>18 isn't.</p><p>19 MTA needs to come and meet with the people, </p><p>20 because a lot of people cannot get here. I know them. I</p><p>21 go to work with them, we come together. They have to go </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 27</p><p>1 home to their families. So this hearing, there would be </p><p>2 a lot more people here if -- I mean, I had to walk a long</p><p>3 way from the bus stop just to get here from the No. 54. </p><p>4 And I have an even longer walk in a transition just to </p><p>5 get back home. </p><p>6 So even though, you know, you want the </p><p>7 conversation and, you know, the statements to be, you </p><p>8 know compliant to the BaltimoreLink, you can see why it's</p><p>9 not happening because there's so many unresolved issues. </p><p>10 MTA needs to come and just ride with us, wait with us at </p><p>11 those bus stops and understand what's really going on, </p><p>12 okay? Thank you.</p><p>13 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. This concludes the list</p><p>14 of individuals who have registered to speak. </p><p>15 Let the record show that it is now 6:34 p.m. I</p><p>16 hereby recess this hearing until someone wishes to </p><p>17 testify or until 8:00 p.m. when we will adjourn. Thank </p><p>18 you.</p><p>19 (Off the record at 6:34 p.m.)</p><p>20 (On the record at 6:35 p.m.)</p><p>21 MS. DIGGS: Let the record show it is now 6:35 </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 28</p><p>1 p.m. I hereby recommence this hearing and will now call </p><p>2 for statements from those who have registered. As your </p><p>3 name is called, please step up to the microphone, and </p><p>4 begin by stating your name and address for the record.</p><p>5 Mr. Logan Mitchell.</p><p>6 Mr. Mitchell: Good evening. My name is Logan </p><p>7 Mitchell, Sr. My address is 3324 Ingleside Avenue, </p><p>8 Baltimore, Maryland 21215. </p><p>9 I have four comments. They all concern the </p><p>10 BaltimoreLink and the current system. The MTA has placed</p><p>11 large BaltimoreLink posters on all subway trains, light </p><p>12 rail trains, buses, and inside of every subway station so</p><p>13 that the riders will see the info about the upcoming </p><p>14 change. Also put up the same type of posters to notify </p><p>15 the public about the MTA's future public hearings and </p><p>16 workshops. When I'm on the subway I don't see any of </p><p>17 those posters in the sections near each entry/exit door </p><p>18 where those posters could be housed. And I'm not too </p><p>19 sure about the light rail, I've never really seen </p><p>20 anything on there.</p><p>21 Hire 11th and 12th grade students from high </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 29</p><p>1 schools that have a work-study program, to have those </p><p>2 students refill the bus and train schedule racks in all </p><p>3 subway stations and on all buses that have schedule slot </p><p>4 holders behind the bus stop where you can stand. </p><p>5 I made mention last night at the meeting, for </p><p>6 two years whatever station I go to I can rarely find the </p><p>7 schedules I need. But there seems to be plenty of </p><p>8 schedules for buses on the opposite side of town. The </p><p>9 schedule for that particular station should be for buses </p><p>10 that come through that area and that station, with maybe </p><p>11 a few schedules for buses that connect to the ones that </p><p>12 come to that particular station. But it shouldn't take </p><p>13 two years to refill the appropriate schedules.</p><p>14 And the 2013 MARC schedule for the Penn line </p><p>15 should not be still put -- not still be put into the </p><p>16 schedule holders when there's a 2016 schedule out. </p><p>17 Because all of the MARC train schedules are now color-</p><p>18 coded and the date is very clear. So why are the people </p><p>19 who are putting the schedules up putting 2013 schedules </p><p>20 when last year 2016 schedules came out?</p><p>21 Advertise the MTA's Charm Card availability on </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 30</p><p>1 all subway trains, light rail trains, buses, and inside </p><p>2 of every subway station. Also make it known that they're</p><p>3 useable on the D.C. WMATA subway system and select D.C. </p><p>4 buses, as well as being useable. As well as the D.C. </p><p>5 SmarTrip cards are used on the Maryland MTA system. </p><p>6 I believe the SmarTrip cards have been in </p><p>7 existence for over 10 years and I understand that there </p><p>8 are boxes of those cards sitting in MTA storage, and only</p><p>9 4 percent of the population are using them. But if you </p><p>10 made no effort to tell the people about these cards -- </p><p>11 and D.C. seems to have done a very good job. Because if </p><p>12 you go to D.C. you can use the Maryland Charm Card to go </p><p>13 through the D.C. system, but you can also buy a D.C. </p><p>14 SmarTrip card right at the vending machine. </p><p>15 Why is Baltimore always behind, a day late and </p><p>16 a dollar short in doing the same thing? If we can use </p><p>17 both cards, no both systems, with something that's been </p><p>18 in place for over 10 years there's no excuse. </p><p>19 Do I have time for one more comment about the </p><p>20 red lines? Kind of lengthy, but it's my idea. I’m no </p><p>21 transit engineer but I ride the system enough to figure </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 31</p><p>1 this stuff out. </p><p>2 Revisit the Baltimore red line and come up with</p><p>3 a short route plan that would be somewhat like the D.C. </p><p>4 streetcar that does not require any underground tunnel. </p><p>5 A great start and stopping point on that route on the </p><p>6 west side would be from the bus stop triangle that's </p><p>7 currently served by the westbound No. 23 and No. 40 bus </p><p>8 at the intersections of Poplar Grove Street, Edmondson </p><p>9 Avenue and West Franklin Street, which is now designated </p><p>10 for one-way traffic traveling westbound along with </p><p>11 Franklin Street toward Poplar Grove. The cutout would </p><p>12 have to be removed from the concrete barrier that </p><p>13 currently separates the east and west traffic lanes along</p><p>14 West Franklin Street to allow the train to cross over </p><p>15 onto the eastbound section of West Franklin Street after </p><p>16 departing the bus stop triangle. </p><p>17 Then travel on Mulberry Street past the West </p><p>18 Baltimore train station, pass underneath the former </p><p>19 Social Security Administration metro west buildings, </p><p>20 north side, south side, overhead enclosed walkway. Then </p><p>21 proceed down to Mulberry Street and Utah Street where we </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 32</p><p>1 turn left on Utah Street. Then loop back around to West </p><p>2 Franklin Street to return on the westbound trip back to </p><p>3 the bus stop triangle. </p><p>4 The train would travel along West Franklin </p><p>5 Street, then turn right onto North Franklintown Road at </p><p>6 the intersection of West Franklin Street and North </p><p>7 Franklintown Road across the street in the current Hess </p><p>8 gas station. Then turn left onto Edmondson Avenue at the</p><p>9 intersection of Edmondson Avenue and North Franklintown </p><p>10 Road. </p><p>11 Then proceed westbound up Edmondson Avenue to </p><p>12 the intersections of Poplar Grove Street, Edmondson </p><p>13 Avenue and West Franklin Street past the old Baltimore </p><p>14 Transit Company trolley storage facility at the corner of</p><p>15 Edmondson Avenue and Poplar Grove Street. It would then </p><p>16 turn left again at the bus stop triangle to begin another</p><p>17 eastbound trip.</p><p>18 The trains could run every 10 to -- every 8 to </p><p>19 10 minutes. And I can give you a copy of both of these, </p><p>20 and I provided the website that shows the exact street </p><p>21 views. It's called instantstreetview.com and you type in</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 33</p><p>1 just the street name and you can see the streets. And so</p><p>2 I hope that is helpful to you. Do you want me to give </p><p>3 that to you now?</p><p>4 MS. FLANNERY: Did you give that to Kevin last </p><p>5 night?</p><p>6 MR. MITCHELL: No.</p><p>7 MS. FLANNERY: No, okay, great. </p><p>8 MS. DIGGS: I was going to say, it might be </p><p>9 better --</p><p>10 MR. MITCHELL: Okay.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Yup. Thank you, Mr. Mitchell.</p><p>12 MS. FLANNERY: Thank you. Great. Thank you </p><p>13 very much.</p><p>14 MS. DIGGS: Is there anyone else that </p><p>15 registered to speak and I may have not called their name?</p><p>16 If not, we'll go into recess.</p><p>17 Mr. Hairston.</p><p>18 MR. HAIRSTON: I'm sorry --</p><p>19 MS. DIGGS: Yeah.</p><p>20 MR. HAIRSTON: I need to get my notes.</p><p>21 MS. DIGGS: No problem. Mr. Hairston, if you </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 34</p><p>1 can state and spell your name and your address for the </p><p>2 record.</p><p>3 MR. HAIRSTON: Sure, Michael -- okay. My name</p><p>4 is Michael Hairston, last name H-a-i-r-s-t-o-n. Do you </p><p>5 need my full address?</p><p>6 MS. DIGGS: Whatever you want to provide. </p><p>7 Whatever you want to provide your address.</p><p>8 MR. HAIRSTON: Yeah, my address, 3019 Poplar </p><p>9 Terrace, West Baltimore.</p><p>10 Okay. I'm hoping that with this -- I got some </p><p>11 good information outside. I'm hoping that they simplify </p><p>12 the schedules. And what I would propose is that every </p><p>13 bus leave at it's like 20 after the hour, maybe 40 after </p><p>14 the hour, top of the hour, or for longer routes like say </p><p>15 the No. 40 or the No. 77, maybe they could leave every 30</p><p>16 minutes. And then on Sunday, I know it's slower, so </p><p>17 maybe most buses that are not that busy maybe once an </p><p>18 hour.</p><p>19 I take the bus now, the 64, trying to get to </p><p>20 Curtis Bay and it goes up there like three or four times </p><p>21 in the morning and then three or four times in the </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 35</p><p>1 evening. I think what they could do with a bus route </p><p>2 like that is maybe have you go from downtown instead of </p><p>3 going further out to Gilford Avenue. Just go from </p><p>4 downtown straight to Curtis Bay and maybe have it be once</p><p>5 an hour, maybe once every couple hours because a lot of </p><p>6 people work out there. It's hard to get around trying to</p><p>7 figure out when I get off and get back across that bridge</p><p>8 on Curtis Bay.</p><p>9 And also, if the drivers see a bus coming then </p><p>10 maybe they could be retrained to just wait a moment in </p><p>11 case someone needs that bus. Like, you may be riding </p><p>12 like the No. 13 and then I think -- the 13 down North </p><p>13 Avenue and then I think at Druid Hill and North Avenue </p><p>14 like the No. 5 may be coming. So maybe they could just </p><p>15 look out for that. If they see another bus coming, nine </p><p>16 times out of ten there may be at least one person who may</p><p>17 need that bus. And, like, I know this from personal </p><p>18 experience, if I miss a bus, depending on what </p><p>19 neighborhood I'm in, and I have to wait that could be the</p><p>20 difference between me getting home that night with all </p><p>21 the crime going on. I almost got robbed one day because </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 36</p><p>1 the bus left me. So that is very, very important, that's</p><p>2 very serious. Like, just riding acting like there's </p><p>3 nothing, that's everything.</p><p>4 And just a couple more real quick. I think </p><p>5 also all the buses should stop at maybe three different </p><p>6 locations along the routes could save two minutes. And </p><p>7 that way the schedule would work because on a Monday </p><p>8 morning when the school first starts the bus may take 20 </p><p>9 extra minutes just because all the traffic and </p><p>10 everything. And that's going to be different than, say </p><p>11 Friday at 8. So to get from say Security Mall to </p><p>12 downtown that could be maybe 20 minutes one day, an hour </p><p>13 the next day. What I'm proposing is have those three </p><p>14 routes where the bus will always be there at that time. </p><p>15 And if it gets there a little early, wait a few minutes. </p><p>16 And it leaves from that point at that time and then it </p><p>17 drives to another point. And they should know where </p><p>18 other buses are coming that intersect, that way </p><p>19 everything can kind of coordinate little bit better, if </p><p>20 that makes sense.</p><p>21 And just three stops along the routes, like </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 37</p><p>1 three places that they will be at that time. And the bus</p><p>2 driver needs to leave on time, that way it doesn't get </p><p>3 out of whack. And if they're late in traffic then they </p><p>4 won't have to stop because that time has already passed, </p><p>5 and they're trying to catch up to get to the next key </p><p>6 link to stop.</p><p>7 Yeah, I think that's pretty much it. Just </p><p>8 better coordination and just all the different times on </p><p>9 those little time displays on the bus stops that they </p><p>10 have -- it's like 5:48, 5:58, no bus in this city runs </p><p>11 that frequently. They just need to have every bus just </p><p>12 leave top of the hour, 20, 40 or 30 minutes after top of </p><p>13 the hour and once an hour like on Sundays. You're not </p><p>14 going to need to run so frequently on a Sunday.</p><p>15 That's pretty much it. Just more coordination,</p><p>16 more compassion from the bus drivers.</p><p>17 MS. DIGGS: Thank you.</p><p>18 MR. HAIRSTON: All right, thank you.</p><p>19 MS. DIGGS: I believe it's Ms. Clark. Okay. </p><p>20 Is there -- I think it's Beora?</p><p>21 MS. CLARK: Yes, I'm coming.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 38</p><p>1 MS. DIGGS: Okay.</p><p>2 MS. CLARK: You want -- </p><p>3 MS. DIGGS: Okay. Take your time.</p><p>4 MS. CLARK: Good evening. My name is Beora </p><p>5 Clark, C-l-a-r-k. I reside at 1931 McCulloh Street. My </p><p>6 question -- my comments are pertaining to this link. </p><p>7 Now the buses that are put into this book, the </p><p>8 buses that I ride are going to become a color. So when </p><p>9 are you going to let the people know that these buses are</p><p>10 going to become a color instead of a number? </p><p>11 And then the No. 8 bus -- no, no, the No. 36 </p><p>12 bus, which I ride frequently is, according to this </p><p>13 diagram, they're going to move it up on Lombard Street </p><p>14 instead of running up Fayette and Baltimore Street the </p><p>15 way it goes now. It goes out to Riverview to Fayette </p><p>16 Street. It goes down to Northern Parkway and ending to </p><p>17 Baltimore Street. Now when are you going to let the </p><p>18 people know that these buses are going to move a whole </p><p>19 block away? You're going to be standing there on the bus</p><p>20 stop waiting for this bus that's not going to be there no</p><p>21 more. When are you going to put those information out?</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 39</p><p>1 Now if you're -- for people that's not like me </p><p>2 that want to be nosey and know about everything about </p><p>3 riding these buses. Now my ear is always open about </p><p>4 information. Now if I had -- if I hadn't known about </p><p>5 this link, what's happening to these buses, when was I </p><p>6 going to be knowing? I would be standing there on the </p><p>7 bus stop waiting for something that's not going to come. </p><p>8 So when are you going to put this information out to the </p><p>9 public and let them know that this is happening.</p><p>10 I ride the buses now. Sure you had the </p><p>11 information about these meetings, this schedule for these</p><p>12 meetings. You didn't tell people that certain things is </p><p>13 going to happen to this bus that you ride every day. So </p><p>14 I just wanted to know when. Because I came up here </p><p>15 really to see some visual to let me know how -- where I'm</p><p>16 supposed to be standing. </p><p>17 And like the lady said about the bus stop. Now</p><p>18 me, I have a cane, and the bus stops already, when you </p><p>19 have inclement weather we can't stand up in those bus </p><p>20 stops because the ice is very thick up there. So when </p><p>21 are you going to do something about these bus stops that </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 40</p><p>1 are on these bus lines, these new bus lines? </p><p>2 Are you going to make sure that the snow and </p><p>3 the ice is out at this -- out at these bus stops so we </p><p>4 can be there, or are these going to be -- these are going</p><p>5 to be perfectly new bus stops and then the ones that's </p><p>6 going to be discontinued. When are you going to let the</p><p>7 people know that these bus stops are not going to be -- </p><p>8 going to be there any longer?</p><p>9 So that's what I have to say about these links.</p><p>10 So thank you very much.</p><p>11 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. Anyone else who's </p><p>12 registered and I may have failed to call your name?</p><p>13 So this concludes the list of individuals who </p><p>14 have registered to speak. </p><p>15 Let the record show that it is now 6:51 p.m. I</p><p>16 hereby recess this hearing until someone wishes to </p><p>17 testify or until 8:00 p.m. when we will adjourn. </p><p>18 (Off the record at 6:51 p.m.)</p><p>19 (On the record at 7:33 p.m.)</p><p>20 MS. DIGGS: Let the record show it is now 7:33 </p><p>21 p.m. I hereby recommence this hearing and will now call </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 41</p><p>1 for statements from those who have registered. As your </p><p>2 name is called, please step up to the m microphone, and </p><p>3 begin by stating your name and address for the record.</p><p>4 Mr. Singer.</p><p>5 MR. SINGER: Yes, that's me. I'm Nate Singer, </p><p>6 6202 Pearce Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21215, and I live</p><p>7 in the city of Baltimore.</p><p>8 I'd like to address one comment regarding the </p><p>9 specific route that travels up and down Park Heights </p><p>10 Avenue. I live near the corner of Strathmore -- West </p><p>11 Strathmore and Park Heights and I can catch -- currently </p><p>12 I can the subway from downtown. Get up to Reisterstown </p><p>13 Plaza Station and take either No. 60 bus, which goes down</p><p>14 Clarks Lane to Park Heights or the No. 58 bus, because </p><p>15 the same thing. It makes a turn on Park Heights toward </p><p>16 Glen Avenue, and each one is very convenient for current </p><p>17 alignment.</p><p>18 In the future I was told that the only way to </p><p>19 go to the area of Park Heights and -- Park Heights and </p><p>20 what's it called, Clarks Lane would be to get off at the </p><p>21 Mondawmin station; take the entire length of Park Heights</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 42</p><p>1 from Mondawmin all the way up to past Glen Avenue, which </p><p>2 is a long stretch, it's many, many stops and red lights, </p><p>3 what have you. </p><p>4 There's no -- there would be no easy system to </p><p>5 stop at either the -- station take a bus or to the Plaza </p><p>6 station and take a bus. It's going to increase the time </p><p>7 for commuting -- for those people commuting from upper </p><p>8 Park Heights neighborhoods drastically. It will increase</p><p>9 it by at least 15, 20 minutes a day each way. </p><p>10 So I'd like to have the MTA seriously look into</p><p>11 that and see if they can reestablish some linkage between</p><p>12 the Reisterstown Plaza station or even the Rogers Avenue </p><p>13 station for that matter, to have more direct service to </p><p>14 the Park Heights community, upper Park Heights community.</p><p>15 And I appreciate your assistance in this.</p><p>16 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Singer.</p><p>17 Okay. Give me one second. Is there anyone </p><p>18 else who's registered who would like to give a comment?</p><p>19 MR. Logan, do you want to come back up?</p><p>20 MR. MITCHELL: Yes.</p><p>21 MR. DIGGS: Okay.</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 43</p><p>1 MR. MITCHELL: This one I have made before. My</p><p>2 name is Logan Mitchell, Sr., but you don't have to put it</p><p>3 on the record because it was done on the 11th. But I </p><p>4 just want to run this mainly for the audience's benefit.</p><p>5 Also -- this you can put on the record. Bus </p><p>6 stops No. 5285 and 5134 are what I use to go and come </p><p>7 from work on the 44 and the 57 bus on Woodlawn Drive </p><p>8 where Woodlawn Senior High School, 7-Eleven, Woodlawn </p><p>9 branch library and the old Sam's Club where my employer </p><p>10 is now. With me having severe flat feet using a cane, if</p><p>11 you take those stops away that means I'll probably have </p><p>12 to get off at Dogwood and Woodlawn drive and walk that </p><p>13 distance to the building up the hill. </p><p>14 Now myself, and others who have disabilities, </p><p>15 would be disadvantaged especially during heavy snow and </p><p>16 sidewalks don't necessarily get cleared and you have to </p><p>17 walk out into the street with the traffic that seems to </p><p>18 want run up and down the road like it's an open country </p><p>19 road, and it's not. So please do not take away any stops</p><p>20 that are crucial to people in my position and younger and</p><p>21 older, because you will find that you will have a lot of </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 44</p><p>1 pissed off people who can make it very hard on the MTA. </p><p>2 Your drivers will suffer the biggest, bus, </p><p>3 light rail and subway because there's more people that </p><p>4 take the bus and have access to those drivers. And I'm </p><p>5 not saying that in a threatening way, but I'm letting you</p><p>6 know that this is a problem with bus drivers being </p><p>7 assaulted nationwide. So if you take away those crucial </p><p>8 stops, you will feel the brunt of it very quickly when </p><p>9 these phased takeaways of these stops are done.</p><p>10 Now back to the other agenda. I made this </p><p>11 comment on the 11 -- several comments and here we go.</p><p>12 Remain flexible making changes to BaltimoreLink</p><p>13 routes that turn out not to be effectively serving the </p><p>14 public once implemented.</p><p>15 Maintain the areas of the Martin Luther King, </p><p>16 Jr. Boulevard at West Baltimore Street from the Royal </p><p>17 Farms Arena and Charles Center subway station at North </p><p>18 Charles Street and West Fayette Street from City Hall, </p><p>19 War Memorial Plaza area to North Green Street and West </p><p>20 Fayette Street as the main downtown Baltimore light rail </p><p>21 subway transfer areas, since that area allows continuous </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 45</p><p>1 bus and rail transit connections within a reasonable </p><p>2 walking and non-walking distance due to at least 20 to 25</p><p>3 bus routes traversing that area.</p><p>4 Make the MTA Charm Card and the D.C. WAMATA </p><p>5 SmarTrip card useable on the Maryland MARC train via the </p><p>6 MARC Amtrak stations, the unmanned MARC station ticket </p><p>7 machines, and MARC train conductors since both cards are </p><p>8 already useable in both regions. Also make them useable </p><p>9 in all MTA mobility vehicles for the user/rider as well </p><p>10 as the user/rider's authorized traveling companion.</p><p>11 After implementation of the local link bus No. </p><p>12 34, now known as the No. 57, and the local link bus No. </p><p>13 31, now known as the 44, perform a three to six-month </p><p>14 rider survey on the local link No. 31 to see if it is </p><p>15 effectively maintaining a reasonable travel time </p><p>16 schedule, as it will be assuming the westbound travel </p><p>17 duties of the current westbound No. 44 and No. 57 buses </p><p>18 to Social Security and Security Square Mall since the </p><p>19 local link No. 34 will no longer assume the complete </p><p>20 current travel route of the No. 57.</p><p>21 Extend current Baltimore light rail service to </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 46</p><p>1 other areas of Baltimore City and beyond that may still </p><p>2 have existing railway tracks that are being partially or </p><p>3 not completely used as a way to extend service without </p><p>4 having to install all new tracks.</p><p>5 Plan for and complete a connection between </p><p>6 either the Baltimore subway and/or light rail with the </p><p>7 D.C. WMATA subway somewhere in the Maryland region to </p><p>8 give move rail service other than Amtrak and the MARC </p><p>9 train. </p><p>10 Implement the Baltimore region rail system plan</p><p>11 from August 2002. Look at reviving the Baltimore red </p><p>12 line by revising the now defunct plan to not include any </p><p>13 underground tunnels to be able to run the trains </p><p>14 completely above ground for a larger cost construction </p><p>15 savings measure.</p><p>16 And last, set up a public hearing at the Owings</p><p>17 Mills library 30 days after the implementation of the </p><p>18 MTA's BaltimoreLink in June 2017 and every other month </p><p>19 thereafter in August, October, and December 2017, to get </p><p>20 feedback on what is and isn't working so that fixes can </p><p>21 be initiated as soon as possible. That library location </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 47</p><p>1 is easily accessible to most, if not all, via the </p><p>2 Baltimore metro subway at Owings Mills subway station, </p><p>3 because that is the best transit vehicle that you have </p><p>4 out of all of them. And that completes my comments.</p><p>5 MS. DIGGS: Thank you. Are there any other </p><p>6 individuals who have signed up? Okay. Do you mind </p><p>7 signing up? Is that to give a testimony? </p><p>8 We don't have anybody else that's signed up, </p><p>9 registered to speak. We will go into recess.</p><p>10 Let the record show that it is now 7:42 p.m. I</p><p>11 hereby commence this hearing and will now call for </p><p>12 statements from those who have -- I'm sorry. I'm doing </p><p>13 the wrong one --</p><p>14 This concludes the list of individuals who have</p><p>15 registered to speak. Let the record show it is now 7:43 </p><p>16 p.m. and I hereby recess this hearing until someone </p><p>17 wishes to testify or until 8:00 p.m. when we will </p><p>18 adjourn. Thank you.</p><p>19 (Off the record at 7:43 p.m.)</p><p>20 MS. DIGGS: Let the record show it is now 8:00 </p><p>21 p.m. and this concludes this public hearing. Thank you, </p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 48</p><p>1 ladies and gentlemen for participating. The comments </p><p>2 you've provided are valuable and will be considered </p><p>3 before the proposed changes are finalized. Good night. </p><p>4 (Whereupon, the Public Hearing concluded at </p><p>5 8:00 p.m. on January 19, 2017.) </p><p>6</p><p>7</p><p>8</p><p>9</p><p>10</p><p>11</p><p>12</p><p>13</p><p>14</p><p>15</p><p>16</p><p>17</p><p>18</p><p>19</p><p>20</p><p>21</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947 49</p><p>1 C E R T I F I C A T E</p><p>2 This is to certify that the attached </p><p>3 proceedings before the Maryland Transit Administration in</p><p>4 the matter of: </p><p>5 BaltimoreLink Public Hearing</p><p>6 PLACE: Baltimore, Maryland</p><p>7 DATE: January 19, 2017</p><p>8 were held as herein appears, and that this is the </p><p>9 original transcript thereof for the file of the </p><p>10 Agency.</p><p>11</p><p>12</p><p>13 ______Dominico Quattrociocchi, Reporter 14 FREE STATE REPORTING, INC.</p><p>15</p><p>16</p><p>17</p><p>18</p><p>19</p><p>20</p><p>21</p><p>FREE STATE REPORTING, INC. Court Reporting Transcription D.C. Area 301-261-1902 Balt. & Annap. 410-974-0947</p>
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