The Far West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Plan September 2011 – August 2015 Far West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee August 31, 2011 Acknowledgments This plan was written by Bob Schwab of the County of El Paso as the lead agency for the Far West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee. The plan was prepared under the direction and guidance and in partial fulfillment of a regional human services - public transportation coordination planning requirement of the Texas Department of Transportation Public Transportation Division. The plan represents a full year of research, analysis, discussion and composition by many West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Stakeholders, including numerous health and human services organization representatives listed in Appendix II and transportation providers profiled in Appendix IV. The West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee is grateful for the contributions and input of many individuals and in particular Bob Geyer of El Paso County for his continuing leadership and service as the Lead Agency representative, Linda DeBeer of Sun Metro for her comments and Joanne Mundy of the Texas Department of State Health Services for her extensive review and numerous helpful suggestions. The Committee would also like to thank Michael Hoppe with the El Paso County Information Technology Department for his invaluable assistance in formatting the document. The West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Steering Committee: Rene Pokrzywinski, Chair Sun Metro Roberto Wallace, Vice Chair Viba Transportation Ivan Garza, Secretary Sun City Cab Xavier Bañales Project Amistad Jane Jones Volar CIL Frank Lozano Desert Adapt Robin Roberts Frontera Womens’ Foundation Emma Vasquez Big Bend Community Action Committee Far West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee 5081 Fred Wilson El Paso, Texas 79906 July 21, 2011 Dear Fellow Far West Texans: As Chair of the West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee, it is my honor and pleasure to present the Human Services – Public Transportation Coordination Plan for our region of Far West Texas. The document represent hundreds of hours of work and is devoted to our vision that “all persons of the six-county Far West Texas region will have access to customer-centered, dependable, convenient and safe transportation services and choices.” The Far West Texas / Upper Rio Grande region is composed of Brewster, El Paso, Culberson, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis and Presidio Counties an area of nearly 22,000 square miles and sharing a 500 mile border with the Republic of Mexico. Its rapidly growing population, remote rural and dense urban environments, impact of Mexico and unique geography present numerous challenges for the region’s population, especially for persons dependent on public transportation for their mobility. It is our hope that this plan represents road map to addressing those challenges and a continuation of our commitment to effectively tackle them. The framers of this plan recognize the importance of mobility to the social and economic health of our region and that every transportation asset must be deployed as efficiently and effectively as possible to make the most of limited resources. Rather than a static document, this plan represents a framework to a dynamic approach for addressing our regions mobility issues and will evolve in response to changing needs and conditions. I thank all the contributors to this plan and encourage your active participation as we work together to ensure that the fundamental mobility needs of all persons of our region are met. Respectfully, Rene Pokrzywinski, Assistant Director Paratransit – Sun Metro Chair – Far West Texas / El Paso Regional Transportation Coordination Committee Table of Contents I. Executive Summary................................................................................................................................................ 1 A. Plan Purpose .................................................................................................................................................... 1 B. Planning Requirement and Summary of Coordination Legislation and History ............................................. 1 C. Summary of the Region’s Population and Geography .................................................................................... 3 D. Population Dynamics ...................................................................................................................................... 4 E. Summary of Needs Assessment ...................................................................................................................... 4 F. Summary of Transportation Inventory ............................................................................................................ 5 G. Mobility Issues and Priorities .......................................................................................................................... 6 H. Vision and Summary of Plan Goals, Objectives, Recommendations and Actions .......................................... 7 I. Plan Scope and Framework ............................................................................................................................. 8 II. Description of Regional Transportation Needs and Resources .............................................................................. 9 A. Regional Description ....................................................................................................................................... 9 1. Geography of El Paso and Far West Texas .............................................................................................. 9 2. Current and Projected Population and Characteristics of El Paso and Far West Texas ......................... 14 3. Demographics and Transit Dependent Populations by County and Region ........................................... 15 4. Population Density, Growth and Development Patterns ........................................................................ 19 5. Inter-Regional and Inter-National Travel Dynamics and Patterns ......................................................... 20 B. Mobility Needs Assessment .......................................................................................................................... 21 1. Assessment Approach and Methodology ............................................................................................... 21 2. Needs Assessment Limitations ............................................................................................................... 22 3. Needs Assessment Findings and Analysis ............................................................................................. 23 4. Accessible Transportation Coalition ...................................................................................................... 28 5. Alignment with Other Needs Assessments ............................................................................................ 29 6. Needs Assessment Summary ................................................................................................................. 35 7. Implications for Regional Mobility and Coordination ........................................................................... 36 C. Inventory of Existing Transportation Resources ........................................................................................... 36 1. Summary of Transportation Inventory ................................................................................................... 36 2. Approach and Inventory Methodology .................................................................................................. 39 3. Inventory Limitations ............................................................................................................................. 40 4. Inventory Results and Analysis .............................................................................................................. 40 5. Inventory Projections ............................................................................................................................. 41 6. Implications for Regional Mobility and Coordination ........................................................................... 47 7. Provider Profiles..................................................................................................................................... 48 III. Regional Mobility Gap and Duplication Analysis ................................................................................................ 49 A. Mapping of Needs to Inventory ..................................................................................................................... 49 1. Gaps in Regional Transportation System ............................................................................................... 49 2. Geographic Distribution of System Gaps ............................................................................................... 49 3. Duplication in Regional Transportation System .................................................................................... 51 4. Geographic Distribution of Transportation Duplication ........................................................................ 51 5. Consequences of System Gaps and Duplication ...................................................................................