pages: TransportationCommission/2016-05-25.pdf, 9
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TransportationCommission | 2016-05-25 | 9 | on a farebox recovery performance criteria. He said for years the Harbor Bay service found it hard to reach the farebox recovery requirement and was always on the chopping block, but it is now at a healthy percent. He pointed out that the board is sensitive to overcharging for ferry service, SO they are looking carefully from a policy standpoint about the fare charges over the entire system. Also, he said how the revenues are being used will be carefully analyzed by the board. He appreciated the work that has occurred and it is the community's right to define how they interact with the ferry terminal and they do not want to impose their particular will if it is not satisfactory. Commissioner Bellows asked Kevin Connolly if the WETA Board thought about imposing parking charges at Main Street or the new terminal. Kevin Connolly replied they are approaching parking charges as a system wide policy, but first introducing the policy at Harbor Bay. He explained that Harbor Bay and Main Street terminals have different characteristics, so it is not easy to place a parking permit program at Main Street. Therefore, they would have to work with the City and that is a future prospect further down the line. Jennifer Ott replied she agreed from the City's perspective Harbor Bay is more immediate due to concerns from the neighborhood. She said staff would conduct the same process of working with AC Transit and WETA. Commissioner Vargas referred to the presentation and particularly the parking charge range of $2.00 to $4.00. He asked if WETA has implemented parking charges in another location within their system or could they talk about the $2.00 versus $4.00 charge. Kevin Connolly replied City staff requested that the WETA Board consider parking charges rather than having the Commission adopt charges. WETA has parking charges in the city of Vallejo, but the City owns the parking lots and they charge on a monthly basis or $5 for a daily rate. The policy direction is to keep the parking fees lower to make it accessible for public transit. Commissioner Bertken asked about the funding and the fact that WETA has a 40 percent farebox recovery requirement, but what happens if it is not there. Kevin Connolly replied the bulk of WETA's operational funding are fares and bridge tolls and the 40 percent threshold was created because of Harbor Bay and their struggle, but Harbor Bay has been a big surprise. He said their last ridership survey was in 2015 and they have grown 50 percent since that time and 94 percent of riders were from Harbor Bay and the east end of Alameda. So, he felt the key part of implementation is informing the riders and allowing them the opportunity to provide input. He explained that when they held their board meeting a month ago they heard from a lot of Harbor Bay residents who would be impacted. He also said people who drive and ride the ferry have no choice but to drive because they have children and need to bring them to school, so that aspect must be addressed carefully. Commissioner Bellows replied so everyone who lives in a HOA is going to have to pay some amount of money for a residential parking permit sticker. Page 9 of 17 | TransportationCommission/2016-05-25.pdf |