Meeting_Body
REVISED
FINANCE, BUDGET & AUDIT COMMITTEE
PUBLIC HEARING - “TAP ONLY” BOARDING ON THE SILVER LINE
OCTOBER 19, 2016
Subject/Action
SUBJECT: TAP ONLY FARE PAYMENT FOR ALL DOOR BOARDING ON THE SILVER LINE
ACTION: APPROVE TAP ONLY FARE PAYMENT AS A REQUIREMENT FOR ALL DOOR BOARDING ON THE SILVER LINE
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
CONSIDER:
A. HOLDING a public hearing on the proposed TAP only fare payment for All Door Boarding on the Silver Line; and
B. APPROVING TAP as the only valid fare payment option for All Door Boarding on the Silver Line (Line 910/950)
Issue
ISSUE
On March 17, 2016, the Board of Directors directed staff to study the feasibility of All-Door Boarding (ADB) on the Silver Line (Line 910/950), starting June 26, 2016. As part of the six month pilot project, All Door Boarding was implemented with the requirement that all passengers need to have a validated TAP card when riding the Silver Line. This requirement constitutes a fare change per Metro’s Administrative Code (Section 2-50-015). In addition, any fare change, with the exception of those set by formula, requires a Title VI Equity Analysis and a Public Hearing pursuant to Section 2-50-025 of the Administrative Code, prior to being considered for approval by the Board to continue beyond the six month demonstration period. This report summarizes the findings from the Title VI Equity Analysis (Attachment A), and describes mitigation measures implemented to address any disparate or disproportionate impacts to minority and low income communities, respectively, as part of the ADB pilot being conducted on the Silver Line between June and December, 2016.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
Background
ADB is a strategy for improving speed and reliability of transit service through faster boarding and more efficient fare collection. The objective of this pilot is to reduce bus stop dwell times and variability, by allowing customers to validate their TAP cards on a mobile validator located at each door, and board. One drawback to this approach is a potential increase in fare evasion. To minimize this issue, the ADB pilot was implemented with the requirement that passengers need to have a validated TAP card when riding the Silver Line. This allows for more thorough fare checks by enforcement officers, similar to the rail system and the Orange Line.
Limiting fare payment to TAP only constitutes a fare change pursuant to Metro Administrative Code (Section 2-50-015). A Title VI analysis and a public hearing are required for any fare change that extends beyond the six month pilot period.
A Title VI analysis was thus conducted to assess the impact of this fare change on minority and low-income/impoverished populations within Metro’s ridership. Attachment A provides the Title VI evaluation report completed.
The findings of the analysis are as follows:
• There would be no Disparate Impact to Minorities by limiting fare payment to TAP only;
• There would be a Disproportionate Burden on low income riders who currently use tokens to pay their fare.
To mitigate the issue of token as well as cash passengers not being able to board without a TAP card, Metro staff have taken several significant measures to address this concern by implementing the following:
• Approximately 50,000 free TAP cards were assigned and distributed to passengers paying with cash and tokens on the Silver Line;
• Fareboxes were programmed with “reload” capabilities, allowing passengers to add stored value to TAP cards on board;
• Ticket Vending Machines (TVM) are being installed at key stations, such as Harbor/Gateway and Cal State LA stops, with plans to install TVMs all in-line stations by Winter 2016;
• An extensive public outreach campaign was conducted to educate passengers on the ADB pilot and the TAP only requirement, including the following:
o Teams of “Blue Shirt” ambassadors were stationed at major Silver Line stops for two weeks prior and one week after implementation to educate the public and assist in the transition to TAP only;
o 75,000 Take Ones were distributed in English, Spanish and Chinese on buses and at stations (Attachment B);
o New “Know Your Fare!” pamphlets were developed and 5,000 of them distributed on buses and at stops (Attachment B);
o 50,000 wallet-sized TAP hand-outs were developed to distribute with the free TAP cards to cash riders;
o Car cards were posted in all Silver Line buses;
o Pull up banners were deployed at major stops to help alert customers to the coming project;
o Customer refund cards were created and distributed to Operators to help resolve issues of lost payment at the farebox;
o Special map case advertisements were posted at the major stations; and
o Announcements of ADB and TAP only were posted on the Silver Line’s website and the Source/El Pasajero.
• A comprehensive training program was developed to educate Silver Line operators on the TAP card “reload” process and ADB, including the following:
o Tariff Notices and Operator cheat sheet on ADB and TAP only fare payment;
o PowerPoint based training tool at the divisions;
o Mobile training farebox with “reload” capabilities at the divisions;
o RAP sessions with operators to exchange information and feedback;
o Division management briefings;
o Supervisor trainings (“Train the Trainer” sessions); and
o On street monitoring and operator assistance/support.
Metro’s Administrative Code requires that a Title VI analysis on a fare change must be followed by a public hearing prior to extending the change beyond the six month pilot. A public hearing is scheduled for the beginning of the Finance, Budget & Audit Committee meeting on October 19, 2016 to consider the aforementioned fare change.
Notice of Public Hearing
Pursuant to Metro’s Administrative Code Section 2-50-025, the notice for this public hearing was provided to the general public as follows:
• Via Metro’s website, metro.net, on a rotating banner
• Via the Silver Line homepage, metro.net/silverline, with information on proposed change and hearing in English and Spanish
• Via social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram posts)
• Via posts on the Source discussing ADB
• Via e-blasts to Metro general information and key stakeholders e-mail lists
• Via printed legal notice of public hearing, published 30 days before the hearing in the following periodicals:
o Los Angeles Daily News
o Long Beach Press - Telegram
o Orange County Register
o Torrqance Daily Breeze
o Asbarez Armenian Daily
o Sarashi News
o Panorama
o LA Sentinel
o Asian Journal Publication
o La Opinion
o Chinese Daily
o Rafu Shimpo
o Korean Times
• Via Metro Briefs as an ad item
• Via a “Take One” brochure on board the Silver Line and a few major connecting routes (487, etc) in English and Spanish
Determination_Of_Safety_Impact
DETERMINATION OF SAFETY IMPACT
Approval to continue the TAP only fare payment on the Silver Line will not have a safety impact to customers or employees.
Financial_Impact
FINANCIAL IMPACT
TAP only fare payment on the Silver Line will contribute to saving 1,500 in annual revenue service hours (RSH) from ADB. Based on a marginal operating rate of $100 per RSH, ADB with TAP only fare payment is anticipated to save $150,000 in annual operating cost.
Alternatives_Considered
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
The alternative to staff recommendation is to not allow TAP only fare payment on the Silver Line. However, this is not recommended as it will reduce the ability of enforcement officers to check fares. With limited fare checks, ADB may induce more fare evasion than currently exists.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
Should the Board approve the continuation of TAP only fare payment on the Silver Line following the public hearing, ADB with TAP only fare payment can be extended beyond the six month pilot period. Staff will return to the Board in November 2016 within the next few months with a recommendation for ADB based on the evaluation of the pilot.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - All Door Boarding Fare Equity Analysis - Oct 2016
Attachment B - Take One (English/Chinese) and “Know Your Fare!” (English/Spanish)
pamphlet
Prepared_by
Prepared by: Anika-Aduesa Smart, Manager, Budget, 213-922-6964
Conan Cheung, Executive Officer, Finance, 213-922-6949
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Nalini Ahuja, Chief Financial Officer, 213-922-3088
