* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:04] AT [CALL TO ORDER] ILLUMINA TRANSIT ADVISORY COMMITTEE, IT IS FOUR O'CLOCK ON THE NOSE. UH, ROLL CALL PLEASE. ALDEN HERE. ABRAMS. HERE. COLE ROSS. HEEL. HERE. KAGEN. HERE. QUINN. HERE. OSA. OKAY. HERE, TAKE MIC. NOT WORKING. LIGHT ISN'T ON. WE HAVE ONE MIC NOT WORTH NEAR. GIVE IT JUST A MOMENT. SEE IF WE CAN FIGURE THAT OUT. ACTUALLY I CAN. IS IT OKAY IF I BEGIN? GO AHEAD AND, OKAY. [GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT] WELL WE TRY TO SORT THAT OUT. WE CAN BEGIN. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT. I HAVE ONE CARD HERE. IF ANYBODY ELSE WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK, PLEASE FILL OUT A CARD AND GET IT UP HERE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. FOR NOW. UH, NICOLA FRY. I KNOW THERE'S NOT MUCH AN AUDIENCE TODAY. YOU KNEW IT WAS GONNA BE YOU, DIDN'T YOU? , YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD THIS, SO YOU KNOW, TWICE IS OKAY. UM, TODAY I'D LIKE TO TALK ADDRESS A MATTER OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE. THE NEEDS AND ISSUES OF SENIORS IN OUR COMMUNITY AND THE AND DISABLED. WE ALL NEED TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS CRUCIAL CONVERSATION ABOUT THE CHALLENGES FACED BY SENIORS AND WE NEED TO EXPLORE ACTUAL SOLUTIONS TO ENHANCE, ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF THOSE WHO WE REPRESENT. 32% OF THE POPULATION OF PETALUMA. I DON'T NOT KNOW IF YOU'RE AWARE OF THE CURRENT AND POOR UNDERSTANDING. THERE IS ABOUT THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF SENIOR ADULTS AT LEAST ONE IN SIX LIVE IN POVERTY. 96% LIVE INDEPENDENTLY. ONLY FOUR RESIDE IN AGGREGATE HOUSING THAT PROVIDES CARE. 30% LIVE ALONE. MORE THAN 20% DO NOT DRIVE OR OWN A CAR. ONE IN NINE LIVE WITH MILD TO SEVERE DEMENTIA. 20% NEED HELP WITH AVERAGE DAILY ACTIVITIES. SHOPPING, CLEANING, COOKING. 40% HAVE AMBULATORY PROBLEMS. 80% HAVE TWO OR MORE SEVERE CHRONIC MEDICAL ISSUES. THESE AND OTHER FACTS LEAD TO OLDER ADULTS BEARING THE BRUNT OF EVERY DISASTER IN THE 2021 HEAT WAVE. IN OREGON, THE MEDIAN AGE OF THOSE WHO DIED WAS 67 IN THE CAMPFIRE. IN 20 18, 80 5% OF THOSE WHO DIED WERE OVER THE AGE OF 60. AND DURING THE 2023 FIRE IN LAHAINA, 73% OF THOSE WHO PERISHED WERE OVER THE AGE OF 60. THINK OF THESE ACTS, THESE FACTS AND ASK YOURSELF, WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR PETALUMA SENIORS? AS AN EXAMPLE, PETALUMA HAS 47 PARKS AND MILES AND MILES OF TRAILS AND SIDEWALKS, BUT MOST ARE NOT SENIOR AND HANDICAPPED, FRAIL, FRIENDLY. 40% OF OUR PARKS HAVE DESIGNATED FACILITIES FOR THOSE UNDER THE AGE OF 18, INCLUDING A NEWLY PROPOSED $2.8 MILLION SKATE, SKATE PARK WHILE WE SENIORS HAVE ONE PARK WITH ONE FACILITY DESIGNATED FOR SENIORS. AND THAT'S OUR SENIOR CENTER AT LUCCHESE. AS SOMEONE TOLD ME IN A RECENT MEETING, WELL SENIORS CAN USE ANY PARK THEY WANT. JUST GO AND SIT ON A BENCH. OUR TRIALS, OUR TRAILS AND OUR SIDEWALKS ARE DIFFICULT TO TRAVERSE, ESPECIALLY IF YOU UTILIZE A MOBILITY ASSISTED DEVICE, A CANE, A WALKER, A WHEELCHAIR, AND THE MAJORITY OF OUR TRAILS START WITH A PAVED ENTRANCE AND THEN GO TO GRAVEL OR DIRT. OUR SIDEWALKS, YES, I KNOW THIS IS THE INDIVIDUAL HOME HOMEOWNERS WHO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING OUR CITY SIDEWALKS, BUT JUST TRY TO WALK BETWEEN THOSE REALLY NEW AND BEAUTIFUL INSTALLED A DA RAMPS. AS SENIORS, WE ARE LUCKY THAT WE HAVE SOME FACILITIES AND RESOURCES FROM SOME REALLY EXCELLENT NONPROFITS IN TOWN, THE PETALUMA SENIOR SERVICES CENTER, REBUILDING TOGETHER PETALUMA AND MANY OTHERS. BUT WE HERE AT MANY MEETINGS, ALL OF YOU TALKING ABOUT AND WORKING HARDS TOWARDS ADDITIONAL BIKE PATHS, ADDING MORE TREES, THE NEED FOR MORE ART AND PETALUMA. BUT WHILE ALL THESE ARE GREAT OBJECTIVES AND THEY WILL HAVE SOME EFFECT ON OUR SENIORS, THEY DO NOT ADDRESS THE ACTUAL NEEDS AND ISSUES WE LIVE WITH EVERY DAY. WE, AS PART OF THE SENIOR ADVISORY COMMITTEE, FIND THAT THE PLANS AND THE PROPOSALS THAT THE CITY OF PETALUMA DEALS WITH ON A DAILY BASIS DO NOT ADEQUATELY ADDRESS THE NEEDS AND ISSUES OF PETALUMA SENIORS. AND WE ARE NOT ASKED TO PROVIDE INPUT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF SUCH PLANS AND PROPOSALS. AS I SAID AT THE BEGINNING, WE ALL NEED TO BE INVOLVED IN A CRUCIAL CONVERSATION ABOUT THE CHALLENGES FACED BY OUR SENIORS. AND WE REALLY NEED TO EXPLORE MEANINGFUL SOLUTIONS TO ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF OUR PETALUMA SENIORS WITHIN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS OR SO. THE NUMBER OF THOSE OVER [00:05:01] 55 WILL ECLIPSE THE NUMBER OF THOSE OVER THE, UNDER THE AGE OF 18. SO TO THAT END, WHAT CAN ALL OF US DO FOR OUR SENIORS, FOR OUR HANDICAP, FOR OUR DISABLED, AND FOR OUR FRAIL PETALUMA CITIZENS? THANK YOU. THANK YOU MS. FRY. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS? HEARING NONE. PUBLIC COMMENT IS CLOSED. WE HAVE NO [APPROVAL OF MINUTES] PRESENTATIONS, SO WE MOVE ON TO APPROVAL OF MINUTES. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY COMMENTS REGARDING THE DRAFT MINUTES THAT WERE CIRCULATED? SEEING NONE, I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADOPT THE MINUTES. COUNCIL MEMBER POST THE CASE. THANK, I'LL MAKE THAT MOTION. THANK YOU. AND DO I SEE A SECOND? SECOND, UH, COMMITTEE MEMBER QUINT. THANK YOU. UH, WITH A MOTION. SECOND, THE UH, MINUTES ARE DEEMED APPROVED, [PUBLIC HEARINGS AND MATTERS FOR CONSIDERATION] UH, PUBLIC HEARING AND MATTERS FOR CONSIDERATION. MR. HALL, THAT IS ON TO YOU TO TALK TO US ABOUT ELECTRIC BUSES. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. CHAIR. GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, LET ME PULL UP THE PRESENTATION HERE IF YOU GIMME THIS A MINUTE. ALL RIGHT. SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO BRING THIS ITEM BEFORE YOU TODAY. THIS IS A PROPOSED BUS PURCHASE FOR WHAT WOULD BE THE FIRST ELECTRIC BUS IS FOR THE PETALUMA TRANSIT BUS FLEETS. UM, SO SOMETHING THAT WE THINK IS REALLY EXCITING IN DEVELOPMENT. SO IN TERMS OF THE BACKGROUND, UM, AS PEOPLE PROBABLY KNOW, WE REGULARLY REPLACE OUR VEHICLES AS THEY REACH THE END OF THEIR EFFECTIVE LIFESPAN. IN OUR CASE, A LOT OF AGENCIES RUN 12 YEARS, BUT PETALUMA TRANSIT RUNS 15 YEARS FOR ITS VEHICLES. AND SO WE HAVE SOME 2007 DIESEL GILLIG BUSES THAT ARE REACHING THE END OF THAT LIFESPAN. AND SO FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS, WE'VE BEEN PLANNING FOR THE MOMENT THAT WE'RE AT NOW, WHICH IS PURCHASING THIS WAVE OF WHAT WOULD BE FOUR VEHICLES AND THE FIRST BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN THE PETALUMA TRANSIT SYSTEM. AND SO IN THIS CASE, UM, WE HAVE A ITEM HERE FOR, UH, PURCHASING BUSES FROM NEW FLYER AND WE'LL GET IT IN THE SPECS IN JUST A MOMENT. BUT AS I MENTIONED, THESE WOULD BE OUR FIRST BATTERY ELECTRIC BUSES. THEY WOULD HAVE PLUG BASED CHARGING IN THE REAR. AND WE'RE CONCURRENTLY WORKING ON IMPROVEMENTS TO OUR INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE TRANSIT YARD. 5 5 5 NORTH MCDOWELL, WHICH WOULD ALSO ALIGN WITH THE PURCHASE TIMELINE OF THESE BUSES. SO IN TERMS OF THE INPUT AND THE CRITERIA, WE'RE OFTEN ASKED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHY DO YOU BUY THE BUSES? YOU DO, WHAT MAKES THE DETERMINATION FACTORS, THINGS LIKE THAT. OVERALL, THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT GO INTO IT. I MEAN, ONE OF THEM MOST IMPORTANTLY IS MEETING THE NEEDS OF RIDERS AND KIND OF THEIR REQUIREMENTS. AND SO EVERY VEHICLE THAT WE BUY IS A DA ACCESSIBLE AND THESE WOULD BE NO EXCEPTION. WE BUY NO LOW FLOOR BUSES SO THEY'RE EASIER TO GET ON AND OFF. EVEN FOR PEOPLE THAT DON'T HAVE MOBILITY DEVICES, IT'S A BIT FASTER, IT'S EASIER TO RIDE. UM, IT'S EASIER IF YOU HAVE A SERVICE ANIMAL, THINGS ALONG THOSE LINES. AND EVEN COMPARED TO OUR CURRENT FIXED ROUTE BUSES, THESE NEW ONES WOULD ADD EVEN MORE AD ACCESSIBLE SPACE FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO SIT IN AND USE THOSE AREAS AS WELL. THESE BUSES, OF COURSE WOULD BE ZERO EMISSION AND HAVE AN ELECTRIC DRIVE TRAIN. AND BASED ON THE CITY OF PETALUMA, WE'RE RUNNING ON THE PG E EVERGREEN PROGRAM, WHICH IS A HUNDRED PERCENT RENEWABLE. SO IN EFFECT, THESE BUSES WOULD BE RUNNING ON RENEWABLE ENERGY, UH, WHICH IS ALSO GREAT TO HELP REDUCE THEIR CARBON FOOTPRINT. WE ALWAYS WANT BUSES THAT ARE PLEASANT TO RIDE, ONES THAT ARE GONNA BE SMOOTH, QUIET. THAT'S ONE OF THE ADDED BENEFITS OF ELECTRIC BUSES COMPARED TO DIESEL. YOU KNOW, WE OFTEN HEAR ABOUT THE NOISE WHEN PEOPLE ARE RIDING OR THEY'RE IDLING. DO THE BUSES HAVE TO IDLE? IN MANY CASES THEY DO TO KEEP THEM TEMPERATE FOR PEOPLE ON BOARD. THESE BUSES WILL BE A LOT QUIETER BY COMPARISON, NOT JUST FOR PEOPLE ON THE BUS RIDING IT, BUT FOR PEOPLE NEAR THE BUS WAITING AT THE STOP, IT'LL BE A QUIETER, SMOOTHER EXPERIENCE. OVERALL. RELIABILITY'S A BIG ONE. UM, THERE AREN'T A WHOLE LOT OVER ABUNDANCE OF BUS MANUFACTURERS IN THE ELECTRIC MARKET RIGHT NOW MAKING THESE TYPE OF VEHICLES. AND SO WE WANTED TO GET A MANUFACTURER THAT'S PROVEN AN ELECTRIC BUS THAT OTHER OPERATORS HAVE OPERATED FOR SEVERAL MONTHS OR YEARS SO THAT WE KNOW IT'S GOOD. WE HAVE A FAIRLY SMALL STAFF OVERALL. WE ONLY HAVE ONE FULL SIZE MAINTENANCE BAY AT OUR TRANSIT YARD. AND SO GETTING VEHICLES THAT ARE RELIABLE IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE FOR US. AND THIS IS NO EXCEPTION. UM, IN THIS CASE THE OPERATING RANGE IS KIND OF A NEW ELEMENT TO CONSIDER. USUALLY WITH OUR DIESEL OR GAS VEHICLES, THAT'S NOT A HUGE CONCERN. UH, THE LONGEST THAT A FIXED ROUTE BUS WILL RUN RIGHT NOW IS ABOUT 210 MILES PER DAY IN THE MOST EXTREME CASE IF IT'S RUNNING FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE DAY TO THE END. AND SO THE BUSES THAT [00:10:01] WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE WOULD NEED HAVE ABOUT, UM, I THINK IT'S A HUNDRED NI 90 MILES OF ESTIMATED RANGE WITH THEM. SO PRETTY CLOSE TO THE FULL AMOUNT, ALTHOUGH THERE WOULD BE SOME COMPONENT OF US HAVING TO BALANCE THESE BUSES OUT VERSUS THE VEHICLE NEEDS AND WHAT THEY'RE RUNNING THROUGHOUT THE DAY. NOT AS MUCH AS OTHER AGENCIES THAT RUN MUCH LONGER AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, BUT A MINOR CONSIDERATION THAT WE'LL HAVE TO KIND OF LOOK AT GOING FORWARD. AND THEN CUSTOMIZABILITY, WE WANT THEM TO BE COMPATIBLE WITH THE SYSTEMS WE HAVE, LIKE OUR GMV, UM, CAT A BL SYSTEM FOR THE COMPUTERATED DISPATCH AUTOMATED VEHICLE LOCATION SO THAT ALL THE SIGNS LOOK SIMILAR, ALL THE MESSAGING SOUNDS THE SAME WAY. YOU CAN USE ONE APP FOR THEM. WE DON'T HAVE THREE OR FOUR TYPES OF PARTS, YOU KNOW, AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WE'RE TRYING TO KEEP IT TO A MINIMAL NUMBER OF MANUFACTURERS AS MUCH AS WE CAN. UM, OTHER INPUTS, ELIGIBILITY FOR FEDERAL FUNDING IS A BIG ONE. UM, ESPECIALLY ON THE PARATRANSIT SIDE. WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT THOSE VEHICLES TODAY, BUT WHEN WE DO, THAT'S ALWAYS A CONSIDERATION. BUT ANY VEHICLE USING FEDERAL FUNDS HAS TO GO THROUGH A RIGOROUS TESTING PROCESS KNOWN AS THE ALTOONA TESTING, WHICH THESE VEHICLES HAVE. FLEXIBILITY'S A BIG ONE. THE FLEXIBILITY PIECE TIES BACK TO THE VEHICLE SIZE. THAT'S OFTEN ONE OF THE QUESTIONS WE GET IS WHY DO YOU BUY THE VEHICLES YOU DO? WHAT SIZE? HAVING VEHICLES THIS SIZE 35, 40 FEET ACTUALLY PROVIDES YOU WITH MORE FLEXIBILITY WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE FACT THAT THEY'RE GONNA RUN OVER THE COURSE OF 15 YEARS. AND ON SOME ROUTES, YOU KNOW, ON IT MAY BE ON ROUTE 10 OR 24 ON MONDAY AND THEN ROUTE 11 ON TUESDAY. WE DON'T HAVE DEDICATED VEHICLES TO DEDICATED ROUTES. SO AT ANY GIVEN POINT IT COULD BE ON A HIGH CAPACITY ROUTE SUCH AS SCHOOL ROUTES. AND THAT'S ONE OF THE FEEDBACK PIECES THAT WE RECEIVED. FOR EXAMPLE, FROM THE COMMUNITY OVER THE PAST YEAR THERE WAS A BIG, UM, YOUTH LED INITIATIVE KIND OF PLANNING DOCUMENTS AND ONE OF THE PIECES THAT THEY SAID IS THEY WANNA SEE MORE BUSES, MORE SERVICE AND IN MANY CASES A BUS ARE FULL AND OVERFLOWING. SO IT GIVES US MORE FLEXIBILITY IN THAT REGARD TO RUN THAT ON ANY SERVICE, INCLUDING THE HEAVY SCHOOL. TRIPPER OUTS, LEAD TIME RIGHT NOW THE BUSES WE'RE LOOKING AT HAVE A BUILD TIME OF APPROXIMATELY 13 MONTHS, BUT SOME MANUFACTURERS ARE QUOTING UP TO TWO YEARS TIME TO BUILD BUSES . SO I THINK WE'RE ALL PRETTY ANXIOUS TO GET THESE BUSES IN, GET 'EM OPERATING. OUR FLEET'S AN AGING ONE. SO AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WE WANT TO GET THESE OUT THERE ON THE ROAD AND REPLACE SOME OF THE OLDER BUSES, UH, COSTS. NOT JUST UPFRONT COSTS BUT THE OPERATING AND MAINTENANCE COSTS. WE'RE HOPING THAT'S ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF ELECTRIC BUSES. A LOT OF AGENCIES IN COMPARISON, THEY DO SEEM COMPARABLE OVERALL IN TERMS OF MAINTENANCE OPERATING COSTS. IN THEORY THOUGH, ELECTRIC BUSES HAVE LESS PARTS YOU WOULD HOPE LESS MAINTENANCE, THINGS LIKE THAT COMPARED TO INTERNAL COMBUSTION. AND THEN AS I WAS TALKING ABOUT, KIND OF COMPATIBILITY OF EXISTING FLEET. SO IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE RECOMMENDING, THEY ARE BUSES FROM NEW FLYER CALLED THE EXCELSIOR. IT WOULD BE FOUR BUSES TOTAL TO 40 FOOT BUSES, 2 35 FOOT BUSES. THEY WOULD HAVE APPROXIMATELY 35 SEATS OR ROOM FOR ABOUT 50 PEOPLE STANDING. WE'RE STILL FINALIZING WHAT WOULD BE THE EXACT SEAT CONFIGURATION. SO STILL WORKING ON THAT PIECE, THEY WOULD HAVE 545 KILOWATT BATTERY PACKS ADVERTISED AT 250 MILES. ALTHOUGH THERE'S ALWAYS AN INEFFICIENCY METRIC WITH ELECTRIC BUSES OF ABOUT 25 TO 30% DUE TO RUNNING THINGS LIKE AC HEATING DRIVER BEHAVIOR, THOSE ARE SOME OF THE BIGGEST DETERMINANTS. AND SO RIGHT OFF THE BAT YOU LOSE THAT LEVEL OF EFFICIENCY WHEN YOU RUN ELECTRIC BUSES. SO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO BE A BIT CAUTIOUS OF THE ADVERTISE RANGE VERSUS WHAT WILL BE THE ACTUAL PIECE. HOPEFULLY GETTING ABOUT 200 MILES PER DAY AS OUR REQUIREMENTS, LIKE WE WERE SAYING, UH, WE COVERED SOME OF THE OTHER AREAS. A DA SEATING SMOOTH RIDE, IT'LL ADD THE GMV SYSTEM IN ITS. UM, AND THESE MODELS IN PARTICULAR, THESE UM, NEW FLYER ACCELERATORS HAVE BEEN RUN BY SEVERAL NEARBY AGENCIES SUCCESSFULLY. MOST NOTABLY AC TRANSIT. THEY HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE WITH UH, ELECTRIC BUSES, HYDROGEN FUEL CELL AND THEY DID A REALLY GOOD PAPER THAT PEOPLE CAN FIND ON THEIR WEBSITE THAT TALKS ABOUT OPERATING COSTS, MAINTENANCE COSTS OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES COMPARED TO OTHER TECHNOLOGIES. AND SO THEY'VE HAD GOOD EXPERIENCE WITH THESE BUSES AND RECOMMENDED THEM ALONG WITH SEVERAL OTHER AGENCIES AS WELL. AND NEW FLYER, THEY'RE THE LARGEST BUS MANUFACTURER IN NORTH AMERICA, SO THEY'RE A KNOWN COMMODITY. WE CURRENTLY HAVE THREE OTHER BUSES THAT WE OPERATE. UH, COUPLE OTHER COSTS WOULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE BUSES. THE BUSES THEMSELVES ARE A LITTLE UNDER 4.7 MILLION FOR THE TWO BUILD INSPECTION SERVICES, WHICH IS A THIRD PARTY TO GO INTO THE FACTORY AND MAKE SURE THE BUSES ARE BEING BUILT TO SPEC APPROPRIATELY. UH, WRAPPING THE BUSES ONCE I GET HERE, WE DON'T WANT THESE BUSES TO LOOK JUST LIKE THE CURRENT BUSES WE HAVE. WE REALIZE THIS IS KIND OF A NEW DAY, TURNING [00:15:01] A NEW PAGE. WE WANNA BUILD EXCITEMENT ABOUT KIND OF THE FUTURE EXCITEMENT ABOUT BATTERY ELECTRIC BUSES. SO MARIA'S VERY EXCITED THAT SHE'LL GET TO KINDA DIG IN AND DESIGN A NEW BUS. LOOK FOR ALL THESE WHEN WE GET 'EM, WE'LL WRAP 'EM, SHE'LL MAKE 'EM LOOK GREAT. , UH, SOME PROJECT CONTINGENCY. AND THEN THE OVERALL PROJECT, IT'S ABOUT 4.84 MILLION TOTAL. THAT DOESN'T INCLUDE THE INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS. UH, ONE OF THE THINGS WE ANTICIPATE BRINGING BEFORE THIS GROUP NEXT MONTH WOULD BE CHARGERS. WE'RE LOOKING AT PURCHASING BUS CHARGERS. THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER COMPONENT. AS YOU MAY RECALL, WE RECENTLY HAD SOMETHING TO PURCHASE SWITCHGEAR BEFORE YOU. AND THE REMAINING PIECE WILL BE THE CONTRACTING FOR THE ACTUAL INSTALLATION OF ALL THOSE COMPONENTS. ALL OF THOSE NEED TO COME TOGETHER CONCURRENTLY. SO YOU DON'T HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE WAITING AROUND FOR BUSES AND YOU ESPECIALLY DON'T HAVE BUSES WAITING AROUND THAT YOU CAN'T CHARGE 'CAUSE YOU CAN'T PLUG 'EM IN ANYWHERE. SO TRYING TO DO ALL THOSE CONCURRENTLY OVER THE UPCOMING YEAR. UM, AS YOU CAN SEE WITH THE FUNDING, IT'S REALLY A PATCHWORK OF SEVERAL DIFFERENT TYPES OF FUNDS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. WE HAVE THE FEDERAL 53 0 7 FUNDS. WE GET THOSE THROUGH A MTC PROCESS CALLED THE TRANSIT CAPITAL PROJECT FUNDS. WE HAVE UH, SEVERAL CYCLES OF THE LC TOP GRANT, LOW CARBON TRANSIT OPERATIONS PROJECT TRANSIT, UH, FUND FOR CLEAN AIR TFCA GRANTS. WE HAVE HV REBATES. THOSE ARE SOMETHING THAT WE'LL BE APPLYING FOR IN THE NEXT QUARTER. UM, YOU GET THOSE AS KIND OF AN OFF THE TOP DEDUCTION FOR PURCHASING ZERO EMISSION VEHICLES. WE HAVE THE TSIP TRANSIT, INNER INNER CITY RAIL CAPITAL PROJECT GRANTS THAT HAD PARTIAL FUNDING FOR BUYING 10 VEHICLES. AND THEN KIND OF THE LAST DOLLAR IN WITH E AND OTHER SIMILAR PROJECTS IS ALWAYS OUR ENTERPRISE TDA TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT ACT FUND. AND AS YOU CAN KIND OF SEE WITH THAT CAVEAT, THERE IS ANY ADDITIONAL FUNDS THAT WE GET WILL HELP TO REDUCE THAT AMOUNT BECAUSE, UM, NOT JUST THE FUNDS YOU SEE HERE, BUT UP UNTIL THE DAY WE CAN WE PURCHASE AND ALL THAT, WE'RE GONNA KEEP LOOKING FOR MORE GRANTS AND BEYOND GOING FORWARD. SO IT'S A PRETTY COMPLEX PATCHWORK ANYTIME WE GET VEHICLES, THESE IN PARTICULAR BEING ELECTRIC, THE GOOD SIDE IS THERE ARE A LOT OF GRANTS AND A LOT OF FUNDING. I GUESS THE DOWNSIDE IS THAT IT'S COMPLEX AND YOU HAVE A LOT OF GRANTS, BUT OVERALL THAT'S A MUCH BETTER PROBLEM TO HAVE BECAUSE IT HELPS PARTIALLY OFFSET THE COST OF WHAT'S A LOT MORE EXPENSIVE VEHICLE COMPARED TO THE DIESEL AND GAS EQUIVALENT. BUT OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING THAT THE CITY WANTS TO DO TO MOVE OUR GOALS FOR, TO BE KIND OF CLIMATE NEUTRAL BY 2030. SO IN TERMS OF THE RECOMMENDATION, UM, THE FOUR BUSES WOULD TAKE ABOUT 13 MONTHS. WE ANTICIPATE WE WOULD TAKE RECEIPT IN FEBRUARY OR MARCH OF 2025. UM, WE THINK THAT'LL BE ABOUT TWO TO THREE MONTHS AFTER THE INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS. IDEALLY, WE'D LIKE TO HAVE THE IMPROVEMENTS DONE BEFORE THE BUSES ARE I, BECAUSE THERE CAN OFTEN BE DELAYS ON THAT CONSTRUCTION SIDE. SO I THINK IT'S BETTER TO HAVE THE CHARGERS READY TO GO BEFORE THE BUSES GET HERE THAN LIKE I WAS SAYING, THE BUSES GET HERE AND YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING WITH THEM AND EVERYONE WANTS TO SEE THE NICE NEW BUSES, ADDITIONAL STAFF TRAINING'S A BIG COMPONENT, NOT SOMETHING YOU OFTEN THINK ABOUT, BUT WHEN YOU GET NEW BUSES ANYTIME, THERE'S ALWAYS NEW TRAINING. BUT THESE IN PARTICULAR, IT'S YOU KNOW, QUITE A BIT DIFFERENT FROM LIKE A DIESEL BUS. AND SO YOU HAVE TO RETRAIN EVERYONE, YOU HAVE TO RETRAIN YOUR MECHANICS, YOU HAVE TO RETRAIN YOUR DRIVERS BECAUSE THEIR BEHAVIOR AND HOW THEY ACCELERATE AND BREAK IS A BIG DETERMINANT OF HOW MUCH RANGE YOU CAN GET WITH THESE BUSES. AND SO OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS WE'RE GONNA BUILD OUT THE TRAINING PLAN MORE AND THEN IMPLEMENT IT IN THE SECOND HALF OF 2024 SO THAT AGAIN, WE'RE READY TO GO UPON THE DELIVERY OF THESE VEHICLES AND THEN CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR THOSE ADDITIONAL GRANTS. UH, SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE ADD JUST TO KIND OF ANSWER UM, SOME OF THESE, UH, WHAT IS THE CITY'S GOAL TO BE CARBON NEUTRAL? IT'S BY 2030 OF COURSE THERE IS A STATE REGULATION CALLED INNOVATIVE CLEAN TRANSIT THAT WOULD REQUIRE US TO BE FULLY ZERO EMISSION BY 2040. WE'RE TRYING TO BE MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN THAT TO MEET THE CITY GOAL AND ALSO INCLUDE NOT JUST FIXED TRAP, A PARATRANSIT BUSES IN THAT AS WELL. WHAT IS THE COST DIFFERENTIAL TO ELECTRIFY THE FLEET BETWEEN NOW AND UH, 2040? AND SOME OF THE BUSES WOULD CHANGE OVER MORE THAN ONCE DURING THAT TIME. WE ANTICIPATE THE COST IS AN ADDITIONAL 10 MILLION BEYOND IF WE WERE TO JUST BUY DIESEL AND INTERNAL COMBUSTION VEHICLES FOR BOTH FIXED DROUGHT AND PARATRANSIT. AND SO THERE'S BOTH THE CAR, UM, ICT REQUIREMENT, BUT IT'S AN UNFUNDED MANDATE. SO THERE'S A LOT OF THOSE GRANTS OUT THERE THAT I MENTIONED, BUT THOSE ONLY PARTIALLY COVER THE ADDITIONAL COSTS. IT DOESN'T COVER THE ENTIRETY OF IT. AND THEN WE STILL HAVE ADDITIONAL COSTS ON THE FACILITY SIDE OF THINGS TO ELECTRIFY AS WELL. ALSO PARTIALLY FUNDED WITH GRANTS, BUT A LOT OF FUNDING STILL NEEDED TO REALLY BE AGGRESSIVE AND MEET THOSE 20 TH 30 GOALS FOR THE CITY. AND ON THAT SIDE, WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE MORE DURING THE [00:20:01] NEXT MEETING. WHEN WE GET INTO THE CHARGERS IN PARTICULAR, UH, THERE IS A SMALL DIFFERENTIAL BETWEEN THE 35 AND 40 FOOT BUSES. NOT AS MUCH AS YOU WOULD PROBABLY THINK. NOT AS MUCH AS I WOULD'VE THOUGHT. IT'S PROBABLY BECAUSE, UM, WHEN I SPEAK TO THE MANUFACTURER, MOST OF THE COMPONENTS ARE IDENTICAL. THE MOTORS ARE THE SAME, THE DRIVE TRAIN'S THE SAME, THE DRIVE SHAFT, THE SIGNAGE, THE DRIVER'S SEAT, THE SPEAKERS, THE HEAD SIGNS. AND SO THERE'S SOME SAVINGS WITH LIKE LESS SHEET METAL, HAVING A SMALLER BUS, BUT THEY HAVE THE SAME WHEEL BASE. AND OVERALL IT'S A PRETTY MUCH IDENTICAL BUS ALMOST WITH JUST SOME MINOR SMALLER KIND OF PROPORTIONS TO IT. SO A MINOR COST DIFFERENCE. BUT ANYTIME WE TALK ABOUT FLEET OVERALL AND PEOPLE SAY LIKE, WHY DON'T YOU GET MORE BUSES, SMALLER BUSES, IT'S NOT ALWAYS AN EQUAL TRADE-OFF, YOU KNOW, TWO 20 FOOT BUSES DON'T EQUAL THE SAME AS ONE 40 FOOT. YOU SAVE MAYBE 10 TO 20%. BUT IT'S DOESN'T WORK THE WAY THAT PEOPLE OFTEN THINK IT DOES. IT'S LIKE HALF THE BUS, HALF THE COST. UNFORTUNATELY THAT'S NOT REALLY THE CASE. UH, SO WITHOUT HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE. UH, COUNCILMAN REPORTS. OKAY, YEAH, I THINK THIS IS JUST SOME KIND OF UH, UM, ORPHAN STATEMENT BUT SOMEWHERE, UH, I HAD TO ASK YOU ABOUT, UH, IN ONE OF THE ATTACHMENTS. I BELIEVE THE STATEMENT IS LIMITED CAPACITY CANNOT OFFER BOTH MODELS ON THIS PROCUREMENT . YEAH, THANKS FOR POINTING THAT OUT. SO I FOLLOWED UP WITH THE MANUFACTURER. I THINK OVERALL THEY'RE A BIT RELUCTANT TO WANT TO DO DIFFERENT SIZES AND SMALLER QUANTITIES RELATIVE TO A LOT OF THE ORDERS THAT THEY GET THAT ARE PROBABLY FOR 50 OR A HUNDRED BUSES. THIS IS A VERY SMALL ORDER, BUT I TALKED WITH THEM, THEY ASSURED ME THAT'S NOT A PROBLEM. THEY'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE 2 35 FOOT, THE TWO 40 FOOT BUSES. THEY KIND OF KNOW THAT THESE ARE OUR FIRST ELECTRIC BUSES. GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US AND THEM TO KIND OF SHOW THE FIRST ELECTRIC BUSES IN PETALUMA. SO THAT WON'T BE A PROBLEM. OKAY. PLEASE. I, EXCUSE ME. I THINK YOU SAID, BUT IT DIDN'T STICK IN MY BRAIN. WHY DID, WHY ARE WE STARTING WITH THE PARATRANSIT BUSES INSTEAD OF THE FIXED ROUTE BUSES FOR OUR FIRST ELECTRIC BUSES? WELL THESE WOULD BE THE FIXED ROUTE BUSES WE'RE BUYING FIRST. OH, OKAY. AND THEN THE NEXT ROUND THAT I'M ANTICIPATING FOR PROBABLY THE END OF QUARTER ONE, MAYBE EARLY QUARTER TWO NEXT YEAR, THOSE WOULD BE PARATRANSIT BUSES. WE'RE DOING THREE OF THEM. AND SO IT'LL BE SOME COMBINATION OF PARATRANSIT BUSES TO REPLACE OUTGOING ONES AND ALSO MAYBE NEW VEHICLE TYPES AS WE GET INTO MICROT TRANSIT, FIGURING OUT DO WE WANNA DO A NEW VEHICLE OFFERING. SO IT'LL PROBABLY BE SOME COMBINATION OF THOSE, BUT YOU'LL SEE THAT IN APPROXIMATELY THREE MONTHS FOR THE NEXT CYCLE. THANK YOU. I THOUGHT AT FIRST YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT FIXED ROUTE BUSES, BUT THERE WAS A SLIDE IN THERE I THINK THAT SAID FOUR PARATRANSIT BUSES. OH, INTERESTING. OH MY APOLOGIES. THERE'S CONFUSING. AND THEN I THOUGHT I HAD NOT UNDERSTOOD. . THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COMMITTEE MEMBER QUINT, CAN YOU, UM, DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON, ON THE WARRANTY FOR REPAIRS SUCH AS YOU GOT IT? UH, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING GOES WRONG IN THE FIRST YEAR. WHO FIXES THAT? US OR THE MANUFACTURER? YES, THAT IS HERE IN THE PACKET. IF YOU GIMME JUST A MINUTE, I'LL PULL THAT UP. UM, IF YOU DON'T MIND, . SORRY, I'LL HAVE TO RELOAD MY DOCUMENT TO FIND THAT. IT'LL TAKE ME A MINUTE OR TWO. YEAH, YOU WANNA GET BACK TO MR. WENT LATER? IS THAT YEAH. OKAY. IF YOU DON'T MIND ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YEAH, I HEARD A YES SOMEPLACE. YES. OH, MR. CHEN, PLEASE. AND SO JUST TO BE CLEAR, THE, THE BUSES WE'RE REPLACING ARE ALSO, UH, TWO 30 FIVES AND TWO FORTIES OR ARE WE REPLACING DIFFERENT SIZES WITH THE 30 FIVES AND THE FORTIES? THE CURRENT ONES BEING REPLACED ARE ALL 35 FOOTERS. OH, OKAY. YEAH. AND ONE QUICK ADDITION, IT'S ALWAYS KIND OF A, YOU KNOW, DISCUSSION WHAT SIZE VEHICLES, THE 40 FOOT BUSES PROVIDE GOOD FLEXIBILITY FOR THE REASONS MENTIONED. BUT ONE OTHER CONSIDERATION IS THE TRANSIT FACILITY. OUR SIZE IS FAIRLY SMALL, SO EVEN THINGS THAT SEEM MINOR, LIKE 35 VERSUS 40 FOOT BUSES, IT [00:25:01] WOULD BE HARD TO EVER REPLACE ALL FIX ROUTE BUSES WITH 40 FOOT AT SOME POINT AS WELL BECAUSE THAT'S JUST ONE OF THE CONSTRAINTS THAT WE LOOK AT WITH TRANSIT YARD. BUT TRYING TO BALANCE THOSE KIND OF THINGS. WELL, SO THAT KINDA GOES INTO MY NEXT QUESTION, WHICH WAS IF THEY BOTH SEAT THE SAME NUMBER OF PEOPLE AND HAVE ALL THE SAME COMPONENTS, WHY ARE WE GETTING TWO DIFFERENT SIZES AND YEAH, IT REALLY IS FOR THAT REASON. IT'S A COMBINATION OF KIND OF THE SIZE OF THE YARD AND WHAT WE CAN FIT. MM-HMM. AND THEN HAVING SOME FLEXIBILITY, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT VEHICLE SIZES. UM, NOT EVERYTHING WOULD PROBABLY ALWAYS WARRANT THE 40 FOOT, BUT GIVING US THAT KIND OF FLEXIBILITY COMPONENT AND SO TRYING TO STRIKE A BALANCE OF THE TWO. OKAY. BUT THE 40 FOOT HAS THE SAME CAPACITY AS THE 35 FOOT? RIGHT? THE 40 FOOT WOULD PROBABLY HAVE ABOUT SEVEN TO EIGHT MORE PASSENGERS IN THEM, I WOULD GUESS. OKAY. CAPACITY. OKAY. OKAY. OKAY. AND I'VE GOT TWO QUESTIONS IF I COULD. MR. HALL, UH, YOU MENTIONED LOW NOISE OR RE GREATLY REDUCED NOISE AS A BENEFIT. AND I KNOW EARLY IN THE EV HYBRID ERA THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH PEDESTRIANS NOT BEING ALERT TO VEHICLES BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF NOISE. IS THAT A, HOW MUCH NOISE DO THESE BUSES MAKE? DO YOU CONSIDER IT TO BE A POTENTIAL PROBLEM IN CONGESTED AREAS SUCH AS AT OUR TRANSIT CENTERS? I DON'T, I WOULD SAY THEY'RE QUIET, BUT NOT QUITE THAT QUIET. THEY DO HAVE MINIMUM NOISE REQUIREMENTS THEY HAVE TO MAKE SO THAT IT'S NOT A HAZARD FOR PEOPLE WHO, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVE LIKE DISABILITY, THINGS LIKE THAT. IT'S NOT GONNA BE SO QUIET THAT YOU WOULD NOT HEAR THE BUS COMING AND POTENTIALLY HAVE THE BUS RUN INTO YOU RUN INTO THE BUS. THINGS ALONG THOSE LINES. UM, I'M NOT SURE THE EXACT DECIBEL LEVEL, BUT I KNOW IT'S A REQUIREMENT THAT A NEW FLYER MEETS FOR THAT. OH, I I I WAS NOT AWARE OF A MINIMUM NOISE STANDARD. THAT'S INTERESTING. IF YOU DO COME ACROSS DECIBEL, LET ME KNOW. I'D, I'D BE INTRIGUED. OH, ABSOLUTELY. UM, IF I CAN, I DO HAVE AN ANSWER FOR, UH OH MR. QUINT'S QUESTION PLEASE. AND SO THESE BUSES WOULD HAVE STANDARD WARRANTIES IN MANY AREAS, LIKE FIVE YEAR, 300,000 MILE WARRANTY FOR AXLE STANDARD WARRANTY IN THE INDUSTRY IS TWO YEARS AND A WARRANTY FOR THREE YEARS OR 150,000 MILES. UM, FOR ALL OTHER PIECES WHERE THAT'S STANDARD ONE YEAR 50,000 MILES AND THAT'S ALL INCLUDED IN THE BASE PRICE. GOT IT. THANK YOU. YOU KNOW, HAVING SOME FAMILIARITY WITH COMMERCIAL VEHICLES, UM, THE, YOU KNOW, I IMAGINE, SO IF, UH, YOU KNOW, IF THESE ARE ANYTHING, LIKE IF THE MAINTENANCE ON THESE ARE ANYTHING LIKE, UH, SEMI-TRUCK, THE FIRST, YOU KNOW, THREE YEARS OF OPERATIONS, THE MAINTENANCE COST IS REALLY LOW, IT'S, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE BASICALLY REPLACING TIRES. ANYTHING GOES WRONG WITH IT, THE MANUFACTURER'S TYPICALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR IT. THE OUTGOING BUSES ON THE OTHER HAND, YOU SAY THEY'RE 2007, THOSE PROBABLY ARE GETTING WORKED ON FREQUENTLY AND THERE'S PROBABLY SOME UPSIDE IN TERMS OF OPERATING BUDGET, UH, YOU KNOW, NOT HAVING TO FIX THOSE OUT OF PETALUMA'S BUDGET. SO HOPEFULLY THERE'S A, IT'S NOT CERTAINLY NOT GOING TO, UM, HELP OFFSET THE UM, YOU KNOW, THE BIG PRICE TAG ON THESE. BUT UH, I WOULD EXPECT, YOU KNOW, SOME, SOME UPSIDE THERE. YEAH, I AGREE. THAT'S ONE OF THE BENEFITS. I MEAN THERE ARE SEVERAL REALLY ANYTIME WE DO TAKE DELIVERY OF NEW BUSES, THAT'S ONE IS INCREASED MAINTENANCE. SAVINGS. TO YOUR POINT, YOU'RE COMPLETELY CORRECT THAT THOSE OLDER BUSES ARE HAVING MORE AND MORE MAINTENANCE ISSUES, MORE AND MORE DOWNTIME. SO A COSTS MORE TO MAINTAIN THEM AND KEEP THEM RUNNING. AND B, IT AS IMPACTS ON RELIABILITY. YOU KNOW, YOU WANT TO BE CERTAIN THAT THE BUSES ARE OUT THERE, THEY'RE NOT GONNA HAVE TO COME BACK TO THE YARD FOR MECHANICAL ISSUES. SO IT HAS THOSE IMPACTS. ALTHOUGH WE DIDN'T QUANTIFY THOSE MAINTENANCE SAVINGS OURSELVES, THAT IS SOMETHING OUT THERE. AND THAT AC TRANSIT REPORT I MENTIONED DOES A PARTICULAR GOOD JOB KIND OF QUANTIFYING THAT, WHAT THEY'VE EXPERIENCED. AND IF IT'S HELPFUL, I CAN SEND THAT AROUND TO THE GROUP AS WELL, WHICH REALLY COVERS A LOT OF THOSE AREAS. WELL, BUT YOU'RE CORRECT. ONE OTHER QUESTION I HAD, I NOTICED THE 53 0 7 PORTION OF THE FUNDING IS LESS THAN 50%. MY RECOLLECTION IS THAT ON PREVIOUS ACQUISITIONS IT HAD BEEN WELL OVER 50 AND I KNOW THERE ARE OTHER GRANT SOURCES THAT COME IN TO MAKE THE PACKAGE WHOLE, BUT IS THAT LOW PERCENTAGE OF 53 0 7 UNUSUAL? IS IT BECAUSE THEY'RE ELECTRIC AND WHAT ARE THE LONG-TERM IMPLICATIONS OF NEEDING MORE GRANTS TO SUPPLEMENT? YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. I'M GLAD YOU KIND OF KNOW THE HISTORY OF HOW THAT WORKS. 'CAUSE THAT IS THE CASE. IT WAS HISTORICALLY A HIGHER PERCENT OF THE BUS PURCHASE FUNDING YOU WOULD GET THAN WE'RE GETTING THIS CYCLE. SO IT'S KIND OF SEVERAL PIECES. IT'S THE FACT THAT YOU APPLY A FEW YEARS IN ADVANCE FOR THE FUNDING AND THEY HAVE FORMULAS [00:30:01] FOR WHICH THEY BASE THE VEHICLES THROUGHOUT THE REGION BECAUSE IT IS A REGION-WIDE PROGRAM. SO FOR EXAMPLE, FOR A 40 FOOT ELECTRIC BUS, THEY'LL HAVE A SET NUMBER BASED ON SURVEY DATA THEY DO FROM ACROSS THE REGION OF TRANSIT OPERATORS. AND THEY'LL SAY, WHAT IS THE AVERAGE VEHICLE COSTS? SAY 1.1 MILLION FOR A 40 FOOT ELECTRIC BUS. AND THEN BASED ON THAT THEY COME UP WITH THE FORMULAS. HOW MUCH MONEY DO YOU GET PERCENTAGE WISE FOR A BUS FUNDED THROUGH TCP? AND THAT DETERMINES HOW MUCH MONEY YOU'LL GET THROUGH THAT PROGRAM. WELL, FOR A COMBINATION OF SEVERAL THINGS, THE FACT THAT THAT DATA WAS ALREADY SEVERAL YEARS OLD, THEY DIDN'T HAVE AT THAT TIME, ELECTRIC BUSES INCLUDED. THEY SINCE ADDED THEM. THEY ONLY HAD DIESEL AND HYBRID BUSES. AND SO THEY ADDED COST OF THE ELECTRIC BUSES WASN'T ACCOUNTED FOR AT THAT TIME. THUS THE COST DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO FALLS ON US. AND THAT A BIG PIECE HAS BEEN THE INFLATION THAT'S OCCURRED OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS SINCE COVID, A LOT OF THE COSTS HAVE GONE UP A LOT FASTER THAN WHAT THEY BUILT IN. I THINK THEY USUALLY ASSUME SOMETHING ALONG THE LINES OF A TWO TO 3% ANNUAL INCREASE IN COSTS. WELL, WE'VE SEEN CLOSE TO DOUBLE DIGIT INFLATION IN SOME OF THE RECENT YEARS. SO THE ACTUAL COSTS OF IT EXPANDED A LOT FASTER THAN WHAT THEY INCLUDE IN THOSE MODELS. SO IT'S SOMETHING BEING DISCUSSED REGIONALLY. THEY'VE CONVENED A SUB WORKING GROUP AND THE TRANSIT FINANCE WORKING GROUP, UM, TO TALK WITH MTC ABOUT KIND OF THE NEEDS BECAUSE IT'S A HURT THAT ALL BAY AREA TRANSIT AGENCIES ARE KIND OF FEELING RIGHT NOW. YOU'LL HEAR ALL OF THEM TALK ABOUT THE DIFFICULT COST OF ELECTRIFYING EVEN THOUGH THEY WANNA, IT'S A LOT OF THOSE FACTORS THAT IT'S NOT JUST REPLACING ONE FOR ONE. YOU KNOW, YOU MAY BE GETTING THREE QUARTERS OR SO AS MANY BUSES AS YOU HAD BEFORE, GIVEN THOSE ADDED COST HITS. SOMETHING THAT THEY HOPEFULLY ADJUST AND ACCOUNT FOR IN THE NEAR TERM. BUT AS OF NOW IS KIND OF A, UM, DISBALANCE. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT DISAPPOINTING NEWS, BUT UNDERSTANDABLE. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS MR. COWEN? YEAH, SO YOU MENTIONED, UH, MAKING SURE THAT, UM, EVERYTHING WOULD BE READY TO GO AT DELIVERY AND THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF FINAL PREP WORK YOU SAID, AND I WAS WONDERING WHAT THE TIMELINE LOOKS LIKE. UM, PRESUMING EVERYTHING GOES ACCORDING TO PLAN AND EVERYTHING GETS IN PLACE, UM, UH, JUST FOR THOSE SORTS OF FINAL PIECES THAT WE NEED FOR THE, UH, BUSES ONCE THEY'RE IN OUR POSSESSION, WHAT'S THAT TIMELINE LOOK LIKE BEFORE WE START ROLLING THEM OUT? SO FROM WHEN WE TAKE DELIVERY OF THE BUSES, I WOULD ANTICIPATE ABOUT ONE MONTH TO DO THINGS LIKE TRAINING WITH THEM, WITH THE DRIVERS, WITH THE MECHANICS, AND TO WRAP THEM AS MUCH AS I WISH, I WOULD SAY YOU OPERATE THEM FROM DAY ONE. THAT'S JUST NOT THE CASE. RIGHT. , THERE'S ALWAYS A SETUP PIECE FOR WHEN YOU TAKE DELIVERY TO WHEN THEY'RE OUT ON THE ROAD. RIGHT. BUT IN TERMS OF HOW THAT TIES IN WITH SOME OF THE CAPITAL SIDE, WE PURCHASED A SWITCH GEAR ABOUT TWO MONTHS AGO THAT HAD ABOUT A 13 MONTH LEAD TIME FOR OUR DESIGN PLAN. WE'RE AT ABOUT 70% NOW. HOPEFULLY HAVE THAT DONE IN ABOUT ONE TO TWO MONTHS AND THEN BID OUT THAT PROJECT. THAT'S ABOUT A THREE MONTH TIMELINE. AND THEN PROBABLY ABOUT SIX MONTHS I WOULD ESTIMATE TO DO THE CONSTRUCTION UNDER THAT CONTRACT TO INSTALL THE SWITCHGEAR OF THE CHARGERS. AND SO I'M HOPING THAT THAT WORK WILL ALL BE COMPLETED BY THE END OF 2024. SO I'D PUT IT LIKE DECEMBER 31ST, 2024, AND THEN GET THE BUSES IN FEBRUARY OR MARCH. ALL OF THOSE PIECES HAVE VARIANCE IN THEM, I WOULD SAY, ESPECIALLY PROBABLY ON THE CONSTRUCTION SIDE. BUT YOU WANT THEM TO LINE UP WELL, BUT LIKE I WAS SAYING, IF ONE GOES AHEAD, YOU PROBABLY WANT THE FACILITY SLIGHTLY OUTTA THE BUS SIDE OF IT. YEAH, NO, I THINK IT'S, IT'S, IT'S GREAT AND I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE OVERALL, SO IT MIGHT NOT EVEN BE AN ISSUE. IT MIGHT BE TOTALLY FINE. . UM, MY OTHER QUESTION IS SOMETHING THAT, UH, IS NOT SOMETHING I THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT OR EVEN IS PLANNED, BUT I THOUGHT I'D GO AHEAD AND ASK IT. UM, CHARGING THE BUS, THE BUSES, UH, IS THERE AN OPTION SHOULD WE CHOOSE IN THE FUTURE FOR, UM, INCORPORATING IN ROUTE CHARGING? THERE DEFINITELY IS. I MEAN FOR THESE MODELS, I MEAN, YEAH. OKAY. UM, SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE COULD DO. THE PLAN FOR US RIGHT NOW IS TO DO ALL DEPOT CHARGING. SO THEY CHARGE OVERNIGHT AT THE TRANSIT YARD. IT'S BASED ON KIND OF THE ANALYSIS WE DID OVER THE 2019 ELECTRIFICATION STUDY. MM-HMM. TO WHERE THEY DID AN ANALYSIS OF THE ROUTES WE'RE RUNNING, HOW MANY MILES THEY GO, AND THEN THE BUSES AND THE MILEAGE THEY GET. IT WAS DETERMINED THAT WE SHOULD GENERALLY HAVE ENOUGH RANGE TO RUN THE BUSES WITHOUT HAVING TO CHARGE THEM MIDDAY. SO WE THINK THAT BY DOING THAT WE CAN DISCHARGE THEM OVERNIGHT, HAVING FULL CHARGES BY THE NEXT MORNING, THEY'RE READY TO RUN AND CAN COVER THAT FULL DAY. BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE OPEN TO AND FLEXIBLE IF WE FIND THERE'S THAT NEED, WE COULD INSTALL CHARGERS ELSEWHERE, LIKE AT OUR TRANSIT MALLS, ETC, EAST SIDE TRANSIT CENTER AND COPELAND. UM, I THINK IT'LL BE LESS [00:35:01] OF AN ISSUE FOR US, BUT POTENTIALLY WITH OUR PARTNERS A BIT MORE GOLDEN GATE TRANSIT IF THEY WERE TO BUY ELECTRIC BUSES, SONOMA COUNTY TRANSIT, I THINK IN THEIR CASE IN PARTICULAR, THEY MAY NEED SOMETHING LIKE THAT AT COPELAND TRANSIT MALL, FOR EXAMPLE, GIVEN KIND OF THE LONGER RANGE HIGHER SPEEDS THEY RUN AT THINGS LIKE THAT. YEAH. WELL I WAS JUST CURIOUS BECAUSE YOU'VE MENTIONED THAT, UH, AVERAGES 200 AND THESE BUSES WOULD BE AT RIGHT ABOUT 180, UH, FOR MILEAGE. AND I THOUGHT THAT WAS KIND OF JUST FALLING A LITTLE SHORT. YEAH. BUT I'M SURE THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN DEAL WITH. UH, BUT YOU DID MENTION, UM, OTHER PARTNERS DOING ELECTRIFICATION. I WAS WONDERING IF THERE'S ANY OTHER MUNICIPALITIES IN THE COUNTY THAT, UM, HAVE ELECTRIFIED THEIR BUS? I'M SORRY, CAN YOU SAY THAT AGAIN? ARE THERE ANY OTHER MUNICIPALITIES IN THE COUNTY THAT HAVE, UM, STARTED TO TRANSITION TO ELECTRIFIED BUSES? SO YES, SEVERAL OF THEM. UM, THEY'RE ALL IN THE FAIRLY EARLY STAGES. SO SANTA ROSA CITY BUS JUST TOOK DELIVERY OF THEIR FIRST ELECTRIC BUSES. MM-HMM. , UM, ABOUT SIX MONTHS AGO, I WANNA SAY ABOUT A HALF DOZEN APPROXIMATELY. UM, THEY HAVE PROAIR BUSES AND SO THEY'VE BEEN RUNNING THOSE FOR A SHORT TIME. AND MARIA, YOU MAY KNOW MORE THAN ME ABOUT SONOMA COUNTY'S ELECTRIC BUSES. THEY ALREADY HAVE SOME. THEY DO. THEY HAVE SOME IN THEIR, SORRY. THEY'RE USING THEM ON THEIR, UM, IN THEIR TOWN ROUTES. SO THEY HAVE LIKE INNER TOWN LITTLE SHUTTLE TYPE STYLES AND I BELIEVE THEY HAVE TWO, THEY MAY HAVE AS MANY AS FOUR OF THEM ELECTRIC BUSES AND I DON'T KNOW THOUGH THE BRAND. YEAH. THEY HAVE BYD FOR THEIR EXISTING ONES. AND BOTH OF THOSE AGENCIES HAVE MORE ON ORDER FROM PROTERRA. UM, GOLDEN GATE TRANSIT DOES NOT YET HAVE ANY ZERO EMISSION. I KNOW THEY DID A BIG PURCHASE BEFORE THE INNOVATIVE CLEAN TRANSIT REGULATION KICKED IN. MM-HMM. . BUT THEY, I WILL SAY, HAVE VERY HARD CONDITIONS FOR RUNNING ELECTRIC BUSES BECAUSE THEY'RE RUNNING VERY LONG DISTANCE HIGHWAY SPEED. WHEN I WAS TALKING WITH THEM THE OTHER DAY, THEY WERE SAYING THAT ELECTRIC BUSES, YOU KNOW, ARE GONNA BE VERY DIFFICULT. IN THEIR CASE, SOMETHING LIKE HYDROGEN FUEL CELL WOULD PROBABLY MAKE A LOT OF SENSE. THAT'S INTERESTING. THAT'S VERY INTERESTING. A LOT OF THE AGENCIES IN THE AREA, THEY'RE EITHER RELATIVELY NEW TO THE ELECTRIC BUSES, HAD 'EM A YEAR OR TWO OR JUST GETTING INTO IT. SO MY QUESTION WAS IF WE COULD SHARE RESOURCES WITH THEM AS FAR AS LIKE, UH, I KNOW WE'RE GONNA BE TRAINING UP OUR MECHANICS AND, AND THAT, ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF. AND IS THERE A, IS THERE AN ECOSYSTEM THERE FOR THAT? AND IT SOUNDS LIKE KIND OF YEAH, IT'S SOMETHING WE'VE TALKED ABOUT. I THINK ESPECIALLY IF WE WERE TO GO WITH THE SAME MANUFACTURERS ON THE BUSES. RIGHT. ONE OF THE AGENCIES WE HAVE TALKED TO AGAIN, UM, IS AC TRANSIT. THEY'RE REALLY GOOD WITH THE ELECTRIFICATION SIDE. MM-HMM. , THEY ACTUALLY PUT TOGETHER A TRAINING CURRICULUM THAT PEOPLE COME FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO DO THEIR TRAINING ON HOW THEY TRAIN THEIR MECHANICS TO SERVE AS ZERO EMISSION VEHICLES. OKAY. AND SO THERE'S KIND OF A FEW OPTIONS WE'RE LOOKING AT. IT'S EITHER WORKING WITH THE MANUFACTURERS, LIKE NEW FLYER, IF THERE'S OTHER NEARBY AGENCIES THAT ARE RUNNING THEIR VEHICLES OR MAYBE SENDING OUR MECHANICS DOWN TO SOMEWHERE LIKE AC TRANSIT, WHICH THEY'VE OFFERED. THEY'VE GOT ABOUT A MONTH LONG PROGRAM TO TRAIN THE MECHANICS AND THEY'RE ACTUALLY ONE OF THE AGENCIES RUNNING NEW FLYER. ELECTRIC BUS IS ALMOST IDENTICAL TO THESE. WELL, IT'S GREAT TO HAVE, UH, SOMEBODY CLOSE BY US. BUMMER THAT IT'S NOT EVEN CLOSER, BUT BAY AREAS IS STILL GREAT. OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT'S ALL MY QUESTIONS. COUNCIL MEMBER POST, POST CAPE. YEAH, I'M, I'M NOT RECALLING IT NOW, BUT IT SEEMED LIKE I READ A NASTY LETTER TO THE EDITOR, UH, MAYBE IN THE PRESS DEMOCRAT, BUT I'M, I'M NOT SURE NOW ABOUT, I WAS THINKING IT WAS SANTA ROSA, BUT FROM WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT WHEN THEY'VE HAD GOT ELECTRIC BUSES, IT WAS ABOUT SOME, UH, PLACE IN CALIFORNIA AT THE VERY LEAST, I THINK THAT, UH, HAD BOUGHT THEIR FIRST FOUR ELECTRIC BUSES AND THEY WERE ALL, UH, UH, BASICALLY BROKEN WITHIN TWO OR THREE YEARS. AND THE COMPANY THEY BOUGHT 'EM FROM WAS BANKRUPT. UM, AND YOU KNOW, ANYTHING ABOUT THAT, I, I DON'T, I THINK THAT MAY BE REFERRING TO THE SANTA ROSA FLEET. THERE WAS AN ARTICLE THAT RAN IN THE PRESS DEMOCRAT ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO TO THAT POINT, I THINK THAT WAS REFERRING TO THE PROTERRA ELECTRIC BUSES. THAT COMPANY, FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, RECENTLY UNDERWENT CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY AND IS CURRENTLY BEING KIND OF RESTRUCTURED. AND, UH, UH, ONE OF THE QUESTION I HAD WAS, IS THERE ANY, UM, YOU KNOW, FROM MY OWN ELECTRIC CAR AND FROM WHAT YOU SAY ABOUT THE 30% LOSS OF EFFICIENCY, YOU KNOW, I WONDERED WHETHER YOU COULD, UH, UM, I, I DON'T LIKE THE WORD COMPETITION IN THIS REGARD, BUT, YOU KNOW, UH, SEE, SEE WHICH DRIVERS COULD MAKE 205 MILES IN A DAY ON THE BUSIEST ROUTE. DO YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? UH, AND, AND OFFER THEM A SLIGHT PAY INCREASE, UH, YOU KNOW, AS THEY QUALIFY. YOU KNOW, IT'S FUNNY, BUT THAT'S ACTUALLY SOMETHING A LOT OF AGENCIES HAVE DONE AND I THINK WE'LL PROBABLY DO SIMILAR. SO THERE'S A FEW PIECES. THERE'S A TRAINING AND I THINK WE PROBABLY WILL DO A COMPETITION. I'M SURE MARIA LOVE WORKING ON THAT OKAY. FOR THE DRIVERS TO SEE WHO CAN, YOU KNOW, BE THE MOST EFFICIENT BECAUSE IT'S FUNNY, SIMPLE THINGS LIKE THAT. YOU'D BE SURPRISED THE IMPACT THAT HAS ON THE DRIVERS. THEY [00:40:01] CAN ACTUALLY BE QUITE COMPETITIVE WHEN THEY SEE THE LIST OF WHO'S MORE EFFICIENT AND WHO ISN'T. AND SOMETHING SIMPLE LIKE THAT CAN REALLY CHANGE THE BEHAVIOR QUITE A BIT. SO YEAH, I THINK IT COULD BE 30% WITH ME, WHETHER I'M, YOU KNOW, OKAY, I'M JUST IN A HURRY TODAY, JUST IN A HURRY TODAY, OR I'M GONNA SEE HOW WELL I CAN DO, YOU KNOW, SEEING NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, I SHOULD OPEN THIS MEETING. I WILL OPEN THIS MEETING TO PUBLIC COMMENT, HOWEVER THAT DOES, THERE'S LIMITED AUDIENCE FOR THAT. MS. FRY, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS TO MAKE? ? THANK YOU. THAT WAS KIND OF MESSY. YEAH, , UH, ACTUALLY I DON'T, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY GREAT. MIC PLEASE, IF YOU COULD, I APOLOGIZE FOR MAKING YOU STAND UP, BUT THAT'S OKAY. IN CASE THERE ARE VIEWERS, I CAN DO ANOTHER CARD IF YOU NEED ME TO. UH, NO, I THINK IT'S REALLY GREAT. I LOVE THE IDEA OF THE ELECTRIC BUSES, AND I ESPECIALLY LIKE THAT THEY'RE VERY A DA COMPLIANT. UM, THAT'S A REAL CRITICAL THAT WE'VE COME ACROSS IN THE SENIOR ADVISORY COMMITTEE IS THAT SOMETIMES SENIORS DON'T FEEL LIKE PARTS OF THE CITY THAT THEY CAN USE, WHETHER IT'S THE BUS OR THE SIDEWALK OR WHATEVER. AND SO I LOVE THAT THE NEW BUSES WILL BE REALLY STRUCTURED THAT WAY. YEAH, VERY GOOD. THANK YOU. ANY COMMENTS NOW THAT WE'VE HEARD HAD RECEIVED PUBLIC COMMENT? OH, I ACTUALLY, I GUESS I SHOULD SAY WE, THAT CLOSED PUBLIC COMMENT. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS? I I JUST WANTED TO KNOW ONE THING, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, THE NUMBER OF $10 MILLION EXTRA TO, TO SWITCH OVER TO ELECTRIC AND AS YOU SAY, THE, THE STICKER SHOCK, OTHER PLACES IN THE BAY AREA ARE HAVING, I THINK THIS JUST SHOWS, IT'S ONE EXAMPLE OF THE COST OF DOING THE CLIMATE MITIGATION ADAPTATION THAT THE CITY'S DOING, TRYING TO DO ACROSS THE BOARD. AND WHAT A CHALLENGE IT IS. I MEAN, IT'S EASY TO TALK ABOUT A GOAL OF 2030, BUT WE ALSO NEED TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW PETALUMA TRANSIT MEETS THE, THE REVENUE NEEDS, HOW THE CITY HALL MEETS THE REVENUE NEEDS, ET CETERA. IT, THERE'S A TOUGH TIME COMING AHEAD OF US, AND THIS IS JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF IT. SO ANY OTHER COMMENTS? UH, I WILL, OH, I'M SORRY. I YOU NEED TO WAVE YOUR HAND A LITTLE STRONGER THERE. I LOOKED RIGHT PAST YOU. I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT IT'S OBVIOUSLY A COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT TO MOVE INTO WITH LOTS OF MOVING PARTS, NOT JUST WITH THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE BUSES AND THE, UM, BUT THE FUNDING. AND I FEEL WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE A TRANSIT HEAD WHO'S TAKING SUCH A, A DETAILED, SERIOUS LOOK AT IT. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR SAYING THAT. SEEING NO OTHER COMMENTS, I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION PRESUMABLY TO APPROVE OR TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL BY THE COUNCIL. I MOTION. I'LL MAKE A MOTION. MR. GIN. THANK YOU. THAT'S THE MOTION. DO I HEAR A SECOND, MS. ABRAMS? THANK YOU. WE HAVE A SECOND. UH, CAN WE DO, WE CAN DO A ROLL CALL. VOTE ALDEN. YES. ABRAMS? YES. ROS? YES. HEEL? YES. KAGEN? YES. QUINT. YES. POKAY? YES. [STAFF COMMENT] THANK YOU, MR. HALL, BACK TO YOU FOR THE MANAGER'S REPORT. THANK YOU AGAIN, MR. CHAIR. UM, SO JUST A FEW THINGS I'LL HIGHLIGHT REALLY QUICK. UM, I THINK THIS WAS MAYBE DISCUSSED AT OUR LAST MEETING, BUT CARLY DID AN ANALYSIS AND PUT TOGETHER A GREAT CHART IN YOUR PACKET REGARDING THE YOUTH RIDE FREE PROGRAM. AND THE RIDERSHIP INCREASED 40% WHEN YOU LOOK AT JULY THROUGH SEPTEMBER, 2023 COMPARED TO 2022. SO YOU CAN REALLY SEE QUANTITATIVELY KIND OF THE BENEFITS THAT THAT PROGRAM HAS BROUGHT. THAT OF COURSE, WAS A FAIR FREE K THROUGH 12 PROGRAM OVER THE SUMMER MONTHS. IT RAN WITH FIVE AGENCIES SINCE THE END OF AUGUST. IT'S BEEN PETALUMA TRANSIT, SANTA ROSA, CITY BUS, SONOMA COUNTY, CONTINUING THAT THROUGH THE END OF JUNE, 2025. AND SO THUS FAR WE THINK THAT PROGRAM'S BEEN REALLY SUCCESSFUL AND WE'VE HEARD A LOT OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM THAT. SO THAT'S BEEN VERY EXCITING TO SEE. UH, WE COVERED THE ELECTRIFICATION SIDE AND A GOOD DETAIL, WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT A BIT MORE AT THE NEXT MEETING. I ANTICIPATE WITH CHARGERS, UH, ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT WE'RE GONNA UPDATE AT THE NEXT MEETING AS WELL. UH, TWO OF THEM, MARIA, IS GONNA HOPEFULLY GIVE US PRESENTATIONS ON THE MICRO MICRO TRANSIT PROGRAM AND THEN ON THE FAIR FREE PROGRAM, BOTH OF WHICH WE'RE LOOKING AT AS MAJOR PRIORITIES FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR. WE'VE HAD OUR, UH, THREE MEETINGS OF THE AD HOC GROUP. WE THANK ALL THE MEMBERS FOR THAT. THE MOST RECENT ONE WAS IN EARLY DECEMBER, ABOUT A WEEK AGO. GOT A LOT OF GREAT FEEDBACK. SO WE'LL COVER SOME OF THAT A BIT MORE AT THE NEXT MEETING. UM, AND WITH THAT, MARIA, WOULD YOU LIKE TO PROVIDE ANY ADDITIONAL UPDATES? UM, IT'S BEEN BUSY WITH, UH, OUTREACH, SO I, UM, IT'S [00:45:01] ALL IN YOUR PACKET. A FEW OF THE THINGS WE'VE DONE, I'LL SAY SOME OF MY FAVORITES HAVE BEEN THE STUFF A BUS EVENT, WHICH WAS A GREAT SUCCESS. WE HAD A BUS AT THE HOLIDAY PETALUMA, UM, DOWNTOWN EVENT, AND THAT WAS REALLY FUN PARTNERING WITH COTS. UM, WE ALSO PARTNERED WITH TOYS FOR TOTS AND SMART AND MARIN TRANSIT AND A FEW OF OUR OTHER TRANSIT AGENCIES. SO WE ALL COLLECTED TOYS ON THE SAME DAY. UM, WE ALSO HAD A FIELD TRIP, WHICH WAS I THINK OUR FIRST FIELD TRIP ON SITE, SO I ALWAYS LOVE THESE. THERE WAS KINDERGARTNERS WHO CAME AND THEY RODE A BUS AND THEN WE TOOK 'EM TO THE BUS WASH AND I'VE NEVER HEARD WHEELS ON THE BUS SO MANY TIMES SUNG IN MY LIFE AND IN SPANISH, WHICH WAS AN, WHICH WAS AN ADDED BENEFIT. UM, BUT THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER WAS REALLY APPRECIATIVE OF OUR TIME. WE DEFINITELY HAD SOME, UM, BUS ENTHUSIASTS ON THE, UH, MAYBE BUS DRIVERS, UM, IN TRAINING. SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO MORE OPPORTUNITIES SUCH AS THOSE. UH, ALSO EXCITED JUST TO BE DOING A LITTLE MORE OUTREACH TO WHERE PEOPLE ARE. UM, I THINK I'VE MENTIONED IN THE PAST THAT, YOU KNOW, NOT GETTING AS MUCH OF A DIVERSE POPULATION. UM, SO BEEN ABLE TO DO SOME OUTREACH TO GROUPS LIKE COTS, UNA VIDA, UM, FAMILY RESOURCE CENTER. UM, I THINK RECENTLY ONE THAT WAS REALLY EFFECTIVE WAS A LUNCH AND LEARN THAT I DID FOR COTS WORKING WITH THEIR SOCIAL WORKERS. SO THEY HELP, THEY HELP MAINLY WITH UNHOUSED. AND SO GETTING TO SIT WITH THEM AND ANSWER ALL OF THEIR QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT TRANSIT OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE AND HOW WE CAN PARTNER, UM, GOING STRAIGHT TO THE, THE, THE PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT THEM HAS BEEN REALLY USEFUL. SO THOSE ARE JUST A FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM SOME OF THE OUTREACH WE'VE BEEN DOING. THANK YOU. AND, UH, THAT CONCLUDES THE TRANSIT MANAGER REPORT. ANY QUESTIONS FOR, OOPS, EXCUSE ME. ANY QUESTIONS FOR EITHER MR. HALL OR MS. ACE? MR. K*M, RAISE YOUR HAND A LITTLE HIGHER. I, I, I SORT OF MISS IT DOWN. THERE WE GO. THANK YOU . UM, IT'S REALLY GREAT TO SEE THESE, THE, THE RIDERSHIP NUMBERS UP. UM, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THOSE NUMBERS CAN GROW MORE OR DO YOU THINK THAT THAT IS SORT OF RIGHT AROUND WE SHOULDN'T EXPECT TO SEE THAT 40% GROWTH AGAIN? MAYBE A LITTLE BIT. I MEAN, WHAT DO, WHAT ARE YOUR OPINIONS ON THAT? I THINK IT CAN GROW MORE. IT KIND OF DEPENDS ON WHAT PART OF THE, UM, POPULATION YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. THE HIGHER PROPORTION OF RIDERSHIP FOR US WITH PETALUMA TRANSIT, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN K THROUGH 12 AND K THROUGH 16 STUDENTS. SO I THINK THAT WAS A HIGHER PROPORTIONATE PART OF OUR RIDERSHIP. I THINK THAT HAD LESS ROOM TO GROW THAN WHAT OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY, OTHER POPULATIONS THAT ARE RIDING RELATIVELY LESS. SO IF THE CITY GETS INTO PROVIDING FREE TRANSIT FOR EVERYONE, I THINK THOSE AREAS AND OVERALL THE SYSTEM HAS MORE ABILITY TO GROW BEYOND THAT PIECE OF THE STUDENTS BECAUSE THEY'RE ALREADY RIDING THAT MUCH HIGHER. USUALLY YOU SEE THE BIGGEST INCREASES, YOU KNOW, UM, WITHIN THE FIRST LIKE YEAR OR TWO OF IT. SO I DO THINK IT CAN POTENTIALLY GROW. THERE'S ALWAYS A MARKETING SIDE, A COMPONENT WHERE WE'RE DOING A LOT OF OUTREACH TO THE SCHOOLS IN, UM, APRIL AND MAY LAST YEAR. A LOT OF PEOPLE DIDN'T KNOW YET THAT WE WERE RUNNING FAIR FREE OVER THE SUMMER. AND SO IT TAKES A LITTLE WHILE BEFORE PEOPLE TO LEARN ABOUT THESE PROGRAMS TO GAIN THAT MOMENTUM. ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE GONNA DO ANYTIME WE LAUNCH NEW BIG PROGRAMS SUCH AS THESE IS DO A BIG EDUCATION COMPONENTS, MAYBE A MAILING, THINGS LIKE THAT. SO PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THEM RELATIVELY SOON RIGHT OFF THE BAT. SO YES, I THINK THERE'S ROOM TO GROW DEPENDING ON THE PROGRAM AND KIND OF THE POPULATION MORE SO THAN OTHERS, BUT, YEAH. WELL THAT'S GREAT. I'M SUPER HAPPY. AND, UH, YOU MENTIONED DOING OUTREACH OUTREACH. UM, DO WE, IS THERE ANY ONLINE OUTREACH THAT WAS DONE, UH, JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT UH, YOU THOUGHT ABOUT BEFORE? I DON'T, I'M NOT SURE KIND OF WHAT THAT WOULD ENTAIL, BUT SO WE'VE, WE, WE HAVEN'T, WE'VE PROMOTED A LOT ON SOCIAL MEDIA FOR SURE ABOUT THE ONSITE OUTREACH WE'RE DOING. WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT POTENTIALLY DOING SURVEYS MAYBE GOING FORWARD, UM, WHICH WOULD BE HAVE AN ONLINE COMPONENT. BUT RIGHT NOW WE HAVEN'T DONE ANY. UM, WELL THE COTS MEETING WAS ACTUALLY, SOME OF THESE MEETINGS WERE, UH, VIRTUAL. BUT YEAH, SO LOOKING, BUT WE WE'RE DEFINITELY TALKING ABOUT DOING MORE. GREAT. YEAH. GREAT. QUESTION ONE. OH, SORRY. I WAS JUST GONNA SAY MR. CHAIR, UM, I DUNNO IF YOU NOTICED, I THINK WE MAY HAVE SKIPPED COMMITTEE COMMENT. WENT RIGHT TO STAFF COMMENT. THANK YOU FOR CATCHING ME. , UH, YES. COMMITTEE COMMENT, WHICH IS OPEN FORUM TO BRING UP THINGS THAT DON'T FIT IN THE AGENDA BUT ARE PERTINENT TO TRANSIT. I'LL START AT THE FAR END WITH COUNCIL MEMBER POST. OKAY. YEAH, I WAS WONDERING, UH, MAYBE IF JARED COULD GIVE US, UH, AND I'VE SEEN SOME OF THESE NUMBERS BEFORE, BUT UH, I'M WONDERING WITH FREE FARE FOR ALL AND STUFF, ISN'T THERE SOME REQUIREMENT OF US FOR THE FEDERAL AND STATE MONEY THAT COMES TO, TO SPEND SOME OF OUR OWN MONEY IN SOME WAY AS WELL? AND, AND IS THAT CHANGED AT ALL? THERE IS A REQUIREMENT THAT'S HAVING TO DO WITH THE TDA ENTERPRISE FUND, THE TRANSIT DEVELOPMENT ACT. THEY'VE [00:50:01] HISTORICALLY HAD A 10% FAIR BOX RECOVERY RATIO REQUIREMENT. YOU HAVE TO RECOUP 10% OF THOSE COSTS. THAT'S BEEN SUSPENDED FOR SEVERAL YEARS DUE TO COVID BECAUSE THEY KNOW MANY AGENCIES HAVE FALLEN BELOW THAT THRESHOLD. AND THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF HIGH LEVEL DISCUSSION ABOUT WHETHER THAT IS A GOOD METRIC TO HOLD OVERALL. YOU KNOW, I THINK PEOPLE REALIZE THERE'S A LOT OF SHIFTING DISCUSSION IN THE STATE ABOUT AFFORDABILITY AS IT BECOMES MORE EXPENSIVE TO LIVE IN THE STATE ABOUT EQUITY, ABOUT WHAT THE PRIORITIES ARE WITHIN THE STATE. SO I THINK THERE'S, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WILL KIND OF DISAGREE ON WHETHER THAT WILL GO BACK IN AT SOME POINT AND THEY REINSTITUTE THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE FEEL THAT REQUIREMENT MAY NOT GO BACK IN, BUT AS OF NOW, IT'S A 10% REQUIREMENT. BUT IT'S BEEN SUSPENDED SINCE 2020, I BELIEVE. OKAY, THANKS. YEAH, WOULD, AND I WOULD SAY EVEN WITH THAT, WITH SOME OF THE FUNDING SOURCES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, I MEAN THE MAIN FUNDING COST OF THAT, THAT'S SOMETHING AS YOU MAY RECALL, WAS BUILT IN THE CITY FY 24 BUDGET TO HELP OFFSET THE COSTS OF THE REVENUE WE WOULD LOSE THROUGH THAT. SO TRANSIT HAS MADE WHOLE IN THAT SENSE AND WE'RE NOT CUTTING INTO OUR FUNDING THAT COULD OTHERWISE GO TOWARDS OPERATING THAT TYPE OF FUNDING OR ANY OTHER LOCAL CITY FUNDING WE GET FOR OTHER PROJECTS HELP TO FULFILL THAT REQUIREMENT IF THAT DOES GO BACK INTO PLACE. OKAY. MR. QUINN? YES, SO TWO THINGS, UM, ON OUTREACH. SO I'M ALSO, UH, I ALSO PARTICIPATE IN THE PALOMA VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE. I'M ON THE BOARD THERE AND, UH, VERY EXCITED. OUR PETALUMA VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE IS GONNA BE STARTING UP IN FEBRUARY AND THERE'S A BUS TERMINAL RIGHT ACROSS FROM OUR FIELDS. AND SO MAYBE CONSIDER A PETALUMA VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE RIDE FOR FREE TO THE LITTLE LEAGUE GAMES . 'CAUSE PARKING AROUND THERE IS A MESS AROUND GAME TIME. SO, UH, ANYWAY, THAT MAY BE, UM, AN OPPORTUNITY AND FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO ME. I CAN PUT YOU IN TOUCH TO WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE. UM, AND THEN SECONDLY, I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, HEARING THE DISCUSSION AROUND THE K THROUGH 12 RIDERSHIP, HAS THERE BEEN, UM, AND I'M SURE THERE PROBABLY HAS, I'M JUST INTERESTED IN IT. ANY, UM, WORK DONE AROUND UNDERSTANDING OVERLAP WITH THE PUBLIC SCHOOL BUSES? YOU KNOW, DO WE HAVE AREAS WHERE THERE'S PUBLIC SCHOOL BUSES PICKING UP KIDS AND WE HAVE BUSES IN THE SAME AREA THAT THAT COULD SERVICE THAT? IS THAT SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN LOOKED AT SOMEWHAT AND MAYBE, UM, CHAIR ALDEN SMORE HISTORY ON THIS? I STARTED WITH THE CITY IN 2018, SO I ONLY KNOW MY TIME AND A LITTLE BEFORE THAT. FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND, DATING BACK TO THE OH EIGHT RECESSION, I THINK PETALUMA CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT, WHICH IS THE MAJORITY OF THE LARGER SCHOOLS WE SERVE RIDERSHIP WISE, PROVIDED MORE SERVICE THEMSELVES. AND THEN DUE TO THE RECESSION, I THINK THEY TRIMMED THAT SERVICE A GOOD AMOUNT. THE CITY STEPPED IN AT THAT POINT AND BEGAN RUNNING MORE SERVICE TO SCHOOLS. THE SCHOOL OF TRIPPER SERVICE, IT'S NO REAL FORMAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO. IT'S SOMETHING FUNDED ENTIRELY BY THE CITY, BUT IT IS SOMETHING TO WHERE WE'RE HAPPY TO SERVE THAT IT'S A LARGE PIECE OF OUR RIDERSHIP BASE. IT'S REALLY IMP IT'S REALLY, UM, INSTRUMENTAL TO HELPING BUILD RIDERS AT A YOUNG AGE THAT BECOME LONG LIFELONG RIDERS ON PETALUMA TRANSIT, HOPEFULLY. BUT I DON'T KNOW SPECIFICALLY WHICH ROUTES THEY PROVIDE. I DON'T GET THE SENSE IT'S A WHOLE LOT WITHIN THE CITY ON KIND OF THE TRADITIONAL YELLOW BUS ROUTES. I THINK A LOT OF THAT FALLS ON US, BUT I DON'T KNOW SPECIFICALLY WHERE EXACTLY THEIR ROUTES GO. I THINK IT'S MOSTLY OUTLYING PARTS OF THE CITY INTO PETALUMA RATHER THAN KIND OF INTRUST CITY SERVICE. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE MORE HISTORY MR. JOE THAN I DO. I I REALLY DON'T. AND I SHOULD NOTE THAT NO, I HAVE NOT BEEN SITTING HERE SINCE 2008. I'VE BEEN HERE A LONG TIME, BUT NOT THAT LONG. NO, I I I THINK YOU HAVE IT, HAVE IT PRETTY MUCH RIGHT IN THE MIDST OF THE RECESSION. UM, THE CITY, PETE PETAL LOOP TRANSIT PRETTY MUCH TOOK OVER MOST OF THE YELLOW BUS ROUTES. I'M NOT SURE THERE ARE ANY YELLOW BUSES NOW OTHER THAN, UH, SPECIAL EDUCATION AND ATHLETIC TEAMS, YOU KNOW, LIVING NEAR THREE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. I HAVE NEVER SEEN A REGULAR DAILY YELLOW BUS. SO I THINK, I THINK WE'RE THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN, MR. POSTGATE, IN SOME OF THE WORK I'VE DONE WITH, UH, HAITIAN IMMIGRANTS HERE. UM, IT SEEMED LIKE THERE WAS A BUS WITHIN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, UH, NO MORE THAN FIVE YEARS AGO, WHERE THEY HAD A CHILD WHO, GOSH, DIDN'T HAVE A VISIBLE DISABILITY, BUT I, I'M NOT SURE IF THERE WAS AN EDUCATIONAL DISABILITY, UM, THAT WAS GETTING PICKED UP AT, AT HOME EVERY, EVERY DAY, UH, IN, UH, TO GO TO A PETALUMA CITY SCHOOL. UH, BUT I, I JUST PUT THAT OUT THERE TOO. I, I'M NOT SURE, I THINK, I THINK THERE ARE SOME SPECIAL BUSES LIKE THAT. I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW THE ENTIRE SYSTEM, BUT IN TERMS OF A DAILY, YOU KNOW, BUS STOP TO BUS STOP THE SCHOOL ROUTE, I JUST DON'T THINK THEY CAN COVER ANY OF 'EM NOW. [00:55:01] OKAY. YEAH, I SHOULD SAY I, THAT'S ANOTHER BIG PIECE OF WHAT I THINK THEY PROVIDE WITH THEIR SCHOOL BUS SERVICE IS MOBILITY ASSISTED STUDENT TRANSIT. THAT'S ANOTHER PIECE. OF COURSE, PEOPLE WHO, YOU KNOW, HAVE THOSE REQUIREMENTS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR PETALUMA PARATRANSIT AS WELL. BUT I DO THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE SERVICES THAT THEY DO HELP PROVIDE LUM CITY SCHOOLS TO THEIR STUDENTS. MS. HILL? YES. THANK YOU. UM, UH, I THINK WE'RE ALL, UH, REALLY INTERESTED AND EXCITED ABOUT ZERO EMISSION BUSES. UM, WHAT I'M HEARING RELATES TO LARGE VEHICLES, UM, FIXED ROUTE BUSES AND PARATRANSIT. AND I THINK AFTER THE PUBLIC COMMENT, UM, THAT WE UH, I, I JUST WOULD LIKE TO HEAR, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF MICRO TRANSIT, UH, HOW THE, THE, UM, SERVICES ARE BEING, UH, CONSIDERED FOR LARGE POPULATION. A GROWING POPULATION OF ELDERS LIKE ME, , UH, WHO LIVE IN SCATTERED NEIGHBORHOODS AND FOR WHOM FIXED ROUTE BUSES ARE NOT U FREQUENTLY THEY'RE JUST NOT VERY HELPFUL. SO I'M HOPING THAT WE CAN LEARN, UH, MORE ABOUT WHAT'S IN THE PIPELINE, UM, TO SERVICE FOLKS WHO MAY NOT HAVE ACCESS TO FIXED ROUTE, UM, BUSES. AND, UH, I'M ALSO, UH, REALLY CURIOUS ABOUT THE CONNECTION TO NON-PROFITS THAT YOU MENTIONED. UM, UH, JUST, UH, I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE OR HOW IT WOULD WORK, BUT I, I, I JUST, IT SOUNDS VERY INTERESTING. IT'S REALLY PIQUED MY CURIOSITY. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD ENTREE TO, UH, THE NEXT MEETING. ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT IS MICROT TRANSIT, INCLUDING ALL THE GROUPS WE'VE TALKED TO, ALL THE OUTREACH THAT'S BEEN CONDUCTED AND THE INPUT THAT WE'VE RECEIVED FROM THEM, THEIR COMMENTS, AND THEN WHAT THAT SERVICE WOULD LOOK LIKE AND HOW IT'S HOPEFULLY TO IT HELPING TO ADDRESS SEVERAL OF THOSE. RIGHT. YEAH. YEAH, I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT. OKAY. MS. ABRAMS. OKAY. MR. K*M COMMENTS? YEAH. UM, JUST A THOUGHT. UH, IT BEING DECEMBER, THERE'S A LOT OF, I'VE BEEN SEEING A LOT OF STUFF, UH, FROM THE CITY ABOUT, UH, HOLIDAY LIGHT, UH, TRAIL AND I WAS ONE AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT KIND OF GOT ME WAS THEY ENCOURAGE YOU TO, TO PILE THE KIDS IN THE CAR AND DRIVE THE LIGHT TRAIL. AND I THOUGHT, WELL, WE COULD OFFER A BUS SERVICE PERHAPS. AND I KNOW THAT IT'S A LITTLE LATE IN THE GAME AT THE MOMENT FOR THIS YEAR, BUT IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING WE COULD DISCUSS FOR NEXT YEAR. I THINK IT'S SOMETHING WE'RE ALWAYS OPEN TO, YOU KNOW, ANY PROMOTION THAT MAKES SENSE FOR TRANSIT, WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING TO BE A PARTNER OF AND BE INCLUDED, YOU KNOW, IN THE PLANNING OF THE MESSAGING OF, SO ANYTHING LIKE THAT WE KEEP OUR EYE OPEN FOR, BUT OF ANY, UH, ANYONE UP HERE, ANY MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY, KNOW OF EVENTS LIKE THAT, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT. LET US KNOW. SO IF WE DON'T HEAR A WEEKEND, REACH OUT TO THEM PROACTIVELY AND SAY, YOU KNOW, WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT IS THE ROLE FOR TRANSIT TO HELP OUT? OKAY, GREAT. MS. CALL ROSS. OKAY. I HAVE NOTHING EITHER, SO. OH, I THOUGHT YOU'RE RAISING YOUR HAND AGAIN. YOU WERE JUST SCRATCHING AN EAR. . OKAY. WITH THAT THEN WE ARE ADJOURNED AT 4:58 PM THANKS FOR BEING HERE AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.