TO: AC Transit Board of Directors
FROM: Michael A. Hursh, General Manager/Chief Executive Officer
SUBJECT: Regional Network Management
BRIEFING ITEM
AGENDA PLANNING REQUEST: ☐
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Title
Consider receiving an update on the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) Regional Network Management (RNM) Business Case, including the proposed Near-term Framework.
Staff Contact:
Ramakrishna Pochiraju, Executive Director of Planning & Engineering
Body
STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE:
Goal - Convenient and Reliable Service
Initiative - Service Quality
While a new RNM structure would impact many facets of AC Transit Strategic Plan, its ultimate goal is to improve the rider experience on transit in the region. This would be carried out through implementation of MTC’s Transit Transformation Action Plan.
BUDGETARY/FISCAL IMPACT:
There are no budgetary or fiscal impacts associated with the Briefing Item, though there could be costs associated with implementation of an RNM structure that wouldn’t directly be the responsibility of AC Transit. It is also unclear at this point what effect the actions of a RNM will have one AC Transit service or other costs.
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE:
One of the key accelerated actions of the MTC’s Transit Transformation Action Plan is the development of a Business Case for the proposed Regional Network Management (RNM) structure to better coordinate transit in the Bay Area. On November 14, 2022, MTC’s consultant team for this effort, Via and KPMG, presented the preliminary RNM framework concept (see Attachment 1) to the Network Management Business Case Advisory Group (AG) for feedback. The AG provided a number of comments and questions regarding funding, authority and other topics to MTC and consultant team for their consideration as they further refine the concept over the next few months.
The release of the RNM concept allows for multiple points of feedback and input from various committees, transit operators and stakeholders, including AC Transit. Over the next few months, there will be a series of meetings which will serve as key points for input and feedback:
• 12/12/22 Network Manager Business Case Advisory Group Meeting - This is a monthly advisory group meeting that provides oversight on the completion of the Business Case AC Transit’s General Manager represents the District in this group consisting of transit GMs, MTC’s Executive Director and other key regional stakeholder representatives. This group received the initial consultant proposal on November 14, 2022 and provided feedback at that meeting. The consultant team intends to respond to the feedback received from the AG on December 12, including defined roles, scope and timeline.
• January 2023 Transit Board Presentations (tentative) - MTC plans to reconvene Transit Board members from the Bay Area transit agencies to provide an update on the Business Case and RNM proposal. These sessions have occurred twice in the past the effort for improved regional coordination began in 2020.
• January 2023 MTC Executive Committee Meeting (tentative) - After additional review from the Business Case Advisory Group, the Business Case and RNM recommendation will then make its way through the MTC committee review and approval process starting with the Executive Committee in January.
• February 2023 MTC Commission Meeting (tentative) - The Business Case process will culminate with Commission approval of an RNM proposal. At that point, MTC and stakeholders will transition to implementation. It is also possible that the full commission review and approval process will span over two meetings.
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES:
Transit Operator Staff Feedback
Overall, the transit operator staff look forward to working with MTC on the implementation of the near-term RNM proposal. They believe that it is a structure that can be implemented quickly and lead to implementation of the Transit Transformation Action Plan, which is the ultimate goal of MTC, the transit operators, and advocates in favor of regional coordination. Nonetheless, there are still concerns:
• There is no reference to a new funding source to make the new RNM structure a success
• The transit operator General Managers hold weekly coordination meetings, which are very productive. It is unclear if this meeting could still exist under the proposed RNM structure.
• There is no mention of a focus on ridership growth or equity in the RNM proposal
• While the General Managers will be able to represent the local transit needs, the tension of local versus regional priorities will still exist
ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS:
While MTC’s consultant team likely considered multiple RNM solutions as part of the Business Case process, they only released the single near-term proposal that would evolve into a long-term proposal.
PRIOR RELEVANT BOARD ACTION/POLICIES:
There are no Board actions or policies relevant to this Briefing Item.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. RNM Proposal
Prepared by:
Robert del Rosario, Director of Service Development and Planning
Approved/Reviewed by:
Ramakrishna Pochiraju, Executive Director of Planning & Engineering
Chris Andrichak, Chief Financial Officer