TO: AC Transit Board of Directors
FROM: Michael A. Hursh, General Manager/Chief Executive Officer
SUBJECT: Board Policy 544 - Service Adjustments
ACTION ITEM
AGENDA PLANNING REQUEST: ☒
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Title
Consider approving amendments to Board Policy 544 - Service Adjustments to include specific policy language regarding the implementation of major service detours. [Requested by Director Walsh - 3/13/24]
Staff Contact:
Ramakrishna Pochiraju, Executive Director of Planning & Engineering
Body
STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE:
Goal - Convenient and Reliable Service
Initiative - Service Quality
Board Policy 544 provides staff with guidance on the process for making service adjustments as well as the process for Board review and scheduling public hearings. This update provides guidance to staff regarding the handling of detours, including notification to the Board.
BUDGETARY/FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no budget impact associated with this Board Policy update.
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE:
At the March 13, 2024, Board meeting, Director Walsh made an agenda planning request to address detours within Board Policy 544. More specifically, the agenda planning request asks staff to amend Board Policy 544 to ensure that the Board and the public are informed when a detour will have a major impact on riders.
AC Transit uses detours to respond to temporary changes in field conditions that affect both routes and bus stops. These detours typically fall into the following categories:
1. Small-scale, short-term changes in conditions such as local business events or law enforcement activity that impact use of bus stop(s) for a short period of time;
2. Large-scale, short-term changes such as a marathon or parade that impact service routes and bus stops for a short period of time;
3. Small-scale, long-term changes such as roadway or building construction that impact service route(s) and bus stop(s) for an extended period of time; and
4. Large-scale, long-term changes such as the closure of a bridge, tunnel, major street, or transit center, that impact multiple service routes over an extended period of time.
Detour requests are handled by an inter-disciplinary internal team who engage in a service notice disruption process that identifies alternative routes and bus stops and publishes Operations Bulletins that provide Transportation, Marketing and Communications, and Bus Operators with instructions. Longer-term detours require coordination between staff and external stakeholders who identify alternatives such as relocating bus stops, parking removal, or other actions that will facilitate reasonable access to AC Transit service during the detour. The Marketing & Communications Department and Transportation Department provide information about the detour to the public, including the closest location to board a bus during the detour. This information is distributed at the affected bus stop(s), the District’s website, social media, eNews, and GTFS/Realtime. AC Transit requests external stakeholders provide as much lead time as possible ahead of the detour and strives to provide at least 72 hours of notice to the public. When AC Transit does not receive in advanced notice of an event that causes the need for a detour, staff makes every effort to communicate with the external stakeholder(s) and expedite the service disruption notice process.
The recommended amendment to this policy is to require staff to provide a list of any planned long-term detours occurring during the upcoming Bus Operator sign-ups in the Service Adjustment Summary Report. This report is submitted to the Board prior to each Sign-up. .
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES:
The primary advantage of this Board Policy update is to establish a process for handling detours and for communicating notice and update to the Board. This update also increases transparency by identifying planned long-term detours that will be in effect during the next sign-up.
There is no disadvantage associated with this report.
ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS:
Staff considered including all completed or planned detours in the report to the Board but determined that the significant work required to include such detail would not yield a commensurate benefit as the majority of the detours in effect are minor. Focusing on those detours long enough to be in effect during the next sign-up provides the Board with information on major changes to service that have a long-enough lead time to be included in a staff report.
PRIOR RELEVANT BOARD ACTION/POLICIES:
Board Policy 544 - Service Adjustments
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Updated Board Policy 544
2. Agenda Planning Request Form
Prepared by:
Michael Eshleman, Service Planning Manager
In Collaboration with:
Tony Gee, Marketing Administrator
Approved/Reviewed by:
Dwain Crawley, Director of Transportation
Robert del Rosario, Director of Service Development and Planning
Nichele Laynes, Director of Marketing & Communications
Ramakrishna Pochiraju, Executive Director of Planning & Engineering
Beverly Greene, Executive Director of External Affairs, Marketing & Communications
Salvador Llamas, Chief Operating Officer
Shayna van Hoften, Interim General Counsel/Chief Legal Officer