TRANSIT PROGRAM

PROGRAM MISSION: To plan, administer and operate public transportation services and facilities to serve travel needs of Arlington and the region.

The Arlington County Transit Program provides public transportation services to accommodate the needs of Arlington residents, commuters and visitors for community access and mobility to sustain full, active and affordable lifestyles independent of a requirement to operate or own a personal automobile. The integrated network of transit services and facilities developed, coordinated or operated through this program to meet these needs of the Arlington community include: Metrorail, Metrobus, MetroAccess, Arlington Transit (ART), Arlington STAR, the Commuter Services Program (CSP) and Virginia Railway Express (VRE).

The Transit Planning, Transit Operations and Paratransit budgets are largely funded by the County's general fund. The Commuter Services Program is largely funded by grant and project revenues and is described in the Commuter Services Program narrative. Metro regional services, which are funded by a combination of federal, state, regional and local sources, are documented in the Regional Organizations and Metro (Section M) portion of the proposed budget. A separate Capital Improvement Program budget also includes transit projects managed under this Program.

• Transit Planning provides for the administration, planning and coordination of the activities associated with this program. Responsibilities include: regional and local service planning; advertising and market development; budget preparation, funding and monitoring; capital project programming, design and implementation; inter-agency liaison, policy and legislative advocacy; major project, service and system studies (including Columbia Pike); Transit Master Plan updates; and, evaluation of site plan-required transportation management programs. This work is accomplished by a combination of County staff, consultants and integration of work plans with other agencies, such as the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), Northern Virginia Transportation Commission and VRE.

• Transit Operations (TOP) provides management, implementation and oversight for County sponsored activities providing direct service to transit patrons in the County, including: ART bus service; bus stop and shelter coordination; technology-project planning and implementation; and, Metrobus operations coordination.
  
  Arlington Transit ART bus service is currently operated through a contract with ATC Vancom, Inc., a competitively procured contract service provider, to provide market specific, low impact, innovative, high quality, responsive and cost effective public transportation services to, and in partnership with, Arlington residents and businesses. The fleet of 30 ART buses consists of smaller, predominantly compressed natural gas (CNG) buses operated on a twelve route network of bus service coordinated with the 25 Metrobus lines serving the County. A five-year plan for strategic service improvement was presented to the County Board in 2002 to be implemented in conjunction with Regional Bus Study recommendations for Metrobus service changes to enhance travel opportunities within Arlington. Twelve of the seventeen recommendations for ART services have been implemented to date.
  
  Bus Stops There are 1,574 bus stops located in the County for use by Metrobus, ART, Connector, Omni-Ride and numerous private shuttles. These stops incorporate a total of 120 bus stop shelters, with 83 owned by the County. TOP staff coordinates the installation, repair, cleaning, replacement and location of these stops and shelters with County, WMATA, and contractor crews and adjacent property owners.
  
  Technology Projects A real-time passenger information system has been deployed on ART51/52 buses to demonstrate the viability of a new lower cost system know as Connexionz. This system will be more widely deployed as funding is made available. Electronic information stanchions are deployed at the Rosslyn Metrobus Station and will be expanded to include other terminal stations in the County. A traffic signal priority system is now operational on Columbia Pike and additional technology will be deployed as part of the Pike Ride Super Stop project.
  
  Metrobus Operations Coordination Metrobus service planning, implementation, coordination and performance assessment is facilitated on behalf of the County by the Metrobus Service Coordinator to ensure effective, efficient and timely services are provided to riders in the County on the 24 Metrobus lines in which the County has a financial stake. The 25,000 daily riders represent 90% of bus patrons in Arlington and staff involvement is essential in addressing issues such as route detours, station operations, layover locations, roadway problems and bus stop improvements. The Pike Ride program provides enhanced services on Columbia Pike and provides Metrorail-like frequency, reliability and information in support of community planning goals for this corridor.

• Paratransit is responsible for coordination and provision of regional and local service to accommodate the public transit needs of Arlington residents, commuters and visitors with disabilities. This is accomplished through policy implementation, performance monitoring, budget preparation and funding by staff and the coordinated use of two complementary services: 1) MetroAccess, the designated paratransit service for the region operated by WMATA; and, 2) the ArlingtonSTAR service operated directly for the County by competitively procured contractors. County funding for MetroAccess is presented in the Metro section of the Proposed Budget while STAR is included here in DES, Division of Transportation. Over 90 percent of eligible trips are carried on STAR, which has been designed to provide higher quality customer service at a lower cost to the County than MetroAccess for many locally oriented trips.

SIGNIFICANT BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS:

• Personnel increases due to normal salary and benefits adjustments and reclassification of positions.  2.0 FTEs were transferred to the Planning Program, 0.1 FTE was transferred to the Department of Community Planning, Housing and Development and 1.0 FTE was reallocated from the Solid Waste Bureau.  The latter position, which replaces a contractor, is charged to the Commuter Services Program.

• In non-personnel expense, a 3.2% contractual increase ($78,880) for ART bus operations is included in FY 2006. Master lease payments are also projected to increase by $165,324 for ART buses procured using this financial option. Due to redevelopment along Columbia Pike, STAR reservation offices were moved and an increase of $22,783 in rent is programmed. In addition, the STAR reservation management contract increases $21,540.

• The intra-county charge allocates personnel costs to the Commuter Services Program.

• Revenues are projected to increase in FY 2006 by $426,111 due to timing of State Transit Aid appropriation for paratransit services and higher fare box revenues.

PERFORMANCE MEASURES:

Transit Operations

• FY 2003 and FY 2004 ART passenger trips/service hour were lower than prior years due to the start of new services, but the figure should remain stable in FY 2005.

Paratransit Services

• WMATA is responsible for certification of residents eligible for paratransit services. The FY 2005 and FY 2006 estimates of American Disabilities Act (ADA) certified residents are based on information provided by WMATA.

FUTURE BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS:

• Fare increases by WMATA will offer an opportunity to review fares for ART and STAR.

• Continuation of the marketing program will increase ridership on ART, Arlington Metrobus, and STAR services.

• Increased transit service emergency response preparation and planning will require staff time, coordination and resources.

• Implementation of new and revised services, per Transit Plan recommendations, will require expanded staff resources.

• Construction of the ART maintenance and storage facility will reduce costs and improve service performance.