None. RTA was able to plan and budget for the fuel price -- one of the benefits of locking in a fuel rate. What RTA wasn't able to plan for was the recession and the continuing decline in county sales tax and state transit funding revenues. I encourage you to read Karen Farkas' excellent article on the previous page:

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,4504.msg419137.html#msg419137

 

She nailed RTA's problems -- and those of most other transit systems around the country.

 

RTA isn't unique. Not at all. Even those that aren't cutting routes/raising fares are still hurting and have to eliminate staff, unecessary travel, stop hiring, reduce purchases of supplies/materials, etc. etc. It's important to ask hard questions of RTA because they provide such an important service -- a lifeline for many.

 

But that's also a reason we need to come to their aid when they are getting the short end of the stick -- namely from the State of Ohio. How short is the stick?

 

The State of Ohio will spend $10 million this year on public transit statewide out of a $3.5 billion state transportation budget, for a paltry 0.2 percent of that transportation budget.

 

State legislators should be putting 20 percent of ODOT's budget into public transportation. Even 10 percent would be a big difference and at least bring us closer to the support offered by other states with which Ohio competes. Right now, Ithaca, NY gets more transit funding from its state than all the Ohio transit agencies combined get from the State of Ohio. Way to go, Ohio!

Right now, Ithaca, NY gets more transit funding from its state than all the Ohio transit agencies combined get from the State of Ohio. Way to go, Ohio!

That is crazy. 

I sent my state rep and senator an email last year about funding, and only got one canned response.

Thank you for doing that. Even though you got a canned response, your letter was likely logged in as pro-transit public input. Every little bit helps.

New payment system: user-friendly FAIL.

 

As I didn't think I'd be taking the rapid, I've largely not paid too much attention to the conversations about the new payment system.  Thus, today I was almost like a brand-new rider. I was also at a new station for me (W 117th) since I have to drop my baby off at daycare there 3 days a week.  Since I usually have a monthly pass but it's too late to buy one of those, I bought a 7 day pass this weekend, which I've not used before. So again, like a new rider, except for the fact that I bought my pass in advance.

 

So I come in and there are 2 machines.  It looks like one is where you put a "smart card" in to pay a fare.  I don't know if I have a "smart card" or not because it doesn't say that anywhere on my pass. The machine won't take the pass.  I see a place to check the balance so I check it and it says it's not activated, so I activate it. Still won't take it.  So I'm fiddling around with the thing and I see other people coming in and bypassing these machines so I think F it, they're probably getting on without paying so I will too.  To my surprise, just around the corner is yet a 3rd machine, and this one is the one you actually pay your fare into.  A woman is inserting and inserting her pass but it's not working.  Someone else comes in and is waiting behind us and says "My pass has almost never worked in that thing."  She tells me to try mine and it works, so I leave and go upstairs and board.  At Tower City, I don't realize until I am nearly to the turnstiles that there is a guard there and people are swiping their passes to get out, so I have to fumble to find my pass, which I'd tucked back away until tomorrow, so I can swipe it to get out.  I have to swipe it 3x to get it to let me out because I can't figure out which way to put it in so it will work.  Several people are lined up to show the guard their pass because wherever they got on, their passes didn't work in the machine.  Going up the escalator I meet up with a girl from my floor who I occasionally used to ride with, she welcomes me back to work, etc. and we discuss the new payment system.  I say I felt sort of stupid and bewildered like a tourist and she said everyone hates the new system, says her pass works approximately 50% of the time and most mornings she has to show her pass to the guy to get out because it doesn't work in the machine.

 

Gee, I'm glad to be back using RTA.

That's the steb backwards with the new system.  If you are using a 5 ride or paying cash, you now have to pay/scan twice for a ride to Tower City.  While I can only speak for west side/rush hour, it is probably a tad slower and a tad more aggravating in the morning.  Evenings really have not changed, since you still just scan on the way in TC station like the old way.  Non working fare machines and turnstiles will continue to be a problem I would guess, based on past experience with RTA technology. :(

 

Monthly passes minimize the swipes and seem to scan better in the turnstiles, so that's the way to go if you ride RTA enough.

So with my Sept monthly, which I purchased when I bought the weekly, I don't need to swipe it to get on anywhere? Just to exit at Tower city?  I'll be boarding at both Brookpark and W 117th from now on, depending on the day.

Correct.  Have it handy, but just walk on through to the platform.

 

Same with your Weekly.  Once activated, it's good to the expiration time without scanning, except at Tower City.

do I have to "activate" the monthly?  Or is it activated because it's for a specific time frame, whereas the weekly could have been any week once it was activated?

The Monthly passes come pre activated. So there is no need to swipe them in the machines to activate them.  Also, you do need to swipe them when entering or exiting TC.  Kinda redundant, but it is to supposedly get user counts. 

 

Anyway I used the new machines to buy the wife a 5 ride pass and it was very convienient to pay w/ a credit card, but we couldn't figure out how to swipe them for the return trip.  Granted we had gone to Feast and had spent $70 on food and drinks, mostly drinks, so I can't really comment on their usability.

The Monthly passes come pre activated. So there is no need to swipe them in the machines to activate them. Also, you do need to swipe them when entering or exiting TC. Kinda redundant, but it is to supposedly get user counts.

 

Anyway I used the new machines to buy the wife a 5 ride pass and it was very convienient to pay w/ a credit card, but we couldn't figure out how to swipe them for the return trip. Granted we had gone to Feast and had spent $70 on food and drinks, mostly drinks, so I can't really comment on their usability.

 

I've never seen anyone be able to use the parking meter-sized activation units.  But you can activate your pass in the big machine by choosing the activate pass option as opposed to purchase pass option on the welcome screen.

I did use the big machine to activate my weekly pass, I figured that much out.  It just seemed counter-intuitive to then have a separate machine to swipe to take the ride off of it.  Maybe if that was nearer where you board or at a turnstile or something.

If you activated it when you purchased, the date and time of expiration should be on the back of the pass. If that's the case, you don't have to swipe it anywhere except at Tower City ... other Red Line stops and the Health Line stops, you just carry it and have it ready in case someone wants to inspect it.

 

I agree that the system is a bit cumbersome, but once you get the hang of it, the timing seems to be about equal with buying cards the old way, and the trip itself seems to be a couple mins. shorter now, as we're not having to wait for lines of people to punch their cards getting on the train.

Unrelated to farecards - the new non-Healthline articulated buses are now officially in action.  I saw one yesterday and one today - it seems they're mostly designated for westside-downtown usage (or at least that's what I've seen so far).

I saw one yesterday on the #26 on Detroit Avenue in Lakewood. I was shocked to see it.

OK, everybody's fussed & moaned about learning the new system and having to fumble for a few coins and/or their passes... but no one has addressed the most important issue behind the new Red Line POP: is it speeding up trains and, hence, increasing the capacity of the Red Line since drivers no longer have to schlep for individual fares?

Speaking for west side Red line, there is no speed up for rush hour service, (maybe even 10 seconds slower in AM).

For those of us that use it on weekends and late evening, it IS faster because no one is paying as they get on train.  How much faster, I am not sure.  I remember waiting at stops several minutes as a line of people tried to pay, but don't know how big a problem that really was.  On busier times on the weekends (like Browns games) they did have booth attendants at most stops, but not all, so it should be faster then too.

Like EagleFan said, not faster in the mornings due to not many people ever having to pay on the trains.  However, I have noticed that the train I take has been arriving at TC at a pretty consistant time each morning.  So I think over all it is a good thing.  And hopefully the confusion of the new payment system is ironed out once more people have used it.

Consistency in the timing is so important, glad to hear it.

I moved the Blue Line discussion to the Blue Line thread at:

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,17886.0.html

Hi Jerry/JeTDoG -

The #9 that leaves Tower City at 8:10am was either more than 10 minutes early today, more than 15 minutes late, or didn't come at all.  I was there waiting with another woman until 15 minutes after the bus was supposed to have arrived when I finally just gave up and hitched my lazy butt a ride on a 55 up to CSU to catch the Healthline.  She unfortunately had to get up Mayfield, so she kept waiting.  Since I take the exact same bus almost every morning, there are other "regulars" that I recognize, and I saw several of them sitting at the stations on Euclid as I drove by on the Healthline still waiting for it.  There was a driver change this week - the previous driver had told me that Monday would have one driver and T-F would have another, but perhaps it was Friday that was supposed to have the different driver.  I'm not sure because I've had a strange week with respect to my work schedule, so I only took my regular bus on Wednesday this week (and it was on time then).  At any rate, could you look into it?  Perhaps make sure there's actually a Friday driver?  Thanks :)

^ checking

Jerry or jetdog... is there any update on the clifton blvd, brt conversion?  There was that huge article in the spring, stating I believe that this was going to get done using stimulous funds, and I haven't heard anything yet.  Do you know what the status is of that project.

Does anyone have an idea on daily passenger counts for the Healthline?

I'd like to give a little shout out to RTA's customer service and refund department for not giving me any hassle over a refund for one of the machines that broke down on Monday.  My only issues were that I had to call between 7:30-9am and a few of the phone numbers were either disconnected or had no voice mail.  That aside, the RTA reps were polite, apologetic, and I'm getting my $10 pass this afternoon.  So thanks guys.

 

what the heck? i called RTA several times last year for a refund and they never called me back

 

and whats this about raising fares and cutting circulators? RTA needs to fix their own problems instead of taking it out on tax payers. im getting sick of them raising fares every year while reducing service.

 

If you were having issues with a refund, have you contacted our RTA reps on this very board for assistance?

 

Again, if you have issues with fares, service cuts, etc.  tell your neighbors and tax payers to call their state and federal officials and ask for more money to be allocated to transportation.  As you know we are in a recession and rta ridership is up but monies collected from sales is down..  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that, that situation, doesn't balance a budget. 

 

Lastly, how can you say this is an RTA issue when every transit system in the country is having budget issues.  RTA is one of the best managed systems from a financial standpoint.  If you proof otherwise that RTA is (has been) financial irresponsible, please share you finding with the board.

 

do you even read my message? sheesh! i already said i contacted RTA, jmasek even gave me a number to call which i did and still never got a refund. whatever, enjoy your donation. i've already written letters to state officials as have hundreds of people. you think that every problem in the world can be solved simply by writting a letter. maybe i should write a letter to end world hunger and poverty. dont tell me what to do, tell RTA to get its ass to columbus

 

RTA has shown its incompetence. cant accurately count riders, cant collect fares, cant get payment system to work properly, hire drivers who have no business behind the wheel and end up killing someone. they cut service, raise fares virtually every year now, and have the nerve to parade that "best transportation system" award around that they won how many years ago? what has RTA done about their budget deficit ? have they gone to columbus? sounds to me like all they've done is mismanagement.

 

im not providing a service to RTA, RTA is providing a service to me.

 

i really dont care what other systems in the country are doing. i have every right to complain and most of those places have better coverage than RTA does with EXPANSION.

 

fuel increase? bull, fuel prices have gone down.

 

its not even worth it to buy passes now. how much is an all day pass now? $5? almost twice the cost of what it was a few years ago.

 

RTA are crooks in suits the same way government officials are

 

i'm trying to live car-free and RTA isnt doing me any favors.

It apparent our attempts to explain the situation have gone ignored.  I honestly don't think it's worth trying to explain a thing to you - which have been laid out many times in this thread - as you've made up your mind that RTA is misappropriating funds and completely mismanaged.

 

I don't agree with everything that RTA does, but I'm realistic as to what the system can do with what money they have.

 

I asked you to give examples of financial irresponsibility and all you do is list a bunch of rants.

More annoyance with the new payment system today.

 

As I bought a one-week pass for last week and a Sept pass that isn't good til tomorrow, I needed something just for today.  There was a line of people wating for the machines at W 117th when I arrived. It's just not clear - one machine bills itself as one to use to purchase fares,the other says "pay fares."  I couldn't tell if you could actually purchase a pass at both machines or not, and I still wasn't sure if, after purchasing, I'd need to "activate" it.  I just picked one of the lines and hoped for the best. I went through the options, wanting to purchase two one-ride passes so I'd have one for today and one for the ride home.  The cursor defaults to senior citizens' pass, which to me makes no sense, but I arrowed over to the regular pass and added from zero until it said "2." Then I went through the steps to pay, but when it came time to pay it was only $4.50 and I only got a single, one-ride pass.  GRR. It was too annoying to go through all those steps all over again to buy a pass and everyone was in a hurry by this point/impatient, so I just took the pass and got out of line without "activating" it.  I put it in the little machine and it took it and stamped it with the date/time so I assume it worked w/out activating.  But it wouldn't let me out at Tower City, said it was invalid. The woman monitoring the turnstyles told me to just go ahead.  I remember my colleague saying her one-ride passes never work at TC either.  Is there a way to fix this?

So what is your solution, CTownsFinest216? If it's not a letter-writing campaign, then what?

 

Joe Calabrese has gone to Columbus many times to argue for more transit funding. He was a key person on Governor Strickland's 21st Century Transportation Priorities Task Force, chairing the Multi-Modal Transportation Subcommittee. While I like some of what the governor is doing, he proved to be completely unaware of transit's financial crisis. Calabrese told Strickland some pretty shocking numbers on how pathetic the state's financial contribution to transit is. Strickland had never heard these stats before and had no idea how small is Ohio's financial contribution to transit. Strickland and the Ohio House were prepared to boost funding for transit by about $4 million when the financial crisis hit. So instead of a boost to $20 million in 2010, the funding was cut to $10 million.

 

This is less about fuel or fiscal incompetance and more about a declining taxbase. It's about a transit agency that must rely on a sales tax in a county that has been bleeding jobs, residents and wealth to collar counties since 1970. That blood-letting is accelerating and there's nothing RTA can do about it except possibly merge with transit agencies in Lorain, Medina, Summit, Portage and Lake counties to create a truly regional transit authority and to eliminate duplicative cost centers.

 

This appears to be the only solution unless the state wakes up to the fact they can either pay for transit so people can get to work, or they can pay for general assistance to support the needy.

I asked you to give examples of financial irresponsibility and all you do is list a bunch of rants.

I think they are doing their best with expense control, except for their fuel costs.  They would have been better off if they had not locked in at a high cost ($3.17) for the past year, but they bought into the $4-a-gallon-is-here-to-stay mania and signed a bad deal. 

^They shouldn't count on the recent the fuel price fall being anything but temporary...

I was thinking the same thing as I typed that. The new "normal" is an upward trend is fuel prices. Find a way to capitalize on it.

Why are you all calling this a fare surcharge?  Oil/gas/fuelis not anticipated to decrease.  If it does is RTA planning to then discontinue the "surcharge"?

If not, then call it what it is a fare increase.

 

Assuming they used around 5 million gallons, then maybe $2+ million was overspent on fuel (by my rough math).

Sounds like their new fuels contract that kicks in soon will be a better deal.  Combine that with some leveling off/inreases in sales tax revenue and hopefully expansion, not reduction, of service will be a hot topic on this thread next year.

 

 

^Hindsight is 20/20.  It's really easy to criticise their decision to hedge their fuel purchases, but it really makes good business sense no matter what the price does.  By locking the price in at $3.17 (something most people thought was a good move) they are able to make a MUCH more accurate budget and prepare for any shortfalls that are forcast.  What if they didn't lock in their diesel price and the price went up? 

 

Hedging fuel purchases is the correct thing to do for ANY transportation company IMO.

^Hindsight is 20/20.  It's really easy to criticise their decision to hedge their fuel purchases, but it really makes good business sense no matter what the price does.  By locking the price in at $3.17 (something most people thought was a good move) they are able to make a MUCH more accurate budget and prepare for any shortfalls that are forcast.  What if they didn't lock in their diesel price and the price went up? 

 

Hedging fuel purchases is the correct thing to do for ANY transportation company IMO.

 

Can you say Southwest Airlines.  The master at fuel hedging!

Lakewood sues Greater Cleveland RTA over documents

 

Lakewood filed a lawsuit Monday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court against the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, claiming the agency has not supplied documents regarding the Lakewood circulator, which is scheduled to be eliminated Sept. 20.

Lakewood sues Greater Cleveland RTA over documents

 

Lakewood filed a lawsuit Monday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court against the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, claiming the agency has not supplied documents regarding the Lakewood circulator, which is scheduled to be eliminated Sept. 20.

 

On July 31, the city submitted a public records request seeking copies of records including ridership, audits and budgets. Between Aug. 18 and Aug. 28, RTA sent the city more than 2,500 pages, said Jerry Masek, RTA spokesman. He said it received a request Friday from Lakewood for e-mails and memos and is responding to that. RTA is eliminating its 12 circulators, which run loop routes in communities, to save money.

 

Ridiculous.  The irony is RTA is trying to cut cost, yet Lakewood wants a law suit.  Brilliant, just brilliant.  :roll:  :roll:  :roll:

Sure Lakewood, that's a way to get your circulator back - make RTA go further into the red!!!

Politics.

I haven't looked at this suit, but if that article is correct, Lakewood sued over a failure to fully respond to a public records request.  Nothing wrong with that.  But I agree that Lakewood is barking up the wrong tree if they want their circulators back.  At the same time, I think RTA has made some missteps that haven't been fully explained.  Locking in that fuel price-- without hedging in the opposite direction-- wasn't exactly their finest hour.  If the community is suffering higher fares and less service as a result, the community has a right to be upset.

I haven't looked at this suit, but if that article is correct, Lakewood sued over a failure to fully respond to a public records request.  Nothing wrong with that.  But I agree that Lakewood is barking up the wrong tree if they want their circulators back.  At the same time, I think RTA has made some missteps that haven't been fully explained.  Locking in that fuel price-- without hedging in the opposite direction-- wasn't exactly their finest hour.  If the community is suffering higher fares and less service as a result, the community has a right to be upset.

 

Hedging in the opposite direction?  Please explain that and how it's done.  Show me some evidence or company's that have it both ways.

I haven't looked at this suit, but if that article is correct, Lakewood sued over a failure to fully respond to a public records request. Nothing wrong with that. But I agree that Lakewood is barking up the wrong tree if they want their circulators back. At the same time, I think RTA has made some missteps that haven't been fully explained. Locking in that fuel price-- without hedging in the opposite direction-- wasn't exactly their finest hour. If the community is suffering higher fares and less service as a result, the community has a right to be upset.

 

Hedging in the opposite direction? Please explain that and how it's done. Show me some evidence or company's that have it both ways.

 

No.

They did hedge an amount lower than what the retail price was at the time.

 

The amount they locked in WAS BUDGETED for this year -- which has been mentioned several times here already. What wasn't budgeted was the economic decline, a continued decline in sales tax revenues and further cuts in state funding.

 

This is more of a revenue problem than an expense problem. But since RTA has less control over the revenue side, they have to attack this in a way they can control, by cutting costs.

KJP, that's not hedging.  RTA put all their (our) money on one expected outcome without anticipating any other possiblility.  To hedge would mean to place an additional bet on prices going down, alongside the bet they placed on prices going up.  Hedging is a more conservative tactic and perhaps more appropriate for public funds.  The potential gain would be lower but so would the potential loss... which has now become an actualized loss against which we have no recourse.

It's OK to overspend, as long as it is "budgeted"?  I don't understand that logic.  The budget means nothing once the year is over, it's "actual" financial results that count.  Did Revenues cover expenses, that is the important question.

The "cost" of diesel fuel is what RTA pays for it. The cost of diesel fuel is locked in at $3.17 for 2009. Because RTA is now purchasing "futures", that figure will fall to $1.85 in 2010. Thus, the fare structure that takes effect Sept. 1, 2009, will expire on March 31, 2010 (as stated in the Riders' Digest customer newsletter). This is the end of the first quarter 2010. In the coming months, the Board of Trustees will review the fare structure that will take effect on April 1, 2010.

While this makes sense, it is not what was noted in RTA's press release last year.

Directly from RTA release dated 10/10/2008:

"Because RTA was able to lock in the price of diesel fuel at $3.17 a gallon for 2009, additional fuel surcharges will not change until after Sept. 1, 2009."

"If the cost of diesel fuel drops below $3 a gallon, the surcharge goes away."

 

Here it is Sept 1, 2009 and the average street price of diesel has been well below $3 since 1/1/09, so I would have expected an announcement that the $0.25 fuels charge is gone.  (Note, I would not complain if they made this anniuncement and increased fared $.50 today.  I have no problem paying $2.25.  I just want ot know why the fuel surcharge is still here despite the plan announced last fall.[/font]

KJP, that's not hedging. RTA put all their (our) money on one expected outcome without anticipating any other possiblility. To hedge would mean to place an additional bet on prices going down, alongside the bet they placed on prices going up.

 

RTA didn't go to a bookie and bet one sports team and then go to another bookie to bet on the competing sports team. Think about what you said -- RTA would place a bet on prices going down? And who is going to take that bet? RTA apparently took the lowest price it could lock in.

 

It's OK to overspend, as long as it is "budgeted"?

 

This is all 20/20 hindsight and its pretty pointless.

RTA basically entered into a fixed price contract for up to 5 million gals of diesel fuel, and at the time, the best price was 3.17 for a period of 1 year.  there was 1 transaction, and looking back, it wasn't the most cost effective decision, but it did provide operational stability and predictability in one area that was unstable.

 

since that time, state law has changed and RTA is now buying futures contracts for smaller amounts of fuel, so there are now literally hundreds of individual transactions purchasing futures (usually on heating or fuel oil) for some number of gallons, which gets your average price.  if one month the prices don't look good, RTA doesn't have to buy.  they have essentially bought 90% of their fuel for 2010, and a growing % for 2011.

 

to the letter of their agreement, the fuel price RTA pays is still over $3, so the surcharge can stay. 

Bookie?  Sports team? 

 

How about NOT locking up the entire fuel budget for the year... i.e. leaving some to fluctuate along with the market, in case prices happen to go down.  That's how you bet on prices going down.  That's another form of hedging.  Conversely, betting the farm on "Red" is incompetence, unless one has some seriously powerful foresight.  Hindsight is indeed 20/20, and the point is that you shouldn't put all your (or the county's) eggs into one basket.

 

Edit:  the futures contracts urbanlife describes are another good approach.

This is all 20/20 hindsight and its pretty pointless.

It is hindsight, but point needs to be made.  This is a public entity. 

 

Moving on, someone explain the lack of action on the surcharge.

^It appears to me that the surcharge remains because RTA is still paying over $3 a gallon for diesel.  Seems like poor wording in the press release more than anything else. 

 

How can you expect RTA to drop the $.25 surcharge when their fuel costs have not gone down?  Doesn't make any sense.

How can you expect RTA to drop the $.25 surcharge when their fuel costs have not gone down? Doesn't make any sense.

I agree, but September 1, 2009 appeared to be an important date when the fuel charge was announced.

The resolution passed by the Board allows RTA to charge a fuel surcharge of up to 50 cents when gas costs are over $3 a gallon. To ease the burden on consumers, 25 cents took effect last year and 25 cents took effect this year. By April 1, the price RTA pays for a gallon of gas will fall to $1.85, so the fuel surcharge will go away. The Board will have to decide by that date what the future cost of service will be.

Is there any update on the clifton blvd. brt conversion? Do you know what the status is of that project?

 

http://www.riderta.com/bc_contractopps_SolicitationsDetail.ASP?listingid=890

 

Responses are due Sept. 20.

 

Description: The Clifton Transit Enhancement Program will develop a community sensitive design for the construction of transit and boulevard enhancements to transit service and the surrounding community as a result of and in response to Cleveland and Lakewood planning efforts over a number of years.

 

New curbside stations and associated platform with a family of contextually sensitive buildings that utilize standard transit stop elements such as benches, signage and waste receptacles will improve visibility, security and conform to the requirements of the ADA.

 

A landscaped median appropriate to the Cities will enhance the surrounding community and improve traffic flow on Clifton Blvd.

Hey Jerry -

Any word on what happened to last Friday's #9?  Will there be a bus for me this Friday, lol?  It seems the #9 gods are still against me, cause yesterday evening, I was waiting at Adelbert for the bus that passes Mayfield and Superior at 5:36pm.  Well, a bus finally showed up at Adelbert at the time that the next bus (passes Mayfield and Superior at 5:47pm) should've been there, and I'm assuming that it actually was the second bus and not the first running late, because the first bus goes to Severance while the second does not, and the signage on the bus only said W. Prospect, not Severance/W. Prospect.  The bus I actually got on was bus #2843, route #901 if that helps at all.  I took the #9 religiously all summer without a problem, but these past couple weeks since the feast of the Assumption have been quite rocky :(