[00:00:02]
[ATD 1. Call to Order]
AND WELCOME, UH, TO OUR BOARD MEETING.I AM LAURA CABELLA, BOARD CHAIR.
IT IS NOW FIVE 11 AND I'D LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE APRIL 28TH, 2026 A TD BOARD MEETING.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND BEGIN WITH ROLL CALL.
PRESENT ASSISTANT SECRETARY COOPER.
TRUSTEE FERNANDEZ AND TRUSTEE RETE.
DO WE HAVE QUORUM? WE DO, YES.
[ATD 2. Moment of Reflection, Pledge of Allegiance, Announcements ]
AND MOVE TO A MOMENT OF REFLECTION.I PLEDGE PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG.
FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH STANDS? ONE.
NATION, NATION UNDER GOD IN INVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE.
HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE TEXAS ONE STATE UNDER GOD, ONE AND INDIVISIBLE.
DO WE HAVE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS? NO ANNOUNCEMENTS FOR THE A TD.
UH, DO WE HAVE ANY CITIZENS TO BE HEARD FOR A TD? FOR A TD? VERY GOOD.
NOW, CITIZENS, UH, WE ARE MOVING TO AGENDA ITEM
[ATD 4. Consent Agenda ]
NUMBER FOUR, CONSENT AGENDA.ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING THAT AGENDA ITEM? IF NOT, MAY I HAVE IT? UH, A MOTION AND SECOND TO APPROVE, PLEASE.
UH, MS. ALDER, DO WE HAVE A LEGAL BRIEFING? NO, MA'AM.
ARE YOU SURE YOU AND, UH, FRANK DON'T WANNA BATTLE OVER? JUST LIKE LAST TIME? NOT TODAY.
WE REACHED THE END OF OUR MEETING.
MAY I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO END AND ADJOURN THIS MEETING, PLEASE? SO MOVED.
UH, A TD MEETING AS ADJOURNED.
WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR V MEETING.
[1. Call to Order ]
UH, LET'S SEE.IT IS NOW FIVE 13 AND I'D LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE APRIL 28TH VIA BOARD MEETING.
UH, WE'VE ALREADY, UH, DONE OUR MOMENT OF REFLECTION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS? WE WILL HOLD THAT TILL THE END OF THE MEETING.
THANK YOU, UH, CITIZENS TO BE HEARD.
[3. Citizens to be Heard ]
YES.WE HAVE ONE CITIZEN TO BE HEARD.
WE NOW COME TO C CITIZENS TO BE HEARD PORTION OF OUR MEETING.
THE BOARD IS INTERESTED IN HEARING THE COMMENTS AND CONCERNS FROM OUR PATRONS AND CITIZENS IN THE SAN ANTONIO BAYAR COUNTY AREA.
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS CONCERNING PUBLIC BUSINESS OR POLICY OVER WHICH THE BOARD HAS SUPERVISION AND CONTROL MAY BE ADDRESSED AT A LATER DAY BY THE PRESIDENT, CEO AND OR HIS STAFF.
THIS PROCESS ASSURES THAT YOU RECEIVE THE MOST ACCURATE RESPONSE TO YOUR QUESTION OR CONCERN.
AND VIA APPRECIATES YOU TAKING THE TIME AND EFFORT TO SHARE YOUR COMMENTS WITH US THIS EVENING.
OUR FIRST, OUR SPEAKER THIS AFTERNOON IS MR. LEON MAISON.
MY NAME IS REVEREND LEON MAISON AND I'M HERE ABOUT MY, MYSELF AND MY SERVICE DOG.
I'VE BEEN HAVING ISSUES WITH VIA TRANS ON HELPING BOARDING MY SERVICE DOG ON VIA TRANS, OR REFUSING TO PICK ME UP, DO THE FACT THAT THEY DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT THE HELP THAT I NEED FOR MY SERVICE.
EXAMPLE, WHEN I GOT OUT, TRIED TO GET ON THE BUS LAST WEDNESDAY, I ASKED THE OPERATOR, CAN YOU PLEASE ESCORT MY SERVICE DOG ONTO THE BUS, ONTO THE SERVICE STRANDS? SHE SAID, NO, I WILL NOT.
SHE CALLED UP YOUR OFFICE SUPERVISOR EVEN SAID, NO, YOU ARE NOT.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT VIA WANTS TO SHOW TOWARDS PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, ESPECIALLY WITH A SERVICE DOG THAT WEIGHS ROUGHLY A HUNDRED POUNDS.
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WHEELCHAIR WITH A PERSON ON BOARD, AND YOU WANNA TRY AND PUT 'EM ON THAT LIFT ALL AT ONE TIME? I DON'T THINK SO.I REITERATE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT IT.
WEDNESDAY, I, THE BUS SHOWED UP TWO MINUTES EARLY.
I WAS STILL OUTSIDE TRYING TO GET MY SERVICE DOG TO DO HER LADY STUFF.
WHEN I GOT THERE, I ASKED THE OPERATOR, CAN YOU PLEASE HOLD ON A MINUTE WHILE I GET MY SERVICE DOG READY? NO, WE CANNOT DO THAT.
WE LEAVE IN THREE, IN TWO MINUTES.
SHE GOT THERE TWO MINUTES PRIOR TO THE TIME I'M SUPPOSED TO LEAVE, AND I WAS STILL IN THE PROCESS OF GETTING MY SERVICE DOG DONE FINE.
SHE CALLED UP THE OFFICE AND THE OFFICE SAYS, YOU GIVE HIM TWO MINUTES, AND IF HE'S NOT ON THE BUS LEAVE, I SAID, OKAY.
OPERATOR, CAN YOU PLEASE ESCORT MY SERVICE DOG ON THE TRANS? NO, WE'RE NOT ALLOWED TO DO THAT.
SHE CALLED UP AGAIN, SUPERVISOR, SAID, NO, IF HE'S NOT ON A BUS LEAVE, SHE CALLED UP AND REPORT THAT I CANCELED MY RIDE.
I HAD A DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENT TO GET MY BACK CHECKED BECAUSE I'VE HAD SURGERY AND THIS OPERATOR REFUSED TO PIT ME ON WITH MY SERVICE DOG.
THERE ARE ANOTHER CITIZENS TO BE HEARD.
THANK YOU FOR COMING US TODAY.
ALL RIGHT, TRUSTEES, WE'RE GONNA HAVE MOVE
[4. Consent Agenda ]
ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FOUR.I KNOW WE'RE PULLING ITEMS, UH, E WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND PULL, UH, AGENDA ITEM A AS WELL.
UH, ANY OTHER AGENDA ITEMS TO PULL FOR CONSIDERATION? AGENDA ITEM AYE, PLEASE.
MAY WE HAVE A MOTION AND SECONDARY APPROVE THE C CONSENT AGENDA WITHOUT THOSE ITEMS? SO MOVED.
UH, ANY OPPOSED? UH, ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.
[Items 4.A., 4.E., & 4.I.]
UH, FOUR A, JUST PULLING IN BECAUSE OF, YOU KNOW WHY.THAT WAY OUR CONTRACTOR, THEY'RE, YEAH.
THIS IS A CONTRACT MODIFICATION FOR TEMPORARY PARATRANSIT RESERVATION AGENTS.
THIS CONTRACT WILL ALLOW US TO PROVIDE 10 ADDITIONAL RESERVATION AGENTS FOR ONE YEAR EXTENSION.
UH, THE REASON FOR THIS IS BECAUSE OF THE DEMAND THAT WE'RE SEEING WITH OUR, UH, PARATRANSIT RESERVATIONISTS.
THE NUMBERS ARE OF OUTPACED, UH, WHAT OUR CURRENT INTERNAL RESOURCES ARE DEDICATED TO PROVIDING.
SO WE'RE SEEKING APPROVAL TO BE ABLE TO EXTEND THE CONTRACT TO ADD 10 ADDITIONAL RESERVATION AGENTS FOR A TOTAL OF 20 AGENTS AVAILABLE TO US.
THIS WILL BE A ONE YEAR EXTENSION ON THE CONTRACT WITH THE TERM TO EXPIRE IN MAY, 2027.
THE, UH, GOOD EVENING, THE ONE YEAR EXTENSION IS FOR $1.478 MILLION FOR A TOTAL CONTRACT VALUE OF 2.9 $2,939,062.
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I KNOW WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF THIS DISCUSSION LAST WEEK DURING WORK SESSION, BUT, UM, AS YOU'VE HEARD TODAY, FOR OUR CITIZENS TO BE HEARD, PARATRANSIT, UM, STILL HAS A LOT OF WAYS, UH, TO MOVE FORWARD AND IN DIFFERENT COMPLAINTS AND MM-HMM.
RESPONSES, AND I KNOW THIS IS AN ADDITIONAL, UM, MODIFICATION FOR RESERVATION AGENTS YES.
FROM A THIRD PARTY CONTRACTOR.
AND SO, UH, JUST IF, IF WE CAN JUST REITERATE THE CONVERSATION WE HAVE LAST WEEK, UM, REGARDING TRAINING FOR OUR AGENTS AND WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? UM, AND THEN RESPONSES OF HOW WE, UH, WHEN WE DO HAVE CUSTOMER FEEDBACK, HOW DO WE CLOSE A LOOP BACK WITH THEM? IF IN THIS INSTANCE THAT WE JUST HEARD, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS AN INTERACTION, UM, UH, DURING A TRIP, DO WE EVER, AFTER WE GO THROUGH AND DO AN AFTER ACTION, DO WE EVER DO CLOSE A LOOP IF THERE'S MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS FROM A, A CUSTOMER? YES.
WE DO HAVE A PR A PRETTY ROBUST, UH, PROGRAM IN PLACE FOR CUSTOMERS TO PRE TO PRESENT THEIR CONCERNS TO US, BOTH
[00:10:01]
ON THE BUS SIDE AND THE PARATRANSIT SIDE.SO ONCE THOSE, UH, CONCERNS COME INTO US, WE DO MEET WITH THE DEPARTMENTS AND REACH OUT TO THEM ABOUT THE CONCERNS THAT ARE MADE.
AND THEN WE DO FOLLOW UP TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE GETTING BACK TO THE CUSTOMER ABOUT THE, UM, ISSUES THAT THEY WERE, UM, THAT THEY EXPERIENCED, AND MAKING SURE THAT WE ADDRESS THEM.
SO, FOR EXAMPLE, TODAY IN OUR AUDIENCE, WE DO HAVE SOMEBODY FROM OUR CONCERNS TEAM WHO'S TAKEN THE INFORMATION THAT THIS GENTLEMAN HAS PRESENTED TO US THIS EVENING, AND THEN WE'LL FOLLOW UP WITH THE, UM, OPERATIONS SIDE OF THE PARATRANSIT AREA TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT THIS IS ADDRESSED.
AND THEN WE WILL GET BACK TO THE CUSTOMER.
AND SO THE PARATRANSIT RESERVATION IS, WHAT THEY DO IS THAT THEY TAKE THE RESERVATION, MAKE SURE THAT WE, UH, SCHEDULED IT FOR THE CUSTOMER SO THEY CAN GET TO THEIR DESTINATION.
AND THEN ANY, UH, CONCERNS THEY HAVE REGARDING THEIR EXPERIENCE WITH US, WE DO HAVE A TEAM THAT DOES LOOK AT THOSE ON BOTH THE BUS AND PARATRANSIT SIDE.
AND THEN THEY CAN ALSO CONTACT US IF THEY'VE LOST AN ITEM ON THEIR, THE VEHICLE THAT THEY'VE LEFT BEHIND.
AND WE, WE TRACK DOWN ANY KIND OF CONCERN OR QUESTION THAT THE CUSTOMER MAY HAVE.
AND, AND SO TELL ME ABOUT THE PROCESS, BOTH FROM AN INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL, A CONTRACTOR PERSPECTIVE, AND THEN AN INTERNAL INTERNAL PERSPECTIVE.
WE HAVE ISSUES WITH OUR OWN INTERNAL TEAM OF, OF, YOU KNOW, PARTICULAR COMPLAINTS AGAINST THAT SINGULAR INDIVIDUAL, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS OUR RESPONSE WITH THEM AND HOW DO WE OPERATE FROM A, UM, A CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE PERSPECTIVE.
AND THEN EXTERNALLY, WE, WE KNOW WE HAVE CONTRACTORS THAT HELP SUPPORT US.
WHAT IS, UH, OUR, OUR, UH, RESPONSE WITH THEM, RIGHT? SO THE, THIS PARTICULAR CONTRACT IS TO HELP US INTAKE CALLS, TO SCHEDULE THE TRIPS.
SO THEY DON'T WORK ON THE CONCERNS LINE.
THEIR GOAL IS TO HELP US ANSWER OUR CALLS WHEN THE CUSTOMER CALLS IN, AND THEN MAKE CERTAIN THAT, UH, THEY GET THROUGH TO US SO THAT WE CAN SCHEDULE THE TRIP THAT THEY HAVE TO TAKE ALL CONCERNS, UH, THAT COME INTO US, OR QUESTIONS ABOUT OUR SERVICE THAT'S HANDLED STRICTLY BY OUR VIA TEAM.
SO WHAT THEY DO, THEY ARE TRAINED, WE'VE GOT A SMALL TEAM OF FIVE INDIVIDUALS WHO THAT'S WHAT THEY DO ALL DAY.
THEY TAKE IN CONCERNS, THEY ANSWER, UH, THEY WORK WITH THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS TO COME UP WITH A RESPONSE OR SOME KIND OF ACTIVATION THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN RESPONSE TO THE CONCERNS THAT WERE MADE.
AND THEN IT ALSO GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO, UH, PERFECT WHAT WE DO.
YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES THROUGH THE CUSTOMER WE'LL LEARN THINGS THAT MIGHT BE HAPPENING IN CERTAIN AREAS, AND THEN THAT ALLOWS US TO ADDRESS 'EM.
AND SO THE QUESTIONS COULD BE, OR THE CONCERNS COULD BE ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE, UH, WRITING OUR SERVICE, BUT THEY CAN ALSO CONTACT US IF THEY SEE LITTER AT A BUS STOP, IF THEY SEE SOMETHING ELSE THAT HAS HAPPENED THAT THEY THINK, UH, OUR RESPON WE COULD HELP, UH, IMPROVE THE RESPONSIVENESS TO THAT.
AND I KNOW THIS IS A, A PRETTY SUBSTANTIAL, UH, CONTRACT IN TOTAL.
WHEN WE THINK ABOUT IT, THIS IS OUR THIRD MODIFICATION, AND WE'RE DOING THIS JUST BECAUSE OF THE GROWTH IN A NEED, UM, FOR AGENTS, FOR PARATRANSIT.
IN PARTICULAR, THIS IS FOR OUR PARATRANSIT SIDE.
WE HAVE 10, UH, EMPLOYEES FROM MV TRANSIT.
WE'RE ADDING AN ADDITIONAL 10 JUST SO THAT WE CAN MEET THE GROWTH OF THE CALLS THAT ARE COMING INTO THE PARATRANSIT SIDE.
YOU KNOW, WE ARE, HAVE AN AGING POPULATION, AND THEN WE HAVE INDIVIDUALS WHO DO SUFFER FROM DISABILITIES REGARDLESS OF THEIR AGE.
AND SO THIS ALLOWS US TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THE CALL IN A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME.
WE TRY TO GET THE CALLS ANSWERED, UH, WITHIN TWO MINUTES, TWO TO THREE MINUTES SO THAT WE CAN, UM, GET THEM OFF THE, OFF THE HOLD LINE AND THEN ALSO TAKE CARE OF WHAT THEIR NEEDS ARE.
BUT, UM, THIS WILL HAVE, THIS WILL GIVE US 20 ADDITIONAL UP TO 20 ADDITIONAL RESERVATIONISTS IF NEEDED.
WE MAY NOT NEED ALL OF THEM AT ANY GIVEN TIME, BUT WE'D LIKE KNOWING THE SECURITY OF HAVING THEM AVAILABLE TO US.
MEANWHILE, WE, WE HAVE, UH, AS WE INSTITUTE THIS NEW, UH, PROGRAM, THIS NEW SOFTWARE FOR PARATRANSIT.
ONE OF THE IDEAS THAT WE'RE IMMEDIATELY, UH, INTERESTED IN EXPLORING IS THE, ABOUT A THIRD OF THE CALLS THAT COME INTO THE CALL CENTER THAT'S BEING HANDLED NOT ONLY BY THIS CONTRACT, BUT BY OUR, OUR, OUR VIA EMPLOYEES IS WHERE'S MY VAN? RIGHT.
THE SOFTWARE THAT WE'RE INS THAT, THAT WE'RE INSTALLING AND GETTING TRAINED ON AS WE SPEAK, IS GONNA BE ABLE TO GIVE THAT INFORMATION PROACTIVELY TO THE CONSUMER, TO, TO OUR RIDERS.
AND IT'S, IT'S GONNA IDEALLY PREVENT A PHONE CALL FROM COMING IN.
THEY DON'T HAVE THAT INSIGHT OUR CUSTOMERS TODAY.
UH, SO IT'S NATURAL FOR THEM TO CALL US AND ASK US, WHERE'S MY VAN? BUT NOW WE'RE
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GONNA BE ABLE TO HAND THEM A TOOL THAT SAYS EXACTLY WHERE IS THEIR VAN.KINDA LIKE THE WAY YOU FOLLOW IT ON UBER, UH, IN THOSE TYPES OF, OF, OF, OF SYSTEMS. RIGHT.
THIS WILL ELIMINATE THE NEED FOR A CALL BECAUSE THEY'LL HAVE AN APP AVAILABLE TO THEM AND THEY CAN ACTUALLY SEE WHERE THEIR VAN IS, HOW SOON IT WILL ARRIVE.
AND WE DO BELIEVE THAT THAT'S GOING TO, UM, MAKE A, A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE CALLS THAT COME IN, BECAUSE THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DO THAT WITHOUT HAVING TO CALL US.
WELL, I AGREE WITH YOU IN CONCEPT.
I DON'T NECESSARILY AGREE WITH YOU ON THAT JUST BECAUSE I KNOW OUR AGING POPULATION YES.
TYPICALLY DOES NOT LIKE TO USE TECHNOLOGY.
AND THEY'RE STILL RELYING ON PHONE, YOU KNOW, PERSON TO PERSON.
UM, SO I, I DO THINK AS WE CONTINUE TO THINK ABOUT GROWTH, THIS IS SOMETHING, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS GONNA BE PART OF OUR BUDGET DISCUSSION, UH, FOR, FOR THIS COMING FALL.
UH, TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE, UH, ADEQUATELY, UH, STAFF, OUR, OUR AGENCY FOR THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, $3 MILLION.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS WORTH CONSIDERING INTERNAL EMPLOYEES OR EXTERNAL, UM, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS THAT WE HAVE.
AND I KNOW THE APP IS GONNA MAKE IT MORE EFFICIENT AT THE SAME TIME.
AND THEN WE'RE DOING SOME MODIFICATIONS AT THE SAME TIME WITH OUR, OUR SERVICES.
SO ALTOGETHER, I'M HOPING THAT A BETTER EXPERIENCE WILL, WILL BE, UM, PROVIDED TO OUR CUSTOMERS.
BUT, UH, I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING FOR US TO REALLY TAKE A LOOK AT AS YOU BRING US BACK THE BUDGET SUMMER.
AND WE'VE, WE ARE STARTING TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THAT.
WE DO KNOW THAT THE APP IS NOT FOR EVERYBODY.
IT'S JUST ANOTHER TOOL IN THE TOOLBOX FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO USE IT.
A LOT OF OUR CUSTOMERS ARE AGING.
THEY PREFER TO TALK TO AN AGENT.
A LOT OF THEM HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR AGENTS 'CAUSE THEY CALL SO FREQUENTLY TO GET THEIR TRIPS SCHEDULED.
AND WE'RE REALLY PROUD OF THE TEAM AND THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING.
AND JOHN, GARY AND I HAVE ALREADY TALKED ALSO ABOUT HOW DO WE DO THIS MOVING FORWARD? BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO JUST GET MORE CUSTOMERS ON THE SERVICE, NOT OFF OF IT.
AND THERE ARE OPTIONS AVAILABLE TO US.
ONE OF THEM IS HOW MUCH CAN WE BRING IN INTERNALLY AND NOT HAVE TO RELY ON AN EXTERNAL, UH, CONTRACTOR TO HELP WITH THAT.
THEN THOSE WHO WANT TO USE, UH, THE APP SO THEY CAN SEE WHEN THEIR VAN'S ARRIVING, THEY'LL HAVE THAT TOOL AVAILABLE TO THEM.
SO OUR GOAL IS NOT TO TRANSITION FROM ONE, UH, PROCESS TO ANOTHER, BUT TO JUST REALLY EXTEND THE MENU OF THINGS THAT WE PROVIDE OUR CUSTOMERS TO MAKE THE EXPERIENCE A GOOD ONE FOR THEM.
AND, AND IT'S A COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS.
I THINK, YOU KNOW, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT I'M A PRO ONE THING OR ANOTHER.
I JUST THINK WE NEED TO BE PRUDENT ABOUT LOOKING THE FUTURE, UH, GROWTH OF THIS AND THE CONTINUED, UH, AVAILABILITY AND, AND THE NEEDS FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, TRUSTEE ATA, YOU HAVE A QUESTION? YES.
I WOULD BE VERY INTERESTED IN THE ANALYTICS OF IT AND HOW MANY SENIORS HAVE USED IT OR DO USE IT BECAUSE IT, I THINK IT'S AN EDUCATIONAL PROCESS.
AND JUST LIKE WITH UBER, I MEAN, A LOT OF MY FRIENDS WERE SAYING, I'M NOT GONNA USE THAT THING EXACTLY.
BUT ONCE THEY LEARN, THEY'RE ON IT ALL THE TIME.
AND SO IT'S, IT'S ABOUT AN EDUCATIONAL PROCESS.
MAYBE WE COULD INCLUDE IN THE SYSTEM, UH, IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SYSTEM.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT DOING, WE'VE ALREADY TALKED, UH, EDDIE AND I AND THE TEAM HAVE TALKED ABOUT, IS VISITING SOME OF THE ADULT DAYCARE CENTERS SO THAT WE CAN HAVE SOMEBODY THERE ON THE PREMISES TALKING TO THE SENIORS, SHOWING THEM HOW TO USE IT FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO USE IT.
OR EVEN THE EMPLOYEES WHO WORK THERE AT THOSE FACILITIES.
BECAUSE WHILE OUR CUSTOMER MAY NOT WANNA USE IT, THE ADULT DAYCARE CENTER MAY WANNA BE ABLE TO HAVE ACCESS TO IT SO THEY CAN SEE ALSO AND HELP THEIR CLIENTS OUT WITH WHEN A VAN MAY BE, MAY BE ARRIVING.
BUT WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT, UH, VARIOUS OPTIONS ON WHAT'S AVAILABLE.
AN OPTION THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE IS WITH THE OASIS PROGRAM THAT HAS 28,000 SENIORS AND I'M ON THEIR BOARD, SO I CAN OH, GREAT.
WE MIGHT BE TAPPING INTO YOU 'CAUSE WE DO WANNA TALK TO AS MANY SENIORS AS POSSIBLE.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY COOPER, YOU HAVE A QUESTION.
SO WHAT TRIGGERS, IS IT YOUR PHONE NUMBER THAT TRIGGERS WHERE YOUR RIDE, WHERE YOUR VAN IS? OR HOW, HOW DO THEY GET THAT ON THE APP? DO THEY HAVE TO PUT SOMETHING IN? UM, THEY'LL, BUT I'M JUST TRYING TO THINK THE STEPS, PHYSICAL STEPS.
THEY'LL HAVE AN ACCOUNT AVAILABLE TO THEM AND THEN THEY CAN BE ABLE TO TRACK THEIR, THE TRIPS THAT THEY'VE SCHEDULED, HOW IT LOOKS ON, YOU KNOW, THE MAP AND MAPPING OF THAT.
UM, SO WHAT OUR GOAL WOULD BE TO DO, UH, WHAT OUR GOAL WILL BE MOVING FORWARD IS TO JUST MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE'VE GOT EVERYBODY TRAINED ON HOW TO USE THAT.
UM, OUR STAFF, OF COURSE, WILL BE TRAINED SHOULD ANYBODY CALL IN, BUT ALSO WORKING WITH THE CENTERS THAT WE BELIEVE HAVE ENOUGH OF A CLIENTELE THAT THEY MIGHT WANT TO USE THIS SERVICE AND MAKING SURE THEY'RE AWARE OF IT.
BUT THEY'LL USE IT JUST AS THEY DO, UM, AN APP RIGHT NOW ON UBER OR ANYTHING ELSE.
THEY'LL BE ABLE TO SEE WHERE THEIR VAN IS AND WHEN IT'S ARRIVING THE SCHEDULE IT SO YOU THINK
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THEY LOOK ON THEIR PHONE AND THEN SHOW THE, YOU KNOW, THE PERSON WHO'S IN THE ADULT DAYCARE OR WHATEVER? UH, THEY, THEY CAN DO THAT, YES.BUT THEY'LL BE BOARDING, THEY'LL BE, THEY'LL BE BOARDING OUR VEHICLE TO GET ONTO THE VAN.
SO THAT'S WHAT THEY'LL BE LOOKING FOR.
SO THEIR PHONE NUMBER ITSELF WON'T TRIGGER, LIKE THEY'LL HAVE AN, THEY'LL HAVE AN ACCOUNT WITH US.
MY, MY, MY NUMBER FOR VIA, FOR VIA TRANS RIGHT.
WILL BE PROGRAMMED INTO THE APP OF THEIRS.
THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO FIND OUT IF IT WILL BE.
SO WILL IT BE SENSITIVE TO THEIR PHONE NUMBER AND TIED INTO IT? YES.
AND I'LL, I THINK RA KELLY, IS SHE IN THE AUDIENCE? I'M SORRY.
I DON'T MEAN TO ASK SO MANY DETAIL S NO, I'M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WOULD WORK.
BUT IS SHE, I THINK SHE WAS HERE EARLY.
WHAT, WHAT EX HI, HOW ARE YOU MR. COOPER? WHAT, WHAT WAS EXACTLY THE QUESTION AGAIN? I'M SORRY.
I WAS JUST SEEING IF I CALLED IN 'CAUSE I'M A VIA TRANS, UM, CUSTOMER.
DOES MY PHONE NUMBER TRIGGER INTO YOUR SYSTEM? SO IT WOULD SHOW ME MY ROUTE OR CAN AUTOMATICALLY TELL ME WHERE THE VAN IS, OR JUST WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THEY CALL, YOU KNOW, ON THAT APP OR LOOK ON THAT APP FOR WHERE IS MY VAN? I MEAN, HOW DO THEY, HOW DOES THAT WORK AND WHAT DO THEY SEE? SO THE NEW, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE NEW RIDE CO OUT? YES.
THE APPLICATION AND WELL, I'LL SEND YOU A COPY OF THE DEMO.
SO YOU HAVE, UH, YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REMOVE REVIEW IT.
UH, BUT TYPICALLY YOU HAVE AN ACCOUNT SET UP AND IT HAS YOUR INFORMATION IN THERE.
WHEN YOU BOOK THE TRIP, YOU PUT IN YOUR PICKUP LOCATION, IT'S GONNA HAVE SOME HISTORY IN YOUR DROP OFF LOCATION.
ONCE THAT TRIP IS SOLIDIFIED, UH, AND IT'S IN THAT TIMEFRAME, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO LOOK, LIKE YOU SAID, UBER TECHNOLOGY OR ANY TYPE OF SMARTPHONE APPLICATION.
YOU'LL BE ABLE TO TRACK YOUR TRIP, WHERE IS MY VAN? AND IT'LL SHOW THE VAN TOGGLING TO YOU.
SO, AND, AND IT'S REAL TIME INFORMATION.
WE'RE USING, UH, A TELEMETRY AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE NEW GEO, UH, IT SOUNDS RIGHT.
PS SYSTEMS, IT, IT'S PRETTY GOOD.
SO LIKE WE'RE, WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF TRAINING AND WE'RE IN THE, UH, IN THE FINAL STAGES OF GETTING SOME THINGS TUNED UP.
SO WHEN WE LAUNCH IT, WE, YOU KNOW, WE ELIMINATE AS MANY ISSUES AS WE CAN.
ARE THERE PILOTS GOING ON WITH MAYBE CERTAIN, UM, AUDIENCES ON, ON GETTING ANY FEEDBACK? YES.
UH, WE, A FEW WEEKS, UH, ABOUT A MONTH AND A HALF AGO, UH, WE OPENED IT UP, UH, TO INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL.
UH, SOME BOARD MEMBERS HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW MM-HMM
AND WE'VE BEEN SOLICITING FEEDBACK AND WE'VE GOTTEN SOME VERY VALUABLE FEEDBACK.
UH, WE'VE MADE SOME ADJUSTMENTS AND SOME CHANGES.
SO ONCE WE, UH, LAUNCH THE SOFTWARE AND THE PLATFORM AND IT'S WORKING AND UPDATED, WE'LL LAUNCH THE KIND OF, THE APP WILL COME SHORTLY THEREAFTER.
UH, AND THEN WE WILL, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, IT'S A MOVING TARGET SO WE CAN MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENTS AS NEEDED.
SO I'M, SO I'M GOING BACK TO THE QUEST, THE, UH, FOUR A ABOUT THE DISCUSSION OF, UM, THE, THE, OH MY GOSH, I'M SO SORRY.
UM, WHEN TAKING A RE SO I'M, NOW I'M GONNA ASK MORE ON LIKE THE, THE USER EXPERIENCE SIDE.
WHEN MAKING A RESERVATION, OUR RIDERS ARE ABLE TO MAKE A DESIGNATION THAT THEY NEED, UM, SPACE FOR THEIR SERVICE DOG OR SOME OTHER ACTION.
SO THEN IS THAT INFORMATION BEING RELAYED TO THE O TO THE, UM, IS IT BEING CA LIKE, I KNOW IT'S BEING CAPTURED SOMEWHERE, BUT HOW IS THIS BEING COMMUNICATED THEN TO AN OPERATOR WHERE THEY DO GET THAT CHANCE TO MAYBE SAY WE, I, I EITHER, FOR SOME REASON THEY ARE SOMETHING, IS SOME, SOMETHING ABOUT A DOG, YOU KNOW, OR A SERVICE ANIMAL SERVICE ANIMALS CAN BE WHATEVER.
THEY'RE ALLERGIC, THEY'RE THIS, THEY'RE THAT.
SO WHAT HAPPENS IS YOU HAVE A PROFILE SET UP YEP.
ON YOUR CUSTOMER FACING APP, WHICH YOU'RE GONNA HAVE.
AND YOU SEE, YOU PUT THAT INFORMATION IN.
HOWEVER, IF YOU DO NEED TO CHANGE SOME THINGS, IT'S REAL TIME.
AND WHEN THE TRIP COMES UP, UH, THE DRIVER'S MANIFEST IS, IS NOT GIVEN TO HIM AT THE BEGINNING OF THE DAY.
SO AFTER, IF I'M AN OPERATOR, I DROP OFF MY PASSENGER, MY NEXT PASSENGER, I'LL HAVE THAT INFORMATION AND IT WILL RELAY REAL TIME ANY PERTINENT INFORMATION THAT'S PUT INTO THE SYSTEM THAT YOU WOULD PUT IN SERVICE ANIMAL ALLERGIC, YOU KNOW.
YOU KNOW, LITTLE SPECIFICS ABOUT THE TRIP.
SO YES, IT, IT DOES HAVE REAL TIME INFORMATION.
I WONDER IF THERE'S A WAY THEN THAT WE COULD ALSO DO LIKE A DESIGNATION FOR SIZE
[00:25:01]
OF SERVICE ANIMAL, BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT MAYBE THAT, THAT JUST COULD BE ONE BARRIER.SO I'LL CHECK INTO THAT AND GET BACK WITH YOU.
I MEAN, JUST A LITTLE ADDED TOUCH.
AND, AND THAT'S THE CURRENT PROCESS, THAT IS NOT THE GO-TO PROCESS, CORRECT? BOTH.
WE BOTH HAVE REALTIME INFORMATION.
WE RELAY THAT CURRENTLY TO OUR OPERATORS IN THE VAN THROUGH THE MDT, BUT THE NEW SYSTEM WILL HAVE THAT AND IT'LL HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE CAPABILITY AND ADJUSTMENTS.
BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU'RE ON THE PHONE THOUGH? IF YOU'RE ON THE PHONE, IF YOU'RE TAKING A PHONE CALL, UM, AS PER FOUR A IS ABOUT THAT IS, UM, THE ADDITIONAL 10 TEMPORARY INDIVIDUALS IS THAT ARE, ARE RIDER, WHEN THEY MAKE THE PHONE CALL, ARE THEY ABLE TO SAY, I HAVE A SERVICE ANIMAL.
SO THEN WHEN THE OPERATOR'S COLLECTING THIS INFORMATION, THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO GET AT, BECAUSE THEY WON'T GET AN APP.
THERE'S NO APP FOR A PROFILE FOR THIS INDIVIDUAL.
SO CURRENTLY YOU'RE TALKING IN CURRENT, I'M CUR YEAH, SURE.
IF AN OPERATOR, IF YOU'RE A PASSENGER AND YOU WOULDN'T NEED TO MAKE AN ADJUSTMENT IN YOUR TRIP, THE OPERATOR CAN DO THAT.
THEY TRANSFER YOU TO THE DISPATCH.
UH, OR TO THE, UH, SCHEDULING AND SCHEDULING PUTS IT IN THE COMPUTER.
WHICH COMES UP ON THE MDT LOCATED IN THE VAN.
NOT SO MUCH QUESTION, JUST MORE COMMENTS.
AND I JUST WANNA ECHO WHAT, UH, CHAIR KAILA SAID.
I THINK, UM, AS THIS GROWS OR AS THE NEED BECOMES MORE PREVALENT OR, OR RECOGNIZED, THEN WE SHOULD CONSIDER OR AT LEAST STUDY WHAT IT WOULD MEAN TO BRING THESE FOLKS IN HOUSE.
ESPECIALLY FOR SOMETHING THAT IS SO CRITICAL IN TERMS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE.
WE WOULD WANT THOSE FOLKS TO BE OUR FOLKS WHO ARE TRAINED, UH, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH OUR, WITH OUR STUFF.
AND AGAIN, THERE'S NO SUB FOR PERSON TO PERSON, SO I APPRECIATE HEARING THAT THERE'S NOT REALLY A A, A SUPPLEMENT, RIGHT.
WE'RE NOT SUPPLANTING ANYTHING, WE'RE JUST COMPLIMENTING SOME OF THE OTHER THINGS, TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX.
UM, BUT THEN THE EDUCATION COMPONENT, UH, TO TO, UH, TO MY COLLEAGUE TO THE RIGHT HERE, UM, I THINK AMBASSADORS, I KNOW WE'VE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE, I DON'T KNOW IF, WHETHER IT'S AMBASSADORS WHO GO INTO THE CENTERS OR WE LOOK AT OUR ROUTES THAT HAVE A MORE, A HIGHER PROPENSITY OR JUST FOLKS WHO RIDE VIA TRANS, YOU KNOW, FOR THE DAY, WHO CAN SIT THERE AND DURING THE RIDE, HELP FOLKS WITH THEIR PHONES SO THAT IN REAL TIME THEY'RE GETTING THAT.
'CAUSE I THINK, AGAIN, WITH ALL OF THE TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX, WE, WE DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO PROVIDE SOMETHING THAT, UH, EVERYBODY NEEDS.
ANY, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? VERY GOOD.
YEAH, AND I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR GOAL ALWAYS IS TO MAKE THE EXPERIENCE AS BEST AS WE CAN MAKE IT FOR THE CUSTOMER.
SO THAT'S ALWAYS FIRST AND FOREMOST ON OUR MINDS.
AND SO WE'LL MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT THE EXPERIENCE DOESN'T CHANGE FOR THE CUSTOMER.
IT'S KINDA LIKE YOU SAID, IT'S ANOTHER TOOL IN THE TOOLBOX.
BUT WE ALSO UNDERSTAND OUR CUSTOMERS ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT SOME OF THEM WON'T GRAVITATE TO THE APP.
AND WE'LL KEEP DOING WHAT WE ARE DOING AND WE WILL BE LOOKING AT INTERNALLY, UH, HOW OUR, UH, HOW OUR STAFFING IS SET UP.
DO WE NEED TO ADD MORE TO THAT? DO WE, YOU KNOW, SO THE, THIS IS, UH, SOMETHING THAT WE TALK ABOUT ALL THE TIME AND TO LOOK AT HOW WE CAN MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO BETTER SERVE OUR CUSTOMER.
THAT'S THE ULTIMATE GOAL FOR US.
UH, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM E AND THEN WE'LL TAKE A VOTE AT THE END.
UH, FOR THE ONES THAT WERE PULLED, IS THAT OKAY? OKAY.
[00:30:02]
THERE WE GO.SINCE WE UH, I SAW THIS PRESENTATION LAST WEEK, YOU DON'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE FULL DECK, BUT IF YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND GO TOP LINE ABSOLUTELY.
AND THEN WE HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
UH, I'LL START AT THE BEGINNING.
JESSICA, DO YOU WANNA COME UP HERE? YEP.
THANK WHY YOU TURN THE MICROWAVE SO QUICKLY.
UH, SO I WILL BE PRESENTING TODAY ON OUR NEW GO VIA APP.
UM, THIS IS, UH, SCHEDULED TO BE LAUNCHED NEXT MONTH, WHICH IS EXCITING INTERNALLY, UH, FOR A LOT OF TESTING, A LOT OF SANDBOX, UH, EXPERIMENTS AND EVERYTHING.
MAKE SURE WE HAVE THE RIGHT, UH, SOLUTION, UH, AND THEN JUNE TO THE PUBLIC.
UM, SO, UH, AS FAR AS EVERYTHING GOES, CURRENT RIDER EXPERIENCE IS FRAGMENTED.
UH, FROM WHAT WE CAN SEE, UH, OUR CURRENT APPLICATIONS, THEY DO WORK.
HOWEVER, UH, WE COULD IMPROVE ON THE OPERATIONS THAT WE HAVE.
THEY COULD BE SIMPLER FOR OUR RIDER.
UH, TRIP LINING TOOLS JUST DON'T CONNECT ACROSS THE SYSTEM.
UH, RIDERS LOSE CONFIDENCE WHEN THOSE TOOLS DON'T ALIGN.
AND SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE RESOLVING THAT AS WE BUILD OUT OUR SYSTEMS WITH NEW SERVICE OFFERINGS, UH, ACROSS THE, THE SYSTEM.
UH, SO THIS IS CURRENTLY WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE.
UH, YOU HAVE TO GO TO DIFFERENT APPS FOR DIFFERENT THINGS WHEN IT COMES TO PLAN, PAY, AND RIDE.
UH, AND NOT TO MENTION THERE'S A LOT OF PAYMENT CONFUSION, WHICH IS CAUSES A LOT OF ANXIETY FOR OUR RIDERS WHEN YOU GET ON THE BUS.
I REMEMBER WHEN I MOVED BACK TO SAN ANTONIO, I TRIED TO GET ON THE BUS WITH EXACT CHANGE AND I WAS LIKE, WHAT IS EXACT CHANGE? AND THAT IS STILL THE CASE WHEN WE HAVE NEW RIDERS COMING ON THAT PAY FOR EVERYTHING ELSE THROUGH A MOBILE APP OR THROUGH GOOGLE PAY OR APPLE PAY.
UH, SO THE FUTURE STATE LOOKS LIKE THIS WITH THE NEW APP, UH, PLANNED TRIPS ACROSS FIXED ROUTE AND VIA LINK ALL IN ONE PLACE.
YOU GET TO SEE REAL TIME ARRIVALS AND SERVICE UPDATES IN THAT APP.
AND YOU GET TO DISCOVER LOCAL EVENTS THAT WE PLACE ON THOSE APPS.
SO, UH, LET'S SAY FOR A FILM FESTIVAL, WE COULD ACTUALLY PUT NOT ONLY THE NOTICE OF THE FILM FESTIVAL COMING UP, BUT YOU CAN PURCHASE YOUR TICKET TO THE FILM FESTIVAL AND YOU CAN PURCHASE YOUR RIDE TO THAT FILM FESTIVAL ALL IN ONE PLACE.
UH, IN ADDITION TO THAT, YOU GET CONSISTENT TRIP INFORMATION ACROSS THE SYSTEM.
SO AGAIN, THERE'S NO FRAGMENTATION ACROSS VIA LINK, UH, TO YOUR, UH, FIXED ROUTE SERVICE IN, IN ADDITION TO OUR NEW A RT SERVICE BY FARES DIRECTLY IN THE APP, YOU CAN CONVERT CASH INTO MOBILE, UH, WHICH IS SOMETHING BRAND NEW THAT WE HAVEN'T HAD AS AN OFFERING IN THE PAST.
YOU CAN STORE VALUE AND MANAGE YOUR PAYMENTS ALL IN ONE PLACE, AND YOU USE THE SAME PAYMENT EXPERIENCE ACROSS ALL SERVICES.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, YOU RECEIVE ALERTS AND UPDATES WHILE YOU TRAVEL.
I DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF YOU HAVE EVER USED TRANSIT APP, BUT IT GIVES YOU AN ALERT WHEN YOU'RE GOING TO YOUR RIDE.
NOW WE HAVE THAT IN OUR OWN APP LOCALLY.
IT LETS YOU KNOW WHEN IT'S TIME TO GET OFF YOUR, GET OFF THE BUS OR JOIN THE BUS OR WHEN YOUR BUS IS COMING.
UH, OVERALL WE'VE ALIGNED THIS WITH OUR PILLARS.
UH, WHEN IT COMES TO CUSTOMERS, OBVIOUSLY THIS IS AN APPROVED EXPERIENCE FOR THEM V'S.
WORKFORCE ALSO IMPROVES FROM THIS IN ADDITION TO THE FINANCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE.
SO THIS IS ALL WITHIN BUDGET THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW.
SO WE ARE NOT EXPENDING ANY ADDITIONAL FUNDS ON THIS.
UH, NOT TO MENTION INTERNAL VIEWS TO DATA ANALYTICS, RIDER INSIGHTS, THOSE TYPE OF ITEMS THAT WE REALLY BUILD AROUND OUR CUSTOMERS ARE MORE VALUABLE FOR US WITH THIS APP MOVING FORWARD.
ALL IN ALL, THIS IS ONE, ONE APP FEWER STEPS AND BETTER TRIPS.
UM, I CAN HAND IT OVER TO, TO JESSICA NOW.
SO, UM, WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE FOR THE WRITER? SO WE HAVE, UH, EXPERIENCE, UM, WE, THEY WILL CREATE, THEY WILL HAVE AN EXPERIENCE THAT'S DESIGNED FOR THEM IN MIND.
SO, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS TODAY IS WE HAVE TWO APPS THAT THEY HAVE TO NAVIGATE IF THEY WANT TO TRANSFER BETWEEN SERVICES.
WITH THIS NEW APP, THEY'RE ABLE TO LOG IN, BOOK THEIR TRIP FROM START TO FINISH ALL IN ONE, AND WE WILL TELL 'EM WHERE THEY NEED TO GO INSTEAD OF THEM HAVING TO FIGURE THAT OUT FOR THEMSELVES.
UH, WHY THIS MOMENT MATTERS, IT MATTERS BECAUSE VIAS CH VIA ISS GROWING AND SO IS THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE AT THE FOREFRONT OF THIS GROWTH.
SO AS WRITERS START TO, IF WE GET THE RIDER, UM, COMFORTABLE USING THIS NEW APP THAT INTEGRATES BOTH, UH, SERVICES THEN, OR INTEGRATES ALL OF OUR SERVICES, THEN AS WE CONTINUE TO GROW, THEY'RE AUTOMATICALLY ABLE TO CONTINUE USING SERVICE WITHOUT EXPERIENCING ANY HEADACHES.
SO THAT ENABLES VIA, TO BE ABLE TO GROW FASTER WITH THE CUSTOMER IN MIND.
HOW THIS STRENGTHENS VIA IT MAKES US MORE COMPETITIVE BECAUSE IT ALLOWS US TO HAVE AN APP THAT IS IN LINE WITH WHAT USERS EXPECT TODAY TO
[00:35:01]
BE ABLE TO RECEIVE IN AN APP.AND IT MAKES OUR SERVICE MORE ATTRACTIVE BECAUSE IT'S EASIER TO USE.
SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING, UH, WHAT WE'RE ENSURING IS THAT WHEN WE ROLL OUT THIS, UM, NEW APP, WE ARE, WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT IT'S A PHASED OUT PROCESS BECAUSE WE WANNA MAKE SURE INTERNALLY OUR STAFF IS READY.
SO WE HAVE OPERATORS AND SUPERVISORS THAT UNDERSTAND THIS NEW APP IS IN THE MARKET, AND WE ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE CUSTOMER SERVICE IS READY.
OUR TICKET WINDOW REPRESENTATIVES, THEY'LL BE OUR ON HAND AMBASSADORS TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
SO WE'LL SPEND THE FIRST PHASE MAKING SURE THAT INTERNALLY WE'RE READY TO SUPPORT OUR CUSTOMERS.
AND THEN WE'LL SLOWLY START TO ROLL OUT, UM, THE REQUEST FOR USERS TO JOIN IN, MIGRATE OVER IF THEY'RE USING THE OTHER APPS.
WE WILL ENSURE THAT OUR MARKETING COMMUNICATION IS IN LINE WITH THIS PHASED ROLLOUT.
WE WILL START IN MAY, KICKING OFF A COMING SOON, THEN FOLLOWING IN JUNE WHEN THE LAUNCH, WHEN THE APP LAUNCHES, WE WILL HAVE A NOW AVAILABLE.
AND THE MESSAGING WILL HELP THE WRITER THROUGH THE PROCESS, HOW TO FIND THE APP, HOW TO DOWNLOAD THE APP, AND THEN HOW TO USE THE APP.
AND THEN IN DECEMBER IS WHERE WE ARE TENTATIVELY LOOKING AT, UM, SUNSETTING THE LEGACY APPS.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE DON'T, UM, MOVE TOO FAST ON THIS.
WE WANT THE WRITERS, THE NEW WRITERS AND EXISTING RIDER THAT ARE ON THE APP TO GO WITH US AND MIGRATE WITH US.
SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE, WHEN WE DO MAKE THIS CHANGE, THAT THE RIDER HAVE ALREADY ACCEPTED THE NEW APP.
RIGHT? SO MEASURE OF SUCCESS, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THIS APP IS ACTUALLY IMPROVING THE RIDER EXPERIENCE, THAT THE ADOPTION AND BEHAVIOR IS MADE AND THAT IT IMPROVES OUR SYSTEM.
SO IT SHOULD REDUCE CUSTOMER CALLS, IT SHOULD IMPROVE BOARDING EFFICIENCIES AND INCREASE RIDER RETENTION.
SO, UH, I KNOW EVERYONE'S LIKE, OKAY, COOL, IT'S, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS APP, BUT WHAT DOES THE APP ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE? SO A WE'RE GONNA DO A QUICK LIVE DEMO HERE.
UM, SO, UH, NOW THAT WE PRESENT IT ON WHY THIS MATTERS, I'LL JUMP INTO A QUICK LIVE DEMO OF THE GO VIA MOBILE APP SO WE CAN SEE WHAT THIS WILL LOOK LIKE FROM A RIDER'S PERSPECTIVE.
SO AS MENTIONED, A RIDER STARTS IN ONE PLACE TO PLAN THEIR TRIP BASED ON THEIR CURRENT LOCATION, WHICH YOU'LL SEE DOWN HERE, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE'RE LOCATED AT SAN PEDRO OPPOSITE EVERGREEN.
UH, THEY CAN SEE THEIR ROUTE OPTIONS, REAL-TIME ARRIVALS AND SERVICE UPDATES.
SO IF WE HAD ANY DELAYS HERE, THEY WOULD BE DISPLAYED DIRECTLY UNDER THAT NEAREST STOP, UH, ALL WITHIN THE SAME APP AT THAT.
UH, AND THEN YOU'LL SEE HERE, YOU ALSO SEE THE EVENTS PAGE.
SO THAT JUST WENT LIVE THIS WEEK EXCITINGLY.
AND AS I MENTIONED, WE'RE IN A SANDBOX ENVIRONMENT, SO WE'RE SLOWLY DEVELOPING THESE NEW ITEMS. YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT FEATURE BEFORE.
AND LIKE I MENTIONED, YOU CAN CLICK ON THERE, IT'LL TAKE ME THERE AND IF THEY HAVE TICKETS AVAILABLE, THEN IT WILL ALSO BE A BUTTON ON HERE TO TAKE YOU DIRECTLY TO THAT EVENT.
UM, AS FAR AS PLANNING, YOU'VE GOT REAL TIME INFORMATION ON BUSES AROUND US OR, OR, UH, EXCUSE ME, VEHICLES AROUND US.
SO YOU SEE THE NUMBER THREE THERE.
I CAN CLICK ON THAT AND DRIVE DIRECTLY DOWN INTO THAT AND SEE THE EXACT TIMES OF WHEN IT'S ARRIVING OR WHEN IT'S EARLY OR ANYTHING ELSE.
UH, WHEN THEY'RE READY, UH, WHEN THEY'RE READY, THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR FARE DIRECTLY IN THE APP WITHOUT HAVING TO SWITCH TOOLS OR FIGURE OUT DIFFERENT RULES DEPENDING ON THE SERVICE.
THEY CAN STORE VALUE, USE A CARD, OR EVEN CONVERT CASH ON THE MOBILE AT ONE OF OUR CONVENIENT CUSTOMER SERVICE LOCATIONS.
UH, AS I SWIPE TO TICKET, THERE WE GO.
UH, WHEN IT'S TIME TO RIDE, EVERYTHING THEY NEED IS THERE.
THE TICKET IS READY ON THEIR PHONE.
THEY CAN VALIDATE QUICKLY WHEN BOARDING.
AND THEY EVEN RECEIVE UPDATES ALONG THE WAY, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER.
SO INSTEAD OF SWITCHING BETWEEN MULTIPLE TOOLS, THE RIDER MOVES THROUGHOUT ONE CONSISTENT EXPERIENCE FROM PLANNING TO PAYMENT TO BOARDING.
UM, AT THIS POINT I'LL JUMP OVER TO THE ILA SLIDE.
I THINK IF I CAN GET BACK TO THE THING.
ACTUALLY, BEFORE I JUMP OUT OF THE DEMO, ANY QUESTIONS ON THE DEMO BEFORE I MOVE FORWARD? NOT SO MUCH ON THE DEMO, BUT I GUESS WE'LL JUST SINCE WE'RE HERE, UM, CUSTOMER SERVICE LOCATIONS TO TURN CASH INTO TO THE APP.
WHERE, WHERE ARE THOSE? LIKE IF THERE WE GO.
UH, SO HEB LOCATIONS, THAT'S WHAT I WAS, THE CURRENT LOCATIONS WE HAVE RIGHT NOW ARE CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTERS.
ALL THOSE LOCATIONS ARE STILL GONNA BE THE SAME.
JUST MAKING SURE I KNOW HEB, JUST MAKING SURE THAT'S, AND SECRETARY MALONE ASKED A QUESTION ABOUT LIKE, IS THIS, ARE WE GONNA REDUCE ANY KIND OF OFFERINGS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS? AND THAT IS NOT A CASE FOR THIS APP.
IF ANYTHING, THIS IMPROVES AND ADDS MORE OPTIONS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS, BUT WE WILL NOT BE LIMITING ACCESS TO OUR, TO OUR SERVICES.
AND THEN, UH, SEPARATELY THE, WHAT'S
[00:40:01]
THE PROCESS TO BECOME AN EVENT ON THE APP? LIKE IF I'M AN EVENT HOLDER BUSINESS AND I WANT TO PUT AN APP OR, OR AN EVENT ON THE APP, HOW, WHAT, WHAT AM I DOING? AND THEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, DO WE AS VIA GET A PERCENTAGE OF ANY OF THOSE TICKET SALES THAT COME THROUGH THERE OR ANY OF OF THAT? SO TO CLARIFY, THIS IS PARK AND RIDE TICKET BUYING.SO WE WOULD, IF WE HOUSE, IF WE'RE GOING TO DO LIKE AC DCS COMING UP, WE WOULD PUT THE AC CDC EVENT ON THERE AND THEN, UM, TO BUY A PARK AND RIDE GROUND TRIP TICKET.
BUT WE DO HAVE AN OPTION TO DO A LIVE LINK TO THE ALAMO DOME OR TO A TICKETMASTER.
SO IF THEY WANTED TO BUY A TICKET THERE, SO WE WOULD BE ABLE TO EXPOSE EVENTS THAT ARE AVAILABLE IN SAN ANTONIO THROUGH OUR PARK AND RIGHT SERVICE, THERE'S, THERE'S NO WAY TO CAPTURE THAT CLICK OR THAT PURCHASE WAS MADE THROUGH, THROUGH THE VIA.
I THINK THAT'S AN OPPORTUNITY.
HOWEVER, I THINK IT NEEDS TO BE DISCUSSED INTERNALLY OF JUST CHECKING WHETHER WE WANT TO ACTIVATE THAT OPTION RIGHT NOW.
WE HAVE ALREADY HAD A CALL AS YOU KNOW.
ABOUT MA'AM THE BOOK ABOUT THE WEBSITE? YES MA'AM.
IS IT GOING TO BE ACCESSIBLE? YES, MA'AM.
BECAUSE LIKE I STATED, THERE ARE POINTS WHERE YOU HAVE TO DROP DOWN AND IT DOESN'T, IT DOESN'T READ IT RIGHT AFTER IT DROPS DOWN.
SO, UH, I WILL ALSO NOTE THAT AS WE HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU, THIS IS PART OF AN INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT WITH DART.
DART HAS DEVELOPED THIS APP AS OF 2013 AND THEY'VE DONE AMAZING IMPROVEMENTS.
ONE OF THE FIRST QUESTIONS WE ASKED WAS AROUND, UH, WE CAG AND A DA ACCESSIBILITY WHEN IT COMES TO THOSE REQUIREMENTS FOR MOBILE ACCESSIBILITY.
AND WE HAVE MET THE MARK ON THAT.
HOWEVER, I AM WORKING, I'M GONNA BE WORKING WITH CARRIE, UH, FROM OUR A DA AND ACCESSIBILITY ACCESSIBLE SERVICES, UH, TEAM TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE NOT ONLY MET THAT MARK, BUT EXCEEDED THAT MARK WHEN IT COMES TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND ACCESSIBILITY.
SORRY, I WAS ORGANIZING ALL OF MY QUESTIONS.
UM, SO I READ THROUGH THE AGENDA AND I READ THROUGH THE ILAI AM, HERE ARE MY CONCERNS.
SO NUMBER ONE IS LIABILITY FOR THE PAYMENT PROCESSING BECAUSE THAT AGREEMENT IS WITH DART AND THE VENDOR, NOT US AND THE VENDOR.
AND SO THAT IS MY CONCERN IS THAT IN THE EVENT THERE'S NO IN, THERE'S NOTHING THAT, UH, WITHIN THE ILA THAT WAS PROVIDED TO US.
AND SO I'M GOING BASED OFF OF IF IT'S NOT THERE, THEN IT'S NOT THERE.
UH, UM, DO YOU WANNA DIG DEEPER INTO THAT? I, I WANT INFORMATION 'CAUSE IT'S, I MEAN, THAT'S MY FIRST QUESTION.
SO, UM, SO WHAT KIND OF LIABILITY ARE YOU? 'CAUSE 'CAUSE WE'RE GONNA, SO WE'RE STILL GOING THROUGH A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION FOR ALL THE PAYMENT, UM, UH, PAYMENT EXCHANGES ON THE BACK END.
UH, SO WE STILL HAVE THAT LIABILITY RELYING ON THE FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS WE GO THROUGH.
WHICH, AND THAT'S WHY THAT THAT'S, I KNOW THAT IT, SO IF I, THEN I'M, IF I'M NOT, OKAY, SO IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, THEN WE BRING OUR OWN PAYMENT PROCESSOR THEN.
SO OUR ONLY LIABILITY IS WITH THAT.
SO THIS IS JUST A, IT'S ESSENTIALLY JUST A SAAS.
AND A WHITE LABEL SAAS FOR OUR OWN.
WHAT IS THE FEE FOR THIS LICENSING AGREEMENT? 2%, WHICH IS LOWER THAN WHAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS 5.5%.
NO, THAT'S THE PAYMENT PROCESSING.
I'M TALKING ABOUT THE SAAS ITSELF.
OH, THE SAAS ITSELF IS 2 45 9.
'CAUSE THAT WASN'T FOR, I I KNOW IT WAS A BUDGETARY, BUT JUST GOT IT.
UH, WHAT KIND OF ACCOUNTABILITY DO WE HAVE? IF THESE, IF LIKE, SAY SOMETHING GOES DOWN EITHER ON THE BACK END OR ON THE FRONT END AND THERE'S SOME KIND OF EITHER DATA BREACH OR SOMETHING, CUSTOMERS, WRITERS, WHOEVER THEY ARE, THEY'RE GONNA POINT TO US.
SO WE HAVE THE SAME SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS THAT DART HAS WITH CUBA, WHO IS THE PRIVATE, UH, VENDOR THAT HAS DEVELOPED THIS APP AND ALSO HELPED THEM MAINTAIN THE APP.
UH, THEY HAVE 99.5% UPTIME RIGHT NOW.
WE HAVE HAVE THE SAME AGREEMENT WITH THEM OR WE HAVE THE AGREEMENT WITH DART AND AS A LICENSEE.
WHAT HAPPENS THOUGH, IF THAT RELATIONSHIP FAILED? LIKE IF THEY NO LONGER HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH DART AND CUBA, WE WOULD DEFINITELY NEED TO REASSESS OUR, OUR POSITIONING.
SO WE ARE RELYING, THEN WE'RE MAKING THIS DECISION.
RELYING THAT IN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
[00:45:01]
DOESN'T DECIDE TO LIKE, SAY, WE'RE GONNA GO SOMEWHERE, WE'RE GONNA GO DO SOMETHING ELSE.WHICH WOULD BE THE CASE WITH OUR CURRENT PROVIDER.
UH, AND THERE'S A, WELL, I DON'T, I DON'T WANT TO GET INTO THE CURRENT PROVIDER, BUT NO, THAT'S TRUE.
BUT IN YOUR, IN THE, IN THIS WRITEUP, IT'S, AND, AND YOU MAKE A VALID POINT.
'CAUSE I DO KNOW HOW EXPENSIVE IT IS TO DO APP DEVELOPMENT THAT'S ESPECIALLY IN HOUSE.
AND SO, UM, THAT'S, THAT'S JUST THE ONE THING.
LIKE IT'S, IT'S ONE OF THOSE, LIKE, YOU HAVE TO DECIDE WHETHER THAT YOU CAN SWALLOW THAT KNOWING THAT TOMORROW THEY COULD.
I MEAN, 'CAUSE I'M, I'M IN THIS WORLD, RIGHT? I KNOW THAT THESE RELAT ABSOLUTELY.
RELATIONSHIPS BLOW UP MM-HMM
YOU KNOW, BECAUSE SOMEBODY ATE SOMETHING BAD.
AND SO I JUST, THAT IS MY CONCERN.
I I WILL ALSO NOTE WE DID A DEEP DIVE ON THE AGREEMENT BETWEEN DART AND CUBA TO ENSURE THAT THAT PARTNERSHIP WAS STRONG AND THAT THERE WERE, IT DOESN'T MATTER.
I MEAN, I, AGAIN, I'M IN THIS INDUSTRY.
I AS AN APP DEV, AS A SOFTWARE DEVELOPER, I KNOW THAT VENDORS, UM, WHEN SOMEBODY ELSE SHINES LIKE A SHINY STICK IN FRONT OF THEM, THAT, UM, ORGANIZATION GOES REALLY QUICKLY BECAUSE THEY'VE, YOU KNOW, MADE SOME AGREEMENT THAT THEY CAN DO SOME NEW WORD THAT'S EVERYBODY'S CRAZE.
AND SO, UM, AND THEN IF IT DOESN'T FULFILL THOSE PROMISES, THEN, AND THERE ARE CONTRACTUAL REASONS THERE.
I I'LL ALSO NOTE THERE WAS A REASON WE DID OUR HOMEWORK WITH A NUMBER OF VENDORS TO PROVIDE THIS TYPE OF OPTION.
AND THERE'S ALSO WHY WE DID OUR HOMEWORK ON DART EXCLUSIVELY WITH THIS 13 YEAR PARTNERSHIP THAT THEY'VE HAD WITH CUBA AND THAT KIND OF LONGEVITY.
JUST, WE DIDN'T SEE IT WITH OTHER PROVIDERS.
BUT YEAH, THAT'S JUST, THAT'S, THAT'S THE REASON WHY.
GOING ON TO MY NEXT QUESTION IN THE EVENT THEN THAT THERE IS SOMETHING WHO OWNS THE DATA? WE OWN OUR OWN DATA.
SO YOU WOULD HAVE NO PROBLEM THEN KEEPING NO MA'AM.
WE OWN OUR OWN DATA IF ANYTHING HAPPENS.
UM, AND LET ME CLARIFY ON THAT PIECE.
UH, AS, AS THE IT VP HERE, WE ARE ALWAYS GONNA OWN OUR OWN DATA.
I'M NEVER GONNA RELEASE THAT TYPE OF LIABILITY TO SOMEONE, ESPECIALLY OUR CUSTOMER'S DATA.
SO I, I WANNA MAKE THAT AND, AND YEAH, WHEN I WAS AT THE CITY, THAT WAS CLEAR THERE AS WELL.
UH, I DON'T, I'M NOT, I DON'T CARE WHICH VENDORS COMING IN, WE OWN THE DATA AT THE END OF THE DAY.
I JUST WASN'T SURE, LIKE WITH THE LICENSING AGREEMENT, IF WE ALSO PROVIDED THERE WAS ANY OTHER, UM, AGREEMENT FOR OWNERSHIP BECAUSE THIS IS AN ILAI, IT'S JUST MY OWN IGNORANCE MA'AM, WITH THIS STUFF.
AND IF MAYBE LIKE US PLUS ANOTHER ENTITY.
UM, AND THEN IS THERE AN AGREEMENT WITHIN THE ILA FOR, AND I DIDN'T SEE IT, BUT FOR MODIFICATIONS TO THE APP, IF LIKE THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME SORT OF MODIFICATION ON A PAGE OR BUTTON OR SOMETHING? YES, MA'AM.
WHAT IS THAT? IT, IT ACTUALLY IS IN THE ILA.
WE DO HAVE OPTIONS FOR MODIFICATIONS.
UM, SO WE ACTUALLY HAVE OTHER OPTIONS WITHIN THE ILA THAT WE ACTUALLY SAID WE DON'T WANT IN THIS FIRST PHASE, BUT MAYBE NEXT FISCAL YEAR WE'LL BUILD THEM IN.
UH, BUT I THINK THERE'S PROBABLY ABOUT 23 DIFFERENT OPTIONS THAT THEY PROVIDED.
UH, HOWEVER, THAT'S ANOTHER REASON WE WENT WITH DART IS BECAUSE I HAD REQUESTS OF OTHER APPLICATION DEVELOPERS THAT THEY COULDN'T SATISFY AND DART WAS WILLING TO MOVE AROUND AND, AND BE AGILE ENOUGH TO SATISFY OUR NEEDS HERE AT VIA.
IF YOU CAN SHOW ME WHERE THE MODIFICATION, UH, PERMISSION LANGUAGE IS, I WOULD LOVE THAT.
UM, 'CAUSE IT'S, YEAH, I'M SCROLLING THROUGH IT, CAN'T SEE IT, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN IT'S NOT THERE.
UM, BUT YEAH, OTHER THAN THAT, UM, I'M EXCITED AND I HOPE ABSOLUTELY, UH, EVERYBODY DOWNLOADS IT WHENEVER IT COMES OUT.
SO, AND, AND TRUSTY TWIT, LIKE, I'M HAPPY TO HAVE US IN A CHAT WITH DART.
I'M GONNA GET YOU ACCESS TO THE SANDBOX AS WE DIS DISCUSSED IN THE WORK SESSION, BUT I, I'D LIKE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR CONCERNS ARE ADDRESSED DIRECTLY BETWEEN US AND DART TO MAKE SURE WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE BEFORE WE GO LIVE ON THIS.
'CAUSE NORMALLY I'M ON THE OTHER SIDE.
LIKE I'M ON THE GIVE ME THE MONEY.
AND SO, AND I'LL PROMISE, YOU KNOW, ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES SO I KNOW THE, THE WORKS AND SO I'M JUST YEAH.
CHAIR, UH, BRIAN, IS THERE A FUNCTIONALITY IN THIS APP? SO IF I GET OFF AT A STOP, I CAN GET DIRECTION.
LET'S SAY I HAVE A FIVE MINUTE WALK FROM A STOP TO SOMEWHERE I NEED TO GO.
IS THERE LIKE A GPS FUNCTIONALITY THAT WILL HELP ME GET THERE? GIVE ME DIRECTIONS TO GET THERE? LET ME GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT, SIR.
I DON'T, I DON'T WANNA GIVE YOU IT CURRENTLY DOES RIGHT NOW.
WELL, SO IT TAKES YOU TO TRANSIT, APP TRANSIT AND THEN IT PULLS YOU OUT OF OUR CURRENT APP.
[00:50:01]
OH, CORRECT.LIKE IT TAKES YOU OUT THAT, BUT IT'LL STILL TELL YOU GO THIS WAY.
AND, AND WE WILL STILL HAVE OUR ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION TO TRANSIT APP.
SO WE KNOW, WE KNOW RIDERS ARE NOT GOING TO JUST RIDE OUR, USING OUR APP ALONE.
I, I HAVE MY OWN SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGY I USE, I LIKE TO USE FOR CERTAIN THINGS.
THAT, THAT PROVIDER HAS THEIR OWN APP, BUT I DON'T, I DON'T REALLY WANT TO USE THEIR APP FOR SOME REASON OR ANOTHER.
SO IF A RIDER IS COMING INTO OUR CITY, THEY'RE PROBABLY USING TRANSIT APP AS THEIR GATEWAY APP.
WE WILL STILL HAVE THAT AVAILABLE TO THEM IN THOSE KIND OF NAVIGATIONS.
BUT LET ME GET BACK TO YOU TO CONFIRM THAT THAT IS AN OPTION WITHIN THIS NEW APP.
THANK YOU TRUSTEES FOR ALL THE QUESTIONS.
I THINK THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
UM, BRIAN, WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS APP FOR OVER A YEAR ALREADY, AND I KNOW THERE WAS SOME DELAY IN US ROLLING THIS OUT, BUT YOU, YOU EXPLAINED IT WELL.
UM, YOU LOOKED AT DIFFERENT VENDORS LAST FALL.
WE LEARNED ABOUT THIS AT A CONFERENCE, UM, AND TALKING TO DART, UH, AND STARTED SEEING SOME MORE SYNERGY, UM, TO OUR NEEDS.
WE HAVE A CHEAPER RATE, UM, WITH DART THAN AN EXISTING PROVIDER OR THE THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS YOU WERE LOOKING AT.
SO I APPRECIATE YOUR DUE DILIGENCE.
I WOULD'VE LOVED TO HAVE THIS DURING FIESTA, BUT I KNOW THIS IS ABSOLUTELY GONNA BE THERE BEFORE THE END OF THE SUMMER.
UM, AND THEN IT'S JUST NOW AN EDUCATION PROCESS FOR US TO GET OUR CUSTOMERS AHEAD OF THIS.
SO I, I APPRECIATE Y'ALL'S, UH, EFFORTS IN THIS, UH, THE TEAM SUPPORT IN THIS.
AND IT'S GONNA BE AN ALL IN JUST TO TRY AND TRANSITION THEN OUR CUSTOMERS, UH, INTO ONE APPLICATION.
UH, AND THEN THE LEARNINGS, LIKE WE TALKED ABOUT JUST FOR PARA TRANSIT, VERY SIMILAR.
HOW ARE WE GONNA GO AND EDUCATE OUR COMMUNITY, UH, ON THIS APP, UM, AND BE VERY INTENTIONAL IN SOME OF THE AREAS THAT WE ARE GONNA BE, ARE WE GONNA HAVE AMBASSADORS AT THE PARK AND RIGHTS, UM, SHOWING THEM INSTEAD OF THEM BEING AT THE BOOTH AND, YOU KNOW, AS AN EXAMPLE, SOME OF THEM BEING AT TRANSIT CENTER.
SO, UH, I THINK THIS IS A CRITICAL STEP, UH, FOR US MOVING FORWARD.
I, I DON'T WANNA, UM, BELABOR IT, BUT I BELIEVE THIS, THIS WARRANTS A BIG PART OF OUR TRANSFORMATION, UH, OF WHERE OUR AGENCY IS GOING AND IMPROVING AND, AND GETTING WITH THE TIMES, IF YOU WILL, UH, FOR OUR AGENCY.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR EFFORTS AROUND THIS.
I'D LIKE TO SEE MAYBE A, AS WE GO THROUGH THIS TRANSFORMATIONAL PERIOD, UM, THE, UM, GENERATIONS THAT YOU DO IT, BECAUSE NOW WE HAVE QUITE A FEW STUDENTS DOING IT, AND OF COURSE THEY'RE GONNA ADAPT TO IT, BUT WE NEED TO GET THAT FEEDBACK FROM THE DIFFERENT GENERATIONS AND HOW THEY'RE USING IT AND WHO RUNS ACROSS, UM, SOME THINGS THAT WE MAY NEED TO CORRECT.
AND, AND THAT HAS BEEN A BIG POINT IN CONVERSATION AS WE LAUNCHED THIS, IS THAT TRANSITION AND CAPTURING THAT INFORMATION THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE IN, UH, ACCESS TO BEFORE.
AND I'LL NOTE OUR DIRECTOR OF GO TO MARKET HAS BEEN SIDE BY SIDE WITH US ALONG THE WAY FOR THAT REASON ALONE OR THAT REASON AND OTHERS
COULD YOU, OKAY, TRUSTEES, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND COMBINE, UH, AGENDA ITEMS FOUR A, E, AND I INTO, UM, ONE VOTE.
UH, IF WE CAN HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE, UH, AGENDA ITEMS. FOUR A, E AND I SO MOVED.
SECOND MOTION AND SECOND ALL APPROVED PLACE.
ALL OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES LEGAL.
ARE WE GOOD? YEAH, WE'RE GOOD.
BUT Y'ALL CAN ADOPT THAT INFORMATIONAL SO YOU DID.
[5. Capital Project Assurance Consulting Services]
CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE CONSULTING SERVICES, MR. CHUBB AND MR. WOOD.GOOD EVENING, MADAM CHAIR, BOARD OF TRUSTEES.
THIS PARTICULAR ITEM IS A REQUEST FOR THE BOARD TO APPROVE A CONTRACT FOR CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE SERVICES.
I'LL START HERE WITH A BRIEF PRESENTATION JUST TO, UH, PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE, UH, SERVICES FOR THE ORGANIZATION AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE, UH, TERMS AFTER THAT.
AND JUST FOR THE RECORD AS WELL, I'M JERMAINE CHUBB, VP OF FISCAL MANAGEMENT, CFOI, BRANDON WOOD, VICE PRESIDENT OF PROCUREMENT.
AND SO, UH, AN OVERVIEW AGAIN OF THE, UH, CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE SERVICES HERE.
SO IF WE LOOK HERE, WHAT IS, UH, CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE? UH, CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE SERVICES PROVIDE INDEPENDENT OBJECTIVE INSIGHT INTO COST, SCHEDULE, RISK AND CONTROLS TO SUPPORT INFORM EXECUTIVE AND BOARD OVERSIGHT OF CAPITAL PROJECTS.
AND SO IF YOU LOOK HERE, WE, WE HAVE TO THE LEFT WHAT ASSURANCE PROVIDES AND WHAT IT IS NOT JUST FOR A CLARIFICATION HERE.
AND SO WHAT IS IT? INDEPENDENT PROJECT COST SCHEDULE AND CONTROLS ASSESSMENT THAT PROVIDES CONFIDENCE IN CAPITAL
[00:55:01]
PREDICTABILITY, UH, STRONGER CREDIBILITY WITH OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND IMPROVED MANAGEMENT AND BOARD OF TRUSTEE CONFIDENCE.THIS IS WHAT WE'RE SEEKING HERE.
WHETHER IT IS NOT, IT IS NOT PROJECT, UH, PROJECT MANAGEMENT.
AND SO THIS, UH, PARTICULAR CONTRACTOR WILL NOT ACTUALLY PROVIDE THE DELIVERY SERVICES.
THEY'RE NOT RESPONSIBLE NOR ACCOUNTABLE FOR THAT.
UH, THIS IS NOT DUPLICATION OF ANY PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE OR ANY CONSULTANTS THAT WE MAY HAVE ON THE DELIVERY SIDE THAT'S ASSISTING US IN ANY MANNER.
UH, IT'S NOT REPLACEMENT FOR ANYTHING THAT THE FTA DOES AS IT RELATES TO OUR, OUR COMPLIANCE AND OVERSIGHT FOR OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS, GIVEN THAT WE HAVE THE, UM, FEDERAL GRANTS ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, MUCH OF OUR CAPITAL OR PROGRAM SPEND, AND THEN IT'S NOT ADDITIONAL BUREAUCRACY OR APPROVAL LAYERS HERE.
MOVING ON HERE, WE SAY WHY CAPITAL ASSURANCE AND WHY NOW.
CAPITAL PROGRAM IS INCREASING IN SCALE AND COMPLEXITY AND, UH, PUBLIC VISIBILITY, UH, CAPITAL PROJECT ASSURANCE SERVICES PROVIDE THE ORGANIZATION AND OUR VARIOUS STAKEHOLDERS, AGAIN, WITH ADDED CONFIDENCE IN OUR ABILITY TO DELIVER.
AND SO, UH, WE FORMED A CAPITAL COMMITTEE, UH, THAT INCLUDES, UH, QUITE A FEW MEMBERS, UH, ACROSS THE BOARD.
UM, IT, BRIAN'S INCLUDED IN THAT MYSELF, LEROY, UH, LEADS THAT OUR FLEET AND FACILITIES TEAM AND OTHERS ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
BUT, UH, CERTAINLY FROM A FINANCE PERSPECTIVE AS WELL, WE HAVE A FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THAT PROJECTS ARE DELIVERED ON TIME, ON BUDGET TO, UH, SCOPE AND SPECIFICATIONS.
OUR DELIVERY TEAMS, OUR PROJECT TEAMS ARE, AND THEIR CONSULTANTS ARE, UH, FOCUSED ON THE ACTUAL, UM, EXECUTION OF THE PROJECT.
THEY PROVIDE SERVICES TO, UH, SUPPORT THAT PROJECT DELIVERY WITH, UH, NO FOCUS ON INDEPENDENT CHALLENGE OF, UM, WHAT THOSE PROJECT DELIVERIES COME UP WITH IN TERMS OF THE SCHEDULE AND THE, UH, BUDGETS FOR THOSE PARTICULAR PROJECTS.
AND SO FOR THE ASSURANCE SERVICES, THEY'RE GONNA PROVIDE US THAT OBJECTIVE EXECUTIVE LEVEL INSIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS, UH, PROVIDE INDEPENDENT EARLY WARNING SIGNALS OF KEY RISK AND OUR DELIVERY THAT ALSO WE, UH, WE KEEP TALKING ABOUT HERE, ADDING CONFIDENCE.
AND SO AS A BOARD OF, UH, TRUSTEES, AS A MANAGEMENT TEAM, WE CAN FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WHEN THESE SERVICES ARE IN PLACE, THAT WHEN WE COMMUNICATE THAT, UM, CAPITAL PROJECT IS GONNA COST US 500 MILLION, WE HAVE JUST THAT ADDITIONAL LAYER, UH, LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE THAT IN INDEED IS GONNA COST US THAT.
AND THEN, UH, IT IS GONNA AGAIN STRENGTHEN OUR, UH, PROJECT DELIVERY GOVERNANCE AND PREDICTABILITY I PLACE HERE.
UH, UM, FAQ UH, HERE, JUST A FEW QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS HERE.
AND SO, HOW WILL THIS FUNCTION REPORT, UH, WITHIN VIA.
AND SO IT'S GONNA REPORT FUNCTIONALLY TO, UH, FISCAL MANAGEMENT WITH DIRECT ACCESS TO THE CEO CAPITAL COMMITTEE AS WELL.
AND SO WE'LL HAVE THOSE COMMUNICATION, UH, CHANNELS THERE.
THERE'LL ALSO BE SOME, UM, COMMUNICATION WITH OUR INTERNAL AUDIT TEAM THAT WILL ASSIST IN, UM, IN DELIVERING THESE SERVICES.
AND ACTUALLY THEY'LL HAVE AN ADDITIONAL SCOPE OF WORK AS IT RELATES TO THEIR MANDATE FOR THE ORGANIZATION.
UM, THE NEXT QUESTION HERE IS, WILL THE ASSURANCE CONSULTANT OWN ANY ASPECT OF DELIVERY OR DECISION MAKING? WE TALKED ABOUT THAT.
UH, WHAT PROJECT TEAMS WILL THE CONSULTANT WORK WITH ON THEIR ENGAGEMENT? AND SO THEY'LL REALLY WORK ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
I WOULD SAY THIS IS NOT EXHAUSTIVE HERE.
PROJECT DELIVERY TEAMS, ENGINEERING, IT, FINANCE OUR CAPITAL COMMITTEE, OUR, UM, SENIOR EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT TEAM AS WELL.
AND CERTAINLY WORKING WITH THE BOARD AS WELL TO, UH, COMMUNICATE INSIGHTS.
UH, DOES THE, UH, SERVICE DUPLICATE FTA OVERSIGHT? AND SO THE, UH, FTA PROTECTS OUR FEDERAL INTEREST AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE FOCUS ON GRANT COMPLIANCE, ELIGIBILITY OF COST, FEDERAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS, THESE ASSURANCE SERVICES SUPPORT VIA LEADERSHIP AND BOARD, UH, GOVERNANCE WITH THE FOCUS ON MANAGEMENT DECISION QUALITY, FORECAST ACCURACY, AND EARLY IDENTIFICATION OF RISK.
AND SO WE TALK ABOUT HERE, LAST QUESTION HERE IS WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE? AND SO OUR PROJECT DELIVERY REMAINS ALIGNED WITH APPROVED COSTS AND SCHEDULES.
RISK ARE IDENTIFIED EARLY AND MITIGATED MANAGEMENT DECISIONS ARE MADE TIMELY, AND WE HAVE A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING AND CONFIDENCE IN THE OVERALL PROJECT HEALTH AT ANY GIVEN POINT IN TIME.
WE'LL GO OVER THE TERMS QUICKLY AND THEN I'LL HAND IT BACK OVER TO THE, UH, BOARD CHAIR AND THE BOARD FOR ANY QUESTIONS.
PROCUREMENT STAFF ISSUED A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL ON JANUARY 23RD, 2026, TO WHICH WE RECEIVED FIVE RESPONSIVE PROPOSALS.
UM, AFTER BO NEGOTIATIONS, STAFF IS REQUESTING, UH, RECOMMENDATION TO APPROVE THE, AN AWARD OF A CONTRACT TO GUIDEHOUSE IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $2.5 MILLION.
AND IS ALSO REQUESTING, UM, IS ALSO REQUESTING THE APPROVAL OF A CONTINGENCY AMOUNT, UH, FOR $1 MILLION.
UH, THEREFORE PUTTING THE TOTAL CONTRACT VALUE NOT TO EXCEED $3.5 MILLION.
UH, THE REASON FOR THE CONTINGENCY WOULD BE TO, UM, ALLOW FOR ANY AD HOC CAPITAL PLANNING ANALYSIS AND ADDITIONAL SERVICE HOURS
[01:00:01]
THAT THAT MIGHT EXCEED THE ORIGINAL SCOPE OF THE BASE CONTRACT.ANY QUESTIONS AROUND THE CONTRACT? AND WHAT IS THE DURATION OF THIS CONTRACT? THE ORIGINAL BASE TERM IS THREE YEARS, AND THERE'S THE, THERE'S TWO ONE YEAR OPTIONS FOLLOWING THAT.
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, IS THIS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE USED THIS KIND OF, UH, THIRD PARTY ASSISTANCE? I MEAN, I KNOW IT'S THE FIRST TIME WE'VE HAD THIS LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY AND CAPITAL PROJECTS IN TERMS OF INVESTMENT.
SO THIS WOULD BE THE FIRST TIME WE AS VIA USE THIRD PARTY TO HELP.
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME, BUT WE DO HAVE OTHER, UH, TRANSIT AGENCIES THAT ARE DOING THE SAME THING.
AND SO WE, WE HAVE PARTNERS THAT WE CAN REACH OUT TO AND LEARN FROM THEM.
AND, UH, SOME, ONE OF THE KEY THINGS THAT WE'LL BE FOCUSED ON IF WE GET, UH, GET THEIR APPROVAL HERE IS ONBOARDING THIS CONTRACTOR HERE AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE WORKING VERY WELL WITH ALL THE TEAMS THAT WE, UH, TALKED ABOUT EARLIER.
UM, ONE OF THE THING I ONE OF THE THINGS I WANTED TO POINT OUT IS, UH, SINCE THIS IS A PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACT, I'M A LITTLE HESITANT TO APPROVE A CONTINGENCY BEFORE WE GET GOING.
SO I, AS OPPOSED TO POTENTIALLY YOU GUYS COMING BACK WITH A NEED TO INCREASE THE CONTRACT AMOUNT LATER.
SO, SO I GUESS THAT'S REALLY MORE A DISCUSSION POINT, I GUESS, FOR THE BOARD.
UM, THE BENEFIT OF YOU COMING BACK ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL DOLLARS IF NEEDED, IS JUST THAT WE GET A STATUS REPORT ON HOW THINGS ARE GOING AND WE KNOW WHY OR HOW AND, AND SO, UH, VERSUS APPROVING A CONTINGENCY UPFRONT AND THEN THE CONTRACT TURNS INTO A THREE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT INSTEAD OF TWO AND A HALF MILLION.
SO THAT'S JUST MORE OF A COMMENT AND REACTION TO, UH, WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED.
AND JUST, JUST BRING IT BACK ONCE WE REACH THAT THRESHOLD IF, IF, IF NEEDED.
'CAUSE THIS IS JUST ALSO, IT'S NOT A GUARANTEE, UH, SPEND EITHER.
AND, AND FOR THE RECORD, I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND, HAVING THE CONTINGENCY ALLOWS YOU TO MOVE QUICKLY AT THE TIME OF BUSINESS, MAKE QUICK DECISIONS AND REACT.
I JUST THINK THAT MAYBE IT'S, IT'S BETTER DONE LATER IN THE PROJECT AS AN INCREASE TO THE BUDGET RATHER THAN UPFRONT.
I WAS JUST GONNA ADD ONE PIECE OF, UM, INFORMATION FOR CLARITY HERE.
THERE ARE AD HOC SERVICES THAT ARE INCLUDED IN THIS, UM, REQUEST AS WELL.
AND SO FOR AN EXAMPLE, THIS PROVIDER MAY GO OUT IF WE SO CHOSE TO ASK THEM TO GO AND LOOK AT A FEW SITES WHERE WE MAY GO AND ADD A NEW FACILITY FOR AN EXAMPLE, RIGHT.
THEY MAY COME BACK WITH OPTIONS FOR US, GO OVER ALL OF THE, UH, QUALITATIVE, QUANTITATIVE, UH, ATTRIBUTES ASSOCIATED WITH THAT AND HELP US MAKE A DECISION AROUND THAT.
AND SO WE HAVE, UH, THE ABILITY TO GO AND IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL SERVICES FOR THEM TO PROVIDE WITHIN THAT CONTRACT.
SO IF WE DO IT IN THAT MANNER, IT MAY CAUSE US THE NEED TO COME BACK A LITTLE SOONER THAN WE MAY DESIRE, RIGHT.
GIVEN THAT THEY, WE HAVE THAT PROVISION IN THERE.
I THINK THAT'S PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE.
I MEAN, THAT'S HOW MOST CONTRACTS COME BACK TO US.
SO THAT WAY, AT LEAST THOUGH WE WOULD GET THAT EXPLANATION IN THE FUTURE, AND WE CAN KEEP THE DIALOGUE GOING BETWEEN THE BOARD AND OKAY.
AND, UH, MANAGEMENT TEAMS. YEAH.
THANK YOU, TRUSTEE FLORES, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THIS CONTRACT? AND THEN, UM, TO YOUR POINT, MR. CHUBBS IN IT, WE'RE GONNA NEED A MOTION AFTER OR AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION.
UM, WE HAVE NOT DONE THIS IN THE PAST.
WHAT IS THE REASON WHY WE HAVE NOT DONE THIS IN THE PAST? I KNOW WE HAVE THE GREEN LINE AND SO LINE, BUT WE HAVE HAD A CAPITAL PROJECTS IN THE PAST TOO.
I, I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S IT, RIGHT? WHEN YOU LOOK AT, IF YOU JUST LOOK AT OUR CAPITAL PORTFOLIO, AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE INFORMATION THAT, THAT, THAT'S OUT THERE, MOST PROJECTS GO OVER BUDGET AND THEY GO BEYOND THE, UH, SCHEDULE AS WELL.
IF YOU LOOK AT OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN, KS A M IS 80% OF THAT SPEND.
AND SO, AND, AND I CAN LOOK AT IT IN REVERSE, RIGHT? IF YOU LOOK AT THE, THE REVENUE, UH, VEHICLE SPEND, THAT'S A 100 PLUS MILLION DOLLARS.
AND SO IF WE OVERSPEND ON THE REVENUE VEHICLES, WE WON'T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO DELIVER KS A, IF WE OVERSPEND ON KS A BY 10%, 20%, THAT MIGHT WIPE, UH, WIPE OUT EVERYTHING ELSE IN OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN.
AND SO WE'RE EMPLOYING THESE SERVICES TO GIVE US THAT ADDITIONAL LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE THAT WHEN WE COME TO THE BOARD OR WE, WE ALL GO TO OTHER, UM, STAKEHOLDERS AND COMMUNICATE THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DELIVERING GREEN LINE, SILVER LINE OR WHATEVER ELSE, UH, WE CAN STAND BACK, UM, BEHIND THAT.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE USING THIS MORE LIKE CONTROL? ABSOLUTELY.
AND, UH, THE INTERACTION WITH YOUR OFFICE AND THEN THE, UM, THE TASK FORCE, I FORGOT WHAT YOU, WHAT YOU CALLED IT TIGER TEAM, THE CAPITAL COMMITTEE.
THE CAPITAL C, THAT TIGER TEAM.
UH, HOW OFTEN WILL THEY BE MEETING WITH THEM VERSUS JUST YOU? OH, AND SO, YOU KNOW, THAT WE HAVEN'T IRON OUT FULLY AS YET.
OF COURSE, UM, THE CAPITAL COMMITTEE MEETS ON A MONTHLY BASIS RIGHT NOW.
WE'RE HAVING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT POSSIBLY DOING THAT, UH, MORE.
THERE'S NO REASON WHY THAT TEAM NEEDS TO MEET WITH ME BY MYSELF.
AND SO THEY'RE WELCOME TO MEET
[01:05:01]
WITH THE CAPITAL COMMITTEE EACH AND EVERY TIME.AND SO I THINK WE'LL IRON THAT OUT, UH, COLLECTIVELY ON THE WAY THAT WE WORK.
BUT, UM, THERE'S NO REASON, AGAIN, THAT I NEED TO HAVE PERSONAL DISCUSSIONS WITH THEM.
AND, AND I'LL ADD MADAM CHAIR, YOU KNOW, THIS IS THAT MOMENT AS WELL.
'CAUSE THIS, THIS BOARD HAS BEEN VERY SENSITIVE, UH, FOR STAFF'S ON STAFF'S PERSPECTIVE.
UH, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THE RESOURCES FOR THE LEVEL AND THE SOPHISTICATION OF SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS THAT WE FIND OURSELVES INTO HAVING THIS BILLION DOLLAR PROGRAM FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY.
SO THIS IS THAT MOMENT AS WELL THAT WE SAT DOWN AND SAID, WELL, WE CAN HIRE INTERNALLY, OR WE CAN HIRE THE EXPERTISE EXTERNALLY, AND WE CAN GET THE EXTERNAL EXPERTISE.
ONCE THAT BILLION DOLLAR PROGRAM GOES AWAY, WE THEN ARE LEFT WITH A SYSTEMIC PROCESS THAT THESE SMART FOLKS CAME IN AND ESTABLISHED FOR US.
AND THAT'S THE APPROACH THAT WE'RE DOING HERE.
NOW, IDEALLY, UH, WE WANT TO KEEP A BILLION DOLLAR, UH, CAPITAL PROGRAM AS WELL, BUT WE ARE PLANNING FIVE YEARS DOWN THE PATH HERE, UH, WITHOUT ANY NEW REVENUES.
WE EXPECT THIS TO BE, YOU KNOW, WINDING DOWN, NOT WINDING UP, BUT WE, UH, WE HAVE SOME NEEDS, UH, EVEN WITHOUT THE KS A CAPITAL PROGRAM TO GET BETTER AT SPENDING AND MANAGING OUR OWN CAPITAL PROGRAM.
SO WE SAW THIS OPPORTUNITY TO BRING IN SOME EXPERTS FROM THE OUTSIDE THAT OTHER TRANSIT AGENCIES HAVE HAD GREAT SUCCESS WITH, UH, AND ESTABLISHING SOME REALLY GOOD INTERNAL PROGRAMS. SO THAT'S, THAT'S OUR FIVE-YEAR GOAL HERE WITH THIS GROUP, UH, OR AT LEAST WITH THIS IDEA, UH, THAT WE'RE, WE'RE ATTEMPTING TO, TO PASS TODAY.
AND THEN, UM, JUST GOING THROUGH THE EVALUATION, THE, THE KEY DIFFERENTIATOR FOR THE SCORING MATRIX WAS MOSTLY ON PRICES THAT PRETTY ACCURATE BASED ON, UM, THE PRESENTATION THAT IS IN OUR, UH, PACKET.
SO YOU YEAH, I'M SORRY, GO AHEAD.
THE FIRST ROUND CAME DOWN TO TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES.
IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS GOING TO BE, EXCUSE ME, DOWN TO TWO AT THE VERY END.
AND PRICE WAS THE DECIDING FACTOR BETWEEN THOSE TWO.
AND THEN, UM, LASTLY, THE FUNDING MECHANISM THAT WE'RE USING FOR THIS, I KNOW IT SAYS IN OUR FISCAL BUDGET, BUT WHAT, WHAT BUCKET IS THIS COMING OUT OF? THIS IS OUR LOCAL FUNDS.
SO LOCAL FUNDS IS, IS THAT SALES TAX? IS THAT, UH, REVENUE, UH, FAIR BOX? YEAH.
AND SO THE WAY THAT WE LOOK AT THAT, WHEN YOU LOOK AT A, AN INCOME STATEMENT FOR AN EXAMPLE, WE EARN SALES TAXES IN EVERY OTHER REVENUE THAT YOU HAVE.
AND THEN WE HAVE OUR EXPENSES, AND THAT THE NET OF THAT, WE KEEP THOSE FUNDS IN OUR LOCAL FUNDS FOR AN EXAMPLE.
SO WHEN I SAY THAT IT'S COMING FROM OUR SALES TAX, YOU CAN LOOK AT IT THAT WAY, IF YOU LIKE, TOO.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE'RE DOING THIS SO THAT IT'S A, IT'S AN OUTTA CONTROL.
WE'RE BEING FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBLE WITH THE CITIZENS DOLLARS THAT THEY ENTRUSTED IN US MM-HMM
UM, AND ENSURING THAT, UM, OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS, WE'RE BRINGING IN THE EXPERTISE THAT YOU MENTIONED TO OVERSEE A, A PROGRAM THAT IN THE HISTORY OF OUR AGENCY, WE'VE NEVER, UH, DONE BY OURSELVES.
AND YOU CAN GO AND LOOK OUT IN THE NEWS.
MANY ORGANIZATIONS RUN INTO ISSUES AS IT RELATES TO, AGAIN, SCHEDULE AND THE, UH, BUDGET FOR THEIR, THEIR CAPITAL PROJECTS.
SO WE, WE JUST WANNA ENSURE THAT WHEN WE COMMUNICATE THAT WE'RE GONNA SPEND X OR WE'RE GONNA DELIVER A PROJECT BY A CERTAIN DATE AND TIME, THAT WE HAVE THAT ADDED, ADDED CONFIDENCE THAT WE CAN DO THAT.
UH, TRUSTEE FLORES? THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR.
I'D LIKE TO MOVE, UH, FOR APPROVAL OF ITEM FIVE, UH, AWARDING A CONTRACT TO GUIDEHOUSE INC.
IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED TWO AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS ASSURANCE CONSULTING SERVICES FOR FIVE YEARS.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR PRESENTATION.
UH, YOU'RE GONNA STAY HERE, MR. OH, YEAH.
[6. Financial Updates]
REPORTS JUST RIGHT UP ALLEY RIGHT HERE.LOOKING AT FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE, UH, MONTH OF MARCH HERE, UH, TURN INTO OUR BALANCE SHEET.
HERE WE SEE THAT TOTAL ASSETS AND DEFERRED OUTFLOWS OF, UH, RESOURCES STOOD AT 1.254 BILLION AT THE END, END OF MARCH, THEY WERE DOWN FOR $46.1 MILLION.
THE, UH, PRIMARY DRIVER OF THIS REDUCTION IS A $78.2 MILLION, UH, DECREASE IN, IN OUR NON-CURRENT ASSETS ASSOCIATED WITH SPEND DOWN OF, UH, GREEN LINE FUNDS FROM OUR A TD CONSTRUCTION FUND, WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED IN OUR FISCAL YEAR 2024, WE ALSO HAD A 33.7 MILLION REDUCTION IN DEFERRED OUTFLOWS OF RESOURCES ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, NORMAL AMORTIZATION AND OUTFLOW OF, UH, PENSIONS AND O PAY LIABILITY.
[01:10:01]
BY A $19 MILLION INCREASE IN OUR CAPITAL ASSETS AND A $46.8 MILLION INCREASE IN OUR CURRENT ASSETS.OUR, UH, TOTAL LIABILITIES AND OUR DEFERRED INFLOW OF RESOURCES STOOD AT WHAT, 522.1 MILLION, DOWN 39.5 MILLION.
AND THE, UH, TOTAL REDUCTION IS PRIMARILY DUE TO A $56.7 MILLION REDUCTION IN OUR TOTAL LIABILITIES ARE PARTIALLY OFFSET BY A $17 MILLION INCREASE IN DEFERRED INFLOW OF RESOURCES ASSOCIATED WITH NORMAL, UM, MONTHLY AMORTIZATION FOR PENSION AND OPAB.
UH, LOOKING HERE AT OUR TREASURY OVERVIEW, WE ENDED THE MONTH OF MARCH WITH $713.5 MILLION.
AND SO A LARGE INCREASE THERE, UM, MOSTLY UNRESTRICTED CASH.
AND SO WHEN WE LOOK AT THE, UH, DAYS CASH ON HAND HERE, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE, UM, INCREASED BY 85 DAYS.
AND SO WE STOOD AT 500, UM, AND 88 DAYS.
OF COURSE, AS WE SPEND ON THAT CAPITAL PROJECT, WE'LL MOVE TOWARDS THAT BOARD POLICY OF 120 OR GREATER.
BUT, UM, WE'RE WELL ABOVE THAT TODAY.
UH, WHEN YOU LOOK IN THE BOTTOM, UH, RIGHT CORNER HERE, YOU CAN SEE THAT YEAR TO TODAY ON INTEREST EARN, WE STOOD AT 12.4 MILLION.
AND SO UP AGAINST OUR BUDGET OF, UH, 7.8 UH, MILLION THERE, WE EXPECT TO END THE, UH, YEAR WITH 26.4 MILLION.
AND SO THIS IS, UH, 10.8 MILLION ABOVE THE, UH, BUDGETED NUMBER FOR FISCAL YEAR 26.
AND SO STRONG PERFORMANCE AGAINST WHAT WE BUDGETED THERE.
UH, WHEN WE MOVE ON TO THE, UH, INCOME STATEMENT HERE, YEAR TO DATE IN TERMS OF, UH, REVENUES, WE ENDED THE MONTH AT, UH, 228.3 MILLION.
THIS IS UP, UH, 38.4 MILLION AGAINST OUR BUDGET.
OUR SALES TAXES ARE UP BY 8.9 MILLION DUE TO HIGHER CONSUMER SPENDING, INFLATION AND, UH, RESILIENCE AND, UH, SALES TAX COLLECTIONS ACROSS ALL SECTORS IN, UH, TEXAS, UH, GRANTS ARE ACTUALLY UP BY 13.9 MILLION.
AND THIS IS DUE TO, UH, 53 0 7, UM, FISCAL YEAR 24, REIMBURSEMENT OF, UH, 18.6 MILLION.
AND THIS WAS OFFSET AGAINST GRANTS, UH, NOT THAT WE DIDN'T ANTICIPATE TO BE, UH, EXECUTED, UH, WHICH WE'RE, UH, REIMBURSED IN OUR FISCAL YEAR 26.
OUR FAIR BOX IS ACTUALLY DOWN BY 1.5 MILLION.
AND WE TALKED ABOUT THIS A FEW TIMES.
THIS IS JUST AN UNFAVORABLE, UH, SALES MIX HERE.
AND SO WE WE'RE SELLING MORE DISCOUNT FAIRES THAN WHAT WE BUDGETED FOR.
AND THEN OTHER IS UP 17.4 MILLION.
THIS IS MAINLY DUE TO A CITY OF SAN ANTONIO INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT OF, UM, 10.1 MILLION, UH, HIGHER, UM, INTEREST EARNINGS AS WELL.
AND THEN SOME FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT OF, UH, BOND INTEREST FOR OUR PROJECTS AS WELL.
YEAR TO DATE, EXPENSES STOOD UP 175.2 MILLION.
THERE ARE 7.8 MILLION HIGHER THAN BUDGET.
UH, LABOR INFRINGES US UP DUE TO, UM, HIRING OF ADDITIONAL BUS OPERATORS AND, UM, SERVICES.
THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOWN BY, UH, 2.3 MILLION.
AND THIS IS, UH, MAINLY DUE TO TIMING.
SO WE EXPECT TO, UH, CATCH THAT SPIN UP.
OUR MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES ARE UP MAINLY DUE TO, UH, C AND D PRICING, AND OTHER IS UP 1.5 MILLION.
AND THIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH ADDITIONAL, UM, PUBLIC LIABILITY CLAIMS. IN TERMS OF OUR SALES TAX PERFORMANCE.
WE CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THIS ON A 12 MONTH ROLLING BASIS HERE.
AND SO IF YOU, UH, LOOK OVER THE LAST 12 MONTHS, WE ACTUALLY, UM, HAD A 3% INCREASE IN OUR MTA AND OUR A TD, UH, ONE SALES TAXES.
AND SO THIS IS HIGHER, AGAIN, THAN OUR BUDGETED RATE.
WE ASSUME THAT WE WERE GONNA BE, UH, FLAT ON SALES TAXES.
AND, UH, JUST ADDS A LITTLE BIT OF COMMUNICATION HERE.
AS WE TALK ABOUT SHORT RANGE AND LONG RANGE PLANNING.
UH, WE WANNA ENSURE THAT FOR THIS PARTICULAR INPUT HERE, THAT WE'RE NOT, UM, BEING TOO OPTIMISTIC.
AND SO WE TALKED ABOUT THIS AT A BOARD RETREAT A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO, THAT OUR, UM, FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IS VERY SENSITIVE TO SALES TAXES.
AND SO IF THERE'S SOME QUESTION AS TO WHY WE WERE BUDGETING FLAT, WE, WE ACTUALLY LOOKED AT THE, UM, THE, UH, STATUS AT THE TIME OF THE, UH, BUDGET OF THE, UH, ECONOMICS AND JUST DETERMINED THAT WE WERE GONNA, UM, GO MORE, UH, MORE TOWARDS THE, UH, PESSIMISTIC SIDE, UH, THAT THE, UM, UM, THAT THE, UH, UH, CONSULTANT PROVIDED FOR US.
ACTUALLY, WE WENT A LITTLE BIT MORE PESSIMISTIC THAN I BELIEVE HIS, UH, PESSIMISTIC SCENARIO.
AND SO I BELIEVE THAT'S PAYING OFF FOR US, AND THAT WE HAVEN'T ASSUMED THAT WE'RE GONNA BE, UM, GROWING SALES TAXES BY FOUR OR 5%, AND THAT ACTUALLY JUST COMING IN AT THREE.
AND SO I THINK WE'RE STILL DOING WELL BECAUSE OF THAT.
CAN I STOP YOU REAL QUICK ON THIS? MM-HMM
UM, LAST YEAR WHEN THIS WAS PRESENTED TO US, I THINK IT BASED ON, UM, THE CONSERVATIVENESS MM-HMM
OF THE SALES TAX, THAT, UH, IF THERE WAS ANY OVERAGE, THAT OVERAGE WAS GONNA BE ASSIGNED TO A RESERVE ACCOUNT.
IS THAT THE STILL PRACTICE RIGHT NOW? WELL, YEAH, AND YOU CAN LOOK AT IT THAT WAY.
WE MAKE A NOTE HERE THAT THE OVERAGE IS REALLY ASSISTING US WITH THE ADDITIONAL SPEND THAT WE'RE INCURRING AS WELL RIGHT NOW, RIGHT? AND SO IF YOU JUST LOOK AT IT WITHIN THE PERIOD, IT'S HELPING US FOR THE OVERAGES THAT WE HAVE IN EXPENSES.
[01:15:04]
I'LL MOVE ON TO OUR, UM, OPERATING ADJUSTED SURPLUS, UH, TREND HERE.AND SO, ONE KEY NOTE, EVERY TIME WE TALK ABOUT THIS, WE TALK ABOUT OPERATING SURPLUS TREND, AND WE'RE PULLING IN OUR SALES TAXES WITH OUR, WHICH ARE NON-OPERATING REVENUES HERE.
AND, UM, LOOKING AT THAT TO DETERMINE WHAT OUR OPERATING SURPLUS WOULD BE, UH, WHEN YOU LOOK AT TOTAL REVENUES, INCLUDING THOSE SALES TAXES, LESS OUR OPERATING EXPENSES HERE.
AND SO WHAT YOU SEE HERE IS YOU COULD SEE, UH, YEAR TO DATE FROM FISCAL YEAR 24 THROUGH 26, YOU CAN SEE REVENUES HAVE GROWN AT 6.5%.
EXPENSES HAVE GROWN AT, UH, 11.3%.
UH, I WOULD SAY NO REAL SURPRISE, CERTAINLY WHEN YOU SEE US, UH, HIRING FOR ADDITIONAL BUS OPERATORS IN LINE WITH OUR STRATEGY HERE.
BUT YOU'LL NOTE HERE, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT LABOR AND FRINGES, PARTICULARLY IN FISCAL YEAR 24, WE HAD A LARGE CREDIT ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, CHANGES THAT WERE MADE FOR THE, UH, EP, UH, PROGRAM.
AND SO THAT WAS A 16.4 MILLION REDUCTION IN EXPENSES.
THAT WAS A ONE TIME HIT FOR FISCAL YEAR 24.
AND THAT'S GONNA MAKE THAT GROWTH, UH, LOOK A LITTLE BIT HIGHER, UH, IN THOSE, OVER THOSE, UH, THREE YEARS THERE.
UH, WE OF COURSE, AS IT RELATES TO KA, WE'RE IN A PERIOD OF PLANNING THERE.
AND SO WE HAVE QUITE A FEW OPERATING EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CAPITAL PROJECT THERE.
AND SO OUR SERVICES SPEND IS GROWING AT THAT 16.6%, AND THEREFORE, UH, PURCHASE TRANSPORTATION, THIS IS THE INCREASE IN, UH, VIA LINK ACTIVITY, ADDING NEW ZONES FOR AN EXAMPLE.
AND THEN WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR, UM, CONTRACT ASSOCIATED WITH PURCHASE TRANSPORTATION, AS THE VOLUME INCREASES, ACTUALLY RATES INCREASE BEYOND A CERTAIN POINT OR SO, UH, YOU SEE THAT IMPACTING THE, UM, NUMBERS THERE.
BUT, UH, ALL IN ALL, AS YOU'LL SEE IN A LATER PRESENTATION, UH, AS WE TALK ABOUT THE ADDITIONAL EXPENSES THAT WE'RE INCURRING ASSOCIATED WITH OUR STRATEGY AND EVEN ADDITIONAL EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH T UH, C AND G COSTS, WE STILL HAVE A LONG-TERM PLAN THAT'S SUSTAINABLE.
AND WE'LL SHOW YOU A BIT OF THAT LATER ON LATER.
UH, THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE GOES OVER OUR CAPITAL, UH, BUDGET HERE.
AND SO WE LOOK AT OUR ACTUAL CAPITAL SPEND YEAR TO DATE VERSUS THE, UH, BUDGET.
AND SO WHAT WE'VE DONE HERE IS WE'VE PRORATED OUR BUDGET SPEND OVER THE NUMBER OF MONTHS THAT, UH, WE HAVE, UM, THAT HAVE GONE BY IN THE FISCAL YEAR THROUGH MARCH.
AND SO IF YOU LOOK HERE, WE HAVE SPENT 32% ACTUALLY OF OUR PRORATED CAPITAL BUDGET, UH, SPEND UP THROUGH OUR MARCH OF 2026.
BUT WE DO EXPECT TO, UH, HAVE CATCHUPS IN THE AREA OF, UH, GREEN LINE OPERATIONAL FACILITIES, PASSENGER FACILITIES IN THE, UH, SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR.
AND SO, UH, WE'RE LOOKING TO SEE SOME IMPROVEMENT IN THAT, UH, 32% NUMBER THAT WE'RE SHARING WITH THE BOARD HERE.
MOVING ON TO THE, UH, PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD FOR BUS.
OUR, UH, WEEKDAY RIDERSHIP COMPLAINTS, MECHANICAL RELIABILITY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION, THEY'RE BETTER THAN TARGET.
UH, COLLISIONS ARE BETTER THAN TARGET, UM, THROUGH MARCH, 2026.
UH, WE HAVE FOUR PREVENTIVE, UH, FOUR NON-PREVENTABLE AND THREE PREVENTABLE, UH, BUS COLLISIONS, UH, REPORTED THROUGH MARCH.
THERE WERE NO COLLISIONS IN, UH, DECEMBER AND JANUARY, OR ON TIME PERFORMANCES WENT AT OUR TARGET RANGE THROUGH OUR MARCH AS WELL.
AND THEN OUR COST EFFECTIVENESS IS BELOW TARGET DUE TO INCREASE IN, UM, HIRING OF OUR BUS OPERATORS.
AND SO NO REAL SURPRISE THERE.
WE KNEW THAT WE WERE GONNA SPEND OVER AND ABOVE THE, UH, BUDGET THERE TO DELIVER ON THE, UH, STRATEGY THAT WE TALKED ABOUT.
MOVING ON TO, UH, VIA TRENDS HERE, OUR WEEKDAY RIDERSHIP COLLISIONS CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND COST EFFECTIVENESS.
THEY'RE BETTER THAN TARGET ON TIME.
PERFORMANCE AND MECHANICAL RELIABILITY ARE WITHIN THE TARGET RANGE, AND COMPLAINTS ARE WORSE THAN TARGET.
AND WITH OUR TOP COMPLAINT BEING, UM, ON TIME PERFORMANCE IN THIS AREA.
AND THEN FINALLY ON VIA LINK HERE, OUR AVERAGE MONTHLY, UH, RIDERSHIP ON TIME PERFORMANCE ARE BETTER THAN TARGET.
AND COST OF COST EFFECTIVENESS IS WITHIN THE TARGET RANGE THROUGH MARCH.
AND OUR CUSTOMER SATISFACTION RATING FOR VA LINK SERVICES THROUGH MARCH IS 4.85.
AND SO THAT ENDS THIS PRESENTATION.
I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO YOU, MADAM CHAIR AND THE BOARD FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
ANY QUESTIONS? TRUSTEES, TRUSTEE COOPER, THANK YOU FOR A GREAT PRESENTATION.
WHAT ARE YOU SEEING, UM, OUR FUEL COSTS DOING? 'CAUSE NATURAL GAS IS JUST AS OIL DOES THIS, NATURAL GAS IS DOING THAT.
AND HAVE YOU SEEN IT THIS PRETTY STABLE OR, OR I DON'T KNOW WHAT OUR CONTRACTS SAY.
DO WE BUY AHEAD OR IS IT, ARE WE PRETTY WELL SECURED? YEAH, NO, OUR, OUR CALL SO ARE UP SIGNIFICANTLY RIGHT NOW, AND WE'RE ACTUALLY LOOKING INTO THAT, RIGHT? WE WANNA SEE IF, UM, THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION.
I'M NOT SURE IF YOU WANNA SPEAK TO IT SINCE I MET YO YEARS AGO WHEN WE SIGNED UP.
SO FIRST WE'RE, WE'RE THE LARGEST USER OF NATURAL GAS IN, IN TOWN.
UH, SO WE'RE CP S'S LARGEST NATURAL GAS CUSTOMER.
UH, YEARS AGO WE HAD THE DECISION POINT TO MAKE, UH, WHETHER WE WANTED TO RIDE WITH THE VOLATILITY OR DID WE WANT TO HAVE A A, A FLAT,
[01:20:01]
UH, RATE GUARANTEE.WE ELECTED FLAT RATE GUARANTEE SO WE COULD, WE COULD MAKE THE RIGHT ADJUSTMENTS AND, AND, AND HAVE THE RIGHT LOOK FOR WHATEVER REASON THIS YEAR WE'RE SEEING THE VOLATILITY.
SO WE ARE OUT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE REACHED OUT TO CPS AND, AND HAVE ASKED FOR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THAT.
'CAUSE WE SHOULDN'T BE SEEING THAT VOLATILITY, BUT WE'RE SEEING IT, I THINK TO, TO, IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS, WE ABSOLUTELY $4 MILLION VARIANCE.
YOU KNOW, GAS GOT UP TO ABOUT $4 AND EVERYONE WAS HAPPY AND, YOU KNOW, NOW IT'S DOWN TO TWO 50, WHICH YOU WON'T SEE ANY DRILLING AT TWO 50 'CAUSE THEY'LL TURN IT OFF.
YOUR, YOUR COSTS ARE THIS TOO MUCH FOR YOUR LIFTING AND, AND ALL THAT.
SO I WOULD THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, IT PROBABLY WENT UP A LITTLE BIT BEFORE, BUT IT SHOULD BE DOWN.
BUT THAT'S WHAT I'M THINKING THEN IF YOU BOUGHT LONG TERM OR STRAIGHT LINE RIGHT, THEN YOU SHOULD STILL BE PRETTY EVEN.
SO I THINK SURPRISES US, IT'S GOOD FOR THIS ASK.
YOU KNOW? YEAH, I KNOW WE'RE SEEING A LOT OF EXPORTS OF, UM, OF CGS, RIGHT.
AND THEN, UM, WITH DATA CENTERS AND JUST, UH, VERY MUCH DEMAND IN THE US AS WELL.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S PUTTING PRESSURE ON THE PRICING THERE FOR US, BUT WE'RE ABSOLUTELY EXPERIENCING IT.
UM, AND I'M JUST GOING BACK TO THE DASHBOARD FOR VIA TRANS, JUST BECAUSE THAT'S BEEN THE TOPIC OF CONVERSATION TODAY.
AND LOOKING AT THE ON TIME PERFORMANCE AND THE MECHANICAL RE RELIABILITY AND THE COMPLAINTS THERE, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT OVER THE TREND OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS WE ARE SEEING CONTINUOUSLY IS, OR IS THAT IMPROVING OR IS JUST SOMETHING AS OF, UM, THIS MONTH, WHAT, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? YEAH, AND I, I MAY HAVE MY OPERATIONS FOLKS TO COME AND SPEAK TO IT A BIT MORE, BUT I KNOW THAT, UH, WE HAVE BEEN CONTINUALLY SEEING A, UH, COMPLAINT ON, ON TIME PERFORMANCE.
BUT I KNOW THAT WE HAVE HAD SOME DISCUSSIONS AND, UH, THEY MAY COME UP HERE AND CERTAINLY SAY THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON IT, BUT WE ARE SEEING SOME IMPROVEMENT AS WELL.
AND SO, UH, IF WE WANT ADDITIONAL DETAIL, I THINK JOHN B CAN TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT.
BUT I THINK WE'RE CERTAINLY WORKING ON IT TO, UH, MAKE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS.
SO DE VIA TRANS, IT'S ALL GOOD.
YEAH, NO, IT'S BEEN AN ONGOING CONCERN.
CONCERNS, UH, UH, UH, SOME ITEMS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON.
IT'S SOME ITEMS, BUT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL.
AS YOU KNOW, OUR TRIP VOLUME HAS INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY OVER THE LAST EIGHT MONTHS SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE.
UH, WE'VE BEEN RECRUITING DRIVERS, WE'VE BEEN HAVING A GOOD RETENTION PROGRAM AS WELL AS, UH, A TRAINING PROGRAM.
OUR PARTNERS IN THE FIELD, UH, MV AND ALSO, UH, ZTRIP HAVE PICKED UP THE SLACK.
SO WE'VE BEEN, UH, INCREASING RIDERSHIP.
NOW, WHAT WE'VE DONE, AND JERMAINE AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS ON TIME PERFORMANCE, WE WATCH IT EVERY DAY.
WE HAVE A OUR OWN DASHBOARD THAT NOW YOU HAVE A LINK TO IT.
AND SO THE NEXT PRESENTATION OR THE NEXT TIME WE PRESENT THIS, WE'RE GONNA PRESENT IT IN THREE SEPARATE PODS.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE THE VIATRANS ON TIME PERFORMANCE AND OUR COMPLAINTS AND OUR, OUR, OUR CONTRACTOR.
SO WE CAN, SOMETIMES WE CAN'T FIX A PROBLEM IF WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT.
YOU KNOW, UH, SO, SO YOU'RE GONNA SEE THE VIA TRANS, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S ALL ONE HOUSE, BUT IT'S OUR, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S A COMPLAINTS THAT WE NARROW DOWN WHO HAS THE MOST COMPLAINTS, AND IT IS ON TIME PERFORMANCE.
AND IT HAS TO DO WITH VARIOUS, YOU KNOW, VARIOUS OPERATIONAL THINGS THAT WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF WORKING ON AND IMPROVING.
AND THAT'S GONNA COME NEXT BOARD MEETING? YES.
WE WILL HAVE THE DASHBOARD BROKEN DOWN BY THE THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONTRACTORS.
WHICH WE, I JUST LEARNED IT WILL DO IT.
IT'S ACTUALLY, AND IT'S REALLY GOOD TIMING TO GIVE THIS BOARD THIS TYPE OF DEPTH OF LOOK, BECAUSE AT SOME POINT IN THE NEXT EIGHT TO 12 MONTHS, ACTUALLY YOU, LESS THAN THAT EIGHT MONTHS, THEY'RE GONNA HAVE A BIG DECISION IN FRONT OF 'EM FOR THE SUBCONTRACTOR OR THE CONTRACTOR.
THAT COMPLIMENTS OUR, UH, PARATRANSIT SERVICE.
AND THAT IS THE LARGEST CONTRACT THAT THIS AGENCY HAS.
UH, SO IT IS A VERY SIGNIFICANT, SO START GIVING THIS BOARD ON HOW THAT WORKS TOGETHER.
WITH OUR OPERATIONS WILL BE REALLY IMPORTANT FOR THEM.
SO WHEN THEY MAKE THAT BIG DECISION, UH, LATER IN THE YEAR, THEY'LL HAVE THAT CONTEXT.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH PROCUREMENT IN DETAIL TO REALLY DEFINE AND SOLICIT, UH, INPUT FROM OUR FLEET AND FACILITIES, UH, AS WELL AS THE OPERATIONS OF THE LESSONS LEARNED OF THINGS THAT WE CAN DO BETTER.
AND WE PAPERED IT INTO THE CONTRACT.
THERE'S SOME FINE TUNING, WE'RE IN THE LAST STAGES OF, UH, OF PUTTING TOGETHER AND WE LITERALLY HAD THIS CONVERSATION EARLIER TODAY, AND WE HOPE HAVE IT IN FRONT OF PROCUREMENT, YOU KNOW, WITH A BOW ON IT SO THEY CAN PUT IT OUT FOR AN RFP.
AND WE EXPECT WE'VE ALREADY GOTTEN, UH, A NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT HAD NORMALLY HAVE NOT LOOKED AT THIS CONTRACT BEFORE.
NOW WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE'S ATTENTION.
IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S GONNA BE, UH, PRETTY SIZABLE.
[01:25:01]
RIGHT? WE CALL SANDEEP.I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE SOMETHING MONITORED EVERY BOARD MEETING YEAH.
GOING FORWARD UNTIL THOSE COMPLAINTS ARE REDUCED.
WE HAVE A GOOD, WE HAVE A GOOD PROGRAM, UH, ADDRESSING THEM.
UH, WE, IT, IT'S A MAJOR CONCERN.
IT'S, IT'S WHO WE ARE, IT'S OUR FACE OF OUR VIA, AND WE TAKE PRIDE IN TRYING TO DELIVER OUR PRODUCT ON TIME WITH THE HIGHEST DEGREE OF QUALITY.
LET, LET'S INCLUDE A LOOK INTO THE CUSTOMER COMPLAINT, UH, SYSTEM.
YEAH, I KNOW WE'VE DONE THAT BEFORE, PRISCILLA, WHERE WE'VE GIVEN THE BOARD, UH, A LOOK INTO HOW COMPLAINTS ARE HANDLED AND WHAT WE DO WITH THEM, AND THE ULTIMATE DIS DISPOSITION, BUT IT'S THE TRACKING OF THEM TOO.
AND IT'S SEEING A TREND AND SEEING WHAT IS HAPPENING AND WHAT KIND OF ADJUSTMENTS THAT WE'RE MAKING AS WELL.
SO LET'S INCLUDE THAT IN THAT PRESENTATION.
MAYBE IT'S JUST A DI A DIFFERENT BREAKDOWN OF HOW YOU PRESENT IT TO HAVE US BETTER UNDERSTAND.
BUT TO JOHN GARY'S POINT, THE MAIN REASON I BRING THIS UP IS BECAUSE I KNOW THE CONTRACT COMING UP BEFORE US AND THEN THE BUDGET DECISION COMING THROUGH, UM, THIS NEXT FISCAL YEAR IS GONNA BE PART OF THAT.
UM, AND SO AS WE THINK ABOUT IN-HOUSE OPERATORS VERSUS, UH, CONTRACTORS, UH, AND THEN A, A, A POPULATION, QUITE FRANKLY, THAT HAS PAID THEIR DUES IN SALES TAX, UM, AND ARE ARE LOOKING FOR NEEDS THAT I THINK THERE HAS TO BE SOME SORT OF, UH, MITIGATION TO WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, ESPECIALLY SINCE WE'VE BEEN HEARING IT BEFORE THE BOARD, UM, MONTH AFTER MONTH FOR AT LEAST THE LAST SIX MONTHS, IF NOT LONGER, UH, GOING INTO LAST YEAR.
THANK, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE UPDATE.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND MOVE ON TO, UM, MID YOUR BUDGET UPDATE.
YES, PERFECT TIMING TOO FOR THAT.
SO MID-YEAR, MID-YEAR REVIEW, WHAT, WHAT, WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO, WHAT JERMAINE AND I ARE GONNA DO HERE, I HAVE THE CLICKER FOR NOW.
IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, JERMAINE? YES.
UH, IS, IS, UH, DO A BIT OF CATCH UP FOR THOSE, UH, THOSE, UH, TRUSTEES THAT WEREN'T HERE.
WHEN THIS BOARD ADOPTED, UH, THE FISCAL YEAR 26 BUDGET, UH, WE, WE MADE A, A INTENTIONAL DECISION TOGETHER THAT WE WERE GONNA BRING BACK AND GIVE Y'ALL A REPORT AT MIDYEAR BECAUSE WE WERE, WE WERE STARTING TO SEE THE RESULTS OF OUR OPERATOR HIRING AND GETTING THAT OPERATORS INTO THE SYSTEM, AND THEN IMPROVING OUR SYSTEM AND THEN GETTING, YOU KNOW, GETTING IDEALLY SOME RESULTS TO THAT.
UH, SO WE'RE GONNA GIVE Y'ALL A SENSE OF WHAT THAT IS AND WHAT IT'S LOOKING LIKE, UH, MIDYEAR.
UH, BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS HERE, WE'RE NOT GONNA BE ASKING FOR ANY AMENDMENTS OR, UH, ADJUSTMENTS TO THE, TO THE BUDGET BECAUSE, UH, WE HAVE A PLAN AND WE'RE GONNA SHOW YOU WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE HERE, UM, RELATIVE TO THAT.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS ARE, ARE DELIVERING SYSTEM-WIDE RESULTS, AND WE'RE GONNA WALK YOU THROUGH THAT.
AND IT WAS BUILT AROUND OUR FOUR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES, YOU KNOW, CUSTOMERS, COMMUNITIES, WORKFORCE, AND FINANCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE.
UM, YOU KNOW, AT MIDYEAR WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IS NOT HOW THE BUDGET WAS CONSTRUCTED, BUT HOW IT'S DELIVERING.
UM, AND ACROSS OF EACH OF THESE AREAS, WE'VE SEEN MEASURABLE SUCCESS AND PROGRESS IN EACH OF THESE AREAS.
WE'RE GONNA WALK THROUGH MANY OF THAT, UH, THROUGH THIS PRESENTATION.
UH, MOST IMPORTANTLY, ALL THAT IS BEING ACHIEVED WHILE MAINTAINING THE FINANCIAL DISCIPLINE, UM, IN A STRONG LONG TERM OUTLOOK FOR OUR AGENCY.
THIS IS WHAT AN OUTCOME BASED APPROACH LOOKS LIKE WHILE MAINTAINING, UM, THAT FINANCIAL DISCIPLINE AND A AND, AND, AND OUTLOOK.
SO AT A HIGH LEVEL, THE MIDYEAR STORY IS PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD.
WE MAY TARGET INVESTMENTS IN SERVICE, WORKFORCE CAPACITY AND RELIABILITY.
AND THOSE INVESTMENTS ARE, ARE PRODUCING RESULTS.
WE'RE SEEING INCREASED RIDERSHIP ACROSS THE SYSTEM, WHICH IS A DIRECT SIGNAL THAT CUSTOMERS ARE RESPONDING TO IMPROVED SERVICE.
AND BECAUSE OF OUR OPERATOR HIRING AND STAFFING LEVELS, UM, ARE STRONGER, WE ARE NOT ONLY SUSTAINING THESE IMPROVEMENTS, BUT WE'RE ACCELERATING THEM BETTER.
BUS INITIATIVE, THE BETTER BUS PLAN INITIATIVES ARE MOVING AHEAD OF THE ORIGINAL SCHEDULE, ALLOWING US TO DELIVER MORE VALUE TO THE COMMUNITY SOONER THAN PLAN.
AND THIS IS THE CYCLE THAT WE INTENDED TO CREATE A CYCLE THAT INVEST STRATEGICALLY IMPROVED SERVICE, GROW RIDERSHIP, AND REINVEST WITH MOMENTUM.
SO WHEN WE WERE, UH, YOU KNOW, FIRST BRINGING THESE IDEAS OF ACCELERATING TO THE BOARD FOR CONSIDERATION, UH, THE FIRST LOOK AT, AT THAT CONSIDERATION WAS THE ORIGINAL IDEA.
UH, IT WOULD TAKE US ABOUT SIX YEARS TO MAKE THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING IN THE, IN A BETTER BUS PLAN.
AND TRUE TO FORM THIS BOARD SAID, YEAH, SIX YEARS, THAT'S A, THAT'S A LONG TIME FOR OUR CUSTOMERS TO CONTINUE TO WAIT FOR IMPROVEMENTS.
AND SO YOU CHALLENGED US TO ACCELERATE THAT AND THAT
[01:30:01]
ACCELERATION, UH, WAS GONNA START WITH HOW QUICKLY WE COULD HIRE OPERATORS.SO WE WENT TO WORK TO FIGURE OUT HOW QUICKLY AND HOW EFFECTIVELY WE CAN HIRE OPERATORS, BECAUSE IT'S A BALANCE HERE, AS WE'VE HEARD OVER THE MONTHS OF NOT JUST BRINGING IN ANYBODY, BECAUSE WE STILL WANNA BRING IN OPERATORS THAT ARE GONNA DELIVER THE EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE THAT WE HAVE COME TO OUR CUSTOMERS HAVE COME TO EXPECT, AND FRANKLY, THAT WE, WE DEMAND.
SO WHAT WE PROPOSED TO THE BOARD, UM, IN THIS FISCAL YEAR 26, WAS AN IDEA THAT WE WOULD ACCELERATE THE SERVICE PLAN BASED UPON THE OPERATOR HIRING.
UM, INITIALLY, INITIALLY WE CAME BEFORE THE BOARD IN THE SUMMER AND SAYS, WE'RE GONNA ADD, LEMME GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT FOR THE NEW, UH, NEW TRUSTEES IN 20, IN THE FISCAL YEAR THAT WE ENDED BEFORE THIS, WITH 25, WE WERE ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY, UH, INCREASE THE BETTER BUS PLAN, OR AT LEAST DELIVER THE BETTER BUS PLAN OF 24%.
SO BEFORE THIS PLAN CAME ON FOR CONSIDERATION, WE WERE AT A 24% GAIN ON THAT BETTER BUS PLAN WITH THE IDEA OF, OF HITTING A HUNDRED PERCENT.
UM, BUT IN DOING SO, IN LESS THAN SIX YEARS, SO WE HAVE TWO THINGS GOING ON, IS THE PERCENTAGE, AND THEN THE TIME IT TAKES TO REACH THAT PERCENTAGE.
UH, THE BOARD HAS CHALLENGED US TO DO BOTH AS QUICKLY AND ACCELERATED AS POSSIBLE.
WE CAME IN AT INITIALLY AT, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WE'RE GONNA ADD ON TOP THAT 24%, 12%.
UH, WE CAME BACK WITH AN ACCELERATED PLAN OF 13%, AND THE BOARD, RIGHTLY SO, SAID, NOPE, TRY AGAIN.
UH, LET'S SEE IF WE CAN DO MORE.
LET'S CHALLENGE OURSELVES TO DO SOMETHING, UH, AGAIN, THAT WE HAVEN'T DONE BEFORE, BUT WE, UH, WE WANT TO DO IT IN A VERY DISCIPLINED WAY, AGAIN, AS LONG AS THE FINANCIAL RESOURCES ARE THERE, UM, AND THE OPERATORS ARE THERE.
SO WE, WE ESTABLISH A VERY, UM, UH, AGGRESSIVE 39%, UH, SERVICE, OR 39% ADDITION TO THE BETTER BUS PLAN.
SO WE DID 24% IN 25, WE SAID, ALL RIGHT, 39% IN 26, UH, THAT WOULD GET US TO 63% OF THE FIXED ROUTE, PORTION OF THE BETTER BUS PLAN IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS.
WE FEEL THAT EVERY, EVERYONE IS, IS, UH, IN LINE WITH THAT AND RECOGNIZING THAT THAT'S BOTH AN ACCELERATION, UM, AND DELIVERY IF WE'RE ABLE TO DO THAT WITHIN THE FIRST TWO YEARS.
SO WHAT WE INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET WAS INDEED, UH, THAT 39%, UH, THAT WE HAVE, UH, THAT WE HAVE ADOPTED.
SO AS WE SIT HERE MIDYEAR, IF YOU NOTICE, I DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE AWAY THE, THE NUMBER ALREADY, BUT, UM, OH, LET ME GO BACK HERE.
WE NOW HAVE, HAVE, ARE AT MIDYEAR TALKING ABOUT A 65% IMPLEMENTATION.
SO WE'RE ACTUALLY OVER-DELIVERING ON THAT 63%, UM, BY 2%, BUT THAT'S A SIGNIFICANT 2%, UH, THAT WE WILL REACH BY NEXT WEEK.
SO WE HAVE A MAY SERVICE CHANGE THAT WILL BE COMING OUT INTO THE SYSTEM NEXT WEEK THAT'LL GET US AT 65% OF THE BETTER BUS PLAN DELIVERED NEXT.
NEXT, UH, UH, NEXT WEEK WE HAVE AN AUGUST SERVICE CHANGE THAT WE BROUGHT BEFORE YOU THIS PAST WORK SESSION.
AND THAT SERVICE THAT'S GONNA BE AN ADDITIONAL 7%.
SO WE'RE LOOKING AT, BY AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, WE'LL BE AT 72% OF THAT PLAN, UH, THAT WE HAVE, UM, UM, OF, OF THE PLAN THAT, THAT, AGAIN, THAT WE'RE TRYING TO BE AS, AS AS, UH, UM, EFFICIENT ABOUT DELIVERING, UH, TO OUR, UH, TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND TO INTO THE SYSTEM.
SO WHAT THAT MEANS FOR US AND WHAT THAT MEANS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS.
MORE IMPORTANTLY, AND THIS IS AGAIN, UM, A SKI SLOPE SLIDE, I THINK WE, WE KINDLY REFERRED TO IT.
UM, ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE, YOU'LL SEE THE INTEREST OF THE SAN ANTONIO MARKET, UH, THAT ARE SAYING THAT THEY'RE INTERESTED IN TAKING OUR SERVICE.
IF AT THE BOTTOM, THE FREQUENCY OF THE VEHICLE THAT'S COMING BY AT 10 MINUTES, 84% INTEREST, A HIGH INTEREST, YOU GO TO 11 TO 20, 64%, 20 TO 21 TO 30 MINUTES AT FREQUENCY, THAT REALLY IS THE BIG DROP.
AND THEN BEYOND THAT, YOU SEE IT DROPS REALLY LOW TO 5% AND BEYOND.
WELL, A YEAR AGO WHERE WE WERE IN JANUARY 25, 70% OF OUR SYSTEM RAN AT 30 MINUTES OR, OR WORSE, UH, NOT A VERY ATTRACTIVE SYSTEM.
UH, SO WE TOGETHER WITH THE BOARD SAID, WELL, OUR BETTER BUS PLAN IS DESIGNED TO MOVE THAT 70% TO THE LEFT AS MUCH AS WE CAN PUSH THAT 70 CENT, 70% OVER TO THE LEFT, WE WANNA PUSH IT AS CLOSE OVER TO THE 84% AS WE CAN, UH, BECAUSE WE RECOGNIZE A, FIRST OF ALL, THERE'LL BE MORE INTEREST IN IN OUR SYSTEM, UH, TAKING OUR SYSTEM,
[01:35:01]
BUT B, WE'LL IMPROVE THE SYSTEM FOR THOSE THAT ARE TAKING THE SYSTEM TODAY, BECAUSE THOSE ARE, THOSE FOLKS WILL ALSO SEE THAT IMPROVEMENT OF, OF NOT, UH, TRAVEL TIME BEING, UH, LOWERED FOR THEIR, THEIR EVERYDAY TRAVEL.SO THAT MEANS THAT 30% OF IT WAS INDEED, UM, UH, BEING DELIVERED IN JANUARY, 2025 OF UNDER 30 MINUTES.
SO BECAUSE OF WHAT WE'VE DONE IN CONNECTING THIS TO THE BETTER BUS PLAN AND ACCELERATING THAT BUS PLAN, WE HAVE FLIPPED THE SCRIPT.
AND NOW WHERE IT'S 72% OF THE SYSTEM IS NOW AT 30 MINUTES OR LOWER, THAT'S AN INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENT IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.
BUT THAT'S WHERE WE'VE BEEN VERY TARGETED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE IMPROVING THAT SYSTEM AND GETTING THOSE IMPROVEMENTS AND GETTING THAT IMPROVEMENTS REALLY ALIGNED WITH FREQUENCY AND ALIGNED WITH THAT FREQUENCY THAT BECOMES VERY ATTRACTIVE TO THE SYSTEM.
BUT WE'RE NOT DONE, UH, BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO PUSH, OUR ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO PUSH THE REMAINING 28% OVER TO, UH, THE LEFT AND HAVE IT COMPLETELY GREEN.
WE DO NOT WANT TO HAVE ANYTHING BEYOND 60 MINUTES OR BEYOND 30 MINUTES, I SHOULD SAY, UH, IN OUR SYSTEM LONG TERM.
SO THAT IS ONE OF OUR GOALS, HOW QUICKLY WE CAN GET THERE, THAT'S GONNA RELY ON OPERATOR HIRING AND A NUMBER OF FACTORS AS WELL THAT WE HAVE BEEN, UH, SHARING WITH YOU.
SO, UH, AS WE FLIP THIS SCRIPT HERE, UM, AND, UH, AND SAID, OKAY, WELL THAT'S GREAT.
NOW WE'RE, NOW WE'RE HAVE 70, 72% OF OUR SYSTEM THAT'S OPERATING IN A, IN A, IN A MARKETPLACE THAT SEEMS TO AT LEAST LOOK AT TO BE, UM, HAVE MORE INTEREST IN THE SYSTEM OF 72% OF WHERE THAT, WHERE THAT RELIES.
SO WHAT WE ARE HERE TO HERE TO SAY IS ONE OF THE CLEAREST INDICATORS THAT OUR STRATEGY IS WORKING IS HOW CUSTOMERS ARE RESPONDING.
WELL, IN THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, FROM JANUARY THROUGH MARCH, THE SYSTEM DELIVERED AN ADDITIONAL 700,000 MORE TRIPS IN JUST ONE QUARTER.
THAT'S AN INCREDIBLE NUMBER FOR THIS TEAM AND FOR THIS AGENCY THAT IS SEEING THE OUTPUT NOW OF THIS STRATEGY OF WHERE YOU DEVELOP A A MORE ROBUST AND QUALITY SYSTEM, THE MARKETPLACE WILL RESPOND.
ALSO, BY THE WAY, IN JANUARY, FEBRUARY AND MARCH, THOSE ARE TYPICALLY, UH, MONTHS THAT WE DON'T HAVE HIGH RIDERSHIP BECAUSE OF THE WEATHER.
UH, SO WE'RE LOOKING AT HAVING A VERY GOOD YEAR, UH, THIS CALENDAR YEAR ON THESE TRIPS.
SANDEEP HAS A BIG SMILE ON HIS FACE, UH, ABOUT THAT.
UH, I KNOW SANDEEP AND I, WE ARE ALIGNED WITH ALL THIS RAIN THAT WE ARE GETTING.
WE DON'T LIKE THAT RAIN NOW BECAUSE THAT AFFECTS THESE TRIPS, BUT THANKFULLY NO MORE RAIN AND WE'RE GOING TO, WE'LL, UH, WE'LL GET THE, WE'LL GET THAT BACK UP AND RUNNING.
SO IT'LL BE AN INCREDIBLE, IDEALLY, WE WANT TO HAVE A MILLION, A ADDITIONAL TRIPS ON OUR SYSTEM, UH, BY THE SUMMER, AND THEN WHO KNOWS WHERE WE'LL BE, UH, AFTER THAT.
WELL, ALL THAT GREAT NEWS AND ALL THAT, UH, JERMAINE REMINDS US THAT, WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE GOTTA PAY FOR ALL THIS NEW ACTIVITY AND WE GOTTA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE FINANCIALLY STABLE, NOT ONLY SHORT TERM, BUT THAT WE'RE FINANCIALLY STABLE LONG TERM BECAUSE THESE NEW OPERATORS AND THE OPERATING COSTS THAT WE HAVE AS AN AGENCY HAS ALSO INCREASED, UH, BECAUSE WE ARE ACCELERATING, UH, THE BETTER BUS PLAN.
THIS ACCELERATION OF THE BETTER BUS PLAN, UH, WILL ALSO, WELL, I SHOULD SAY THE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE IN FISCAL YEAR 26 TO GIVE YOU THE MID-YEAR VIEW, HAS ALSO BEEN REALLY HEALTHY FOR US AS AN AS AS STAFF TO DO SO, BECAUSE IT'S ALREADY GIVING US A SENSE OF WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IN FISCAL YEAR 27 WHEN WE COME AND START PRESENTING TO YOU ABOUT SOME OF THOSE IDEAS, UH, THAT WE HAVE.
SO, UH, WITH THAT, I'M GONNA HAND THIS OVER TO JERMAINE TO WALK US THROUGH MORE OF THE DETAILS.
DO YOU NEED THIS BACK TO ME? UM, YEAH, I'LL TAKE IT.
AND SO, AS WAS STATED HERE, THE, UM, STRATEGIC INITIATIVES THAT WE'RE PURSUING, THEY'RE DRIVING IMPACT, BUT THEY'RE ALSO DRIVING COSTS.
THIS IS JUST A QUICK OVERVIEW OF WHERE WE SEEING THAT ADDITIONAL COST.
AND SO OF COURSE, WE'VE, UH, ACCELERATED THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BETTER BUS PLAN AND INCREASED OUR SERVICES.
AND SO WE'RE EXPERIENCING A COST THERE.
OF COURSE, AS IT RELATES TO THAT, WE'RE HIRING ADDITIONAL OPERATORS, AND SO WE SEE THAT ADDITIONAL SPEND.
WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR C AND G UM, PRICES THERE, AND SO WE SEE A PRICE INCREASE, BUT ALSO ADDITIONAL VOLUME ASSOCIATED WITH THE ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF VIA LEAK EXPANSION, WE DECIDED TO, UH, MOVE FORWARD SOME OF THOSE, UM, EXPANSIONS AND, UH, WE'RE SEEING ADDITIONAL COSTS THERE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT HIGHER ACTIVITY.
UH, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE KEY ACTIONS THAT MANAGEMENT IS TAKING, THE ENSURING THAT WE MAINTAIN OUR, UM, FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY, WE, UH, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT A BUDGET YEAR, WE'RE, WE'RE, RIGHT NOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OUR SPENDING FISCAL YEAR 26, BUT THAT ACTUALLY IMPACTS OUR PROJECTIONS FOR GOING FORWARD.
[01:40:01]
A A FUND, A FINANCIALLY SUSTAINABLE PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 26, WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO AFFORD OUR CAPITAL PLAN THAT WE'VE COMMUNICATED TO THE BOARD AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS THAT WE'RE GONNA DELIVER UPON.AND SO, UH, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING? LOOKING AT OUR, UM, OPERATING DISCIPLINE HERE, ALIGNING OUR HIRING WITH REVISED TARGETS, WE'RE LOOKING AT DISCRETIONARY SPEND AND OPPORTUNITIES TO REDUCE THAT SPEND.
AND, UH, WE'RE DEFERRING NONCRITICAL, UH, PROJECTS.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IN TERMS OF A PLANNING PERSPECTIVE IS THE, UH, IMPLEMENTATION OF A RENEWAL AND REPLACEMENT FUND.
UH, IF WE IMPLEMENT THIS FUND, AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'LL BRING BACK TO THE BOARD LATER ON THIS YEAR, BUT WE JUST WANTED TO SIGNAL IT HERE.
UH, THIS WOULD HELP US TO ACTUALLY PLAN FOR A LIFECYCLE COST RELATED TO OUR CAPITAL, UH, INVESTMENTS.
AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT IT, WHAT IT ALLOWS US TO DO ALSO IS TO LOOK AT ONGOING RECURRING COSTS AND ACTUALLY, ACTUALLY TO, TO BE ABLE TO ANALYZE THAT A BIT BETTER BECAUSE THIS CAPITAL COST RELATED TO THE, UH, LIFECYCLE SPEND IS MORE LIKE CAPITAL SPEND FOR AN EXAMPLE, AND IT'S LUMPY FOR THE BEST, UH, LACK OF A, A BETTER WORD.
AND SO WE MAY SPEND $10 MILLION THIS YEAR AND, YOU KNOW, 1 MILLION THE NEXT AND 15 OR 20 THE NEXT, THE NEXT YEAR FOR AN EXAMPLE.
AND SO WE WANNA BE ABLE TO PLAN THAT SOMEWHAT LIKE CAPITAL SPEND FOR THAT PURPOSE.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF OVERALL GOVERNANCE, I THINK THAT, UH, IN TERMS OF A PRACTICE, IT'S A REALLY GOOD PRACTICE THAT WE'RE COMING TO HAVE THIS MID-YEAR DISCUSSION WITH THE BOARD TO LET YOU ALL KNOW THAT WE'RE STILL ON TRACK HERE.
WE'RE, UM, ENFORCING OUR FINANCIAL GUARDRAILS AS WELL.
AND SO JUST IN TERMS OF, UH, THIS ENTIRE EXERCISE OF LOOKING AT THE FORECAST FOR THE YEAR AND THE FACT THAT IT'S ABOVE BUDGET, BUT WE HAVE THE, UM, UH, MECHANISM IN PLACE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE PROPER REVIEWS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE STILL ON TRACK TO DELIVER ON THE SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM STRATEGY OF THE ORGANIZATION, AND MAINTAIN THAT, UH, FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY AS WELL.
AND THAT INVOLVES US INTEGRATING OUR, UM, OPERATING AND CAPITAL PLANS AND CERTAINLY, UM, TALKING STRATEGY AS WE TALK BUDGET AND FORECAST AS WELL.
UM, HERE, THIS IS JUST A VIEW OF WATERFALL CHART THAT SHOWS YOU A VIEW OF WHAT THE ADDITIONAL SPEND WOULD BE.
AND SO WE'RE SHOWING YOU THIS AS A PREDICTION OF WHEN, WHEN SEPTEMBER COMES, WE WILL LIKELY BE COMING BACK TO THE BOARD AND ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL, UH, BUDGET APPROPRIATION FOR THE YEAR THAT ALLOWS US TO SPEND THIS ADDITIONAL $18.3 MILLION.
AND SO QUESTION THAT SHOULD BE ASKED HERE IS, ON A LONGER TERM BASIS, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE ORGANIZATION? AND SO WHAT WE SHOW HERE IS THAT LONGER TERM PERFORMANCE AND THE, WE KNOW THAT THE BOARD HAS A REQUIREMENT THAT ON AN ANNUAL BASIS WE ACHIEVE A DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO.
YOU CAN LOOK RIGHT WITHIN THAT RED BOX OF 1.15 TIMES OR BETTER MANAGEMENT PLANS TO A 1.3 TIMES OR BETTER.
AND SO EACH AND EVERY YEAR, WE'RE ABLE TO MAINTAIN THAT OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF DAYS CASH ON HAND, WE HAVE TO ACHIEVE 120 DAYS OR BETTER.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT WE ACHIEVE THAT AS WELL EACH AND EVERY YEAR HERE.
AND SO THIS WAS OUR GOAL TO, UM, FIRST HAVE THIS DISCUSSION AS OUR, OUR PRESIDENT AND OUR CEO DID ON WHAT WE'VE DONE IN TERMS OF STRATEGIC INITIATIVES, HOW THAT'S ACTUALLY, UM, MAKING THE INTENDED IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE INTENDED TO MAKE AS A MANAGEMENT TEAM, BUT TO ACTUALLY COME BACK AND SHOW THE FINANCIAL IMPACT OF IT AS WELL.
AND THEN TO CLOSE IT OUT TO ENSURE THAT WE STILL HAVE A, UM, FINANCIALLY, UH, SUSTAINABLE PLAN AND WE'RE DEMONSTRATING THAT WE DO, UM, RIGHT HERE.
AND SO THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE HERE JUST SHOWS OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, UH, THIS IS SOME UPDATE TO OUR CAPITAL, UH, PROGRAM USES AS WELL OR SPEND OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
WE'LL, WE'LL, UM, FINALIZE THIS IN SEPTEMBER WITH THE BOARD AS WELL IN TERMS OF WHAT MAY HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT, UH, LAST YEAR AND WHAT WE WERE PRESENTING VERSUS WHAT THE ASK MIGHT BE GOING FORWARD.
BUT WE SHOW, UM, WHAT THE SPEND COULD LOOK LIKE OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, AND THEN HOW WE FUND AND FINANCE THAT SPEND IN THIS PARTICULAR, UM, SLIDE HERE.
AND THEN FOR THIS, UH, NEXT SLIDE HERE IS JUST AN OVERVIEW OF THAT RENEWAL AND REPLACEMENT FUND AGAIN.
AND SO WE TALK ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF THAT FUND HERE.
SO INTRODUCE A NEW FUND THAT ENHANCES OUR CAPITAL AND OPERATIONS PLANNING.
IT'S A DEDICATED FUND, AGAIN, FOR, UH, CAPITAL LIFECYCLE AND, UH, PRESERVATION COST.
UH, WHAT THIS DOES, AGAIN, AND I MENTIONED IT EARLIER, IT STABILIZES OUR OPERATING BUDGET AND RESULTS ANALYSIS HELPS US, UH, IMPROVE OUR TRANSPARENCY AND STRENGTHENS OUR LONG-TERM PLANNING.
IN TERMS OF, UM, OVERALL GOVERNANCE HERE, WE EXPECT TO COME BACK TO THE BOARD AT THE, UM, NEAR THE END OF THIS FISCAL YEAR WITH THE FORMAL REQUEST TO, UH, IMPLEMENT THIS, UM, FUND.
IF WE DECIDE THAT THAT'S APPROPRIATE FOR US TO DO, THERE'S SOME ADDITIONAL REVIEW THAT WE NEED TO DO LOOKING AT OUR BOND COVENANTS AND THE LIKE, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS IS THE PROPER THING.
UM, WE MAY NEED TO LOOK AT MORE POLICIES FOR AN EXAMPLE ON DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO, SHOULD THIS, UM, SPEND ASSOCIATED WITH THESE CAPITAL LIKE EXPENDITURES BE EXCLUDED FROM THAT CALCULATION AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND SO WE'LL, WE'LL HAVE THAT EVALUATION AND THEN COME BACK TO THE BOARD WITH WHAT OUR THOUGHTS ARE AROUND THOSE, UM, ITEMS. UH, JUST ONE, UH, LAST ITEM HERE IS WE WANTED TO MENTION COST THAT COULD BE APPLICABLE FOR THIS PARTICULAR, UH, FUD IN.
[01:45:01]
IDENTIFIED 3.7 MILLION IN SPEND ASSOCIATED WITH THE BROOKS REPAIRS AND ACCOUNTING.YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT THE, UH, VERY, IN A VERY DETAILED MANNER, WHAT THE PARTICULARS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT REPAIR.
AND SO WE HAVE THIS, UH, DISCUSSION AS A MANAGEMENT TEAM ALL THE TIME, AND MOST MANAGEMENT TEAMS AND LEADERS, THEY WANT TO, THEY DON'T WANT TO EXPENSE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THEIR CAPITAL PROJECTS, AND I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT THE ACCOUNTING RULES SAY YOU NEED TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
AND, UM, AND SO IF WE CREATE THIS FUND HERE, IT MAKES IT VERY SIMPLE FOR US BECAUSE WE'LL NO LONGER WORRY TOO MUCH ABOUT THE ACCOUNTING THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY TREAT THIS AS IF IT WERE A CAPITAL SPEND.
ALTHOUGH FROM AN ACCOUNTING PERSPECTIVE, FOLKS OVER THERE STILL SEE IT AS AN OPERATING EXPENSE.
AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE, UM, BENEFITS OF THIS PARTICULAR FUND.
AND SO HERE JUST, UH, CONCLUSIONS HERE, AGAIN, UH, WE EXPECT TO COME BACK TO THE BOARD AT THE END OF THE YEAR TO LOOK AT THE, UH, POTENTIALLY, UM, ADDING THIS RENEWAL AND REPLACEMENT FUND AND DOING FUND ACCOUNTING AT VIA HERE AND THEN MAKE A FORMER REQUEST FOR ANY ADDITIONAL, UH, BUDGET SPEND FOR FISCAL YEAR 26.
A KEY TAKEAWAY HERE, AND, AND I'D LIKE FOR YOU TO END IT OFF AS WELL, SO WE'RE EXPANDING SERVICE RESPONSIBLY AND PROTECTING OUR LONG-TERM FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY.
YOU KNOW, AND I'LL, I'LL, I'LL ALSO, YEAH, ADD HERE TO THE CONCLUSION THAT, UM, WHAT, WHAT A GREAT MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY WHO PUT A LOT OF TRUST INTO OUR AGENCY WHEN THEY REASSIGNED, TOOK THE VOTE TO REASSIGN THE SALES TAX TO US, UH, THAT STARTED COMING IN IN JANUARY.
AND, YOU KNOW, WE CAN REPORT THAT WE WERE READY FOR IT AND WE PUT IT IMMEDIATELY TO WORK.
UM, AND AS A RESULT, YOU KNOW, 700,000 MORE RIDERSHIP TRIPS HAVE, HAVE RESULTED IN THAT.
UH, SO IN MANY CASES, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE EXPECTED THAT, WELL, LET'S WAIT TO GET THE MONEY, LET'S WAIT TO PLAN FOR THE MONEY.
THAT'S, LET'S, LET'S DESIGN, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING LATER DOWN THE LINE.
WE'RE QUITE RESPONSIBLE IN, IN GETTING READY FOR THAT MONEY TO COME ON OVER AND MORE JUST AS IMPORTANTLY, SHOW RESULTS OF THOSE DOLLARS, UH, BECAUSE WE KNEW WE COULD USE THEM RIGHT AWAY, AND WE KNEW THAT WE HAD A PLACE TO USE 'EM AND, UH, AND NOW, UH, THE RESULTS ARE SHOWING.
SO ALL OF THIS HAS COME TOGETHER REALLY, REALLY WELL.
I WANT TO GIVE A GREAT SHOUT OUT TO NOT ONLY THE STAFF THAT'S IN THIS ROOM, BUT ALL THE STAFF THAT'S LISTENING, UH, FOR THIS PRESENTATION, BECAUSE THIS WAS AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF ACTIVITY THAT WE'VE DONE AND CONTINUE TO DO, UH, IN ORDER TO GET US, UH, TO THIS POSITION AS AN AGENCY.
UH, BUT, BUT FRANKLY, IT'S A VERY RESPONSIBLE THING FOR US TO DO AS GREAT STEWARDS OF THE SALES TAX DOLLARS AND OF THE PUBLIC DOLLARS THAT COME TO US.
SO, MADAM CHAIR, THAT CONCLUDES OUR PRESENTATION FOR OUR MID, UH, YEAR REVIEW.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I DO HAVE A COUPLE OF COMMENTS.
UH, I, I JUST WANNA EXPRESS MY GRATITUDE BECAUSE I KNOW THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE DISCUSSED, UH, LAST YEAR DOING, UM, BEFORE THE APPROVAL OF THE FISCAL YEAR BUDGET.
SO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THIS BACK AND, UM, STAYING TRUE TO A MIDYEAR REVIEW.
I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT GOES INTO THIS, UM, FROM AN HC PERSPECTIVE, AND SO THAT'S MUCH APPRECIATED.
UM, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE AND THE FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY THAT WE, WE DO OWE OUR CITIZENS IS, IS KEY HERE, RIGHT? UM, WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A, A TOOL IN OUR TOOLBOX TO EXPAND SERVICES.
UM, WE ARE TAKING GOOD USE OF THAT, UH, BY SHOW OF AN INCREASE OF 700,000 RIDERS IN Q1, YOU KNOW, BY, UH, 72% END OF, UH, SUMMER.
UH, THANK YOU, UH, UH, RODS ND FOR THAT SERVICE EXPANSION.
UM, AND WE'RE DEMONSTRATING TO OUR CITIZENS, UM, WHAT VIA IS DOING IN TRANSFORMING THIS AGENCY, UM, DAY IN, DAY OUT.
SO THIS IS ONE, ONE AREA RIGHT HERE I THINK WE'VE IMPROVED UPON JUST FROM A FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY PERSPECTIVE.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR BRINGING THAT TO, UM, OUR INTENTION.
AND THEN I, I DO WANNA SAY I LOVED HOW YOU EXPANDED, UH, OUR 32 MILLION BEFORE THE END OF THE SUMMER, UH, GOAL
SO THANK YOU SANDEEP, UH, SANDEEP, UH, FOR THAT.
AND THEN, UH, LASTLY, I, I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THIS RENEWAL REPLACEMENT FUND.
I KNOW, UM, AND I HEARD YOU, WHAT YOU SAID AND WHAT, IT'S GONNA MAKE IT EASY, BUT WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS AS WE MOVE FORWARD FOR THE FORECAST FOR THE NEXT FEW YEARS? YOU KNOW, I SAW FY 29, UM, BEING A, A YEAR WHERE WE'RE GONNA BE LOW ON CASH, ON HAND, POTENTIALLY, UH, LOW IN BUDGET.
AND SO HOW ARE WE MOVING FORWARD WITH PROJECTIONS IN THE OUT YEARS SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO BE MINDFUL OF OUR SPEND? UM, NOW AND PRESENTLY AS WE THINK ABOUT THESE CONTRACTS, RIGHT? WE'RE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EXTERNAL CONTRACTS FOR EMPLOYEES, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EXTERNAL CONTRACTS FOR IMPROVING THE SYSTEM, AND THEN WHICH CONTRACTS ARE GONNA BE REOCCURRING, UM, BECAUSE THOSE ARE THINGS THAT I THINK THE BOARD NEEDS TO HAVE, UH, LINE OF SIGHT, UM, JUST FOR STRATEGIC CHOICES THAT WE'RE MAKING BECAUSE SOME OF THE
[01:50:01]
CHOICES WE'RE MAKING NOW WILL IMPACT, UH, THE BUDGET FOR THE NEXT COUPLE YEARS.SO, UH, JUST A COUPLE COMMENTS.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR, YEAH, DEFINITELY.
SO THAT'S ONE REASON WE FORMED THE CAPITAL COMMITTEE TO IMPROVE OUR COMMUNICATION ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION AS IT RELATES TO CAPITAL PLANNING.
AND SO WE ARE, WE DO HAVE A CALL OUT FOR OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS NOW.
WE DO, UH, LOOK AT A 20 YEAR VIEW, AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT JUST GETTING THE REQUEST FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS IN TERMS OF CAPITAL SPEND.
WE WANT THAT 5, 10, 15, AND 20 YEAR VIEW TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE ABLE TO, UH, DELIVER ON THE CAPITAL PROJECTS THAT ARE NEEDED.
AND SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THAT RENEWAL AND REPLACEMENT FUND, A LOT OF THAT IS JUST CAPITAL MAINTENANCE FOR AN EXAMPLE.
AND I THINK THAT THAT'S OFTENTIMES MISSED, AND A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS, SO YOU'LL HAVE YOUR HUGE PROJECTS THAT YOU'RE WORKING ON, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE EXISTING FACILITIES AND WHAT YOU MAY NEED TO DO IN TERMS OF JUST KEEPING THEM UP TO DATE IN TERMS OF, UH, THE STATE OF REPAIR? AND SO WE'RE GONNA BE PUSHING TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE THOSE NUMBERS, AND OF COURSE, AS A CAPITAL COMMITTEE, WE PRIORITIZE WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, AND THEN OUR SENIOR EXECUTIVE TEAM MAKES THE, UH, FINAL DECISION REGARDING THAT.
BECAUSE WE KNOW OUR OTHER UTILITIES ARE GOING THROUGH THAT RIGHT NOW AND EXPERIENCING, UM, SOME PROJECTIONS THAT MAY BE FAVORABLE AND MAYBE NOT.
AND SO I WANNA ENSURE AS WE CONTINUE TO SPEND OUR DOLLARS FOR, UH, THE FOUNDATION OF OUR SYSTEM WITH A GREEN LINE AND SILVER LINE, AND INCREASE OUR BETTER BUS PLAN, UH, WITH KS A M, UH, UH, IN, UH, COST INCREASES.
YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE LOOKING AT THE OUT YEARS, JUST TO YOUR POINT, THOSE 10 YEARS, UH, 15 YEAR PROJECTIONS.
UM, YOU, ANY MORE COMMENTS? MADAM CHAIR? IF I, IF ONE, ONE MORE SLIDE.
I JUST, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, FOR THE, FOR THE PURPOSE OF MAKING SURE WE'RE ALL ON, ON THE SAME PAGE.
UH, JERMAINE, CAN YOU GO BACK TO THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE SLIDE THAT HAS, UM, THE, UM, TOTAL RESERVES AND THE DAY? THERE YOU GO.
I, I WANNA, I WANNA POINT THIS OUT IN PARTICULAR.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE SIZE OF OUR RESERVES IN FISCAL YEAR 26 AND THE SPEND DOWN ON THOSE RESERVES DOWN TO FISCAL YEAR 29, THAT'S A DESIGN.
THAT'S HOW WE'RE PAYING FOR THE GREEN AND SILVER LINE.
SO I WANNA CONSTANTLY REMIND EVERYONE THAT THAT'S, THIS IS EXPECTED.
THIS IS NOT A RESULT OF US OVERSPENDING OPERATING COSTS.
THIS IS, THIS IS A REDUCTION IN RESERVES INTENTIONALLY, BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE WE HAVE OUR SAVINGS FOR THESE BIG CAPITAL PROGRAMS. SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE, UH, OUR GOAL IS TO, TO LAND AT ABOUT 117 MILLION, UM, IN RESERVE.
BUT WE'LL PROBABLY STAY AROUND THAT MOMENT, UM, YOU KNOW, FROM, FROM, UH, THIS POINT OUT.
UH, TRUSTEE FLOS? YEAH, JUST A QUICK QUESTION ON THAT POINT.
WHAT IS THE PEER GROUP, UH, DAY'S, CASH ON HAND OF WHAT? MEANING, WHAT IS THE BENCHMARK FOR THE PEER GROUP, WOULD YOU SAY? YEAH, SO JUST TRYING TO GO BACK AND RECALL, AND WE DO HAVE GOOD DATA OUT THERE.
THERE'S A REPORT, A BENCHMARK REPORT THAT WE HAVE.
I'LL BRING IT BACK OUT TO YOU, BUT I, I BELIEVE THAT, UM, WE ARE, WE ARE PRETTY STRONG WITH THIS 120 DAYS IN THIS INDUSTRY.
FROM WHAT I RECALL IT, IT IS BEEN A LITTLE OVER SIX MONTHS SINCE I REVIEWED THAT PARTICULAR REPORT.
I REMEMBER A PRESENTATION YOU GAVE, WHICH WE WERE CONSIDERABLY HIGHER THAN OUR PEER GROUP.
BUT I THINK 120 DAYS IS, UM, WE DON'T, WE SHOULDN'T LOOK AT DOING SOMETHING LESS THAN THAT, BUT, AND A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS ARE TALKING ABOUT FISCAL CLIFFS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND SO WE SHOULD TRY TO MAINTAIN THIS LEVEL OF RESERVES SO THAT RIGHT.
IF WE RUN INTO A CRUNCH, THEN YEAH.
AND THEN CAN YOU GO UP TO 14? SORRY, I GUESS I DID HAVE A QUESTION.
I MEAN, I THINK WHAT'S ALSO INTERESTING IS THE, IS THE, UH, DOWNTREND IN THE GRANT FUNDS THAT YOU SEE ON THAT PROJECTION AS WELL? MM-HMM
SO THAT'S ALL, YOU KNOW, COUPLE DECLINING GRANT FUNDS.
I'M ASSUMING THAT'S BECAUSE THERE JUST AREN'T GRANT FUNDS FOR OTHER THAN CAPITAL PROJECTS, THERE AREN'T SOME FOR MAINTENANCE FOR OTHER KINDS OF THINGS.
IS THAT WHY THAT'S DECLINING? SO, BIGGEST REASON IS BECAUSE THOSE, THOSE ARE GRANTS COMING IN FOR GREEN AND SILVER.
AND, AND, UH, THOSE, THOSE, THEY'RE GONNA WILL STOP OFF, JUST LIKE OUR RESERVES WILL STOP IT AT SOME POINT AS WELL.
AND WE'LL GET, WE'LL GET BACK TO A BASELINE OF GRANTS, I THINK ROUGHLY AT ABOUT 30 TO TO 35 MILLION.
ON THE OPERATING SIDE, BUT PARTICULARLY AS IT RELATES TO THESE CAPITAL PROJECT SPEND, THE SPEND IS HIGHER IN THE, THE, UH, YEARS AND THE PART OF THIS SCHEDULE HERE.
AND SO WE GET GRANT REIMBURSEMENTS.
AND SO AS THAT SPEND IS REDUCED, SO IS, SO ARE THE REIMBURSEMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH IT? THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
AND I, YOU KNOW, SO THERE, THERE'S THE STORY OF THE, UM, THE INVESTMENTS IN THE CASH RELATIVE TO THE, UH, THE, UH, GREEN AND SILVER LINES.
BUT THEN THERE'S ALSO THE SQUEEZE TO THE LEFT ON THAT SLOPE SLIDE THAT YOU MENTIONED.
CONSTANTLY TRYING TO IMPROVE THAT PERFORMANCE, WHICH CLEARLY YOU'RE SEEING THE RESULTS OF.
SO, SO I THINK IT'S, IT'S NOT JUST THE GREEN LINE AND THE SILVER LINE, BUT THE CONTINUED IMPROVEMENT AND SERVICE AND RELIABILITY AND EXPERIENCE WITH THE APP AND ALL THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT.
SO I JUST DON'T WANT, I DON'T WANT THAT TO GET LOST IN THE STORY AS WELL MM-HMM
BECAUSE THAT'S SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT
[01:55:01]
AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO GET IMPROVED UPON AS WE PUSH LEFT ON THAT, UH, SKI SKI SLOPE SLIDE.SO, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, ONE MORE COMMENT ON THE, ON THE GRANT FUNDS, UH, TRUSTEE IS, UH, THE, UH, JERMAINE HAS A WHOLE DEPARTMENT THAT'S LOOKING AT FINDING WAYS ALL ALWAYS TO GO AND LEVERAGE OUR GRANT FUNDS OR TO BRING IN MORE GRANT FUNDS.
SO WHILE THIS IS A CONSERVATIVE LOOK, THERE'S ALWAYS OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE'LL BRING TO THIS BOARD ABOUT, UH, A FEDERAL PROGRAM THAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR BUS AND BUS FACILITIES MM-HMM
YOU KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, THOSE ARE STILL PROGRAMS THAT, THAT WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES ON.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE STILL LOOKING TO MAXIMIZE THAT.
AND I JUST WANNA CLARIFY, I THINK IT MAY BE KNOWN, BUT JUST FOR EVERYONE HERE, THIS IS ONLY A LOOK AT A CAPITAL PROGRAM GRANT, RIGHT? AND SO WE HAVE OPERATING GRANTS AS WELL THAT WE WE'RE BRINGING IN.
YOU DON'T SEE ANY VISIBILITY OF, OF THAT ON THIS PARTICULAR SLIDE.
THAT'S, UNLESS WE'RE INNOVATIVE AND WE CAPTURE MORE REVENUE TO SUPPORT OPERATIONS AND BRING DOWN ADDITIONAL GRANTS FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS MM-HMM
IT'S THE OPERATING, IT'S THE OPERATING, IT'S THE OPERATING DOLLARS IS THE KEY TO, TO ADD TO, TO SUSTAIN AND, AND MOVE THAT BOX TO THE LEFT THAT WE'RE ALL TALKING ABOUT.
UH, THAT'S THE KEY MO THAT'S THE KEY POINT.
UM, MS. SOLDER, DO WE HAVE A LEGAL BRIEFING? NO, MA'AM, WE DO NOT.
[7. Legal Briefing ]
UM, LOOK AT OUR NEWEST ATTORNEY AND ASK IF SHE HAS A LEGAL BRIEFING, A POINT OF PERSONAL PRIVILEGE HERE.UH, TRUSTEE TWI RECENTLY TOOK THE BAR THIS SPRING AND WAS, UH, GREETED WITH GREAT NEWS, UH, A FEW WEEKS AGO, AND THAT SHE DID PASS THE BAR.
I KNOW THAT IS, CONGRATULATIONS.
BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS RAISING A FAMILY, OWNING BUSINESSES, AND SIMULTANEOUSLY SERVING ON, UH, PUBLIC BOARDS, UM, WHILE GOING THROUGH, UH, A LAW, UH, LAW SCHOOL.
UH, UM, VERY HAPPY FOR YOU AND THE FAMILY.
SO WE DON'T HAVE TO GO TO MS. IL OVER HERE, TRUSTEE TWELL.
[8. President & CEO Report ]
HERE REAL QUICK HERE, BECAUSE GHOST SPURS GO.UM, THAT WE HAVE, THIS IS, THIS IS, UH, REAL QUICK PRESIDENT'S REPORT, BUT WE HAVE SOME REALLY EXCITING THINGS THAT WE WANTED TO SHARE, UH, WITH THE BOARD AND, AND THE PUBLIC.
UH, WE'LL GO TO THE FIRST SLIDE.
UH, IT'S ANOTHER BIT OF A VICTORY LAP ON THAT 700,000, BUT WHAT WE THOUGHT WE WOULD DO HERE IS REALLY PUT A FACE TO THE 700,000, UM, WHAT WE'RE REALLY DOING WITH ADDITIONAL RIDES.
AND THE MORE UTILIZATION OF OUR SYSTEM IS CONNECTING MORE PEOPLE TO WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO THEM AND CONNECTING MORE PEOPLE TO WHERE THEY NEED TO GO, AND DOING SO IN A MUCH MORE EFFICIENT WAY.
UM, SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE ALWAYS FEEL IS IMPORTANT TO CONNECT US BACK TO WHY WE'RE DOING IT AND, AND, AND THE SUCCESS THAT WE'RE SEEING.
UH, WHILE THE NUMBERS ARE SHOWING THE SUCCESS, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S OUR WRITERS.
IT'S THOSE FOLKS THAT ARE TAKING OUR SERVICE, IS WHY WE DO IT.
NEXT, WE'LL GO TO LOOK AT SOME, UH, IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE'VE SEEN INTERNALLY THAT WE WANTED TO SHARE WITH THE BOARD.
IT'S VIA VOICE APP, UM, AND IT'S, UH, NOT A VOICE APP, BUT IT'S VIA VOICE APP, I SHOULD SAY.
UH, THIS IS A, A VERY INNOVATIVE WAY NOW THAT WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH OUR EMPLOYEES.
I KNOW WE'VE GIVEN YOU SOME TOP LINE RESULTS OF THAT SURVEY FROM EMPLOYEES, BUT A CONSISTENT THEME IN THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT THE EMPLOYEES WANTED TO SEE IS BETTER COMMUNICATIONS, BETTER INFORMATION ABOUT THEIR COMPANY.
UH, THEY WANTED TO LEARN ABOUT THEIR COMPANY, FROM THEIR COMPANY, NOT FROM THEIR NEIGHBORS OR FROM FOLKS THAT THEY RUN INTO AT, AT THE SUPERMARKET.
UH, AND IN MANY CASES TOO, IT PROVIDES A GREAT DEAL OF VALUE THAT MANAGEMENT CAN PROVIDE TO OUR CUSTOMER, I MEAN, TO OUR EMPLOYEES ABOUT WHAT IT IS, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE DOING AS, AS AN AGENCY.
SO, JOSH LED BY TERRY AND JOSH, THEY HAVE PUT TOGETHER, UH, A REALLY IN INNOVATIVE APP.
I THINK NOW THE ADOPTION IS OVER 40%.
WE LAUNCHED THIS THREE WEEKS AGO.
UH, WE'VE SEEN, UH, TREMENDOUS ADOPTION.
SO THAT'S OVER A THOUSAND, UH, EMPLOYEES ARE, ARE ACTIVELY INVOLVED, UH, WITH THIS APP.
UH, IT'S JUST LIKE, YOU KNOW, YOU SEE WITH OTHER APPS WHEN YOU HAVE A NEW STORY OR, OR SOMETHING THAT'S, THAT'S OUT THERE, YOU HAVE THAT LITTLE BADGE UP AT THE RIGHT HAND CORNER SAYING, HEY, YOU, YOU HAVE A, YOU HAVE ONE OR TWO, UH, NEW STORIES THAT YOU HAVEN'T, YOU HAVEN'T CLICKED ON.
UH, BUT IT, IT IS A WAY OF US DRIVING OUR INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS THAT WE KNOW IS CRITICAL FOR THIS
[02:00:01]
CULTURE THAT WE'RE BUILDING, FOR THIS SUCCESS OF CONSTANTLY IMPROVING OUR SYSTEM.SO ALL OF THIS WORKS TOGETHER, AND WE WANTED TO GIVE A GREAT SHOT OUT ABOUT THE, UH, GREAT DIRECTION THAT WE'RE HEADING WITH THIS, UH, WITH THIS APP.
AND THEN THE NEXT SLIDE IS, OF COURSE, WE CAN'T HAVE FIESTA WITHOUT VIA AND VIA CAN'T HAVE FIESTA WITHOUT FIESTA, RIGHT? SO WE HAD A GREAT DEAL OF, OF FUN, UH, DURING FIESTA, BUT WE'RE DOING SO BY THANKING OUR CUSTOMERS, UM, OUR EMPLOYEES.
BY MY NO MEANS IS THIS, UH, IS THIS NECESSARILY JUST TO CELEBRATE FIESTA? WHILE IT IS, UH, WE ARE CELEBRATING OUR EMPLOYEES, AND WE MADE EVERY INSTANCE AND EFFORT, WHETHER IT WAS RAY FAO, UH, SINGING THE PRAISES OF OUR EMPLOYEES, OR WHETHER IT WAS OUR CHAIR COMING TO EVENTS AND ALSO SINGING THE PRAISES OF OUR EMPLOYEES.
UH, WE HAD A GREAT DEAL OF APPRECIATION.
WE HAVE A LOT OF GREAT EMPLOYEES.
AS WE SAID, WE'RE SEEING THE NUMBERS THAT ARE TURNING OUT AS A RESULT OF THIS.
UM, AND WE WANTED TO THANK 'EM.
AND THIS IS ONE OF THE WAYS THAT WE DO SO.
UM, AND, AND WE'LL HAVE A LITTLE FUN DOING IT AT THE SAME TIME.
AND OF COURSE, THAT LAST, UH, PICTURE THERE A GREAT SELFIE FROM OUR BOARD CHAIR, UH, IN FRONT OF THE TROLLEY, UH, THAT WE WALKED IN THE PARADE, AND OF COURSE, REPRESENTING.
IT'S, IT'S, UH, FOR THOSE THAT HAVEN'T WALKED IN THIS PARADE, YOU'LL COME AND WALK IN THIS PARADE.
YOU, YOU COME OFF THAT PARADE ROUTE, BEAMING OF PRIDE BECAUSE OF THE FEEDBACK THAT THIS BRAND AND THIS AGENCY IS GETTING FROM THE PUBLIC IS INCREDIBLE.
IT, IT IS REASSURING THAT WE'RE, WE'RE DOING THINGS RIGHT WHEN YOU HEAR THE ACCOLADES OF, OF FOLKS, UH, AS WE'RE, AS WE'RE COMING BY.
SO, UM, I BELIEVE THIS IS IT FOR THE PRESIDENT'S SUPPORT.
AND THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR FOR THE TIME.
IF, IF THE BOARD CAN EVER COME TO A FIESTA EVENT THAT WE HOST EMPLOYEES, LOVE IT.
UM, AND YOU KNOW, ALONG THE PARADE ROUTE TO JOHN GARY'S POINT, NOT ONLY WHERE YOU ARE HEARING, UM, INDIVIDUALS, UH, CHEER ON VIA, BUT OUR SPURS ALL THROUGHOUT
WE ARE, UM, AT OUR FAVORITE PART HERE, TRUSTEES, UH, CAN I ENTERTAIN A MOTION IN A SECOND? BUT I SEE, UM, MS. ELDER RIGHT HERE HAS, UH, HER, HER MIC ON AND SHE WANTS TO INTERACT WITH US.
ALL IN FAVOR TO SAY AYE, TO ADJOURN THE MEETING.
UH, THE VM BOARD MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED.
AND GOES FIRST, GO, GOES FIRST.