Okaloosa County BOCC — August 16, 2016 — Access EC Rider TDP - August Draft Report — reading text

% from Peer Performance Indicator/Measure Indication* Group Mean Service Area Population 59.40% o Service Area Population Density -38.60% - Passenger Trips -50.40% - Revenue Miles -5.60% - Revenue Hours 14.50% + Total Operating Expense -40.80% - Passenger Fare Revenue -45.60% - Vehicles Operated in Maximum Service 50.00% + Service Supply Vehicle Miles per Capita -46.50% - Service Consumption Passenger Trips per Revenue Mile -45.50% - Passenger Trips per Revenue Hour -55.70% - Quality of Service Average Age of Fleet 35.50% + Cost Efficiency Operating Expense per Service Area Capita -67.20% + Operating Expense per Passenger Trip 4.20% - Operating Expense per Revenue Mile -38.10% + Vehicle Utilization Revenue Miles per Vehicle Mile 3.40% + Operating Ratio Farebox Recovery Ratio -2.80% - Fare Average Fare 13.00% + *Indicates a positive (+), negative (-), or neutral (o) trend Farebox Recovery Monitoring FDOT requires 10-year transit plans to include a one- to two-page summary report on the farebox recovery ratio and strategies implemented and planned to improve it. This analysis is presented in Appendix C of this report to fulfill this requirement. Fixed-Route and Paratransit Efficiency Assessment As part of the Access EC Rider TDP, an efficiency review also was conducted to evaluate the existing fixed- route and paratransit services in Okaloosa County. Appendix D documents this assessment, which includes a route- and segment-level performance and the system-wide performance standards, including service effectiveness (e.g., trips per hour) and service efficiency measures (e.g., cost per trip and hour). A review of paratransit services was conducted and documented in AppendixD. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 51  SECTION 4: PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT This section summarizes the public involvement activities planned during the development of the Access EC Rider TDP as well as those activities undertaken to-date. The goal of these public involvement activities is to increase the likelihood of active participation from citizens and stakeholder agencies during the development of the updated plan. Input from the public is critical since the TDP provides a strategic guide for public transportation in the community over the next 10 years. Current State law effective February 20, 2007, requires that Okaloosa County document its public involvement plan to be used in the TDP development process. Pertinent language from the TDP rule is as follows: The TDP preparation process shall include opportunities for public involvement as outlined in a TDP public involvement plan, approved by the Department, or the local Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (MPO) Public Involvement Plan, approved by both the Federal Transit Administration and the Federal Highway Administration. —Florida Rule 14-73.001 Public involvement is an ongoing process that includes continuously receiving and accumulating feedback about transit in Okaloosa County. One of the first activities in this process was to prepare a Public Involvement Plan (PIP) to plan out all of the public outreach activities to be undertaken during the development of the Access EC Rider TDP. The PIP provides numerous opportunities for involvement by the general public and representatives of local agencies and organizations. A copy of the PIP developed for the Access EC Rider TDP is included in Appendix B along with various supporting materials used as part of the public outreach process. In accordance with current Florida Rule 14-73.001, the PIP developed for the Access EC Rider TDP is consistent with the Okaloosa-Walton TPO’s Public Participation Plan (PPP). The remainder of this section outlines the public involvement activities planned for the Access EC Rider TDP and summarizes the input received from the activities that have occurred to-date. Table 4-1 summarizes the number of participants reached in each of the public involvement activities undertaken as part of the Access EC Rider TDP development process. The results of all public involvement activities will be used to develop and evaluate the 10-year strategic transit plan for Okaloosa County presented in the Access EC Rider TDP. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 52  Section 4 – Public Involvement Table 4-1: Public Involvement Activities Summary Outreach Activity Date (2016) Participants Discussion Groups Riders February 17 6 General Public (Non-Riders) February 18 9 Operators January 6 6 Stakeholders February 10 Public Workshops/Open House Events Public Workshop. Niceville City Hall February 17 0 Home Show February 24 & 27 53 Concert on the Landing June 24 13 Okaloosa County Farmers Market July 1 13 July 4th activities at Fort Walton Beach Landing July 4 23 Christmas in July Craft Fair July 9 9 Committees*/Meetings Steering Committee/Visioning Workshop January 7 19 Escambia Local Coordinating Board February 23 5 Santa Rosa Local Coordinating Board February 23 5 Steering Committee June 20 11 Surveys/Website On-board February 118 General Public (Non-rider) February–June 275 General Public June 81 Operator surveys January 6 5 Access EC Rider Website February 17–ongoing 438 unique visits, 637 page views Total Participants 1,298 Numerous types of public involvement techniques that directly and indirectly engaged the community included:  Branding of the TDP  Visioning workshop with Steering Committee  Steering Committee meetings  Stakeholder interviews  Discussion group workshops (one for riders and one for non-riders)  Bus operator discussion group workshop/survey  Public workshops/open houses  On-board survey  Non-rider/public survey  Presentations to Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners  Project website, which was continuously updated to provide all information and materials during the development of the Access EC Rider TDP These public involvement activities are described in detail below. ACCESS EC RIDER | Okaloosa County’s 10-Year Transit Development Plan 53  Section 4 – Public Involvement Summary of Completed Public Involvement Activities Steering Committee Meeting/Visioning Workshop A Steering Committee was established to help guide the overall TDP update effort. To meet FDOT requirements, this committee includes representation from Okaloosa County, the Okaloosa-Walton TPO, FDOT District 3, and the local Workforce Development Board (CareerSource Okaloosa Walton), as well as municipalities, area chambers of commerce, and Emerald Grande. The Steering Committee held its first meeting on January 7, 2016. This meeting consisted of a presentation followed by a discussion and interactive polling exercise. The following summarizes the input provided by Steering Committee members and the results of the polling exercise. Visioning Workshop—Identified Needs From the discussion and exercises completed at the Visioning Workshop, the major needs of consideration when developing the Access EC Rider TDP include:  Community Needs – Transit service is needed to better connect the transit-dependent population from Crestview and the northern half of Okaloosa County to the County Courthouse in Fort Walton Beach and to jobs in the beach area. In the past, the need for a most robust transit service was especially apparent when temporary workers for the Emerald Grande construction project were housed in an off-site apartment facility, but had no means to commute to work.  Private Sector Coordination – Sunshine Shuttle & Limousine is a private company that provides transportation services in northwest Florida. Specifically, the company caters to convention centers, private schools, weddings, and provides taxi services in the Destin area. In the past, employers have hired the Sunshine Shuttle to transport their employees. The Emerald Grande at the HarborWalk Village (see Figure 4-1), a vacation rental complex in Destin, is in need of a park- and-ride facility for their employees to park off-site and take transit to work to make available more on-site parking spaces for its customers. It was mentioned that the HarborWalk Village phone application, which can