MTC Commissioners urge "bold and unflinching" vision of seamless mobility
MTC Executive Director Therese McMillan summarized the Commission’s direction to staff to be “bold and unflinching” in pursuit of a seamless mobility vision (Photo: Screenshot from Youtube user “Regional Video”).
On Thursday, January 30 at the annual board workshop in Pleasanton, Metropolitan Transportation Commissioners expressed strong enthusiasm for the agency to proactively pursue policies and reforms that can create a seamless transit system, including state legislation.
MTC Executive Director Therese McMillan memorably summarized the Commission’s two hour discussion on the topic of Seamless Mobility as directing staff to be “bold and unflinching in terms of stating a big vision, big goals, and talking about what it will take [including legislation] to bring that about."
The discussion was kicked off against a backdrop of emerging initiatives at a regional level and state level to improve transit coordination. These include the business case study of regional fare integration, approved for funding by the Commission in November; as well as bold transformative project proposals from non-profits such as a regional express bus network.
As part of its 2020 legislative advocacy program, the Commission is tracking proposals for state legislation to advance seamless mobility, and seeking to “Support legislative efforts aimed at improving the traveler experience through an interconnected, safe, multimodal transportation system that supports progress toward Plan Bay Area goals, including a reduction in per capita vehicle miles traveled and increased transit ridership.”
At the workshop, Commissioners were presented questions about whether to actively pursue seamless mobility including through legislation, and whether to pursue seamless mobility with transit, the region’s growing network of express lanes, or both.
The overwhelming answer response from Commissioners was YES - and both.
Commissioners Jake Mackenzie and Jim Spering were some of the most vocal proponents of the need for MTC to address institutional barriers to achieving an seamless transit system, including proactively engaging in state legislation that can facilitate greater integration. (Photo: Screenshot from Youtube user “Regional Video”).
Commissioner Josefowitz was one of many who supported the direction. “Real people, they just want the system to work as one system.” Commissioner Connolly of Marin supported having trains and buses working together, and making progress on fare equity. Commissioner Bruins strongly supported an integrated express lanes system, with a focus on speeding transit, saying: “I think we have a moment now where we can get express lanes to work as a network.” When staff asked about prioritizing different types of programs, the Commissioners wanted instead to start with an overall set of goals and a roadmap of actions.
Commissioners including Chair Haggerty, Spering, Mackenzie, and Bruins wanted to see governance issues addressed, noting that it’s hard to bring about a coordinated system with today’s landscape of transit agencies, congestion management agencies, cities, counties, toll lane authorities, and the State’s control over highways and arterials, with separate funding sources and differing mandates reporting to separate boards.
The animated discussion that concluded with the “bold and unflinching” marching orders to staff did not yet include the transit operators, although a number of MTC Commissioners are also transit agency board members.
Effective solutions that can deliver a seamless transit system at the end of the day will need to weave together different institutional functions -- enabling transit vehicles to travel rapidly and reliably on roadways, regardless of what city, county or state agency owns them, and enabling people to easily and affordably get around the region using buses and trains, regardless of what agency operates them.
It’s a big step forward for the MTC to embrace a bold vision for a seamless system, and direct staff to pursue it aggressively and proactively. And there is a long way to go to get from the current system, with overlapping responsibilities among dozens of agencies, to a system that is planned as a coordinated network, with a clear mandate to operate as a coordinated system.
With the alignment of the MTC, locally elected officials, and state representatives on the goal of bringing about a seamlessly integrated transit system, 2020 is shaping up to be a watershed year to advance the integration of our fragmented system. See this blog post for Seamless’ proposals on how to get this done.