City of Lawrence

Public Transit Advisory Committee

Carnegie Building, Conference Room

January 14, 2019 minutes

 

PRESENT:

Heather Thies, Nick Kuzmyak, Mike Wasikowski, Lance Fahy, Allen Ackland

MEMBERS ABSENT:

Sarah Trumble, Phyllis Farrar

STAFF PRESENT:

Robert Nugent, Wendy Koerner, Emily Lubliner, Serena Pearson, Ashley Myers

PUBLIC PRESENT:

None

 

 

1. Call to Order and Introductions

Heather Thies, chair, called the meeting to order at 4:10. Quorum met. Introductions went around the room. Allen Ackland is a new PTAC member.

 

2. Approval of Minutes – (Action Item) – Nick Kuzmyak made a motion to approve the minutes from the October 8, 2018 minutes.  Mike Wasikowski seconded, all in favor, no opposed.

 

3. Election of Officers – (Action Item) – Heather Thies said she would be willing to be chair again, but since Mark Hurt is no longer on committee we will need a new vice-chair. Nick Kuzmyak volunteered to be the vice-chair. Mike Wasikowski made a motion for Heather to be chair, Nick Kuzmyak seconded. All in favor, no opposed. Mike Wasikowski made a motion for Nick to be vice-chair, Lance seconded. All in favor, no opposed.

 

4. City Ethics Policy Review – Bob Nugent handed out the new City Ethics Policy and a handout on the Kansas Open Meetings Act. He told the committee to keep in mind, specifically to the open meetings act, if there is a quorum it needs to be an open meeting. Make sure to get clarification if any questions on these policies.  

 

5. Service Provider Transition – Bob said that things are going well, especially since most MV employees have stayed on and are now working for First Transit. The new management is working to recruit drivers so there are enough drivers available. The LJ World ran a story about a possible labor strike. The old labor agreement ended at the end of the year, so a new contract is in transition. This is a possibility of a strike, but union negotiations are continuing and hopefully they will come to a mutually agreeable conclusion.

 

He also told the committee that there is a new maintenance manager who is working hard to fix mechanical issues on buses and has a new approach to preventative maintenance. This approach will prevent maintenance issues before they happen. They will be collecting data to show the cost savings.

 

6. Study Session – Bob explained that since there are new PTAC members, it would be helpful to have a session to bring people up to speed on what we are doing at Lawrence Transit. There are still have a couple of vacancies on the committee.

 

Heather asked if there is anyone we have in mind to fill the two available slots. Should we wait to have the study session or wait until these positions are filled? She also asked if we will be getting a new student PTAC member to replace Zach. Bob replied that in the past we would get a recommendation from KU for a student PTAC member, but not at this time. Nick asked if there is an age limit to serve on the committee. Bob said that no, there is no age limit. Mike Wasikowski looked it up online and verified that there is no age limit.

 

Allen said he likes the idea of a study session even if we have two vacancies, which other committee members seemed to agree with. Any new members can be brought up to speed on an individual basis.

 

Heather asked if the study session would be open to the public. Bob said yes, but there will be no action items. It will be an orientation on transit in Lawrence. 

 

After discussion, the committee chose February 9th for the study session. Serena will follow-up with a location and time. A preferable location is the conference room at the Cap Fed Building on New Hampshire, but other locations will be explored.

 

 

7. Marketing/Communications Update – Serena said that we are working with KU to coordinate efforts a little better. We will be having regular meetings with KU Parking and Transit to make sure we are doing a better job.  This past year, the MV/KU scholarship project pointed out that many KU students are not aware of many transit services that are available to them. We will work on projects to get information out to inform bus riders of all services available, including late night bus service. We will also be working towards developing a common brand which will help to avoid confusion.

 

Also, we are also working to make sure bus riders get current notifications through the My Bus Lawrence app, Lawrence Transit Facebook page and Lawrencetransit.org website. The app will be updated later this week.

 

8. Quick Updates

a. Bus Transfer Center – KU sent a letter that to the City Manager on November 12, 2018 that stated that their preference for a location of a transit center near the intersection of Bob Billings Parkway and Iowa Street. They will be exploring steps necessary to make it available to serve the proposed purpose. We are still waiting to hear back from them with more information on this subject.   

 

9. Public Comment – No public comment.

 

10. Next Meeting - February 11, 2018 (Tentative)

 

11. Adjournment – 5:15

 

 

 

-Submitted by Serena Pearson