April 18, 2008
For Earth Day, all TARTA buses to operate on biodiesel fuel only, environmental testing enters second year.
Gee Encouraged By Results. TARTA Continues To Be The Best Environmental Transportation Option Within Nine, Linked Communities in Lucas and Wood Counties
Toledo, Ohio – Already the environmentally friendly way to move throughout the area, all Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority buses operating on Earth Day, April 22, will be fueled with B20 biodiesel this year.
“TARTA’s regularly scheduled and Call-A-Ride services will have a total of 145 buses operating on B20 biodiesel fuel on Tuesday to demonstrate our ongoing pledge to provide environmentally responsible transportation services throughout our service area in Lucas and northern Wood counties,” said James K. Gee, TARTA’s general manager.
The B20 biodiesel-fuel blend TARTA is testing, Gee explained, is composed of 80 percent ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel (ULSD) and 20 percent methyl ester biofuel, made from soybean oil. The mixture is purchased from a Norwalk, Ohio, supplier and uses oil from locally grown soybeans.
This is the second year TARTA has operated buses fueled with biodiesel only on Earth Day.
“We’re participating in a federally funded study being conducted by The University of Toledo’s Intermodal Transportation Institute to investigate the impact of using a mixture of biodiesel fuels and petroleum-based diesel fuel. The results so far have been very encouraging,” Gee said.
He said the study is showing increased mileage and decreased maintenance costs, through the use of biodiesel.
“When we compare the same type bus running on ultra-low sulfur diesel versus a similar bus running on biodiesel, the study’s first year recorded a three percent increase in stop and go mileage and an eight percent mileage increase in highway mileage for the biodiesel-fueled buses,” Gee said.
Additionally, the study is measuring emissions and air quality inside of the buses.
TARTA also is testing the impact of injecting hydrogen into the air intakes of buses using biodiesel. The hydrogen portion of the study is being directed by H2 Engine Systems of Toledo.
The $1.5 million study and the recent addition of 10 new, 30-passenger buses, which incorporate clean diesel technology, have been made possible through the efforts of Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-9). Congresswoman Kaptur is committed to America’s “energy independence” by replacing imported petroleum with renewable energy such as biofuels.
April 11, 2008
PowerPoint Presentation
from April 10 Transportation Coordination
Planning Workshop
(File Size: 12 MB)
April 7, 2008
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING -- SERVICE CHANGES
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority will hold a public hearing at 12:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Monday, April 28th, 2008 in the Authority's offices at 1127 West Central Avenue, Toledo, Ohio for the purpose of presenting to the public, information on service changes necessitated by anticipated modifications of Routes 3 and 6X service, expansion of Route 10 Rossford Call-A-Ride, new express services of 45X, 46X and 47X, and a reduction in hours of service on Saturday, Sunday, and Holidays. The site is accessible to persons with mobility impairments, and interpretive services for the hearing-impaired will be available. Individuals wishing to comment in person on the proposed changes should be present.
Proposed Changes:
- Route 3 North/South Crosstown—TARTA is proposing that all weekend trips between Maumee Meijer and Perrysburg Country Charm will be eliminated.
- Route 10 Rossford Call-A-Ride—TARTA is proposing that all weekend trips to and from downtown Toledo will end at Simmons Road in Rossford and serve Bass Pro Shops, Meijer, and Crossroads Plaza.
- Route 6X Maumee-Arrowhead Express—TARTA is proposing that service on this route from downtown Toledo to Arrowhead Park be modified to one trip each weekday morning and weekday evening.
- Route 45X Sylvania-Maumee Arrowhead Express—TARTA is proposing a new express service between Sylvania St. Joseph’s Park & Ride and Arrowhead Park with one trip for each weekday morning and weekday evening.
- Route 46X Sylvania-O-I Campus/Levis Commons Express—TARTA is proposing a new express service between Sylvania St. Joseph’s Park & Ride and O-I Campus/Levis Commons with one trip for each weekday morning and weekday evening.
- Route 47X Perrysburg-Maumee Arrowhead Express—TARTA is proposing a new express service between Perrysburg River Place Park & Ride and Arrowhead Park with one trip each weekday morning and weekday evening.
- Span of Services Change—TARTA is proposing a line-up service change during the Saturday, Sunday and Holiday hours starting at 7:00 a.m. and ending at 10:10 p.m.
Comments may also be made in writing to James K. Gee, General Manager, Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority, P.O. Box 792, Toledo, Ohio 43697-0792. Comments must be received by 5p.m. on May 6th to be included as part of the official record for final route planning and implementation purposes.
March 27, 2008
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING -- SERVICE INPUTS
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority will hold a public hearing at 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at the East Toledo Family Center at 1020 Varland Avenue, Toledo, Ohio for the purpose of presenting to the public, information on service inputs necessitated by anticipated modifications of routes 11 Oak, 12 Front, 13 Starr, 14 East Broadway, 11/14 East Broadway/Rossford, and 12/13 East Toledo.
The re-opening of the Martin L. King Jr. Bridge (Cherry Street Bridge) is now available after seven years and TARTA wants to improve service, accessibility, and safety of our East Toledo passengers. We are conducting a hearing to find out which bridge best serves the needs for our constituents; bridges to be considered are the Martin L. King, Jr. Bridge and Anthony Wayne Suspension Bridge (High Level Bridge).
The site is accessible to persons with mobility impairments, and interpretive services for the hearing-impaired will be available. Individuals wishing to comment in person on the proposed changes should be present.
Comments may also be made by writing to James K. Gee, General Manager, Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority, and P.O. BOX 792, TOLEDO, OHIO 43697-0792. Comments must be received by 5:00 p.m. on May 8, 2008 to be included as part of the official record for final route planning and implementation purposes.
March 25, 2008
Transportation Planning Workshop
Scheduled for April 10.
|
What:
|
Transportation Coordination Planning Workshop |
|
Where:
|
The Ability Center of Greater Toledo
5605 Monroe Street, Sylvania, Ohio 43560 |
|
When:
|
Thursday, April 10, 2008
10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. |
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA), the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments (TMACOG) and TMACOG’s Human Services Transportation Committee is sponsoring a workshop to develop strategies and solutions for coordinating the delivery of transportation services by public transit and human service agencies in the Toledo region.
Agencies and individuals with an interest in improving transportation services for people in Lucas, Wood and Fulton Counties are invited to attend.
The Workshop will cover:
- Presentation – The Focus of the Transportation Coordination Plan
- Findings to date on public transit and human services transportation services, unmet travel needs, gaps in transportation services and overlaps in transportation services
- A conversation about what good transportation coordination in the Toledo region should be
- Collaborative thinking about strategies and solutions to coordinate transportation services to meet unmet travel needs and deliver transportation services more effectively
Thanks to the Ability Center of Greater Toledo for hosting the workshop. Please share this announcement with colleagues you believe may be interested in attending.
Please plan to attend the workshop and add your voice. Please confirm your attendance so that we can plan well for the workshop.
Confirm your attendance with Jason Binder, TARTA, at jbinder@tarta.com. You may reach him by phone at 419-245-5217.
March 20, 2008
Bus stops to reopen Monday
at The Toledo Hospital
and Central Ave. Wal-Mart.
Completion of improvements
restores passenger access
to medical and retail centers.
On Monday, March 24, TARTA will resume service on the former Oatis Street, now ProMedica Parkway, following the roadway's completion due to recent hospital additions and renovations. A bus stop is now located near the new entrance of The Toledo Hospital on ProMedica Parkway for TARTA route 24 passengers.
Also effective March 24, is restored TARTA line service to the Wal-Mart on Central Ave. at Holland-Sylvania Road. TARTA route 5 and 7 passengers will be able to access the newly-expanded Wal-Mart via the bus shelter near the Holland-Sylvania street entrance.
Wal-Mart is also served by both Sylvania and Spencer Twp. Call-A-Ride and TARPS.
March 7, 2008
TARTA opposes Ohio House Bill 480
Proposed state law unfairly singles-out Toledo Area
A potential threat exists to the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority’s continued service within the cities of Toledo, Sylvania, Maumee, Rossford and Perrysburg, as well as Sylvania Township, Spencer Township, Village of Ottawa Hills and Village of Waterville. On February 14, 2008, Ohio Representative Randy Gardner introduced House Bill 480. If enacted, this bill will allow communities to vote themselves out of Regional Transit Authorities without the consent of the other member communities.
House Bill 480 differs from a similar bill, House Bill 208 introduced in 2007, in two significant ways. First, along with granting permission to withdraw from a Regional Transit Authority (RTA), HB 480 also includes an unmanageable and unrealistic provision letting jurisdictions join and then withdraw after a three-year trial (opt-in clause). Second, the proposed legislation is discriminatory, since parameters contained in the proposal limit it only to TARTA.
In TARTAs’ opinion, enactment of HB 480 will threaten its existence. TARTA currently provides residents efficient and effective public transit options they have come to depend on and use including TARTA, TARPS, and Call-A-Ride. If any of these communities were to opt out of TARTA, these services will be discontinued, denying many residents transportation to jobs, medical appointments and other necessities of life. In addition, the impact on our organization would be significant as we would be forced to downsize if communities were able to leave TARTA.
TARTA favors continuing current regulations that require all members of an RTA to agree to the withdrawal of a current member from the RTA.
To gain support for this bill in the legislature, Representative Gardner has asked TARTA’s member communities to pass resolutions supporting this issue.
Therefore, TARTA encourages member community citizens, to contact their council representatives to express their concerns about the passage of such a resolution. Additionally, TARTA urges all member jurisdictions and patrons to contact their state legislators, especially their state representatives, and register their corporate and personal opposition to Ohio HB 480. Please feel free to use the portions of this TARTA statement that most clearly reflect your current situation. To contact your state legislator, go to http://www.legislature.state.oh.us
Reasons for TARTA Opposition
TARTA opposes Ohio House Bill 480 because the unilateral withdrawal of a member from TARTA will impact riders directly throughout the entire TARTA service area.
The withdrawal means residents within that area will no longer have transit services available to them. Further, riders from other areas will not be able to use public transit to access the withdrawn area. Such a withdrawal can create unnecessary transportation challenges across the state, instead of making it easier for residents to rely on public transportation.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA will impact directly those who depend on public transit the most. The withdrawal will make it difficult, if not impossible, to move from place to place freely for those without personal transportation, without finances or who do not know how to drive. Also, it will make it difficult, if not impossible, for the mobility challenged to move freely from place to place.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA and the resulting lack of public transportation could deny some residents living within the withdrawn area the ability to pursue employment, medical assistance, education, family visits and social and cultural opportunities. This goes against the very purpose upon which RTAs were founded – to ensure public transportation options are available to those who need them the most.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA will have a direct, negative impact on the overall operation of the RTA to which it belonged. The withdrawal will require the RTA to adjust routes and budgets, both of which can cause inefficiencies and render previous scheduling ineffective. Making the necessary changes also will cause additional hardships within the organization with everything from union contracts to marketing efforts.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA is unfair to other RTA member communities. The remaining members will have to take on additional responsibilities as a result of the withdrawal. Contracts and financial arrangements entered into in good faith by the various communities in the RTA may no longer be valid because of the withdrawal. Yet, the reasons underlying these contracts and financial arrangements will continue and solutions must be sought.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA will increase the financial burden on the remaining communities, possibly creating instability. The fixed-cost burden and increasing energy costs will have to be spread over a smaller base, requiring those communities remaining to pay an increased portion of these costs. Such cost increases, eventually, will be passed on to the remaining riders, who often rely on public transportation as the most cost-effective transportation option.
The unilateral withdrawal of a member from an RTA will negatively impact the retention of existing businesses and industries within and outside of the RTA’s area by denying employees and potential clients/customers the ability to get to and from that business or industry. Further, the area’s ability to attract new business and industry will be hampered severely by the same inability on the part of employees and clients/customers.
The opt-in language, positioned as being pro-transit, is in reality unrealistic and unmanageable. HB 480 includes language which allows communities to enter the transit authority for a three-year trial period. Unfortunately, given the purchasing period of additional vehicles is 6-18 months along with the time necessary to attract and train employees, three years is not adequate time to begin all services and adequately demonstrate the value of public transit.
The bill clearly discriminates against TARTA. As written, HB 480 contains population and tax limitations that cover only one RTA in Ohio, TARTA. This is discrimination in its most blatant form. If HB 480 passes, the only RTA that will be required by law to both permit unilateral withdrawal of a member as well as the opting in of a nonmember in the geographic jurisdiction is TARTA. None of the state’s other RTAs will be so burdened or discriminated against.
March 6, 2008
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TARTA to host Public Forum for
Transportation Coordination Planning Programs:
Job Access and Reverse Commute; New Freedom
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority is conducting a Public Forum
When: Thursday, March 13th, 2008, 10:30 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
What: During the Mobility Alliance General Assembly meeting beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Where: Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments, Board Room
300 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Toledo, Ohio 43604
(TMACOG is located at the Martin Luther King Jr. Union Plaza)
The purpose of the Public Forum is to:
- Review priorities for the use of Federal Transit Administration funding under the FTA’s Section 5316 – Job Access and Reverse Commute and Section 5317 – New Freedom programs. Projects to be funded consistent with these priorities must be selected through a local competitive process.
- Discuss the developing Coordinated Public Transit – Human Services Transportation Plan for the Toledo metropolitan area, focusing especially on unmet transportation needs, gaps in transportation services and overlaps in transportation services among TARTA and human service agencies that provide transportation services to their clients.
The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority, working in collaboration with its Human Services Transportation Committee and the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments, has developed priorities for these two new Federal Transit Administration programs:
- FTA Section 5316 Job Access and Reverse Commute Program – a program focused on improving access to transportation services to employment and employment-related activities for welfare recipients and eligible low-income individuals.
- FTA Section 5317 New Freedom Program – a program that will provide funding to overcome existing barriers facing Americans with disabilities seeking integration into the work force and full participation in society.
The priorities have been developed in response to program funding requirements and the requirement that the Toledo metropolitan area prepare a plan to coordinate transportation services offered by public transit systems, human service agencies and others to meet the mobility needs of three target populations:
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Persons living in household with low income
TARTA is completing the Coordinated Public Transit – Human Services Transportation Plan, addressing the following elements:
- An assessment of available transportation services and the transportation needs of older persons, persons with disabilities and people with low incomes
- Strategies and activities to address gaps and overlaps in transportation services
- Priorities for implementation based on resources, time and feasibility for implementing the specific strategies and activities
This Public Forum is one of the ways that TARTA reaching out to the community to ensure that the transportation coordination plan, its strategies and priorities, and the use of Job Access and Reverse Commute and New Freedom funding are reviewed and discussed broadly.
Please direct questions about the Public Forum to:
Jason P. Binder, M.A., Transit Planner
Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority
1127 W. Central Ave., PO Box 792
Toledo, Ohio 43697-0792
Office Number: 419-245-5217; Fax Number: 419-243-8588
jbinder@tarta.com
February 25, 2008
TARTA Offers Free Rides March 4.
Free Rides Available All Day On Regular Service, Call-A-Ride and TARPS.
To encourage voters within its service area to go to the polls for Ohio’s Presidential Primary Election on March 4, the Toledo Area Regional Transportation Authority, TARTA, will provide free service on its regular, Call-A-Ride and TARPS services.
This is a test and, if successful, may be repeated at the November Presidential Election.
Current Detours
