Time: 8:00 – 9:30 AM
Location: The Annie E. Casey Foundation (701 St. Paul Street)
Attendees:
Braunyno Ayotte, Roxana Beyranvand, Fr. Michael Bishop, Ralph Brown, Curtis Brown, Robin Budish, John Bullock, Jackie Caldwell, Jade Clayton, Zeke Cohen, Ben Cohen, Terry Cummings, Tom Curtin, Jay Decker, Caitlin Doolin, Will Dorfman, Ryan Dorsey, Mark Edelson, Christopher Ervin, Maria Garcia, Tony Green, Rich Hall, Don Halligan, Mark Heishman, Greg Hinchcliffe, JB Kenney, Phil LaCombe, Michelle Lambert, Jeff LaNoue, Jim Leanos, Brooke Lierman, Jackie MacMillan, Hans Mayer, Joe Nathanson, Eric Norton, Caroline Peri, Dru Schmidt Perkins, Klaus Philipsen, Kevin Quinn, Gil Ribeiro, Michael Romeo, Jimmy Rouse, Jill Sorensen, Sandy Sparks, Kristin Speaker, Yolanda Takesian, Dea Thomas, Raven Thompson, Nicole Tuttle, Matt Weaver
Moderator: Roxana Beyranvand, Program Manager – Baltimore Collegetown Network, welcomed everyone to the meeting and thanked the attendees for coming. Roxana then introduced the first guest speaker:
Delegate Brooke Lierman, District 46
Presentation: “The 2016 General Assembly Session”
PowerPoint: Transit Legislation 5.4.16
Transit Legislation Handouts
2016 Farebox Recovery Repeal key points
HB 1012 Transit Benefit
HB101 MTA Oversight Board Summary
HB1013 Maryland Open Transportation summary
Presentation highlights
- Transportation Package
1. HB 1010: MTA Oversight & Planning Board (This bill creates an Oversight & Planning Board for the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA), and codifies three existing citizen advisory councils (giving each a seat on the Board).
2. HB 1012: Commuter Benefits –Tax Credit (As MTA, MARC, and DC Metro fares, parking and carpool expenses have increased, the existing tax credit to businesses offering commuter benefits to their employees has not increased. Offering employees commuter benefits has become less and less attractive to the state employers. House Bill 1012 doubles the commuter benefits tax credit from $50 a month to $100. It reduces carpool eligibility from 8 riders to 6 riders to encourage more carpooling and adapt to current rideshare advances using apps and technology. Passed Unanimously.
3. HB 1013: Maryland Open Transportation Investment Decision Act (Codifies State transportation goals and requires MDOT to develop a scoring system that must be used to evaluate whether and to what extent a “major transportation project” meets the State transportation goals)
4. HB 672: Nice Memorial Bridge Funding
5. HB 891: Farebox Recovery Mandate Rate – Repeal (Repeal of requirement that MTA recover a percentage of its funding from the farebox). - Next Steps?
1. Good members on the MTA Board
2. Rulemaking by MDOT pursuant to HB 1013
3. Strategy for Farebox Mandate Repeal
4. Monitoring planning & implementation of BaltimoreLink
Additional Comments:
- Rich Hall, (Citizens Planning & Housing Association) recognized and thanked Brooke for her hard work and “heavy lifting” on the above-mentioned legislative issues. Additionally, he acknowledged Dru Schmidt-Perkins, (1000 Friends of Maryland) for the great job she has done advocating for all of the House Bills.
- All attendees were encouraged to help “push these legislative issues down the field” by getting involved.
- Brooke Lierman stated that she is looking forward to working with all Transit Choices participants to improve mass transit in Baltimore.
Second Speaker: Caitlin Doolin, Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner – Baltimore City Department of Transportation
Presentation: “Baltimore 2016: The Year of the Bike”
PowerPoint: Transit Choices_05042016
Presentation highlights: OVERVIEW
- Why is biking important?
- The Downtown Bicycle Network Project
- What to expect
SUSTAINABILITY
SAFETY
1. Safety and Comfort is more important than Speed and Convenience
2. Protected bike lanes are improving safety for all road users across the country
PUBLIC HEALTH
EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY ECONOMY
WHY IS THIS PROJECT IMPORTANT?
DOWNTOWN BICYCLE NETWORK TIMELINE
Additional Comments:
- The definition of complete streets: safety and comfort is more important than speed or convenience.
- 35% of people in the city do not have access to a vehicle.
- Bikes and transit complement each other.
- As a result of limited funding, CityDOT is planning to educate the public on biking issues on their website and through social media. They are also providing education through meeting with community groups and with direct mailings.
- Property owners can request bike racks which will be installed for free by sending a request to Caitlin Doolin at CityDOT.
- CityDOT is studying a protected bike lane network plan to include North West Baltimore.
Third Speaker: Jay Decker, Bike Share Coordinator – Baltimore City Department of Transportation
Presentation: “Baltimore & Bike Share”
PowerPoint: Bike Share 5.4.16
Presentation highlights:
What is Bike Share?
- Benefits of Bike Share
- Marketing & Vendor/Operator RFPs
- TAC
- Demand Analysis
- Station Placement
- Community Engagement
So What is Bike Share?
- Shared-use fleet
- First/Last mile solution
- Extension of the existing transit system
- Flexible station locations
- Casual ridership or monthly memberships
Why Are Cities Embracing Bike Share?
- Increased mobility options
- Environmental, social, economic, and health benefits
- Complement transit and other modes
- Spontaneous bicycle trips
- “Legitimizes” bicycling as a form of transportation
Benefits of Bike Share
- Extends the reach of transit and walking trips (last mile)
- Supports active and healthy living
- Reduce vehicle trips and emissions
- Support increased interest and participation in bicycling
- Financial and economic development benefits
System Planning
- Service area of the system will be determined by demand, equity, and community input
- First step, Demand Analysis
- Residential density (where people live, including student housing)
- Employment density (where people work)
- Transit density (where people take transit)
- Play density (where people recreate, i.e. parks and commercial centers)
- Final composite density map
Additional Comments:
- Bike Share is a global phenomenon.
- Phase 1 Bike Share will have 50 stations. Approximately 40% of the bikes will be electric, with pedal assist.
- Bike share increases mobility options that are affordable.
- Bike Share tentative fee structure will be $15/20 monthly.
Jimmy Rouse: thanked everyone for coming to the meeting and acknowledged all of the guest speakers, for their interesting and informative presentations. Additionally, Jimmy recognized the City Council Candidates at the meeting and expressed his appreciation for their continued interest to participate in the transportation discussion. He then gave an update on recent Transit Choices activities to create a unified vision for what a great mass transit in Baltimore.
- All meeting attendees were encouraged to participate in the “BaltimoreLink Ad-hoc” committee meetings. The purpose of the committee which meets monthly, is to work collaboratively with the MTA on the new BaltimoreLink transit improvement plan. All previous meeting summaries and PowerPoint Presentations can be found on www.transitchoices.org
- Transit Choices is planning to create a second brochure on the theme of “what we can do in the next four years to create a first rate transit system for Baltimore.” The brochure will be similar to the “Quick Hits” brochure which has been very well received by both city and state agencies. There are plans to meet with the new mayor and their transition team to share the new brochure and vision for a safe, efficient, interconnected, multi-modal transit system for our city.
- Transit Choices will advocate for an all-weather, year round water taxi system, and continue its support for the bike agenda to include bike share, and bike lane network.