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PSTA board promises to bring more representation to the table
By SUZETTE PORTER
Article published on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 |
CLEARWATER – The four new members appointed to the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority Board of Directors should allow for a broader representation of the county’s communities.
Roger Sweeney, PSTA executive director, updated the county Board of Commissioners on the latest “trends and challenges” at its June 22 work session meeting.
Sweeney said the concept to increase the number of people on the PSTA board was presented a year ago. He said Gov. Jeb Bush recently signed a bill amending special legislation to allow four additional members to serve. The board now consists of 11 appointed members.
Sweeney said he hoped having more people on the board would help PSTA solve some of the challenges of providing a county public transit system. Currently, PSTA operates 180 buses and trolleys that serve 43 routes. In addition, two express buses travel between the county and Tampa. The Suncoast Beach Trolley connects the gulf beaches from Clearwater Beach to Pass-A-Grille.
Sweeney said more people were riding buses than ever before. He said for the year 2004-2005, the numbers were up nationally by 2.7 percent with an increase of 5.3 percent for PSTA.
In March 2006, the number of people riding PSTA buses set a record by exceeding 1 million. Sweeney said the record number was repeated in May.
He said rising fuel prices was the major reason more people were riding, as well as PSTA’s increase in services.
He said PSTA’s Bikes on Buses program now allows more than two bikes to be stored on bus racks. Sweeney said the program showed a 19 percent increase in riders with bikes between October 2005 and April 2006.
“It’s the highest in the state,” he said.
He said PSTA was continuing work toward Bus Rapid Transit, which offers the quality of rail with the flexibility of buses. The first BRT system is being implemented in St. Petersburg with proposed routes going to St. Pete Beach and Madeira Beach.
He said examination of a countywide plan included the use of alternate corridors and an analysis of major thoroughfares. He said plans called for selecting at least two additional corridors to try BRT.
“Our main goal, as more people are using the bus, is to provide things customers tell us we need to be doing and do things that people who don’t use the bus tell us they want,” Sweeney said.
He said requests include more bus stops, as people don’t want to walk more than three blocks to a stop. Other requests include protection from the weather, more benches and shorter waits. He said people don’t want to wait 30 minutes or make a lot of transfers.
“People want buses that are easily accessible,” he said. “We’re trying to provide more frequent service, but it’s costly. How do we pay for it? It’s a funding issue.”
Sweeney said because the PSTA was created by a special legislative act with participation a matter of choice by each municipality, it would take legislation and a special referendum to increase the amount of tax levied.
Currently, PSTA is funded by taxes levied in service areas, supplemented by grants for capital improvements and other needs.
He said it wasn’t certain if a referendum would be exempt from the dual vote. Some areas of the county are not members of the PSTA, he said.
“We’ve talked about making the system countywide,” he said. “People in communities that are not part of the system ask why the buses go by and don’t stop. We have to explain that their community is not part of the system.”
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Article published on Wednesday, July 12, 2006
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