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[Music] spe

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spe e

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I got it subcommittee on highways and Transit will come to order before we begin I want to take just a quick opportunity to wish my colleague ranking member Holmes Norton a happy birthday and uh I'm not gonna sing and I'm not even going to ask how old you

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are but I'm just going to say happy birthday and wish you many happy returns of the day ask you's consent that the chairman be authorized to declare recess at any time during today's hearing without objection so ordered also ask ask

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unanimous consent that members not on the subcommittee be permitted to sit with the subcommittee at today's hearing and ask questions without objection so ordered as a reminder if members wish to insert a document into the record please

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email it to documents TI mail.house.gov I now recognize myself for the purposes of an opening statement I want to thank our Witnesses for being here today and offering their perspectives on Lessons Learned in transit over the past several years

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Transit agencies provide transportation services in nearly every Community across the country big small rural and urban in my home state of Arkansas we have the rock region Metro in Little Rock that operates buses in a three mile

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street car the University of Arkansas and fville that maintains the local system and the Jonesboro economical Transit Transportation uh jet that allows my constituents to utilize bus service to get to and from work school

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Healthcare appointments and all sorts of other activities according to the Federal Transit Administration our national system of Transit providers includes nearly 3,000 agencies that operate around the country like all Industries Co had a

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huge impact on transit services accelerating what were already declining ridership rates and causing an historic decline in overall ridership and fair Revenue collections due to this the FTA uh received significant funding in the various covid relief bills

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specifically FDA was provided nearly $ 70 billion to distribute to Transit agencies Nationwide to cover short-term budget gaps primarily operating expenses such as labor costs the infrastructure investment jobs act act or AA was

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subsequently signed into law in November 2021 and provided a further 8.2 billion for public transportation the largest amount of funding for those programs in American history for those keeping count that's almost $180 billion

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in federal money that's been allocated since 2020 for Transit programs igel loone provided a 77% increase over FTA funding amounts from prior authorization from all this money and all of this money will be distributed to local

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Transit agencies in just over a six-year window of time one goal for today's hearing will be to gain a better understanding of how that massive amount of funding has been used also hope that our witnesses will provide us with The

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Good the Bad and the Ugly in terms of changes to Transit operations implemented in response to the impacts of covid-19 I reference the $70 billion that FTA received in pandemic relief funding and it's important to point out

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that not all transit systems or agencies are created equal for the purposes of funding allotment Transit broadly includes all sorts of Transportation Services ranging from large bus systems and Subways to faeries and Paratransit

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the nation's largest and longest operating systems are often referred to as Legacy systems major American cities which are home to these Legacy systems include Boston Chicago New York Philadelphia San Francisco and right

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here in Washington collectively these six Metropolitan regions received more than half 53.6% of all Urban ftao apportioned funding from Co relief packages these cities also happen to be where reports of crime assaults and attacks on Transit

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Riders and workers have grown at an alarming rate in New York City for example the circumstances became so dangerous at the public to the public that earlier this year the governor was forced to deploy National Guard troops

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and state police officers to help Patrol the subway system last month I joined many my Republican colleagues in authoring a letter to FTA seeking more information about its Safety and Security training programs and how it plans to address the

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rising crime in and around transit systems the overwhelming sense of fear and danger for many Transit users escalates the challenge of increasing ridership to pre-pandemic numbers it's important that this subcommittee gain

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insight into how newly established ridership patterns are being considered by the transit industry according to the National Transit database or NTD Federal repository for Transit agency performance data monthly ridership on

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Transit reached an all-time high nearly a decade ago in October of 2014 and has been on a slow bit steady Trend downward since that time while the pandemic did cause an unprecedented loss of daily Riders on transit systems it only

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accelerated an ongoing Trend the latest data shows that National Transit use has returned to about 79% of pre-pandemic levels 79% is better than where those ridership numbers were a year ago but it still means that about one out of every

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five Revenue generating Riders from before the pandemic has not returned to regular use of service so how Transit agencies responding to this new normal to deliver to their customers some have expanded their use of private contracted

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Services most have had to reorient Services routes and other operations and many especially in large Metro areas have reduced or eliminated fairs to try and draw writers back I hope that our witnesses will address those various

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strategies including the financial math behind them and provide us with facts on the ground about how those adaptations that have proven successful can be replicated again I want to thank all our Witnesses for being here and look

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forward to your testimony I now recognize ranking member Norton for an opening statement for five minutes thank you very much Mr chairman and I would like to thank subcommittee chair Rick Crawford for holding this hearing on public

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transportation during covid-19 uh that pandemic Americans were reminded about uh how important public transit is millions of essential workers rely on public trans transit to get to their jobs during the worst days of the pandemic bus drivers train

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operators station managers and maintenance personel risk their safety to make sure that other essential workers could get to their jobs in doing so hundreds of public transit workers lost their lives to covid-19 we owe them a debt of gratitude

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along with our continued commitment to give public transit employees safe work places and compens fair compensation I would like to thank Greg rigan the president of the transit trades uh Department for being here today on behalf of those

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workers the co relief funds including the more than $30 million doar provided by this subcommittee as part of the American Rescue plan were part of our commitment to public trans Transit workers and Riders alike Congress built on that commitment

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with the passage of the infrastructure investment and jobs act which provided a record $1 108 billion in funding for public transportation together these Investments along with support from state and local governments have created a

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foundation from which Transit agencies can rebuild and recover changes in ridership travel patterns and commuting mean that Transit agencies must rethink their service to ensure that they can meet the needs of their communities here in the nation's

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capital that I represent the Washington metropolitan area transit authority has made several recent changes that have uh supported its recovery last year it launched uh Metro lift a program to provide reduced Transit fairs to lowincome Residents it

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also increase service including on nights and weekends making public transit a more reliable and efficient option for travelers and Metro is also working on resign resign redesigning its bus Network the changes will be based on

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extensive public comments with a goal of improving connectivity equity and access Metro's efforts are already paying off earlier this month Metro Riders ships surpassed prepandemic levels and metro rail continues to show strong recovery uh ridership

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recovery uh Metro's success is critical to our Region's public transit Riders but it is critical to our economy without public transit our region would lose more than 9 billion that's B with a billion uh dollars worth of economic

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activity to traffic gridlock delays and Freight Freight uh shipments and lack of access to jobs and to the environment and as we heard in recent testimony in this subcommittee public transit is also critically important to riders

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in suburban and rural areas who depend on bus and Paratransit service for Access to jobs and medical appointments public transit is among the safest Transportation modes and is 10 times safer than driving the benefits uh of public

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transit are clear it is equally clear that if we want the B benefits that public transit brings all levels of government must be willing to invest in it all levels like many other modes of Transit Transportation including most

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highways public transit systems are not intended to turn a profit the benefits from public transit investment include uh more successful businesses and stronger local economies they include good jobs for public transit workers and connections

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to jobs for other workers they include avoided traffic fatalities and fewer commutes down grid gridlock highways they include cleaner air and Better Health o o outcomes if those are the benefits we seek in our communities we must be

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willing to invest in them I look forward to working with colleagues to continue this committee's long history of supporting public transit thank you Mr chairman I yield back thank you I now recognize the full committee ranking member Larsson for up to 60

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seconds I just thank you very much Mr chair recognize for five minutes um you might be surprised I might finish much sooner than that but uh thank you chair Crawford and ranking member Norton for holding this hearing today's hearing allows the committee to

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examine public transit operations and the unique challenges that Transit agencies face emerging from the covid-19 pandemic now during the pandemic we saw how communities across the country depend on their transit systems and how

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essential these services are Transit agencies and their workers played an important role the dedicated Public Service Transit workers ensured that doctors nurses and other essential workers were able to get to their work that's why Congress delivered for

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Transit agencies and their workers with nearly $70 billion in emergency funding this these dollars ensured that these essential Mobility Services kept operating and today Transit agencies are rising to the challenge to as they

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explore new ways to provide efficient safe and Quality Service while navigating the changing needs of riders and communities post pandemic during the pandemic some businesses shifted to remote work people moved to New communities or St States and many

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invested in buying a car or a bike as a motor Transportation Riders continue to return to Transit but current ridership volume Nationwide is about 80% of what it was in 2019 this drop in ridership has had lingering impacts on Transit Agency

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operations and budgets which rely on Fair Revenue in 2020 Transit Agency Fair Revenue Nationwide dropped by nearly half and roughly 50% of Transit agencies reported having to make service modifications in response to the loss of

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riders and revenue as ridership is returned Fair revenue is also rebounding but Transit agencies continue to need to cover the Gap in their Co operational costs like so many parts of the transportation industry many Transit

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agencies have had also had Workforce challenges which directly impact service levels while there's competition with the private sector for qualified commercial drivers agencies have had some success with enhanced recruiting

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and retention programs and incentives now in order to address these current challenges agencies must start are reviewing the needs of their communities how their legacy routes and operations can improve and what new service will

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grow ridership public opinion surveys show that people want frequent frequent service more accurate trip information routes that are more convenient for Riders travel needs cleaner vehicles and stations and improved safety on board Vehicles

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Transit agencies are acting on this dozens of new agencies across the US are seeking public input as they redesign their bus networks build new Transit projects and adapt service levels for post pandemic demands in my district

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Community Transit has been leading several efforts to modernize and adapt service including developing a new plan for a bus Network redesign to prepare for light rail that's coming to sish County this summer this plan enhances

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bus connections with the new light rail station expands access to routes with more frequent service and adjusts service levels based on post pandemic ryer Trends this is a critical effort that ensures the agency is operating

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efficiently and responding to changing needs of Northwest Washington Travelers while improving the overall Rider experience Additionally the this particular agency is working on more flexible service options to address

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Transportation gaps in the community and better connect Riders to hospitals grocery stores job centers and eventually the new lywood Transit Center so while transit systems were hard hit by the pandemic we've seen positives in

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their response and Recovery Transit remains an efficient safe and affordable mode of transportation and I know as a former uh board member of community transit in my district and a rider on uh Metro even as recently as this morning

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when I'm uh here in DC working so thank you to for each of the witnesses for being here today and I look forward to the discussion that'll yeld back thank the gentlemen I want to welcome our Witnesses once again for being here today I want to

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explain the lighting system it should be pretty self-explanatory green means go um yellow means step on the gas because it's fixing to turn red and when it turns red you might hear a little of this just as a reminder that that means

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to stop so um that having been said um just want to make sure you're aware that ask unanimous consent that the witness's full statement be included in the record without objection so ordered also ask unanimous consent that the

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record of today's hearing remain open until such time our Witnesses have provided answers to any questions that may have been submitted to them in writing without objection so ordered also ask unanimous consent that the

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record remain open for 15 days for any additional comments and information submitted by members or witnesses to be included in the record of today's hearing without objection so ordered as your written testimony has been made

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part of the record the subcommittee ask that you limit your oral remarks to five minutes before our first witness Miss mayard gives her uh Miss mayard gives testimony I'd like to recognize representative Titus to give a short

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introduction thank you Mr chairman uh yellow means step on the gas and go but not when you're driving only when you're sitting in this committee that's a little differ uh than our traditional lighting system I just wanted to clarify

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that uh so thank you Mr chairman it's a pleasure for me to get to introduce MJ Maynard who's here representing the American public transportation Association when you hear her qualifications I'm sure you'll agree with me that she's the exact kind of

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person we need to uh listen to and learn from as we approach Transit and how it affects our constituents our businesses and our communities Miss mayard is a whip smmart leader of a large and vital government agency she's a recognized

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expert on all things Transportation around the country and she's my good friend so I'm glad she's here MJ is the chief executive officer of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada which is the only agency Nation

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awide that operates a One-Stop shop for Public Transportation traffic management roadway and construction funding and Regional and transportation planning this allows more efficient operations as the statistics under MJ's leadership

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show the RTC serves an average of 153,000 riders every weekday while maintaining the third lowest operating cost in the country over 1.8 million residents in southern Nevada including my district which is the heart of the

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valley live near an RTC bus stop which provides access to almost every hospital college and over 90% of the grocery stores in the region MJ understands the importance of improving connectivity and accessibility so that we can continue to

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move Southern Nevada forward under her leadership the RTC has also made sure advances and infrastructure serve our tourist economy and benefit every subc community within the valley that's why MJ has been recognized with numerous

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Awards including Nevada business most respected leaders in 2023 Las Vegas uh Inc women inspiring Nevada award in 2022 Nevada Business magazines women to watch in 2021 and the National Association of women business owners in 2021 women of

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Distinction award in the glass ceiling category it's an honor to have you here and we look look forward to your testimony and continuing to work together thank you thank you Mr chairman how you be and with that miss mayard you

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are recognize for five minutes thank you and thank you Congressman Titus for that kind introduction we are extremely grateful for your efforts to help us deliver essential public transit services to the people of Southern

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Nevada including the Maryland Parkway bus Rapid Transit project chairman Crawford ranging member Norton and members of the subcommittee thank you for the opportunity to testify on behalf of the American public transport ation

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Association or APTA again my name is MJ Mater I'm the CEO for the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada RTC is the 14th busiest bus system in the United States we provide over 150,000 daily trips with 80% of our

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Transit Riders going to work or looking for work our system is a model of Transit efficiency we have the highest Fair boox recovery ratio the lowest public subsidy and the third lowest operating cost in the nation I serve as Vice chair of APTA whose broad

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membership represents a $79 billion industry that directly employs more than 430,000 people and supports millions of private sector jobs Across America for every $1 invested in public transportation it generates $5 in long-term economic returns and the

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impacts are filled Across the Nation more than 2,000 suppliers in 48 states and Washington DC including smaller urban and rural areas where buses rail cars and their parts are often manufactured public transportation does

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Farm more than carry people from the destination to another our industry helps carry the economy this morning I want to share with the subcomittee why public transit is critical in America's future we know that investment in public

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transportation helps communities of all sizes flourish connecting workers to jobs students to school and people to healthcare during the pandemic we continued to serve our communities despite significant operating challenges

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we thank Congress for passing covid-19 emergency relief with this critical funding Transit agencies were able to keep writers and employees safe and get people to essential jobs at hospitals pharmacies and community centers today

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99.8% of the co9 transing transit funding has been obligated the pandemic and resulting remote work Trend took a toll in transit ridership Fair revenue and state and local funding but Transit ridership continues to grow and we've

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achieved as you heard 80% of pre-pandemic levels in 2023 Transit Riders took 7.1 billion trips and that's an average of 24 million trips each day that represents a 16% increase even though office occupancy remains stagnant

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at 50% public transit agencies have redesigned services and routes to meet changing travel preferences in addition Transit agencies are harnessing new Smart Technologies to help better serve our customers reduce operating costs and

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enhance safety for example RTC has invested more than $33 million in additional Safety and Security measures including installing GBS based security response devices on our 450 fix route buses we are using Community Project

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funding to implement a pedestrian detection and collision avoidance system that uses artificial intelligence today traveling by public transit as you heard is 10 times safer for passengers in traveling by car and we're working to

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make it even safer the future of America's Mobility depends on federal state and local Partnerships given the enormous impact of our industry on our nation's economy if you have a Transit problem you have an economic problem

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this historic by partisan infrastructure law clearly recognized that while transit services are delivered locally or regionally our industry contributes nationally to jobs economic growth and productivity therefore we urge Congress

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to honor the promise of the bipartisan infrastructure law and fully fund public transit and passenger rail in the fiscal year 2025 Tad Appropriations act These funds will provide the resources necessary to invest in our nation's

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economic future bringing systems to a state of good repair providing rural access and driving Innovation and clean Technologies capital investment grants will help us address the mobility demands of growing communities like lost

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the Las Vegas brt project which will transform a 13m quarter by connecting Harry Reid International Airport UNLV Sunrise Hospital an area that is homeed to nine 90,000 residents 85,000 jobs and 9,000 daily Transit Riders again thank

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you congresswoman Titus for ensuring these federal funds are made available this is just one of the 9,000 Transit projects made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure law in closing I believe America's strength and progress have

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always been built on mobility and the opportunities it provides in each of your districts public transportation is changing lives provides real economic social and environmental benefits to your constituents and communities Mr chairman

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on behalf of AA thank you for including us in this important hearing thank you uh Miss Hendrick you're recognize for five minutes for your testimony chairman Crawford and ranking member Norton on behalf of the North American trans Alliance or as referred

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to NATA thank you for the opportunity to testify before you this morning my name is Laura Hendricks and I'm the CEO of transdev us transdev operates multi modes of public transportation in the US and around the world including bus parat

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transit rail non-emergency medical transportation microtransit shuttle and autonomous vehicles I also serve as the board chair of the North American Transit Alliance NATA is comprised of the five largest private Transit Contracting firms in addition to

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transdev our members include kolis mvy transportation we drive you and RP Dev Our member companies operate and maintain Paratransit fixed route and other transportation services on behalf of public transit agencies in the US and

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around the world Our member companies comprised of up to 15% of US public transportation Workforce encompassing more than 71,000 employees and delivering over 700 million passenger trips per year 85% of NATA companies work Force are

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represented by labor unions the private sector has a long history of operating public transit services under contract the transit agencies more than two-thirds of Transit agencies in the US contract with private sector to operate

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all or a portion of their transit services we are on the Forefront of innovation and are continually training our Workforce to adapt to the changes and public transit offerings whether it be operating and maintaining V electric

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vehicles or the new hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are using Innovative technology Platforms in the aftermath of the pandemic we have watched the transit ridership slowly bounce back although there have been shifts in ridership with

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more people working hybrid or remote schedules we have witnessed Transit agencies struggle with budget deficits and make hard decisions about how to best structure service to meet their ridership and communities we also recognize that there's no one- siiz

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fits-all approach what works in a big city May may not work in a small City or rural area our companies see the opportunity to partner with Transit agencies to design services that best serve its Riders and communities from

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micromobility to Greater adaptation of electric vehicles to new and expanded Rail and bus rapid transit to changing schedules to better understand to adapt to a Workforce that no longer adheres to a traditional workday NATA member

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companies are sharing our experience to enable Transit agencies to deliver Transit services in a way that best serve the traveling public are cost effective and provide good salaries benefits and job opportunities to our

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valued Workforce one of the ways Transit agencies are responding to the change and public transit demand is by offering microtransit overcoming the first and last mile hurdle as referenced in a more detail in my written testimony NATA

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member companies continue successful partnership with Transit agencies around the US and Innova microtransit options as the committee looks towards reauthorization we anticipate Transportation Solutions like microtransit will continue to emerge to

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develop and address the changing landscape and meet a variety of writers needs today I would also like to share our association's recommendations for how Transit agencies could work more cooperatively with private operators of public

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transportation we believe that Transit agencies and communities will benefit greatly from soliciting external input streamlining the procurement process and rethinking and redefining the benefits of Contracting we recommend establish an

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advisory committee that would provide recommendations to the FTA on how Transit agencies can adapt to changing demand and usage explore how technology Innovations can help trans agencies meet the change in demand and suggest what

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Workforce training needs will be needed FDA should summarize the findings and Report recommendations to Congress we urge FTA and Transit agencies to rethink procurement strategies to improve the efficiency in the process itself as well

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as designing requests for proposal in a such a way that improves competitiveness amongst contractors and promotes Innovation I want to also note that Nat expresses strong support for funding of public transit levels necessary to

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enable Transit agencies to make critical investments in infrastructure and Rolling Stock we believe that robust Federal support for public transportation is a key to ensuring our citizens have Mobility Solutions in closing NATA members are excited to

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continue to partner with Transit agencies and organize labor to advocate for Reliable funding for public transit we look forward to continuing to work with the subcommittee as it develops reauthorization legislation thank you

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for the opportunity to appear before you today and I look forward to answering your questions thank you Miss Hendricks Mr scrier you're recognized for five minutes good morning chairman Crawford raing member Norton and members of the

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subcommittee thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today my name is Mark scrier I'm a senior Transportation policy Analyst at reason Foundation a national 501c3 public policy research and education organization with expertise across a

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range of policy areas including Transportation my testimony surveys Transit productivity Trends prior to the pandemic examines the impact of the pandemic on travel behavior and transit systems and discusses potential

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strategies for increasing the efficiency of Transit operations more detailed information is contained in my written testimony but I want to highlight a few key points the covid-19 pandemic caused transit ridership to Crater and Recovery

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has been slow Nationwide Transit ridership today stands at approximately 3ars of 2019 levels this has led to Growing concerns about the long-term VI viability of transit in the United States however concerns about Transit productivity are not new and long

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predate the pandemic researchers have developed a variety of measurement and Analysis tools to gain gauge Transit productivity but to highlight two striking Trends between 1960 and 2019 inflation adjusted Transit operating costs more than quintupled while

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ridership remained flat in the Years preceding the pandemic the Bureau of Labor Statistics began measuring Transit labor productivity which they calculate by dividing an index of Passenger miles traveled by an index of hours worked ridership between

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2013 and 2019 decreased by an average rate of 1% per year while Transit work hours increased at an average rate of 2.5% per year hours worked per employee remained relatively constant meaning new hires were responsible for the

0:32:39

additional work hours and thus most of the decline in labor productivity when the pandemic hit Transit was especially vulnerable to changes that followed because transit systems were largely designed to serve peak hour weekday commuting travel prior

0:32:54

to the pandemic commuting accounted for approximately 1 of travel by all modes of transportation but between 1/3 to 1/ half of travel by transit between 2017 and 20122 travel to and from work is a share of travel by transit declined from 41.5% to

0:33:13

28.6% much of this decline can be explained by the dramatic increase in working from home in the face of this large Decline and Transit rers ship which is largely attributable to work travel Trends us transit systems receive record setting

0:33:28

Federal subsidies this large increase in federal funding allowed trans and agencies to continue to provide service close to pre-pandemic levels while Transit ridership decreased by 27.8% between 2019 and 2023 Transit service provided fell by only

0:33:46

99.5% these Dynamics had predictable effects on Transit labor productivity as I noted the decline in transit labor productivity between 2013 and 2019 was primarily driven by increases and hours worked by new Transit Agency employees

0:34:00

following the pandemic the Steep declines in transit labor productivity between 2019 and 2021 were almost entirely driven by decreased ridership transit's narrow role in US Transportation was further diminished by travel Behavior changes following the

0:34:15

pandemic between 2017 and 2022 total us person trips made by transit fell from 2.5% to 1.4% further us Transit ridership is highly concentrated ated in a small number of cities in the first quarter of 2024 76.4% of us Transit ridership took

0:34:35

place in just 10 urbanized areas with New York alone accounting for 45.7% of Nationwide Transit trips despite transit's Niche status it is a vital service for those who canot afford private vehicle transportation recent negative Trends in

0:34:51

transit productivity are especially troubling because of the disproportionate burden that inefficient Transit service imposes on low-income Americans dependent upon transit in my written testimony I suggest that Transit agencies should be given increased

0:35:04

flexibility to engage in competitive service Contracting and to investigate in the long term the potential for Automation in order to realize substantial operating cost savings unfortunately Federal Transit labor law section 13 C imposes a substantial

0:35:20

barrier to realizing productivity improvements through Labor saving practices and Technologies given that the decline and Transit productivity is driven by the Divergence of labor costs and ridership removing Federal barriers to Transit

0:35:34

Agency self-help should be prioritized before additional Federal subsidies are considered thank you for the opportunity to testify before the subcommittee and I welcome your questions thank you Mr scrier Mr rean you are recognized for

0:35:45

five minutes thank you and good morning chairman uh ranking member Norton and the rest of the subcommittee thank you for having me here this morning uh I'm Greg Regan president of the transportation trades Department AFL C

0:35:56

we are a Federation of 30 7 unions that together represent the majority of public transportation workers in this country Nobody Knows the challenges and opportunities in this industry better than the Frontline workers who keep it

0:36:07

moving every single day and it is a pleasure to bring their perspective to this hearing often we reduce discussions over public transportation to simple calculations of costs and revenues in doing so we overlooked the important

0:36:19

reality that Transit is a public good that not only serves our local communities but also provides benefits that Advance National Economic Environmental and social objectives Transit Riders are not merely Revenue they are people in the communities you

0:36:33

represent traveling to and from work the supermarket school or a doctor's appointment and Transit workers are not a cost they use their skills to serve millions of commuters every single day in one of the safest most efficient and

0:36:45

most affordable modes of transportation we offer if we want to grow this industry and the good jobs that come with it we have to start by reversing Decades of broken federal policy that heavily prioritizes spending on Capital

0:36:57

over operating costs the erosion of federal policy that ensured support for Transit operating costs which began under President Reagan and ultimately came to a head in the late 90s when it was nearly eliminated in favor of

0:37:09

strictly funding capital projects was premised largely on ideological arguments at the time and not ones backed by empirical evidence the consequence of this has been Decades of flawed public policy which encourages local governments and Transit agencies

0:37:23

to prioritize securing federal dollars with their limited local funds for capital projects over the crucially The crucial daily operations of services John Samuelson president of the transport Workers Union uh succinctly

0:37:36

summed up this problem when he said so the government will give an agency a lot of money to buy a bus but not a dime towards hiring an operator to drive it or a me mechanic to maintain it we see the worst effects of this during periods

0:37:48

of economic downturn the result is a predictable cycal pattern of decreased revenues that lead to Fair increases in service Cuts in order to balance budgets those turn lead to GL greater declines in ridership during the Great Recession

0:38:01

billions were allocated to transit systems but only 2% was allowed for operational costs when other revenue streams that supported operations waned like local and state taxes 84% of agencies ended up reducing service and

0:38:14

73% increased fairs this pattern is so well known that has been colloquially named the transit death spiral and it has been well documented in both media and research Congress recognized this dur dur the pandemic and tempor

0:38:29

temporarily allowed Transit agencies to use federal formula funds for operations ensuring that essential Services continued but while the pandemic forever changed how our communities function policy has not changed with with it and

0:38:41

we are once again working under the old funding scheme I thank Congressman Hank Johnson for introducing the stronger communities through better Transit act which would address this problem by allocating Federal matching funds for

0:38:51

operational needs some Transit critics have taken this opportunity to once again offer solutions that have nothing nothing to do with improving service and everything to do with undermining labor protections that have ensured this

0:39:02

industry is supported by a stable highly skilled Workforce for more than a half century attacks on these labor protections which simply ensure that Federal Investments don't displace destroy or undermine existing jobs and

0:39:14

disrupt local economies back home in your districts it is it is is an argument that has never stood up to scrutiny rather than blaming workers we should be taking lessons from transit systems that are successfully addressing

0:39:25

operational inefficiencies that we no deter communter across from using Transit like unreliable Service Long weights and overcrowded Vehicles prior to the pandemic cities like Seattle Houston and Houston overhauled their bus

0:39:38

routes and provide better coverage and frequency and they were met with signif significant increases in ridership as a result a similar effort is underway here in Washington DC uh which W ma believes will give people access to 177,000

0:39:51

additional jobs within 60 Minutes of where they live for Labor's part we have been act actively working to address other challenges that we know have impacts on ridership like concerns over persistent public safety issues on buses

0:40:03

and Rail lines the workers our unions represent who are often victims of violent attacks while on the job have become all too familiar with this problem after Labor spent years advocating for long overdue worker and Public Safety needs we were that were

0:40:16

ultimately included in the bipartisan infrastructure law I am pleased to announce that FTA recently issued a final rule implementing significant portions of those Provisions the law requires joint Labor Management safety committees to to conduct datadriven

0:40:28

safety risk assessments and devise strategies to mitigate the risks of Transit worker assaults as new components of the federally mandated safety process this is critical because by establishing partnership with Frontline

0:40:40

workers who are the eyes and the ears of the system they can help provide their insights on how to improve safety not only for themselves but for passengers as a whole so in in conclusion instead of looking for uh solutions that would

0:40:52

simply undermine service or um workers we need to be looking at policy changes that will enhance the growth of of Transit moving forward and provide greater opportunity and greater services for the communities that you were proud

0:41:04

enough to represent thank you and I look forward to your questions thank you and now turn to uh member questions I'll start by recognizing myself for five minutes um Mr scrier the infrastructure investment and jobs act provided 108

0:41:21

billion dollar for public transportation that's a 77% increase over the prior FDA authorization this funding came not long after the collection of Co relief bills had pumped a total of nearly 70 billion in supplemental emergency funding to

0:41:34

Transit agencies even with those historic funding levels many public transportation agencies now report that they will face fiscal uncertainty in the next few years so if a once in a generation funding increase didn't provide long-term Financial stability

0:41:49

for the nation's Transit agencies what will thank you for the uh question Mr chairman um as I as I said in my uh in my opening statement and in more detail in my written testimony I do think some of these um major operational

0:42:06

efficiencies can only be realized by uh trying to reduce the excessive costs of of Labor um and uh we have seen the the trend lines uh both before the pandemic and after uh continue to uh go down and uh on in terms of Labor productivity and

0:42:26

I I think uh if you look globally at some of the solutions that uh peer or near peer countries have adopted especially in Contracting and then on on heavy rail systems automation uh I think you can realize substantial operating

0:42:41

cost savings there and get a lot more bang for your buck thanks appreciate your Insight so miss Hendrick the North American Transit Alliance is comprised of the five largest private Transit Contracting firms uh many Transit

0:42:55

agencies often choose to work with contra contractors to maximize their limited budgets to achieve a shared goal of all of us here today improving the transit passenger experience and when an agency engages the services of a Transit

0:43:07

contractor it follows guidance outlined in fda's best practices manual and Lessons Learned manual as I understand that FTA has not updated this guidance document since 2016 that's eight years ago and one pandemic ago clearly the

0:43:21

landscape and public transportation has changed in that time does NATA have recommendations for how or when FTA should update this best practices manual yes the North American Transit Alliance as referred to in my test

0:43:35

written testimony has would advise for an advisory committee as I mentioned uh we would also ask that the procurement process be streamlined with external input uh to ensure that the process is better detailed including the the

0:43:52

metrics and the information that's required for a contractor to put a successful competitive bid together meaning the details of the collective bargaining agreement the scheduling or is referred to as the Run cut the liquidated damages and in Partnership

0:44:08

how can we best streamline this process to open up to be more competitive and more conducive we would also ask that the timeline to respond be conducive to all thoroughness of a competitive bid process so we have suggested to the FDA

0:44:24

the streamlining process the lengths of the contract and ways that outside input can help be more efficient and coste effective to service the communities thank you and and um Miss Maynard as I mentioned in my opening statement crime on transit systems

0:44:40

across the country is on the rise especially in our major cities while the vast majority of trips on Transit take place without incident the violent nature of the attacks that I mentioned continue to fuel the perception that all

0:44:51

public transit systems are unsafe what policies has the regional transportation commit of Southern Nevada instituted to address Rider and worker safety during and since the pandemic chairman thank you for that question you know public

0:45:05

transit as a public space is truly a the rolling microcosm what's happening in any urban city and if crime is increasing if their the unhoused population is increasing if drug addiction mental addiction if there if that's increasing or it's it's prevalent

0:45:21

you're going to seat on public transit and we understand that there is not a one siiz it'sit all solution for that uh public trans agencies around the United States including the RTC are looking at ensuring that uh we are making safety a

0:45:37

priority so whether it's for the drivers or passengers and we're doing things like uh driver enclosure enhancements we at the RTC have the GPS response button that if if a driver uh needs something they can literally press a button it's

0:45:51

it's GPS based we know where they are on the bus or off the bus and we can immediately respond by way of our security department it's very important that we continue to partner with our local law enforcement whether that's by

0:46:01

way of anou or actually having them work on your system for our customers it's about presence and so we have invested at the RTC in additional Security office to ensure that they are following data you know where the incidents may occur

0:46:15

that's where that's where they are assigned and then again because uh we are a reflection of what's happening in the urban city we are now many transit systems are working with the local jurisdictions with their social services

0:46:28

to connect the folks on our system that may be in housed that may be veterans that's seeking medical attention the uh mental mental drug addiction and we we're finding that we have the same customer base again because it's it is

0:46:42

part of again what's happening in the urban core and uh trying to trying to solve for those social ills and how they sponded public transit is a complex problem definitely not a one- siiz fits-all solution so it's going to be

0:46:54

again uh ensuring that the operators are safe by way of closures and Technology ensuring that passengers can see enforcement efforts by law enforcers or the security officers that are employed by transit agencies and ensuring that we

0:47:08

are investing our time with those social services to ensure that we again try to help solve for a very complex problem that is not necessarily A Transit problem thank you Miss Holmes Norton uh Mr rean your testimony notes that that too often the discussion

0:47:29

around public transit Focus exclusively on costs and revenues this is a reductive approach that fails to recognize transit's role as a public service these same discussions often fail to mention the far largest subsidies given to Highway

0:47:48

projects what is the role of Transit as a public service and why it and why it does not make sense to evaluate transit or other forms of transportation by how much the revenue they generate thank you for the question and you know when I think of public

0:48:11

transportation I think the the word public is so critical there I think about the other areas where we use that word when we describe a service whether it be public libraries public parks Public Schools public roads as you noted

0:48:22

all of that when we say public it means building the community it means making sure that we are tying Community together and providing resources for the citizens of that community and public transit is a economic life BR of cities

0:48:34

large and small all around this country um and we should not be looking at it in terms of dollars and cents we should be looking at it at the value ad it brings to communities all throughout our country um M Miss mayard um your testimony highlights how

0:48:51

safe it it is to travel by public transportation in fact traveling by public transportation is 10 times safer than traveling by car even though Transit agencies are already very safe what actions are the Regional Transportation Commission of

0:49:12

Southern Nevada and other American public transportation Association members taking to further ensure a safe travel experience thank you for that question and again as I as I previously mentioned mentioned it really is a partnership uh

0:49:29

the public trans agencies uh need to ensure that they are working closely with the communities in which they serve for those social services that connection law enforcement uh the security and Transit agencies themselves

0:49:41

that that have their own uh security firms uh and I think it's it's important too that uh certainly in southern Nevada uh we have one of the deadliest uh P pedestrian uh vehicle death rates in the United States of Transit is safer and

0:49:58

it's ensuring that um we are providing services that can help reduce some of the congestion as an example uh now that we are not only the entertainment capital of the world but also now the sports capital of the world we provide

0:50:11

something called Game Day Express and we are we are allowing folks that would normally drive into the legance stadium off the Las Vegas Boulevard by doing that we're keeping about 2,000 cars off the strip and that area that certainly

0:50:26

less congestion proves more safe improves safety so it's really a a multi-pronged approach in terms of um ensuring that roadway are safe by having folks travel in public transit but also looking at ways to ensure that the

0:50:40

public the traveling public and The Operators of the employees are safe another question for you miss mayard your testimony also addresses ongoing efforts across the United States by public transit agencies to regain Riders after the

0:50:57

pandemic in the District of Columbia which I represent the Washington metropolitan area transit authorities undergoing a bus Network redesigned to update its Legacy bus roots and better serve the current needs of riders why is is why is it important

0:51:20

for Transit agencies to conduct community outreach and modern service and modernize service levels and roots to attract and retain Riders we are in the people business we are people connecting people and providing places where they need to go

0:51:42

it's very important that we understand those travel patterns I think your CEO Randy Clark has done a tremendous job here in Washington understanding that the commute travel patterns have changed and it's about reallocating those

0:51:52

resources and so if you are if you previously pre-pandemic had a heavy commute pattern uh less trips on the weekend that's how your teams will schedule those Transit trips when you see those travel patterns changing you adjust accordingly and it's

0:52:09

something they've done here very well in Washington and other transit systems are doing the exact same thing as it relates to particularly the commuter rail pattern or commuter passenger travel thank you very much Miss May and

0:52:21

I yield back gentleman yields Mr Lala thank you Mr chairman Mr Scribner um in talking about the electric vehicle and the highway trust fund situation you know the trust fund has been backfilled by about 2 180 billion since 2008 U

0:52:37

bailouts during the co era all sorts of issues along that line with the bailout so with the huge push on electric vehicles there really isn't a good good mechanism yet for them to be taxed in a way that's commensurate with what

0:52:57

combustion vehicle cars are doing what what do you see from your Viewpoint would be the fairest way of doing that I'm you know I'm looking at there's ideas for taxing Everybody by the mile or maybe just do that with electric

0:53:12

vehicles or some other method what uh what do you see is the best uh way for making the EVS be part of the solution yeah thank you very much for that question um uh I I do believe the future is Shifting our um our uh Revenue

0:53:30

collection from per gallon taxation to per mile charging where the method of propulsion of the vehicle is doesn't matter so there uh the the infrastructure investment and jobs act did uh uh reauthorize a uh State technical assistance grant program for

0:53:49

states to conduct pilots on uh these kind of mileage fee uh approaches and it also EST established a uh a national pilot which is yet to to get off the ground but I do think and that's something reason Foundation has worked

0:54:03

on for a couple of decades is that the the long-term shift will be away from per gallon toward per mile charging and I think that uh not only does that um incorporate electric vehicles and in fact the the declines we've seen in uh

0:54:21

uh fuel tax collections uh per vehicle mile travel have primarily come to date from improving fuel economy of that's the perverse thing in that is that everybody's been incentivized or shoved into getting better mileage vehicles and

0:54:35

so government then says like heck we're not getting enough out of even gas tax dollars so we got to hit you another way now what do you think about though with the possibility of how intrusive keeping track of people's

0:54:48

mileage is is going to be I mean such as GPS or the meters as you drive past like on toll roads how do we do that in a way that uh isn't in people's business personally on you know tracking where they're going and such right so that's

0:55:04

excellent question in privacy is a is a top concern and a major focus of the of the research right now the simplest way is to simply not collect location information um Hawaii for instance uh recently established the a a what will

0:55:20

become a mandatory uh mileage fee program and what they do is they leverage their annual safety inspections and collect odometer readings which they already were they were collecting odometer reading information um and they

0:55:34

are simply then applying a a fee to that not not every state has an annual requirement you have to go visit somebody and take time out of your day or your week to do that so some have two-year Smog Checks newer Vehicles

0:55:47

don't have to go for their first smog check for six or eight years so now we have another trip people have to make to go report something is there a way we can do this on an honor System where I can just fill out a form annually if I

0:55:57

can afford it or quarterly if I want to pay quarterly or an estimate how about that well perhaps not maybe not quite the otter system but there are applications there are uh you can take a picture of your odometer reading with a

0:56:10

cell phone and then be subject to occasional random auditing so there are ways to to a picture of of my odometer or maybe my neighbor's odometer I mean at what point do you decide you trust people or not it gets these mechanisms

0:56:23

and and there is a tradeoff between PR pracy and auditability uh for any of these systems pretty big on the Privacy side sir so you know I think let's design a system where people aren't being followed around even more so to

0:56:37

just for the government to take money from them right so let's uh let's shift gears to uh High-Speed Rail in California one of my favorite things to talk about since it's such a boondoggle in a rat hole in my home state so what

0:56:52

what do you see is uh uh let's just shift to uh well let's keep you with Mr scrier now you you've seen how that thing has been a estimated $33 billion to begin with was what the voters were sold when they agreed to9 billion doar

0:57:07

worth of bond money and it's since risen to 128 billion and Counting and it's many many years behind please expound on the idea is highspeed rail really the be all and all or is there other forms of public transit that can be

0:57:21

helpful I think uh you know the the the the system that is being built uh very very slowly in California has um has suffered a number of uh many predictable problems some less predictable um but this is something we've also worked on

0:57:38

at at reason foundation for the past two decades um predicting many of these these problems uh that turned out we turned out to be a little more optimistic than reality um I do think that uh highspeed rail may serve some

0:57:53

potentially some Niche routes in the United States but given the geography uh and population density uh it's unlikely to serve Nationwide uh uh you know customers and I think that um it's a it's a mistake to to oversell the potential of of

0:58:13

highspeed rail thank you I appreciate it yeld back M chairman gentleman yields Mr Larson thank you chair um Mr Regan as Congress looks ahead to the next couple years one of the policy decisions will probably have a discussion about is this

0:58:27

balance between Federal funding between capital and operations for Transit now currently federal law allows Rural and small Urban Transit agencies to use funds for operations but doesn't allow Transit agencies in large areas uh

0:58:42

except for preventive maintenance um how would you suggest Congress look at this balance uh recognizing um there's perhaps a limited amount of dollars as much as it is still a limited amount in order to split between operating in capital well I

0:58:58

think obviously there's going to be different needs in different communities so I think we have to have provide the opportunity for when there are Grant funds for applicants to have uh to use their own discretion about what is the

0:59:08

the greatest need right now I mean if you're a if you're a community that needs more service or expanded service you got plenty of buses it doesn't make sense to invest in more buses it it makes sense to invest in more people

0:59:19

that can operate those buses and maintain them um certainly I think that flexibility aspect is a critical aspect to this um and certainly I think we should C take a look at at uh Mr Johnson's Bill uh that would provide a

0:59:31

dedicated uh matching grant program that would allow uh agencies to apply specifically for operating Assistance or operating uh support from the federal government Miss Banner do you have uh from apa's view uh answer to my question I I

0:59:50

tend to agree with somewhat with with was previously stated um I think for you know if you've seen one Transit Agency you've seen one Transit Agency and certainly for the rural providers that depend on the 5307 the Federal grant

1:00:03

funding for their operations is key for them you know over half the transit systems the United States are run by smaller rural Transit agencies for the larger systems particular the Legacy systems I think that there's that

1:00:14

flexibility that is needed uh you might find that one year you're going to invest depending on your your your Rolling Stock Capital replacement plan on the capital you may need more that year that or that quarter than uh the UN

1:00:27

for operating I think for on behalf of APTA we certainly think that the flexibility is key and that uh at this point we have not taken a formal position but but do believe it's important to have the discussion on ensuring that there's funding available for

1:00:42

both Miss Hendricks um in uh Washington State in fact in my district Community Transit and I mentioned Community Transit a little bit my in my opening statement is doing some a lot of a lot of different things looking at different

1:00:55

routes in order to accomodate the light rail that's coming in um they're expanding their brt bus rapid transit system as well but they're also partnering with local communities on um it's not really microtransit as much as

1:01:07

it's um uh on demand Transit on demand but still kind of the same concept of about filling gaps could you chat a little bit about some of the drawbacks to microtransit as well as you mentioned some of the benefits yeah when you think about

1:01:23

microtransit we have implemented micro Transit as NATA many of our our members that operate the for agencies and at first it appears that uh they could be more expensive per Rider but in fact when you look at the allocation of the

1:01:38

resources and you're replacing a smaller vehicle in some situations on On Demand with a large versus a large fixed route bus it actually is balanced out on the cost and cost effective and truly the benefits of micel Transit and On Demand

1:01:51

more and specifically is allowing people to have access and connecting those individuals on that first and last mile to the public transit systems that are already in place so we've seen benefits of that as mentioned in my written

1:02:05

testimony in in uh New York for example where we're doing 500 uh trips a day already passenger per trip and it hasn't increased our costs it has increased the writers ships and it helped us regain ridership post the pandemic to connect

1:02:19

people on that first and last mile to the infrastructure that list that exists within the public transit systems yeah um thanks I'll have some follow up on that as well uh Mr Rian back to you um on regarding the creation of joint Labor

1:02:34

Management safety committees and better reporting on Transit worker asss have have these has the implementation of these policies been successful and and what work needs to be done uh Le not what's left but what's next to improve

1:02:47

safety well this uh the final rule was just announced a month ago so we have you know it's wait and see how everything works I think the a key part is going to be uh the extent to which Transit agencies Embrace their labor Partners on how to

1:03:00

tackle this problem collaboratively that's what the program was designed to do to make sure that the people who are every day seeing the risks on the ground in the buses on the trains in the stations uh can provide that knowledge

1:03:12

and expertise into the drafting of Public Transportation safety plans that protect both commuters and drivers um so for us I think that you know we should be I I hope that agencies will view their labor partners and their workers

1:03:26

as as Assets in this process about how do we tackle a very complicated problem uh and one that uh so far has been alluded us and also frankly provides a disincentive for people to ride the trains or a disincentive for people to

1:03:40

decide to apply for these jobs when uh what they hear about public transit is that it's a dangerous place to be thank you uh I don't yield back my negative 30 seconds we we'll bank that for the next one there you go Mr Stow Mr Larsson I'll just take your 30

1:04:00

seconds anyways thank you Mr chair uh appreciate you having this meeting I recently discussed crime on public transportation in another subcommittee hearing but I think this discussion Bears repeating in the last few years

1:04:13

Minnesota like many states adopted policies that punished law enforcement and took away their resources they complemented this with policies that extended leniency to criminal Behavior and now our public transit systems are a breeding ground

1:04:29

for Crime between January and April of 2024 Minnesota Metro Transit reports a total of 1,248 criminal incidents this number includes 230 assaults 457 drug offenses and 299 destruction of property incidents instead of cracking down on the bad

1:04:53

behavior the Democrat trifecta in Minnesota they took a different approach Fair violations are now a $35 ticket instead of a $180 misdemeanor charge and they've replaced police officers with full arrest Powers with Transit Rider investment

1:05:16

agents trip agents nonp police agents who are to remind criminals of the be Behavior rules these softon crime policies are exactly why Metro Transit still only has half the ridership they did at pre pandem pandemic levels Mr Reagan we've

1:05:38

seen countless reports citing incidents in which Bus and Rail workers have been gruesomely attacked by unruly passengers putting the safety of Transit workers commuters and pedestrians at at risk can you elaborate on how crime has impacted trans IT

1:05:57

workers well in some cases it's been um you know catastrophic uh We've we've had members die in the job um attacked while driving a bus for example in in other cases it is you know the the broader Trend uh in my view as I just mentioned

1:06:12

it it is a deterrent towards doing the hiring meet meeting the hiring goals of Transit agencies all across the country uh are meeting here so I am encouraged by what the Federal Transit Administration released about a month

1:06:23

ago the the the passenger safety the and uh Transit safety plans are you going to are you going to request full uh police officers with full arrest powers or people that just remind people of bad behavior that's we have not taken a

1:06:38

position on that um moving forward we let me ask this is it are you saying your union workers are okay with reminding people of bad behavior again we have not taken a position that's not something what I hear from our members is they want more

1:06:53

active engagement from their from their employers from their a agencies to make sure that their concerns and their needs are being met when they're on the job uh we are in the process of engaging with them in this process and the federal

1:07:04

government is providing good leadership when it comes to the real safety concerns on board these buses and transit systems you know I uh representative Quigley and I went to the Metra in Chicago very impressive I don't

1:07:16

think those union workers would be okay with people uh uh trip agents being quote reminders to criminals of the bad Behavior assaulting your workers I along with several members of this committee have attempted to communicate with the Federal Transit

1:07:33

Administration the dangers that our Transit workers and law-abiding citizens face on Transit have you felt that your expressed concerns have been heard by the agency because I feel that Congress has been ignored uh I certainly when during the

1:07:48

rulemaking process for this entire for the passenger and transportation worker safety plans that just that were just released uh we had extensive conver ation with them and and a lot of our concerns were met um the original

1:07:59

version was not quite what we would have envisioned what we would have liked uh the final version certainly met a lot more of our needs that are you know that are binding in terms of worker engagement with with their employers uh

1:08:10

ensuring that we can develop these plans and by the way I think more importantly having um you know we need to have more information more data about where the where the risk factors are and where the problems are and these safety plans that

1:08:22

are going to be developed uh with worker input will help allow us to make further steps down the road to try to address some of those problems how long do you think that's before that safety plan will be imp implemented well there's

1:08:33

going to be there are requirements in all on all of the transit agencies to adopt these plans uh I think it will vary depending on um which agency and how they're going to engage in the process but uh we intend to hold

1:08:45

everyone accountable because our members lives and and well-being are at risk yeah and I I I agree with you uh we talked safety safety safety it's first second third priority and I I appreciate apprciate that but I again I don't think

1:08:57

your union members would be okay with reminders or Transit trip agents uh for violent Behavior I think that's what gives our our Transit uh a bad name yield back violent Behavior crime human Ys gentleman is yielded um M Miss

1:09:15

palatana thank you Mr chairman Mr rean uh and miss me along that line uh the by part of the infrastructure law we improve the fun and requirements for in installation of protective shields in buses to prevent assaults on bus drivers

1:09:32

how is it provision been implemented have there been obstacles to improving safety measures uh in these uh buses and I know I have calls for increased security Shields can you address that would you increased security yes of

1:09:53

course I think um you know we have long called for uh reimagining what they again these for drivers this is their workspace what does their workspace look like how do we make sure that not only are they protected on the job but also

1:10:05

in some cases it's about protecting pedestrians making sure that blind spots are eliminated making sure that uh there's better visibility for for on oftentimes very busy streets but yeah I think the workplace for these for these

1:10:17

Transit operators needs to be improved and needs to make sure that they are they are protected on the job M ma thank you for the question I on behalf of the industry uh I I it's very very important that we listen to The Operators as it's

1:10:30

very important that we listen to our customers in terms of what how they feel safe when they don't feel safe in uh Las Vegas we were one of the first in the United States to add driver enclosures we did that in 2016 we meet regularly

1:10:42

with our Union employees to understand what they need to feel more safe as well as our our our passengers uh we've been uh we've been given great advice from The Operators to Mr R's pointed is their workspace and uh whether it's devised in

1:10:58

a system that's fully enclosed but has a window that they can open up so it can speak to the passengers we get the feedback from those operators but we saw uh over a 70% decline in incidents occur in our vehicles when we install driver

1:11:10

enclosures and so the industry itself again is uh listening to what their employees want and are and asking our bus manufacturing Partners to start uh designing better enclosures that get can be part of the bus build more protective

1:11:28

yes I'm sorry more protective more protective exactly because uh we provided funding and requirements for the installation of protective Shields but we have no uh record of whether it's been uh enough or whether there is more

1:11:45

required uh if I'm hearing you correctly the uh the the OEM bus manufacturers uh that wasn't something that was you know you could buy off the off the shelf if you will uh but because of the feedback from the drivers and certainly part of

1:12:00

it came from the from the pandemic in in terms of of just wanting that that protection between yourself and the customers it really has proven to be a great safety technique and so uh there's a manufacturer here in the United States

1:12:13

that is building uh a really great Shield Arrow guard is the name of the company and we are working closely with the bus manufacturers to make that part of the bus field because those Shields do work and uh how is your Transit

1:12:24

Agency another agencies dealing with the rising level of homelessness on Transit and what are the policies the transit agencies are implementing to deal with the issue what is the cost for the trans Transit agencies to address the

1:12:38

issue I thank you for that question and again something that I think a lot of systems around the US are doing uh Philadelphia SEPTA has done a great job this again what is what happens in any urban city is is spilling over and

1:12:52

happening on Transit and so a given very complex issue and this is about working closely with the jurisdictional with their social service agencies uh for example in in Las Vegas we work with the city of Las Vegas and Clark County they

1:13:07

have a team that comes out once a month or twice a month to meet directly with passengers that need Social Services housing recommendation Addiction Counseling things like that so again it takes and and it's part of partners with

1:13:19

with our law enforcement yes uh you you addressed it a little bit uh Miss Mayer and Mr Reagan uh my district in Sag Valley has major Transit lines including fooood Transit Metro and new Metro goal line and the constituents prefer to use

1:13:36

Transit some still live and work too far from trans major Transit lines how in you improving first and last Min connections as as Miss Hendrick indicated uh more should be done what can what more can be done yes as I spoke earlier what we can

1:13:54

do is implement on demand or microtransit uh service that's provided it's a smaller vehicle where we can have designated pickup points and allow people to then connect to the transit system that's in place so everyone can

1:14:07

have access to the essential Services needed in our community so we've seen that to be a great solution and we think that that will continue to develop as we emerge into changing and adapting to the new needs of public transit within our

1:14:19

cities thank you Mr chair yield gent yields Mr Johnson thank you Mr chairman so much of the money and the attention around public transit goes to metropolitan areas uh obviously um Transit is pretty important for rural areas as well particularly for

1:14:38

older Americans and for those with disabilities that's why I was so grateful of Miss mayor that in your testimony you did talk about some of what's going on in rural Transit particularly with regard to folks with disabilities so put a little bit more

1:14:52

meat on that bone talk to us about the challenges that Transit providers face in Rural America that they don't face in big cities thank you for that question and and I I I have to agree with you when you talk about fixed rout you I think

1:15:07

generally for comes to mind first and foremost is the able-bodied the person that get on a bus and go to work uh but public transit we do so much more than that par Transit is a big part of what we do ensuring the disabled Community has the same access

1:15:21

the same the same access as everybody else to where they need to go uh we know that rural Transit agencies uh utilize public transit for the disabled Comm 50 50% more than than other transit systems and so uh okay say that again I want to

1:15:36

make sure we're all hearing that the so rural transit systems they're disabled Community they they take transit 50% more than than your urbanized systems it's very important it is a connection sometimes to and I don't want to sound

1:15:52

dramatic here but to life it's it is making sure that they get to where they need to go and so Healthcare and employment particularly if you don't have access to those things it is really hard to live a full life that is correct

1:16:04

for uh in Las Vegas as an example our Ral provider uh Southern Nevada Transit Coalition we RTC the the local match if not for the local match the rural Transit agencies have a very difficult time ensuring that funding is available

1:16:19

to meet the needs of their of their rural residents and so that so let's talk about that funding I would imagine that with FTA so many of the grants are probably written with Metropolitan systems in mind again that's where most of the writers ship

1:16:35

and most of the dollars are uh are there things we can do to make sure that rural systems have a fair shake at FTA or do you think things are good as they are I I think that um funding is critical now you know I uh I came to the

1:16:51

RTC 17 years ago prior to that I was in the private sector my job was to make money for the businesses that I worked in I was surprised uh when I started working in transit I that we don't make money the model is is one that expenses

1:17:04

are always will always exceed revenues that's and it it is that public good serving customers in rural and urban areas that matter and and so it that funding is not only the federal level it's the state level the local level

1:17:18

it's a three-pronged approach if you will uh but you can't can't say enough for again that fun in is it's necessary and it it's ongoing and uh it could be better and so to make it better again it's going to it's going to require a

1:17:33

price and and almost certainly making sure that folks who are writing the El the eligibility criteria are keeping rural systems in mind because it is again it looks very different we've had some conversation about microtransit today I'm grateful

1:17:46

for that Miss Hendricks H you've uh talked a bit about that as well so from either of you other things we should keep in mind with regard to and I assume people who are moving to toward microtransit are in rural areas are also

1:17:58

doing some fixed route talk to me about that transition how far along are we what will the next few years look like well in in southern Nevada we had an area in southern Nevada that was one of the fastest growing uh for six plus

1:18:12

years we we did not have funding to uh add Transit there uh even though we got calls from residents and businesses hey I need I need transit for my employees that sort of thing and so uh we use some of the we use some of the the federal

1:18:25

funding we looked at the at this area and decided we did a cost analysis should we use apply fixed route and your traditional pair Transit service in this area or do we do microtransit and our approach is sort of a love all serve all

1:18:39

on one bus on demand we are moving seniors students pair Transit customers and fix R customers and it's and that model has turned out to be cost effective we're spending Less in that model than we are in traditional fixed

1:18:53

outout of pair Transit so I think a huge success story let's give Miss Hendrick 30 seconds here yes uh similar what Miss Maynard said I think when you look at co-mingling the services that are available and there's also enhanced

1:19:05

technology platforms that we've recently uh some of our NATA members have implemented that allow you to do more on demand and effective routing and scheduling and co-mingling those writers ships in the same vehicle that it

1:19:17

remains coste effective but it increases the availability and access to those that are most need so we're looking at that we've uh again one of our NATA members in leet Texas has implemented that with the proper software for ratp

1:19:29

Dev and it's really working effectively to maintain the same amount of cost are cost effective but increased ridership well said with that I yield back chman yields Mr desier thank you Mr chairman um thank you ranking member and thank you to the

1:19:45

witnesses I'll start with Mr Reagan um as you know Mr rean I represent a urban Suburban District in the East Bay of San Francisco Bay Area Co has changed our world we have the general accounting office working in my office with uh a study about the 10

1:20:03

largest metropolitan areas so sort of the opposite of the last comments um where 65% of the US GDP is all of those areas and particularly in California where we've transitioned we're trying to transition from a car culture in

1:20:17

four-bedroom two bath houses to higher density and higher transit ridership in the Bay Area for years we've aimed to try to get to 10 % uh Peak trips on Transit we have diminishing returns on Transit agencies and democracy sort of

1:20:31

the opposite of uh Los Angeles but when we look at New York or London London at 90% And for climate change our black box for emissions that's where our biggest challenge is and then Along Comes Co um the tradition and because of our tax

1:20:48

structure in California and Prop 13 it doesn't reward local municipalities to provide housing um they get money from commercial development and Retail well that's all changed uh in the last two weeks there was a study by the Bay Area Council and

1:21:04

again this is we're we're probably an example of this but it's happening in all these DC Boston New York Chicago Atlanta um that uh a survey of the major Employers in the Bay Area in San Francisco but also in Silicon Valley and

1:21:19

the business parks in the East Bay um the overwhelming number of largest employers say we're going to three days in office a week the quality of life for people who have to commute an hour two hours from the far edges of my district

1:21:34

into the financial district of Silicon Valley is greatly enhanced by that one of those two incomes being home with their kids so that's the new reality uh the San Francisco Chronicle did a story yesterday and I think it was the Bayer

1:21:47

council did this to that they estimated it would be 20 to 30 years before the occupancy rate in San Francisco would return to where it was preco so we spent a lot of time in California doing 410 trying to get people to do 410 we

1:22:03

changed labor law um now we've sort of got a gift when it comes to quality of life and Emissions reductions and greater efficiencies but we've got these infrastructure opportunities that unfortunately the mo which I used to be

1:22:17

on and the transit agencies want to keep spending money the way they always did like we're at 40% at B of pre it's not going to get back to 100% Fair boox recovery in the near future so being a friend of Labor ATU and Operating

1:22:32

Engineers how do we make this work and protect Rank and file but also protect the working people who are trying to get transit and be flexible knowing the tra traditional heavy Investments like the extension of Bart in the Silicon Valley

1:22:48

we're going to do that but we've got to look at it differently in a different way than we ever have how do we do that in a collaborative faction where we're really efficient about this and I'd be happy to listen to any of the the the

1:23:00

model has changed for 65% of the GDP in this country yeah thank you for the question I I think that um you know where we've seen some successful transitions from major Transit Aid organizations and I mentioned this in my in my oral testimony um places like

1:23:14

Atlanta that are looking at where their demand is how do we how do we uh evaluate our routs both for bus and Transit and also our timing you know if the traditional Monday and Friday 9 am and 5:00 pm rush hours are no longer

1:23:26

going to be the the the primary driver of ridership how are we going to meet the demands of people in our communities and I think you're seeing it in places like Washington DC for example where um you're not seeing as much of the peak

1:23:39

hour traffic but you're seeing increased traffic at other times uh during the week where there it be more people using the metro to come in on the weekends and visit our lovely Museum systems here in the city um so I think as Transit

1:23:52

agencies look at their resources and look at how they're allocating um their Roots their ridership and how they can take the people that are you know their professionals who are operating these systems uh and allocate their expertise

1:24:03

and their resources to better meet the growing demands but I think that takes work that takes um that takes work for people to study what what is actually the demand in their communities right now and I've heard that argument um in

1:24:15

California however that's a small number of what our Fair boox recovery was I mean it's one or two% potentially so the model is still we can't keep doing things the way we always did we have to adapt to that but it's not an answer to

1:24:30

what we've lost on the peak in terms of fair box recovery well but part of it also is is you know you need to have um you need to have a system that that will draw people in to the to the ridership as well I mean we saw it uh in

1:24:43

California in La uh one of their major lines they operated uh you know 30 minute service every 30 minutes you're going to operate and they saw their in their ridership increase by 70 177% um so you you have a reliable service

1:24:56

you're going to see a lot more people that are going to be drawn to that as an option as opposed to trying to drive or spend you know 60 bucks on a on a ride shair yet you're going to see more people as an opportunity thank you I you

1:25:07

back gentleman yields uh Mr van Drew thank you chairman and uh just before I begin I want to associate myself with the remarks of congressman stobber who just spoke a little while before I would maintain whether you are union nonunion

1:25:22

whether you are a passenger whether you are a repair person just an American whether you're a resident people want to be safe and some of the attitudes and philosophies unfortunately in some areas uh and they are unfortunate because we

1:25:39

no longer inforce the law when people do bad things when they commit crimes they have to be punished that's just fair it's fair and Equitable justice so I think Mr starberg brought some good points out but I'm not here to speak

1:25:54

about that um I actually um I'm going to ask forgiveness from my colleagues on both sides of the aisle because I'm going to speak a little bit in a parochial way I'm going to speak about southern New Jersey for those of you who

1:26:06

are familiar at all Southern New Jersey is much different than the northern part of the state which is very compressed very packed uh which is the suburbs of New York City Southern New Jersey is Beach and Bay um even rural we have lots

1:26:20

of farmland and of course I have the largest congressional district geographically in the state of New Jersey it's almost half of the state and my district has perpetually been suffering from a lack of access to public transportation we're seeing the

1:26:34

most impact of this is people's ability to get to their doctors to get to their pharmacies to get to their grocery stores it's real and it's a problem and I know it's not easy because it costs a lot of money but coupling this with the

1:26:46

concern of small and local Physicians and pharmacies their doors are closing many of them it's changed they big centers many people are especially the older population are traveling greater distances than ever before so over the

1:27:02

years I've personally worked with groups such as the South Jersey Transportation Planning organization New Jersey Transit uh to address these concerns but I I want to push it a little further believe it or not I want to learn so at this

1:27:16

time I'm asking all of you for any suggestions all of you in your field to provide guidance suggestions assistance whatever we can do with the Federal level to bring more public transportation to my home in my district

1:27:29

to South Jersey it still matters there we have many people who retire there from the city of Philadelphia from other areas during the summer season it's not as much of an issue because the routes are increased our population in some of

1:27:41

our towns by July 4th because we're so tourist driven goes up tenfold sometimes so are questions that we can I'll start from the beginning just go right through are there any specific groups that you all think that my team should be working

1:27:56

with what Avenues have you seen to be most successful Dusty touched on it a little bit Congressman Johnson I should say in public transportation in rural areas what are the strategies to make this better not every town is a teaming

1:28:10

city um there are places that are more spread out and more rural so I appreciate you being here I appreciate your advice I really mean it so I'm going to start with you and go right on Down the Line thank you everything you said that you know it

1:28:29

is we see it um you know writers ship is important but how you connect people to what where they need to go those critical Services particular rural areas is real and through the funny that we receive because the way that FTA Works

1:28:43

we're considered an urban urbanized transit system and so our funding comes through 5307 the rural transit systems are funded in under a different category if you will and I think it's taken a look at again how that uh we work

1:28:57

closely with our real provider and understand the challenges that they have and and again many times every single year we invest in that rural transit system in the spirit of partnership knowing that that the needs of those in

1:29:09

the rural community are real they have a difficult time getting like to your point to a pharmacy to a doctor's office just to get groceries and so I a suggestion I would make again is looking at the that that funding piece that goes

1:29:22

to the rural portions and uh and understanding if if it's adequate I from what I've been told at least from our our real provider it's it's a challenge and so funding continues to be a challenge not only in the urbanized

1:29:34

areas but also in the rural areas and you'll hear me say this again and again if you've seen one transit system you've seen one transit system they are all funded differently it it is that three-legged stool so at the local level

1:29:46

uh if if it's sales tax or property tax it that varies all across the United States and the level of funny you get from the low local or or state level will depend on how much service you're going to provide Fair Revenue that only

1:29:58

cover about 30% of operating and and that's across the board and so again it is looking at that in when you invest in transit you're invest in the economy you're investing in the quality of life for people in your community so it is

1:30:09

looking again at those funding levels and are they adequate to even meet the needs of your community uh those rural those rural community residents and working closely with with the FTA in terms of those funding mechanisms that

1:30:22

are specifically addressed for Transit agencies so I thank you it was a good answer and you ended up speaking for everybody but that's good and I yield back Jim and yields Miss Titus well thank you very much MJ I was proud to join you and the Federal

1:30:39

Transit Administration when we announced the $150 million that we got from the bipartisan infrastructure law for the Maryland Parkway corter thank you for mentioning that you I've represented that area for 11 years it goes right

1:30:53

through the heart of the district right through the heart of the valley people are going to school they're going to the hospital they're going to the airport they're going downtown they're going to work on the Strip it it's it's an

1:31:04

amazing caror uh I can go on and on about it but you're the representative from apaa not just from RTC so could you speak to the value of the cig program for improving and providing Transit options for people all over the country

1:31:22

Congressman I I I just have to acknowledge that you know more about your District than it's impressive and you are right actually Maryland park with a brt that that without that $150 million uh investment that was a match

1:31:36

we came up with our local match in order to receive that funding it was a competitive Grant your hard work helped us deliver on that it is serving one of the busiest corridors in Nevada uh it is going to it is going to revitalize the

1:31:49

entire area enhanced uh enhanced shelter shade structures wider sidewalks better lighting um the cig program is is critical for ensuring that you can not only improve your existing Serv it's also expand and modernize and that's

1:32:07

exactly the C program that transit systems around the United States are are looking to use it for again is to expand and or improve the FTA has uh has more requests than they have funding available the CIU program the B both are

1:32:24

over subscribed to a certain degree more again more transit systems uh need the resources than there are funding available so it's critically important as a way to ensure that we are uh expanding growing mod modernizing and

1:32:36

improving the services that we have in our communities today well thank you thank you for doing that um I want to talk about the tax on Transit workers we see that increasingly it's been mentioned I know that the FDA has

1:32:51

approved a general directive on Transit worker assaults uh Mr Reagan can you address that do you support this directive are there other things that Congress could do to to help uh develop that policy or protect these people who

1:33:05

are on the front lines and really have no control over who might get on there bus especially uh yeah thank you and and yes we very much support uh the the rule that was released just a month ago in fact I was happy to go join the FTA in

1:33:19

Indianapolis for the for the roll out of this of this rule um as I as I mentioned earlier I think you know how effective it's going to be is going to depend on the full buyin of the agencies across a country about how seriously they're

1:33:33

going to take these safety committees and how readily they're going to embrace their unions and their workers as partners and as valuable resources and Assets in terms of developing policies that will protect both their employees

1:33:45

as well as passengers in these systems yeah some of the violence that you see on buses is between passengers not but the passenger and the bus driver but they have to take some responsibility there and often get involved in that

1:33:58

that that is absolutely right and again the the the workers the bus drivers are the ones who see uh where these trip wires are where where you have the problems where the potential conflicts arise from and so their Insight in terms

1:34:10

of how we can try to address this through policy through design through Fair uh Services all of that you know the the worker voice needs to be part of it because they they are the ones who see all of this stuff going down they're

1:34:21

the ones who uh can help identify where the risk factors are Mr Mayor do you all from your side of things work with the your bus drivers and people on the front lines to come up with this policy in particular absolutely uh you know you've

1:34:34

got to go to where the experts are boots on the ground if you will uh when we make those decisions and not just we RTC but the industry itself is very involved in ensuring that that again it the partnership with your employees the

1:34:48

partnership with law enforcement the partnership with social services that it all matters you it it you can't make a decision in in this Silo and so understanding what the drivers need and the passengers too we we talked to the

1:34:59

passengers to understand how what they need to feel more safe but certainly uh we could not do we have we have the in not only RTC but systems around the United States have those regular meetings safety meetings where they talk

1:35:11

to the drivers and The Operators what what can we do to support you so it is it's it is a partnership in addressing something again that's very complex just as a quick aside one of the programs you have with the buses in in Las Vegas that

1:35:24

I think is great is in conjunction with the public libraries so that when you get on the bus you can connect to the public library you can read you can hear music you can browse the catalog that keeps maybe writers occupied and

1:35:38

business that's right we have library on the go you can download a library book or music when you're writing our system it's great thank you Jim on yields Mr Kane thank you Mr chairman and thank you to all the witnesses for being here today

1:35:54

this is an important hearing regarding the lessons learned by transit agencies during and after the pandemic and nowhere is vital is Transit more important than in New Jersey this vital method of transportation became more

1:36:10

evident when New York City decided to implement the central business district tolling program it is good that Governor hokel decided to indefinitely postpone the implementation of this congestion price plan from the very beginning I and

1:36:27

many of my colleagues in New Jersey and around New York City have advocated for the cancellation of the congestion pricing plan a plan that was and is deeply flawed unfair and simply a money grab on new jerseyans last year I was proud to

1:36:45

co-sponsor and supporting this committee HR 609 expressing strong opposition to this misu plan and as a member of the anti- congestion tax caucus this indefinite postponing is a win for all new jerseyans and I will work across the

1:37:05

aisle to make sure this plan is never implemented Miss manard as you doubtless know crime has been on the rise in transit systems across the country many of my own constituents have been in touch to complain about conditions on trains and around stations

1:37:27

what effect have you seen this this increased crime having on post-pandemic recovery plans in efforts to increase ridership Congressman thank you for that question um I think it's had a again a very large impact in every Urban setting

1:37:45

uh this is not necessarily A Transit problem this is a problem that is occurring in urban cities and again Transit is a rolling micro cm of what is happening in any urban city and if crime is increasing the homeless unhoused

1:37:59

population is increasing drug addiction mental illness things of that nature if that is occurring in the city you will see it on public transit we are we are an open space of public space and so again it's working um I have I have in

1:38:11

Las Vegas personally worked closely with our Sheriff um their their Police Department they're under staffed at this point but they are have been great Partners they are helping uh to address some of the the crime is occurring

1:38:24

within the urban core and at our stations and it is again it's a very complex problem it takes that Partnership of law enforcement your own Security Services technology using data uh we uh are the first in the United States to I'm sorry if I do you do you

1:38:40

see a relationship between Fair evasion and these trends of increased crime I think Fair evasion has always been a a challenge and an opportunity for for transit systems uh I think the way again when when you talk about a legacy system

1:38:55

cities that are literally built like yours built around public transit U maybe some of the technology I know they're making technology improvements in terms of fair evation uh here in uh in Washington they're doing a great job

1:39:06

and uh and Lear um increasing or or stabilizing the the fair Gates and I think they've seen over 70% so to answer your question directly there I think it again it's been a it's been a challenge for transit systems uh since we started

1:39:21

operating it's something that we work on every single day thank you uh Mr rean we know that the pandemic has had dramatic effects on Transit operations and Workforce how have TTD union members weathered these past four years as as far as pandemic

1:39:37

related changes to systems services and operations and with these broader Trends in mind R TTD union members being provided the training they need to be successful in transit systems well into the future thank you for the question

1:39:53

well I how we adapted I think um frankly without the support of of the federal support for transit systems across the country I think uh we would have been in really big trouble uh coming out of the pandemic when wrers ship dropped I think

1:40:05

there was a recognition broadly on both sides of the aisle that um you know these systems are vital to keeping our communities moving during a very uh during a catastrophic time we're we're making sure that grocery workers and

1:40:17

doctors and everybody else were able to use transit to get to work to provide the vital Services we needed uh moving forward I think that there is a need to adapt there is certainly going to be a need to to identify where ridership

1:40:30

Trends are going and how we're going to adjust to a new working world that we're in here um but thankfully because of federal protections like 13c there are requirements that when we have investments from federal from the federal government into local

1:40:45

communities that we must protect those workers so they can't just be outsourced they can't just be have their wages and benefits cut and that they must provided um training if they are going to be transitioned to a different part of the

1:40:57

Transit Agency uh so I think it's a vital part of this moving forward thank you how y back gentleman yields Mr Cohen thank you Mr Crawford uh appreciate all the witnesses here today and uh ranking member Norton for holding this

1:41:13

hearing we are well aware that Transit Agency across the country and it's including the Memphis Area Transit Authority also known as Mata which is in my district fac challenges and funding their operating expenses with fairs I

1:41:26

recognize an increased Federal funding for operating expenses risks a deficit for Capital expenses this is precedented as funding for the FAA has historically prioritized the agency's operations account at the expense of its facilities and Equipment

1:41:41

account but public transit systems are expensive to run and they should be funded by a partnership between agencies local and state and federal governments that's why I'm pleased to co-sponsor with my friend representative Hank

1:41:52

Johnson the strong stronger communities through better Transit act which would take a balanced approach to remedy operating expense shortfalls without diverting too much funding away from Capital expenses I understand the history of it and I understand the

1:42:03

thoughts but if we put all this money in the capital we don't have people riding we're not using the capital and we've got to have the system work and that's going to take fairs and other Investments to make sure we have public transit systems Mr

1:42:20

rean some would argue that public transit is a local problem or a local issue and his operating expenses should be funded locally could you elaborate on how the benefits of public transit go beyond just its surface area and why

1:42:33

federal and state funding could be helpful to the whole region yes and thank you for the question I mean we've recognized for over 60 years that uh public transit is is a national interest that we uh we have a responsibility to

1:42:47

provide provide Federal support for these programs um they keep our economies moving they provide vital services for people uh whether they are you know elderly disabled or just are unable to afford a car uh to be uh you

1:42:59

know to get to where they need to be whether it be to jobs to medical appointments um groceries or exactly and so uh you know we have a requirement to support these communities uh whether they are large or small to ensure that

1:43:13

they have the resources they need to provide a vital public service to their constituents my city like many major urban areas have lots of food deserts so people do have problems getting to a grocery store and they need public

1:43:26

transit and it takes for it takes a long time and for their Healthcare appointments because there are Health Care deserts um it's it's an issue the federal government should be involved in state governments in my opinion

1:43:37

supposing that they were expanded the federal funding for operating expenses how can we ensure that agencies don't simply shift them funds around and take uh Capital expenses take it out of capital expenses and increase this

1:43:51

backlog well I think one aspect way to do it is that you have separate pots of money um so you have you have different grab programs where you can apply for operating assistance through one po pool of money and you can apply for for

1:44:01

Capital through another Pool of money uh that provides agencies with the flexibility they need to identify what their needs are at the moment um whether it is you know there may be in a situation where we just need to refleet

1:44:12

our bus program and that Capital expense is going to be vital for them to do that there may be other situations where there's a shortfall there's a gap in their funding and they need to have operating Assistance or they need to be

1:44:22

able to expand services to areas that are being underserved uh in which case you can apply for an operating assistance grant so those are there are different ways to do it so you're ensuring that people are actually being targeted to what the needs of the

1:44:33

agencies are in that moment thank you sir miss mayard you are U not only Vegas but also the American public transportation Association representative here do you believe that it would be helpful to many communities to have Federal funding available for

1:44:48

operating funds expenses as well as capital the thinkr for that uh question on behalf of APTA you know we've listened to the members uh again it's very important you have some of the smaller rural transit systems that

1:45:03

absolutely rely on uh the the operating assistance so they can use their their Federal funding for operating uh where urbanized it's it's much more restricted I think it really you know first and foremost you've got to make sure that

1:45:15

whether it's a a rail car a bus Light Rail you've got to make sure that's in good working Aura so it's reliable so it can pick up those folks take them where they need to go so it is really a balance and I think that flexibility is

1:45:27

is important some agencies will find based on their Capital replacement program the timeline that they need to invest in capital rather than potentially add a new route so it again it is that flexibility I think is key we

1:45:39

continue to listen to the members of of APTA we haven't taken a formal position but do believe flexibility is very important in this category do you have any idea what percentage of public transit authorities are able to run on just their uh

1:45:54

fairs that would be zero it it again it's a it's a business it doesn't it does not generate a profit and never that's just the way it it is a public good similar to how we're funding roadways and Aviation and and Public

1:46:07

Safety it's an investment and transitive investment in your community thank you maam and thank you to the whole panel gentlemen yields Mr Kylie thank you Mr chair uh a paradox of the modern history of our country is that we are on the leading Edge in so

1:46:23

many ways when it comes to uh technology and Innovation and yet our large scale public in infrastructure uh with public transit being uh a clear example uh often lags behind uh the rest of the developed world uh and uh you know it

1:46:36

can just be an unpleasant experience for people it's unsafe uh it's unreliable but then you go to other developed countries and you see they have really well functioning uh and widely used public transportation systems I mean if

1:46:47

you look just for example at the San Francisco Bay Area uh this is a region surrounded by popul by the most Innovative companies in the history of the world and then you get on mun or Bart the public transit systems and it's

1:46:58

uh you know it's it's very Antiquated and often not a good experience and doesn't get you where you need to be in an efficient manner uh so I guess my question is uh maybe for you Mr Scribner is uh what can we learn here from places

1:47:12

that actually do public transportation better uh across the world well setting aside the differences in in income um and sort of the the urban geography I think one thing they do uh much better than the United States is leverage Innovative procurement

1:47:29

methods so there's a lot more you see a lot more public private Partnerships um in providing competitive Contracting that service uh and I think that that lends itself to uh Innovative Technologies so you know we in the United States we have no heavy rail

1:47:47

systems that are fully automated I mean where we see automated rail systems is primarily at airports that is that is now standard practice uh around the world new new lines being built fully automated um and we're just not seeing

1:48:02

that there because I think we're we're stuck in the 1960s we have uh 60-year-old uh uh Transit laws that really haven't been modernized um and that is uh not the approach they have taken in Europe and in Asia and in other

1:48:18

places where uh Transit is much uh more robust much uh uh higher quality so they've just Incorporated better technology into their their infrastructure because they've been continually updating and modernizing I I think through providing the incentives

1:48:32

for for um underco competitive Contracting that that that creates that incentive to drive Innovation um and I think that's why you see a lot more interesting things coming out of those countries in the transit realm than in

1:48:46

the United States so uh on that point of sort of U modernizing technology I mean we have in the US uh been leading the way when it comes to Innovation and transportation in a lot of other ways I mean our companies have pioneered uh electric vehicles uh

1:49:00

autonomous vehicles uh in San Francisco right now uh wio has a network of of self-driving cars and there's uh you know every indication that uh autonomy is going to become uh more and more uh widely adopted uh in terms of the number

1:49:16

of folks and there's all kinds of models about how is this going to affect car ownership uh so in that context of uh you know know changing transportation technology and potentially uh huge changes in uh in car ownership and other

1:49:29

uh you know uh methods why which people just go about their daily life how should we be thinking of of the next generation of public transit in that context in terms of demand in terms of the available options well I think we've

1:49:42

we've heard from some of the other Witnesses uh discussion around microtransit and I think those kinds of uh you know we may not need the 40 foot bus may not be the future of transit in America so I think looking at different

1:49:56

vehicle sizes different operating models focusing more on on demand service really trying to get at the being closer to private vehicle service because what private Vehicles offer and which is why the vast majority more than 90% of

1:50:10

households have cars today is because it provides much better access to the surrounding area and I think uh for transit to compete it needs to try to take on some of those character istics uh that cause the vast majority of

1:50:26

Americans to not choose Transit you've spoken to this Miss Hendrick today as well do you have anything to add or any other sort of Next Generation Transportation uh Technologies or ideas uh that it's important for us to keep in

1:50:38

mind when thinking about public transportation yeah I think as been mentioned before the ability to adapt to the current realities and the Futures uh with starting with network design understanding where people are residing

1:50:50

and where they're moving to is the first key so really p uh focusing on the network design in order to have the most safe reliable and on time right to get people into public transit it needs to be safe it needs to be reliable so when

1:51:03

you look at the future as I mentioned in my testimony from representing NATA the more micro Transit on demand that allows people to connect to the larger cities and the urban areas of the public transit systems is one method to do that

1:51:17

uh I think partnering with our our labor Partners as well to understand and get their input because I agree that the people closest to the position understands so we need to listen to where the the driver's input is but I

1:51:29

think looking at the shift that will require a collaborative effort amongst many including our public agencies and our partners to ensure that we have the right vehicle in the right place at the right time that's going to be safe and

1:51:40

reliable to enhance ridership and and reduce the congestion that's currently involved in many of our major cities thank you I yeld back gentlemen yields Mr Menendez thank you chair and thank you to all of our Witnesses the covid-19

1:51:52

pandemic rapidly changed our day-to-day lives especially how we work and commute during the pandemic modified work schedules dramatically decreased Transit ridership levels while we've recently seen positive trends that show ridership

1:52:05

bouncing back communting Trends in the post-pandemic world are still different and Transit agencies are still struggling with budgetary shortfalls it's not just Transit agencies that are struggling but many companies that

1:52:16

provide shared ride services such as bus companies that service regular routes and coach and charter bus services these are often small businesses that provide a critical service who have struggled during the pandemic and are still

1:52:27

struggling today in New Jersey's 8th congressional district ANC bus line a private bus company announced the termination of its Jersey City routes this could have left residents in our district with fewer Transit options if

1:52:39

it weren't for our New Jersey Transit swiftly stepping up to provide services on this on this on these routes and we look forward to continuing to work with all of our partners to ensure we are providing a reliable quality Safe

1:52:51

Community experience for all of our residents M manard uh can you talk about how Transit agencies are addressing small scale Transit needs and what Congress can do to help Transit agencies in this effort and I know it's been

1:53:03

touched on uh during the course of this hearing but sort of thinking about how sort of the the universe of the commuters it's serving in a densely populated area like the eth congressional district of New Jersey and sort of what tailored Solutions might be

1:53:18

available to public transit agencies as they think about the pathway forward Carson thank you for that question um I think it's it's going to be uh dependent on where you are so if you've got a you know a large city like whether it's New

1:53:32

Jersey or New York Chicago and you've got uh multiple modes of transportation you've got commuter rail Light Rail heavy rail you've got a bus system pair Transit I I don't think you can have enough options in understanding what

1:53:45

your community needs and how do you think it in thinking about the existing infrastructure and making sure that we have an integrated Transit System system how do we should we be thinking about where there's gaps currently in service

1:53:57

or should we thinking about what we may need to replace or modify within the existing structure or just building new structures around the existing infrastructure quite frankly it's both yeah I think you need to understand

1:54:08

where the gaps are I mean an integrated system is the best system for your community and and I think understanding where those gaps are it it that is our job our job is to take a look at the customers that we're serving where they

1:54:20

are where they're going and how do we adequate adequately assign the the assets that we have uh to ensure that we're meeting to the best of our abilities the community and in some cases again I think it it takes it takes

1:54:33

a village if you will it isn't just one mode it isn't just the bus it's not just the rail you have to understand the you know the layout of your of your City Las Vegas is very crosscentric and so the the way that that our agency may look at

1:54:45

implementing public transit and those connections or gaps could be very different to what you see in the large Urban core CI sure I appreciate that um Mr Regan your testimony touches on several Workforce challenges that

1:54:56

Transit agencies are facing can you talk about what Transit agencies and other Transit providers can do to recruit and retain a robust Transit Workforce thank you uh you know first of all I think in implementing strongly

1:55:09

these new safety plans is going to be a key part of that uh there is no uh worse recruiting tool than the uh media reports we see of bus drivers getting beat up or spit on or ultimately or even killed um in in terms of bringing people

1:55:23

into this Workforce and I think a frankly a lot of advertisement about this these are good middle class jobs that you can raise your family on they have good health health care benefits that's an important aspect and uh most

1:55:33

of the me members and every member that I represent that I speak to is very proud of the role they play in this community and so I think exposing more people to that is is going to help bring more people into the workforce um but we

1:55:46

are facing a cliff let's be honest I think a huge percentage of the workers are eligible to retire within the next 5 years and we need to get going to make it a safer working environment uh and to make sure that we have more people have

1:55:57

access to these great jobs and listen the safety is a is a priority of ours as you know uh last year we led a bipartisan Coalition of 114 members uh in a letter to the FDA calling for them to take action on Transit worker assaults because it is a problem

1:56:11

especially in this postco environment and we all agree that these essential public servants deserve a safe working environment um can you talk about how Transit worker assaults impact worker Recruitment and Retention it's a follow

1:56:22

up to sort of your previous answer yeah it it it's it it couldn't be a worse uh a worse effect on recruiting people into the industry uh you know when people are afraid to go to the office uh you know nobody wants to feel that that's not a

1:56:35

good advertisement and again I think we have to address the safety problems I think we need to you know really robustly imp implement the safety plans that have been now required and then we have to start getting to work to to

1:56:47

educating people on what the benefits are of this industry and how um how vital it is is and what a good job it can be for you listen I look forward to partnering with you on that and thankful for all the essential workers that you

1:56:57

represent thank you and Y back gentlemen y it's Mr deso well thank you Mr chairman um in 2011 Nassau County the county that I'm proud to represent uh in New York privatized our public transportation system the largest public

1:57:10

transportation provider ever to make this transition in just over three months that year the workers represented by tww Local 252 and the new contractor of Viola which is now transdev uh were able to negotiate and Implement a new

1:57:26

collective bargaining agreement that sustained all 900 workers uh and ultimately expanded Transit service in our area that success would not have been possible were it not for the Federal Transit work of protections also known as 13c

1:57:42

protections the tww and Viola were allowed to come together under the offices of the 13c negotiations to get this done in a process that would not have been possible under the National Labor Relations Act uh Miss Hendrick transdev is the

1:58:00

contractor for the uh Nassau Intercounty Express we call the nice bus uh I've heard from transport Workers Union that they have had a great working relationship with you in that system would you agree that you have a solid

1:58:15

working partnership with the workforce on Long Island absolutely uh you know we we pride ourselves and working with our Frontline team members and our our labor Partners as well uh you know they they provide the services that make our jobs

1:58:30

possible we don't forget that and I think to recruit and retain the best talent possible as we've been able to do in nice bus and service As Long Island it's to ensure that we continue to connect our our Frontline team members

1:58:42

to the purpose that we serve of making a difference in the lives of others providing public transportation to uh get them to essential services so we do have a strong relationship with our labor partners and more importantly with

1:58:53

our Frontline team members who come to work every day to service our communities and when transdev takes over a transit system like you did uh in Nassau County years ago you do so knowing that these 13c protections are in place for the workers correct

1:59:09

absolutely we we abide by all federal law and regulations yes and do you still make a profit providing Transit Service as a third party contractor we do make a profit as providing a third party service contractor okay and now just uh going

1:59:24

back for a second to your relationship that you uh Foster with with the Frontline workers um we are obviously a uh a county and my district borders uh queens and and New York City which you know obviously the NYPD is doing all

1:59:40

they can to fight crime in Nassau County uh the Nassau County Police Department continues to work each and every day to keep our community safe um what if if anything uh could be done um obviously we know that the the legislation put

1:59:56

forth by the state legislature Criminal Justice Reform cashless bail um has seen a rise in certain crimes especially those uh that are being arrested and then released to commit more crimes but what can we do what have you done with

2:00:10

your Frontline workers to um I know as Mr Regan had had mentioned um what are you doing to keep that Frontline staff safe and what can we do on a federal level uh to uh to work with you to make sure that when they go to work each and

2:00:25

every day they are kept safe yeah I think there's several things that we've done particularly coming out of Co where we've seen the increase one is the protections that Miss maer mentioned before in the buses and ensuring there's

2:00:36

protection there but in addition to that uh we have the and most buses through representing NATA not just trans stuff here today but the North American Transit lines for the five largest private operators where the buses are

2:00:48

install with a alert button uh so that if there is any activity on the bus that the driver can notify and hit the alarm system that's going to notify dispatch or the local authorities immediately to respond uh but we also for our Frontline

2:01:03

workers we have training which is workplace violence uh the uh deescalation training and active shooter training so we are continuously putting all of our Frontline team members through that training that helps them better prepared to meet the situations

2:01:18

that are unknown or uncertain in today's society and obviously with that training and I know the answer specifically in Nassau County is yes but uh I'm assuming in other places you partner and collaborate with the local law

2:01:28

enforcement agencies to make sure absolutely we we work very closely and collaborative with all of our local law enforcements and all the communities that we serve great thank you very much uh my time's just about expired Mr

2:01:39

chairman I yield back gentleman yields Mr carbahal thank you Mr chairman M Maynard uh over the last several years more and more Transit workers have been assaulted for simply doing their jobs we have seen agencies put up their Shields

2:01:53

to protect drivers at the wheel but that does not seem to be slowing the rate of assaults on these workers these assaults which have been widely publicized are discouraging people from riding Transit discouraging workers from applying for

2:02:08

jobs at Transit agencies and pushing more and more current Transit workers into other safer jobs the FDA recently proposed the general directive on preventing assaults on Transit workers I know that is a little redundant as many of us are asking similar

2:02:25

questions can you discuss what steps Transit agencies are taking to prevent assaults on Transit workers and Beyond the fda's minimums thank you and I hope I'm I am a bit redundant here but again it is understanding what safety mitigation

2:02:43

factors you can use on behalf of drivers and certainly driver enclosures uh we've seen a a double digit over 70% decrease in assaults on drivers because of that enclosure it is absolutely partnering with law enforcement whether that

2:02:58

transit system has its own law enforcement agency they have a private security company or they have anou with the local police jurisdictions that partnership is key uh the both the drivers and the passengers feel safer

2:03:12

and we've done surveys we've asked them they feel safer when they see uh whether it's a your a local police department or your security officer when they see that presence there they feel safe uh I think it's understanding um again

2:03:26

what what Partnerships that you can uh work with in your local jurisdictions and as I stated earlier it's working with some of the social service agencies um microt trans or excuse me transit is a reflection it's a microcosm moving

2:03:42

microcosm what's happening in any urban city and so if if you see if crime is up it it we are one you know it's an open space we we love all we serve all as public transit and so we're going to see what's happening in an urban setting

2:03:54

it's going to happen on a bus and so it it is ensuring that we're spending resources uh one of the things we're doing the RTC uh we have invested uh well the first the two other agencies are following with a company called zero

2:04:07

uh we have the ability now through artificial intelligence and Predictive Analytics to identify a gun if someone's carrying a gun pulls out a gun in any of our Transit terminals uh that's under place so far it's worked and we've had a

2:04:18

couple of instances that have proven effective uh we are we are the the first agency uh agency in the United States that the operators are carrying with them this mobile GPS device that if something happens and they're off the

2:04:31

bus for example a layover they press it it goes right to our boc or into our security office and we can respond immediately and so I think it's it's it's doing the things you would think of working with law enforcement but it's

2:04:42

also looking for technologies that can enhance the the protection of both the customers and the workers uh our passengers in in Las Vegas also have the ability on our m app to to secret or anonymously report uh something that's

2:04:56

happened on a bus we have light our local police department asked us to install live lookin on all of our vehicles other transit systems have that so at any point in time law enforcement and or our uh our our team can view

2:05:09

what's happening in any bus at any time just by just Again by that technology so it it's going to take some of that uh the work that you expect but also technology improvements thank you uh Mr Reagan following up on my question to

2:05:22

miss mayard what more can Congress do to better protect these workers well I first of all I want to I want to say that um you know everything that miss Mander just said has been uh really great in terms of what they're

2:05:33

doing proactively to help protect their workers uh unfortunately that's not been the case in many transit systems all across the country that's why Federal leadership was so necessary and why the provision that you all included in the

2:05:44

bipartisan infrastructure law was so vital uh because it does require um Transit agencies to to Iden to develop these safety plans and to do so in a way that is collaborative with their Workforce and with their unions um and I

2:05:57

and I do think that as the federal government you know now that we have a law a rule that is in place and a law that was passed a few years ago um you know attention to your local agencies to ensure you know following up with them

2:06:09

what are you doing how are you engaging where are we in the process of developing these plans what results are you seeing um all of those things as a federal representative are things that you can do to try to hold your own

2:06:19

Transit agencies accountable and I assure you where we see uh failures where we see people not doing what is necessary when we see agencies not doing what is necessary uh we will be sure to engage you all to let you know that

2:06:29

there are problems with the law with the you know fulfilling the intent of the law that you all passed thank you very much Mr chair out of time yield back gentan yields Mr molon thank you very much Mr chairman Mr Regan unfortunately uh the MBTA and

2:06:45

Boston has had some troubles with safety over the past couple years uh necessitating the federal government to to get involved we're not proud of this but we want to fix it and we want to make it better can you share some of the

2:06:56

best practices that you've seen across the country that we might apply back home in Massachusetts uh certainly and I and thank you for the question but I know that enclosures and reimagining the workspace for workers uh is is an

2:07:08

important aspect of that because at at the end of the day again we are protecting people in their workspace um and that's that's an important aspect so the physical space is important uh but also I think you know these safety plans

2:07:21

that are going to be developed that are required now uh where workers have the opportunity to have their input and they have to be adopted jointly with the union and with the agency it can't just be you know recommended recommendations

2:07:33

can't just be imposed by the employer in this aspect which is important um but I think for the most part I mean there is not going to be a one-size fits-all uh solution to the safety problems it's not going to be the same in Boston as it is

2:07:46

in Las Vegas or as it is in Rochester New York where I'm from because they're very different environments and different agencies uh so I think the the beauty of what the program that was in put in place is is it's going to take

2:07:56

into account the local agencies the reality of the local agencies as well as um what the workers the eyes and ears on the ground in these systems are seeing day-to-day uh and can help Implement meaningful reforms that will protect

2:08:10

both workers and passengers in those systems thank you very much M Mr scrier um I appreciate some of your comments on highspeed Rail and viability in certain quarters if I understand uh your your background correctly um because I I have

2:08:25

long made the case that there are a lot of reasons to love High-Speed Rail but one of them is that if you're a fiscal conservative it's a good investment it has a good return on investment in fact there's not some vast High-Speed Rail

2:08:34

conspiracy that infects every other developed country in the world and just hasn't made it to America yet it's just that a lot of other countries weigh the options they actually have transportation policy that allows them

2:08:45

to choose High-Speed Rail over highways with similar amounts of funding which is not the case of course the United States States the subsidies vastly uh favor airports and highways and when they do that analysis it often comes back that

2:08:58

the cost benefit uh ratios favor favor highspeed rail in fact uh I happened to to co-author at Harvard Business School a study on California highp speed rail that reached two basic conclusions this was 10 years ago one it's going to cost

2:09:11

more than they're saying we know that's true but the second the second is that it still costs less than making the comparable investments in airports and expanding highways that you would have to make to meet 2050 demand and that's

2:09:25

so often left out of this debate I wanted to ask you what are your views on how we should subsidize transportation and and how should we be subsidizing Transit should we be subsidizing highways Etc yeah thank you for that that

2:09:42

question it's pretty expansive um my general view is that we should be trying to reduce uh subsidies across all modes and and to stop distorting the choices of of people who ultimately choose uh one mode over the other uh the time they

2:09:59

choose to travel uh and so on and so forth um so you know I'm a and by the way this is where I completely agree like if we just had a Level Playing Field and we actually allowed sort of free market in transportation to

2:10:10

determine the best Solutions there would be some quarters where we say it's too long for trains you need to fly other quarters it's just a better drive but some quarters really make sense for Transit for for highspeed Rail and we

2:10:22

ought to do the economic analysis to determine that uh we commissioned a study uh my office did back in Massachusetts to look at what are the subsidies for driving because I don't think we think about that very much we often think about the subsidies for

2:10:36

Transit agencies and we hear these numbers about how much of each fair is covered by the taxpayer we just asked what are the subsidies for driving it turned out that they determin in the state of Massachusetts the state subsidizes driving the tune of $64

2:10:53

billion every year that's $14,000 per taxpayer regardless of whether you own a car and these subsidies come in the form of everything from just building and maintaining highways to providing State Police providing Emergency Services 40,000

2:11:10

Americans died in car crashes it's taxpayer dollars that clean all of those up in contrast By the way not a single person has died in the entire history of highspeed rail in Japan but as an aside how do we think about reducing

2:11:27

these subsidies these gross over subsidies for highways well uh when it comes to the the interaction between subsidies on on on for the road Network and and transit systems for one I think there is a there is a Synergy with uh congestion pricing

2:11:45

um congestion PR and not simply because of the revenue but more for the incentive to not drop drive at those peak hours and that may make Transit more attractive so I think there are ways to reduce the the subsidies across

2:11:59

modes and equalize across modes thank you Mr chairman and I sir hope you can speak with the governor of New York I yield back gentleman yields Mr Owens thank you uh Mr chairman ranking member and to your Witnesses today my

2:12:13

own state of Utah is a remarkable story to share with other states and more importantly the federal government it can follow the same type success that has facilitated you UT's Transit ecosystem to thrive in fact Utah's post

2:12:25

P pandemic lessons are stark contrast to the Doom and Gloom of some some of the testimony today Utah's Transit Authority does not run a budget deficit rers ship is up 92% and and pre pre pandemic pandemic uh levels expected to exceed

2:12:42

pre pandemic Levels by next year it has not dug itself into a hole with fiscally irresponsible reduced faes there are no National Guardsman in Utah's Transit because of safety because safety is not an issue our Riders are are uh are and

2:12:59

feel very very safe the State Legislative continues to make historic investments into Transit this year long putting $400 million into our front runner double tracking effort in anticipation for the 2034 Salt Lake City Olympics this is not by accident the

2:13:16

governor the legislator City and local officials work arm inarm with their uh Metropolitan planning committee an organization to anticipate Transportation needs for the state and decades into the future the Utah's unified trans Transportation plan which

2:13:31

has mapped out our transportation needs all the way out to 2050 works because everyone had a hand in it including our rural Partners they are not left behind um I've said this from coming on to this committee that Utah does it right we

2:13:46

collaborate we're Innovative we think outside the box we want to make sure we're keeping an environment it keeps our kids in Utah instead of exporting them uh and if I can say one thing for the benefit of not only Utah but this

2:13:58

country let us be the model we know how to collaborate how to run a budget and how to think outside the box and Tak and take advice from innovators so I'm going to ask that make that big ask let us be the model Miss manard uh in Your

2:14:11

Capacity with the Regional Transportation Commission of Norther Southern Nevada what uh what do your interactions with the regional Metropolitan planning organization look like and how have you collaborated with them for the benefit of users in your

2:14:25

transportation with in your Transportation Authority thank you Congressman um as your neighbor in the state of Nevada uh you have a fabulous CEO J fox running UTA uh you you do a great we we admire you from afar I should say

2:14:40

um I'm sorry could you I'm thinking about the front rner um if you could ask me that question again I my apologies yeah how how um uh what do your interaction with the regional planning so it's interesting we're the only we're one of the only uh

2:14:57

organizations in the United States we're also the Metropol planning organization so literally Transit is on one floor and you can walk down the hall and NP on the other floor so the collaboration is key um because we are again it's it is we're

2:15:10

on the same team uh we we look at funding through our Mo for Transit uh we work collaboratively as the no of course they're the regional planning Organization for all of Southern Nevada we are the public transport provider for

2:15:25

all Southern Nevada so it's a it's a works very very well I know that's not always the case in the United States but I think generally speaking the the NEX is there to have both the mo and the transit system under the same roof uh

2:15:39

has worked exceedingly well I just know we respect um a mutual respect for what the state of Nevada is doing uh uh next one is um Nevada like Utah has experienced rap growth in the last 20 years and the RTC like UTA is specially

2:15:56

stable uh what does Nevada and Utah get right that other states are missing um you know again I think a lot of it has to do with the investment that the community the lued officials whether at the local level or the state level

2:16:11

want to make in that system uh I think that uh you know I speak on behalf of the the organ the transit systems today and I I do think there is just some amazing Transit CEOs that are doing the best that they can I think we all take

2:16:26

it very seriously how we spend tax dollars uh we are trans we are a business we may not make we may not generate a revenue but we need to operate like a business and I think uh when you when you look at it that way uh again it's looking at how you can Mo

2:16:41

efficiently and effectively spend those tax dollars and certainly understanding that we have been Utah Arizona uh Nevada one of the fastest growing regions is it's understanding the origin of destination and where people need to be and again how you

2:16:56

allocate the resources that you have thank you let me just um as I close out just say I think we all need to look at this as a business return on investment and best value to our customers so thank you so much appreciate that gentleman

2:17:08

yields Mr Garcia thank you uh chairman and thanks to all the witnesses for being here today uh I think it's important to remember the historical context of how we got here and who this impacted the decision to end the use of

2:17:23

federal funding for Transit operating expenses dates back to the Reagan Administration the deeply rooted government culture of deprioritizing Transit is inherently tied to the deprioritizing of certain racial and socioeconomic communities as well when

2:17:42

we talk about the transit fiscal cliff Latino black and brown communities are still the same groups of people people that will be harmed the most by further cuts to Transit we also cannot forget the transit operators who are at the

2:18:00

core of our transportation system for for almost 50 years 13c Transit labor protections have been a core component of our federal infrastructure Investments and they prevent Federal money from undermining existing labor

2:18:16

standards it is critical that Federal Investments directly benefit working people people and don't displace existing jobs that's exactly what 13c does Mr rean can you explain how continuing to disinvest in transit and erode 13c protections would impact our

2:18:36

most vulnerable communities and workers sure I think um and thank you for that question the you know what you look at the decision that was made during the pandemic a wise decision to to allow for the use of of relief funds by trans

2:18:50

agencies to be us use for operating expenses because Congress rightfully recognized that this is a vital service that needs the support to keep communities moving during this crisis that we were facing um as we're looking

2:19:02

forward and we're looking at what the needs are of different Transit agencies having the flexibility to be able to use federal funds for operating assistance uh is critical and as as was mentioned by one of my fellow panelists earlier um

2:19:14

when asked about the number of of Transit agencies that operate that meet their costs entirely Bas based on fairb Revenue the number was zero so there are going to be needs that could be some of that may be on Capital other areas that

2:19:26

may be on operating assistance but the federal government needs to take show the leadership to provide that the opportunities for these agencies to uh use federal money as they see fit thank you uh I'd also like to highlight a

2:19:39

topic that some see as a quick fix for these Financial challenges which is the use of autonomous vehicles for public transit uh again mran do you feel that this is an effective substitute for Transit operators and what dangers do

2:19:57

highly automated Vehicles pose as the technology stands today well as it stands today uh there are substantial risks there's not a lot of proof that this can um duplicate what is what is done by professional drivers in the

2:20:12

world I mean um as weo recently reminded us they still seem to confuse trees from roads and sometimes make the wrong choice this is a this is a problem so I think jumping to the you know whatever the the futuristic version of public

2:20:25

transit is without the safety testing and the responsible policymaking that would be required is frankly irresponsible and I think uh you know Transit unions and workers have dealt with uh major leaps and changes of technology for over a 100 years uh this

2:20:41

is not new to us to see uh more people implementing uh or bringing new technology into our into our industry uh but we've had had to found a way to adapt and I think as we are looking at what new technology is coming forward

2:20:54

because we would be foolish to try to just say no put it back in the bottle um we do need to have policies in place that are ensuring not only will it be implemented safely uh that we are going to make sure that it is uh making

2:21:06

workers be able to do their jobs better but also look at the economic impacts and what impact it would have on communities uh if we are suddenly gutting Jobs major sources of good jobs in this country thank you for that uh I

2:21:18

think it's clear that these Technologies are not a replacement for Transit operators to run a safe and uh smooth operations and that uh at the bare minimum we need to uh ensure a safety network is in place as soon as possible

2:21:41

thank you uh Mr chair I yield back gentlemen yields Mr malaro thank you Mr chairman um glad to to join you all thanks very much uh for full disclosure I spent the last 12 years in County government where in the state of New York I administered a

2:21:56

public transit system Mr Regan it's good to see you again um can you reiterate uh specifically um what kind of protections are afforded through 13c uh yeah and thank you for this because it is I think 13c is really at

2:22:12

the core of what has has created such uh labor stability over the last 60 years since it was implemented it it establishes the right you know it protects the right to collectively bargain for the workers when a new when

2:22:24

there is federal investment put being put into a to a region it also makes sure that if in the event that there is a new provider that wages and benefits can't be unilaterally slashed uh where there are differences they are

2:22:34

negotiated locally between the union and the provider and signed off on by the Department of Labor usually uh very quickly and finally you know when there are changes that need to be made due to this investment Federal investment in

2:22:47

the transit operations it ensures that workers have the opportunity to be trained and that there are the resources to train them into uh other jobs often times upskilled with higher wages and benefits uh so it's creating more

2:22:58

opportunity in communities throughout the country so if you're in a in a community uh that receives federal funds and you have um you know 13c is going to be attached to it um you're making sure that this is not just an investment in

2:23:12

stuff it's not just an investment in a vehicle it's an investment in the community and in the people in that Community we tend to forget I'm going to not to but to reclaim my time I guess I um uh we tend to forget that the very

2:23:24

people that are protected by collective bargaining agreements uh and the relationship between employer employee employee through those Agreements are in fact the people paying taxes as well and engaged in our community and certainly

2:23:34

during covid we know that Transit workers were were uh on the extreme front line tragic deaths and a lot of violence Mr scrier you offered and and authored an oped that that takes a uniquely different uh focus and approach

2:23:48

as it relates uh to to 13 see um you call ultimately for the repeal of Transit worker Protections in order for agencies to more cheaply Outsource and automate jobs um does the federal law actually prohibit agencies from using technology to achieve greater

2:24:04

efficiency no but it's okay it's been cited as a barrier for 50 years it's been cited as a barrier by whom office of Technology assessment study on automation automating rail Transit 197 I often wonder how many collective

2:24:17

bargaining agreements those individuals have engaged in I to think that uh in fact the the biggest challenge is employers uh Municipal employers uh especially don't know how to negotiate good contracts with good employees but

2:24:30

to be clear um there is no prohibition right local providers can achieve uh technological advancements uh under federal law in 13c doesn't preclude that from happening correct there's not an outright Pro so um I just offer uh to to

2:24:46

a degree that it's it's both lack of Will and capacity that keeps many uh of uh uh these Transit providers I was one of them uh from uh from achieving the kind of efficiencies in partnership with their employees and that I fear

2:24:59

certainly that the elimination of 13c as as protection means the elimination of jobs so um you uh uh obviously advocate for more uh autonomous vehicles uh we we certainly know this uh as a trans I mean technology to transition to makes sense

2:25:14

um and of course other countries uh are are employing it um Paris now has uh uh uh unattended train lines uh and in that transition uh not a single worker lost their job is uh there anything in US law that would prevent a Transit Agency from

2:25:30

doing exactly the same thing could they not make the transition and protect jobs at the same time uh no but they could not realize labor cost savings which provides a pretty strong disincentive to invest in a in pretty expensive New

2:25:43

Capital So when you say that that is an assumption that I don't think plays out when you have capable municipal or Transit Authority employer negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with capable qualified uh employees and I do think

2:26:00

that the this rush to undermine the collective bargaining agreements and the protections afforded um public or Municipal Employees is always the excuse we use in order to achieve savings I think that that is a that's the kind of

2:26:15

thing that that gets addressed by people who don't actually negotiate the contracts or don't want to take the political risk of negotiating healthy contracts and I do think after covid uh and certainly what we've seen uh and I I

2:26:27

pardon me for isolating and and focusing on on your commentary but I I find it offensive because ultimately there are individuals who are going to work every day trying to do their jobs well and they want the protection of their

2:26:38

federal government they want the protection of their local governments and of and what we need is is the 13 seat protections but the Federal Transit Authority to authorities to ensure that they're supporting the capacity of local

2:26:50

communities to make the most efficient and effective Transit decisions possible while protecting the people who are moving our people yield back Mr chairman all right thank you uh the chairman now recognizes himself for five

2:27:07

minutes as uh as someone that's uh made my living for 30 plus years in the uh Trucking industry and being in the uh uh my wife and I have owned a trucking company now for 30 plus years I can tell you firsthand that our highway system is in need of a lot of

2:27:25

improvement um my concern is that uh money will be diverted from the highway trust fund in order to pay for Transit programs and so what are Transit agencies doing to improve the stability of their finances so that they are not

2:27:41

dependent on the federal government to bail them out and I would just like to go down the line for anybody wants to to tackle that question thank you for that question um I I will again at drtc we are not only the public transort provider we are the

2:27:55

roadway funding agency and uh we understand that again that it's an approach that takes for whether you're you are you know funding your highways or you're funding uh public transit how you move people goods and services

2:28:10

matter it's an economic if you have a transportation problem you have an economic economic problem in all those modes and so I I think it it again if you've got state local efforts looking at how you fund how how various regions

2:28:24

fund their their roadways are different in uh Southern Nevada we had a ballot question in 2016 that passed overwhelmingly where we're indexing fuel tax to inflation it allows us now we have a lot more local money that isn't

2:28:36

necess that's a great match for any federal opportunities uh to again improve our roadway systems and it's it would be the same for for public transit again uh they both matter right they both are public good and how roadway how

2:28:50

roadways are are funded how the aviation systems funded how transit's funded it all matters and how we move again our goods and services no I understand that but I don't think I've ever been subsidized with anything normally we are

2:29:03

the uh the one that pays and so that's that's where I'm leading to what are what what are what are the transit agencies out there doing to improve their own finances so that uh that they're not dependent on the federal

2:29:16

government to to bail them out all the time uh again thank you for that question I I it's a it's an industry that does not generate a profit and I I think again it it it takes local funding State funding and federal funding and um

2:29:32

again it is a public good when you invest in transit you're investing in your community uh I think there certainly at the local level many transit systems around the United States engage with their local elected officials to put to pass ballot

2:29:46

initiatives and and various funny mechanisms each transit system is it is funded differently to a certain degree you've seen one Transit SYM you've seen one so some Transit SYM did sales tax property tax DMV fees Uber lift so I

2:29:59

think it just depends on that local local government okay thank you all right I didn't know if anybody else wanted to tackle that one that well that that's all I had I wanted to come by and ask that um which one and with that I yield back are there any

2:30:23

further questions from any members of the subcommittee who have not been recognized um seeing none that concludes our hearing for today I would like to thank each of the witnesses for your testimony the subcommittee now stands adjourned for

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