Georgia Transit Association historical record presentation for transit funding and governance. Presented by Robert Hiett, GTA President, to the Georgia Joint Study Committee on Transportation Funding in 2007.

1. Slide #1
Georgia Transit Association
Presentation
Joint Study Committee on
Transportation Funding
Columbus, Georgia
August 13, 2007

2. Slide #2
Georgia On the Move
Mobility Choice Through Transit
The Georgia Transit Association is
dedicated to improving public
transportation in the State of Georgia

3. Slide #3
Transit Is Part of the
Overall Mobility Solution
• Transit serves rural and urban Georgians
• Provides mobility choices
• More people are choosing transit
• Facilitates job creation
• Congestion relief
• Improves quality of life

4. Slide #4
Georgia On The Move
Mobility Options Through Transit1
• Urban Systems (15)
• Rural Systems (103)
• University Systems (5)
• Transportation
Management
Associations (15)
• Van Pools (Public and
Private)
• Human Services (159+)

5. Slide #5
Why Transit?2
• For every $1 invested in transit:
– Returns $6 in local economic activity
– Provides $1.50 savings in transportation
costs
• $10 million in transit investment brings
$30 to $32 million in increased business
sales
• Transit-oriented development attracts
private investment to communities
Capital investment in Public Transportation sparks a
chain reaction in business activity that far exceeds the
initial investment - National Business Coalition for Public Transit
3

6. Slide #6
Transit Modes and Ridership
• Rural – Van, Shuttle Bus, Conversion
Van4
• Urban – Van, Bus, Express Bus, Rail4
• Annual Transit Trips:
–MARTA – 142.3 million5
–Other Urban – 17.9 million5
–Rural – 1.7 million6

7. Slide #7
Transit Expenditures7,8
2006/2005
Data
Rural Urban Total
Local
Economic
Activity
9
Operating $ 15.8 M $ 370.7 M $ 386.5 M $2,319 B
Capital $ 10.2 M $ 350.3 M $ 360.5 M $2,163 B
Totals $ 26.0 M $ 721.0 M $ 747.0 M $4,482 B

8. Slide #8
Georgia Urban Transit Systems
The availability of
MARTA as a transit
alternative saved
Atlantans
approximately
27,765,000 person-
hours in annual
travel time delays.
Texas Transportation Institute
Annual Urban Mobility Report
10

9. Slide #9
11

10. Slide #10
Urban Transit Program
Revenue/Funding Sources (Millions)
7,8
Local Sources
2005/2006
data
Fare Box
Revenue
Sales
Taxes and
Bonds
General
Fund
State Federal Total
Operating $111.2
(27.1 %)
$ 189.7
(46.3 %)
$ 30.4
(7.4 %)
$ 2.0
(0.5 %)
$ 76.5
(18.7 %)
$ 409.8
(57.1%)
Capital
NA
$ 254.0
(82.4 %)
$ 1.5
(0.5 %)
$ 3.4
(1.1 %)
$ 49.2
(16.0 %)
$ 308.1
(42.9 %)
Totals $ 111.2
(15.5 %)
$ 443.7
(61.8 %)
$ 31.9
(4.4 %)
$ 5.4
(0.8 %)
$ 125.7
(17.5 %)
$ 717.9
(100%)
Local areas pay 81%
State share is less than 1%

11. Slide #11
Urban Transit Program Summary
• 15 urban systems
12
• 1,237 vehicles13
• 157,694,871 trips / year
14
• Urban transit system ridership (MARTA
excluded) up by 178,630 annual trips
between 2004 and 2005
15
• MARTA ridership up by 6,225,000
15
4% total annual increase!

12. Slide #12
GA Rural Transit Systems
“Bus service means a
whole lot to me, without
it I wouldn’t be able to
get out and be with
other people.”
Nancy Wilder, age 77,
Upson County, GA

13. Slide #13
16

14. Slide #14
Rural Transit Program
Revenue/Funding Sources (Millions)
7,8
Local area pays 33%
State share is 4% (Capital Only)
Local Sources
2005/2006
data
Other
Revenue
Sources
Fare Box
Revenue
Local State Federal Total
Operating
$ 1.8
(12.9 %)
$ 1.2
(8.6 %)
$ 5.8
(41.7 %)
$ 0.0
(0 %)
$ 5.1
(36.7 %)
$ 13.9
(100 %)
Capital
NA NA
$ 1.0
(9.8 %)
$ 1.0
(9.8 %)
$ 8.2
(80.4 %)
$ 10.2
(100 %)
Totals
$ 1.8
(7.5 %)
$ 1.2
(5.0 %)
$ 6.8
(28.2 %)
$ 1.0
(4.1 %)
$ 13.3
(55.2 %)
$ 24.1
(100 %)

15. Slide #15
Georgia Rural Transit Systems
• Are Growing - 96 to 103 in FY 2006
• Service demand is greater than available
local funding match
• Regions are working together to create
economies of scale:
– Southwest GA RDC – piloting a regional
system
– McIntosh Trail RDC – piloting a regional
system
– Coastal GA RDC – planning stages

16. Slide #16
Rural Public Transportation
FY(2006)
17
• Trip Purpose:
– Medical: 15.4 %
– Employment: 14.0 %
– Nutrition: 17.6 %
– Social: 16.0 %
– Education: 9.7 %
– Personal: 27.3 %
• 43.6 % of riders are seniors
• 19.4 % are persons with disabilities

17. Slide #17
Rural Public Transportation
Program Summary (FY 2006)
• 1,944,080 Trips/year
17
• 94 counties and 9 cities
• Currently operates 426 vehicles
17
• Local government pays 10% of capital
costs
• FY 2007 total budgeted program (capital
and operating) of $18.9 million, including
local, federal and state match
17

18. Slide #18
Georgia Transit System
Challenges 18
• Overall state transit assistance – Top 10 most
populous states:
- GA is last with $0.91 (per capita)
- Other states range from $1.30 to $112.65
• On average our economic competitors
provide 16 times more transit assistance
State FY 2005 Funding
FY 2005
Population
Per capita
Investment
California $ 1,399,800,143 36,132,147 $ 38.74
Texas $ 29,741,067 22,859,968 $ 1.30
Florida $ 149,738,231 17,789,864 $ 8.42
Georgia $ 8,222,757 9,072,576 $ 0.91
North
Carolina
$ 111,724,897 8,683,242 $ 12.87

19. Slide #19
Rural and Urban Funding
Challenges
• Operating Costs
– No Federal operating funds for Urbanized
Areas with populations over 200,000 (e.g.
Savannah, Augusta, Columbus)
– Mandates
• Para transit
• Air Quality – Non-Attainment Areas
• Safety and Homeland Security
• Fare Box Recovery
– Local match is provided by property taxes
• Capital Funding
– Decrease in Federal funding
– Local match from general funds

20. Slide #20
Rural and Urban System
Funding Challenge Responses
• Service efficiencies
• Layoffs
• Deferred maintenance
• Service cuts
• Fare increases
• Early retirements
Most approaches reduce our
ability to meet our service goals!

21. Slide #21
Georgia Transit Funding
Operating Assistance
• 42 states provide operating
assistance
19
• Georgia and eight others do not
(AL, AZ, CO, HI, ID, KY, NV & UT)
19
• New transit service limited by lack of
operating assistance
• Our economic competitors support
transit and its mobility benefits

22. Slide #22
• New Federal funding is now virtually non-
existent and limits new service opportunities
• Rural operators pay up to 10% of capital
costs for vehicles
• Urban operators are required to pay up to
50% of capital costs
• Vehicle fleet is older than national norms
20
– Within 6 years over 47% of fleet is obsolete
– Within 12 years entire fleet is obsolete
Georgia Transit Capital Funding

23. Slide #23
Age Distribution of Buses
Service Area
Active
Buses
5 Years Old
or Less
6-11
Years Old
Over 11
Years Old
Albany 9 22% 45% 33%
Athens 26 73% 0% 27%
Augusta 22 50% 23% 27%
Cobb County 71 49% 24% 27%
Columbus 34 32% 18% 50%
Macon 26 35% 65% 0%
MARTA 559 55% 21% 24%
Rome 36 39% 44% 17%
Savannah 55 60% 22% 18%
State Totals 838 53% 24% 23%

24. Slide #24
Service Summary
• Transit serves Rural and Urban areas
• Transit is part of the solution to improving air
quality and traffic congestion
• Demand for transit is growing, but service is
constrained due to a lack of operating and capital
funding
• Aging buses and infrastructure threaten future
service quality
• Senior transportation needs are increasing,
especially as Georgia seeks to attract more
seniors
The Georgia Transit Association is dedicated to improving
public transportation in the State of Georgia

25. Slide #25
Potential Solutions
• Create individual income tax credits for
transit use
• Promote corporate income tax credit for
providing transit benefits
• Renew Motor Fuel Tax exemption for
transit systems
• Improved Human Services Transit
Coordination and funding
• Encourage regional transit planning efforts
across the State
• Support Federal Transit Flexibility
Protection Act

26. Slide #26
GTA Funding Principles for
New Revenues
• Cover all transportation modes,
including transit
• Allow flexibility for capital and/or
operations/maintenance
• Supplement, not replace existing
funding
• Allow flexibility for any combination of
regional or sole county participation

27. Slide #27
Georgia’s Transit Systems
Questions and Comments

28. Slide #28
Contact Information
Robert Hiett
President, Georgia Transit Association
770-734-0761
www.thegta.org