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File Number: 16-655 <br />“Drivers are always so kind” and “Thank you!” <br />LINKS Shuttle Ridership <br />The updated LINKS service started in mid-March 2015. Ridership for the “old” LINKS service <br />averaged 14,435 rides per month with an average of 674 rides per day. Ridership for the new <br />service (FY 2015-16) averaged 16,640 rides per month and 777 rides per day. <br />During the first several months of new service, LINKS experienced ongoing impacts related to <br />prolonged and extensive construction along the LINKS route. Construction along the route is <br />complete and LINKS on-time performance has improved substantially. Ridership has continued <br />to increase, hitting a new peak of 19,117 rides, over 800 rides per day in September. At that <br />rate, the service will provide over 225,000 rides per year. <br />Budget <br />Funding for LINKS comes from the BID, grants, the City of San Leandro, partnerships and <br />advertising. The BID funds approximately one-half of the LINKS service. <br />In 2016-17 the SLTMO will apply for a two-year Transportation Fund for Clean Air (TFCA) grant <br />totaling $76,000. In October 2016, the SLTMO submitted an Alameda County Transportation <br />Commission Measure BB application that could provide $1.7 million over the next five years. It <br />was originally anticipated that the Measure BB funds would be available for 2016-17 but Alameda <br />County Transportation Commission pushed the funding out to 2017-18. <br />The agreement with Kaiser Permanente to run the Kaiser Shuttle and TDM program for the new <br />Kaiser Permanente San Leandro Medical Center was modified this year. The SLTMO is now <br />providing Kaiser Shuttle services only. In 2015, the SLTMO entered into a new agreement with <br />Marina Square to advertise on the LINKS buses. <br />The SLTMO continues to pursue a variety of grant funding. However, grant funding is <br />unpredictable. For example, the current Lifeline Cycle 3 grant ($185,000/yr.) expires this year. <br />LINKS is not eligible to apply for Cycle 4 funds because the funding priority was diverted to large <br />fixed route providers. In addition, grant funds are drawn on a reimbursement basis and can only <br />be drawn as a percentage of the total expense for the reporting period. The reimbursement <br />process creates a cash flow problem making it necessary to have a strong reserve balance at all <br />times. If approved, the Measure BB grant application will stabilize funding for five years, fill the <br />gap created by the loss of the Lifeline grant, alleviate the cash flow challenges and allow for <br />improvements such as adding GPS bus tracking to the service. <br />BID Recommendation <br />Proactive measures taken to generate new revenue and secure grants have helped to stabilize <br />funding for LINKS. The cash flow gap resulting from the grant reimbursement process will <br />continue to pose a challenge for LINKS. If approved, the Measure BB grant will help to further <br />stabilize LINKS funding but must be reauthorized every two years. In order to ensure that funding <br />for LINKS stays current with operating costs, staff recommends that the BID rate should be <br />adjusted by the Consumer Price Index. <br />Per the approved Ordinance, the BID may be increased annually by the Consumer Price Index <br />(CPI). For 2016-17 the applicable CPI factor is 3 percent (average annual year-to-date through <br />Page 3 City of San Leandro Printed on 11/29/2016