Public Input CHAPTER II INTRODUCTION COMMUNITY ADVISORY GROUP (CAG)

Transcription

1 Chapter II

2 CHAPTER II Public Input INTRODUCTION The purpose of this chapter is to present an analysis of the public input techniques which were used in this study. The Planning Team, with support and input from the Town of Castle Rock Transportation Planning Section, employed a number of techniques to garner public input on what the community wanted from its public transportation service. Public input techniques used in the planning process were: development of a Citizens Advisory Group (CAG), community key person interviews, a drivers meeting to gather input from the local transit system drivers, an onboard survey of the riders that use the local transit system, a community telephone survey, and two open house public meetings. The community and onboard surveys are presented separately in Chapters IV and V. COMMUNITY ADVISORY GROUP (CAG) At the beginning of the study, the Planning Team met with the Town of Castle Rock Transportation Planning section to go over the study process and discuss development of a community advisory group. Town staff provided a list of names for the CAG and worked diligently to have members that represented agencies and offices which have a vested interest in public transit. Agencies and public offices that were represented are: Castle Rock Public Works Department Castle Rock Police Department Castle Rock Chamber of Commerce Castle Rock Senior Center Castle Rock Development Services Department Castle Rock Town Manager s Office Castle Rock Economic Development Council Page II-1

3 Douglas County Library Douglas County Human Services Department CATCO Neighborhood Associations Business Sector/Developers The CAG s responsibilities were as follows: Provide local input and instruction to the Planning Team. Partake in the development of the study Goals and Objectives. Review, amend (if needed), and approve the Transit Plan Draft. Work with local government decision makers in understanding the Castle Rock Transit Study. All meetings of the CAG were well-represented, and the Planning Team received valuable information and guidance from this assemblage of dedicated citizens. Minutes of each meeting, presentations given, and attendance lists are provided in Appendix D. KEY PERSON INTERVIEWS During the month of November, staff interviewed nine individuals who are influential in local government, business, and social service. These individuals were selected by the Castle Rock Project Manager. The individuals interviewed are key decision makers in the community and represent private business, local government, and civic and business organizations. The interviews were conducted in person or over the telephone by the Project Manager. Each person was asked the same questions and given the opportunity to provide additional insight or information. Below is a summary of their comments. QUESTION 1: IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT ARE THE MAJOR ISSUES FACING THE TOWN OF CASTLE ROCK? RESPONSE: The majority of stakeholders stated that rapid growth and its impact on the community s infrastructure was the major issue facing Castle Rock. Other Page II-2

4 issues mentioned were need for affordable housing, a more diverse economy, and the need to promote a sense of community in Castle Rock. QUESTION 2: WHAT ARE THE MAJOR TRANSPORTATION ISSUES FACING THE TOWN OF CASTLE ROCK? RESPONSE: The Stakeholders felt that there was a need for greater regional service. They also believed that the local transit service is good, but needs to be enhanced. There need to be better regional connections to Denver and regional hospitals. QUESTION 3: WHAT ARE THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY FOR LOCAL AND REGIONAL TRANSIT SERVICE? RESPONSE: The Stakeholders were unanimous in stating the need for better commuter service and more frequent local transit. Others mentioned the need for commuter rail, regional door-to-door paratransit service, and synchronized traffic signals. QUESTION 4: WHAT BENEFITS DO YOU THINK IMPROVED TRANSIT SERVICE WOULD BRING TO THE COMMUNITY? RESPONSE: Many Stakeholders believed that improved transit service would help reduce traffic congestion in the community. It would also provide more mobility choices, more mobility for the transit dependent, attract more business to the community, better transportation for community special events that are usually held downtown, and improve the quality of life in Castle Rock. QUESTION 5: DOES THE CURRENT TRANSIT SERVICE MEET THOSE NEEDS? RESPONSE: The Stakeholders all said no. Page II-3

5 QUESTION 6: WHAT AREAS OF THE COMMUNITY SHOULD BE GIVEN PRIORITY FOR LOCAL TRANSIT SERVICE? RESPONSE: The majority of the Stakeholders believe that downtown Castle Rock should be given priority. QUESTION 7: WHAT SHOULD BE THE HOURS OF SERVICE? SHOULD IT OPERATE ON WEEKENDS? RESPONSE: All Stakeholders interviewed stated that the local service should operate on weekends and the hours of operation should be between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m. and between 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. QUESTION 8: WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD MAKE TRANSIT SERVICE SUCCEED IN YOUR COMMUNITY? RESPONSE: The overwhelming majority of Stakeholders stated that more frequent service is needed. Other recommendations were for a larger service area, central dispatch center, and stable long-term funding. QUESTION 9: WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE GREATEST BARRIER TO ENHANCED PUBLIC TRANSIT IN THE COMMUNITY? RESPONSE: All but one Stakeholder felt the greatest barrier to enhanced local transit was the lack of funding. QUESTION 10: WHO DO YOU THINK SHOULD OPERATE? HOW SHOULD IT BE FUNDED? RESPONSE: There was no real consensus to this question some felt that CATCO should continue to operate the service while others felt that the Town or a Rural Transit Authority should operate the service. Many Stakeholders were unsure how the service should be funded, but some suggested that fares should be placed on Page II-4

6 trips, business should support the service, a special taxing district be set up, or that the government should fund the service. QUESTION 11: DO YOU THINK THAT THE COMMUNITY WOULD SUPPORT INCREASED FUNDING TO IMPROVE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICES? RESPONSE: Seven of the nine Stakeholders felt the community would support a dedicated tax if the service was more regional. QUESTION 12: WHAT PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SERVICES ARE CURRENTLY IN CASTLE ROCK? WHAT S YOUR OPINION OF THESE SERVICES? RESPONSE: The Stakeholders were knowledgeable of the major transit services of CATCO, FREX, and Senior Shuttle. QUESTION 13: ARE THERE SPECIFIC ISSUES WHICH SHOULD BE ADDRESSED IN OUR TRANSIT NEEDS ASSESSMENT STUDY? RESPONSE: Most felt the study was very comprehensive, but some wanted to make sure that the study addresses paratransit needs and others want to make sure the study looks at regional transportation. QUESTION 14: SHOULD THE ENHANCED CASTLE ROCK TRANSIT SERVICE BE EXTENDED TO INCLUDE PARTS OR ALL OF DOUGLAS COUNTY? HOW SHOULD THIS BE FUNDED? RESPONSE: The overwhelming answer to this question was Yes, but only if the County agrees to help fund the service. QUESTION 15: DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER COMMENTS? 1. Castle Rock needs to have distinctive and attractive interchanges along I-25. Page II-5

7 2. CATCO and the Town of Castle Rock are doing a great job. 3. This is a good time to look at enhanced local and regional transit service. 4. The original plan for CATCO was to provide frequent shuttle service between the Outlets of Castle Rock and Downtown; this needs to be reinstated. 5. The study needs to look at regional transit due to the rapid growth in Castle Rock and Douglas County. The transit dependent need service to hospitals and medical centers that are not available in Castle Rock. DRIVERS MEETINGS staff met with the CATCO bus drivers on November 27, 2006 to discuss the current service and to obtain input from the drivers on how to improve and enhance the service. Drivers are the front line of any transit service. They are the people the customers of the transit service see on a daily basis. They are also the people that receive the most input from the transit system s customers. Therefore, it is always imperative to receive guidance and input from the drivers when changes are being considered in the transit service. Listed below are ideas presented by the drivers concerning the transit service. Drivers are very concerned about over-capacity issues with the service and having to leave passengers behind. The drivers believe that a higher frequency of service is needed such as halfhour peak service frequency and one-hour off-peak frequency. Schedule is difficult to maintain on the afternoon service due to local traffic congestion. Evening service should be extended, and the service should mirror the FREX service schedule. Although the CATCO stop and the FREX stop at the Outlet Mall are separated by some distance, drivers sometimes drop off passengers at the FREX stop who want to use FREX. Please note that drivers have been asked to discontinue dropping patrons off directly at the FREX outlet. The drivers stated that some areas mentioned to them by passengers for transit service or improved service are Park Meadows, Franktown, Larkspur, Parker, Sapphire Point, and Downtown. Page II-6

8 The drivers pointed out that some of the bus stops share space with truck loading and unloading zones and that trucks in those zones (especially at the Recreation Center) make it difficult to off-load passengers. The drivers feel that the existing schedule is too hard to read and that it might be a good idea to have a Spanish language schedule. Service is needed to the Justice Center and the new Douglas County Human Services Building. TRANSIT STUDY OPEN HOUSE On December 13, 2006, the Town of Castle Rock held an Open House to let the public see the efforts, so far, on the development of a transit plan for the Town. Display boards were developed that provided information on the ridership and community surveys conducted for the transit study as well as boards that showed the existing local transit service, demographic information, and interactive boards that were used to obtain the public s thoughts on where new transit service is needed. A total of eight citizens placed their names on the sign-in sheet and an estimated 12 citizens attended. Listed below are the comments received from the citizens that attended the Open House. Several citizens commented on the results of the community survey, especially the positive response to having a dedicated tax to support public transportation in Castle Rock. These citizens concurred with the survey finding on the need to support public transit with a dedicated tax. Overall, the public thought the display boards were very informative. One citizen commented that local transit service should operate after 5:00 p.m. (she did not state how long after 5:00 p.m.). She also felt that the downtown library should be used as a transfer station where the bus routes would meet. The library could provide shelter from the elements and allow people to get a book and a cup of coffee while they waited for their bus. Another citizen commented that they used to take the FREX bus to the Arapahoe Park-N-Ride and then use the LINK Shuttle to the Denver Tech Center. However, the shuttle was discontinued with the opening of the light rail. This citizen said that RTD had routes connecting Arapahoe Park-N-Ride with Denver Tech Center, but she would now have to buy two passes to reach the Denver Tech Center one for FREX and the other for RTD. The citizen now uses her personal vehicle to get to work because of the inconvenience of paying fares twice. Page II-7

9 Another citizen was displeased with FREX using standard city transit buses to operate the commuter service. He stated that these buses were uncomfortable and did not provide a restroom. He stated that the new buses being purchased by FREX should have restrooms although he had heard that they would not. A resident of Castle Rock commented that FREX is a great asset to Castle Rock and hopes that the Town continues to invest in regional transit. Regional transit allows Castle Rock residents to work in Denver, but live in a more desirable setting. Another person asked about better coordination of fares with RTD and with FREX. She did not like having to pay two separate fees with the transfer and wanted to know if there were any cooperative efforts planned for the future. There were several comments about better coordination between Castle Rock s local service and FREX in particular, coordination of scheduling so that the local service meets up with FREX. One resident was not able to attend the Open House. However, he sent an with several comments. His main concern is a Town ordinance which prohibits overnight parking. He believes that this ordinance should be waved for regional parking lots. He also made mention that FREX schedules posted on the Internet do not always agree with schedules posted at the FREX bus stop in Castle Rock. This has caused him to miss several trips because the Internet schedule was out-of-date. He also stated that the bus stops for Castle Rock s local transit service are not accurately depicted on the system s route map. Finally, he believes that passengers should be allowed to stand on the local buses when all seats are taken. He stated that the buses have hand rails that allow a passenger to hold onto when standing. It should be noted that the bus manufacturer s specifications on the current fleet recommend against standees. A comment was made to extend local service to Franktown to connect with RTD service available in that town. Several people commented that local service should run later than 5:00 p.m. and service should be provided on Sundays. As mentioned earlier in this document, a display board was set up which asked attendees where they would like to see new service provided. Each attendee was asked to place a dot on the location they wished to have service provided. Three attendees placed dots for service to the Denver Tech Center, three dots for service to downtown Denver, two dots for evening service past 5:00 p.m. in Castle Rock, and one dot each for service to Colorado Springs and commuter service to RTD light rail. Page II-8

10 Feedback from Community at Town Council Road Show This section presents the results of the individual community questionnaire administered by the Town of Castle Rock Planning staff. The questionnaires were distributed to individuals on October 17, 2006 as part of the Castle Rock Town Council Road Show, held at the County Fairgrounds in Kirk Hall. This information provides insight on the general transportation system, service characteristics, financial support for public transit, and demographic information. A total of five individual questionnaires were received. The questionnaires were not conducted to be statistically based, but to obtain opinions on transit issues and perceptions of the proposed transit system. The questionnaire designed was similar to the one used as part of community telephone survey and was used as part of the public involvement process. The responses are summarized in the following sections. A copy of the individual transportation questionnaire is also provided in Appendix D. Demographic Characteristics There were a number of questions asked to determine the characteristics of these individuals. The majority of the respondents belonged to the age group 60 years and above with one individual who belonged in the 20-year age group. Most of the individuals were homeowners who reported earning an annual household income range of $45,000 to $59,000. Respondents were also asked to indicate their employment status using several categories. Two of the respondents indicated that they were employed full-time, two of them were not employed, and one individual was employed part-time. The individuals who were either full-time or part-time employed worked in Monument, Denver, and the Douglas County area. Vehicle Availability and Driver s License The questionnaire asked the number of operating vehicles the individuals had in their household and whether they had a driver s license. Vehicle availability and the ability to drive play key roles in the demand for public transportation. Lack of a private vehicle or the inability to drive influence people to use public transpor- Page II-9

11 tation. All the respondents had a driver s license and had two to three operating vehicles in their household. Means of Transportation The questionnaire asked information about the types of transportation currently used. Respondents were allowed to select multiple responses. All the respondents used a personal vehicle. Another means of transportation indicated was the light rail in Denver. One individual indicated that he used FREX (commuter bus service), local transit service (operated by CATCO), RTD bus system, and walking as other means of transportation, though he used it rarely (approximately one-three days per month). Trip Purpose The questionnaire asked information about the trip purpose on transit such as the local transit service (operated by CATCO), FREX, and the light rail system. Three individuals reported using transit mainly for recreational purposes. Source of Information The questionnaire asked individuals if they were familiar with the CATCO Clean Air Bus. None of the respondents indicated that they were familiar with the transit service. This may indicate that the local transit service (operated by CATCO) should find ways to market and increase awareness of the transit service in the community. Similarly, individuals were asked if they were familiar with the FREX service. All respondents except one indicated that they were familiar with FREX. Service Characteristics The questionnaire asked individuals to rate the importance of various service characteristics that may or may not influence their decision to use public transportation. Some of the attributes selected as the most important were service from home to work, service from park-and-ride to work, commuter service, express Page II-10

12 service, service close to home, clean buses, Saturday service, and evening service until 11:00 p.m. Individuals were told that the local transit system (operated by CATCO) was free and were asked if they were willing to pay a fare if it met their transportation needs and what would be a reasonable fare. All five respondents indicated that they were willing to pay a fare. Two dollars would be a reasonable fare. Financial Support for Public Transit The questionnaire gave individuals a list of five projects and asked them to select two projects that they thought were the most important. All of the individuals reported that maintaining the current level of fire protection and emergency medical services was the most important project. Other important priorities selected were better public transportation system and having more open space and trails. Individuals were also asked if they supported having public transportation in Castle Rock. They were also asked if they were willing to support a dedicated tax to fund public transportation and, if yes, what type of tax they would prefer to use to fund public transportation. All individuals supported having public transportation. They all preferred to use a sales tax as a dedicated tax to fund public transportation. Transportation Needs The questionnaire asked individuals if they had any transportation needs that were not currently being met and gave an opportunity to specify those transportation needs. No respondent indicated any transportation issue that needed to be met. Individuals were also asked if they would use any public transportation within Castle Rock, within Douglas County, and beyond Douglas County. All individuals indicated that they would use public transportation within Castle Rock. However, Page II-11

13 a few responses indicated that they would use public transportation within Douglas County and beyond Castle Rock. Individuals were also asked if they would use public transportation to go beyond Castle Rock and which were the areas that required transportation. Three individuals indicated that they needed to go beyond Castle Rock. Some of the areas to which these individuals needed transportation were Lincoln Light Rail and Park Meadows Mall, and one individual requested a bus stop closer to the State Capitol. SUMMARY The information received from the public involvement process, the goals and objectives developed by the Community Advisory Group, and the surveys described later in the study play an important role in the development of the. The public involvement, as presented in this chapter, will also assist the Town of Castle Rock in obtaining transit funding from the federal government which provides substantial amounts of money across the country for local transit operations and capital procurement. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is the fiduciary of this funding, and one stipulation for obtaining FTA funds is that the community has direct influence in how the local service is to operate. The Town of Castle Rock has shown that it is involved in public transit matters in their community and that the town government of Castle Rock values the input from its citizens. Page II-12