AROUND THE STATE
Virginia Transit Association has created a powerful video highlighting the importance of public transit: Virginia Faces of Transit. Organizations are invited to join the Faces of Transit coalition to help highlight public transportation's key role in bolstering our economy, improving our environment, increasing equity, and connecting our communities.
AROUND THE REGION
The CVTA (Central Virginia Transportation Authority) has its next full meeting tomorrow morning at 8:30 am (Friday, December 4). You can see the agenda here, and as it is a virtual meeting, you can participate in a variety of ways. You can send written public comments to CVTA@PlanRVA.org or share them in the Zoom meeting itself during the public comment period (toward the beginning of the meeting).
One item under consideration will be the scope of work for the "Transit Service Governance Report" (see pgs. 21-28 of the agenda). The purpose of the report is "to determine if there are policies and processes in place to ensure accountability for the proper spending of CVTA regional transit funds and to identify options to guarantee accountability, if needed." The report's objectives are:
To evaluate the governance structure of the Greater Richmond Transit Company (GRTC);
To evaluate the establishment of a transportation district in the Richmond Region;
To provide options related to GRTC governance and/or the establishment of a transportation district;
To report the progress of such evaluation to the Governor and the General Assembly by December 1, 2020 with a firm completion date of March 31, 2021.
This report clearly harbors significant implications for how public transit is and will be governed moving forward for our region. And if this scope of work is approved and the report stays on track, it will be completed by the end of March. Keep your eyes out for more information, and for some enjoyable/helpful reading on this front as well, check out TransitCenter's excellent study on transit governance best practices: "Getting to the Route of It: The Role of Governance in Regional Transit."
With COVID cases on the rise, please do remember that GRTC is still operating under COVID precautions (wear your mask, only ride for essential trips, zero fares, and social distance). You can see more information on recent COVID cases and the critical importance of following precautions here as GRTC works diligently to provide this essential service for our region.
Chris Gentilviso with the RTD also looks ahead to the post-COVID world and the robust benefits public transit affords in his recent editorial, "COVID-19 won’t stop the long-term economic impact of public transit."
ELSEWHERE (& HERE)
There are many"Transit is the Future" forums happening in cities around the country this week and next. You can join in these remotely through the link above. Be sure to check out the accompanying key list of Transit Justice Principles as well, which highlight the ways: "Abundant transit unlocks freedom of movement. When people can count on the bus or train to get where they need to go, they can easily access jobs, education, medical care, culture, goods and services, and the daily life of their communities."
In closing, there is also a newly charged bipartisan effort afoot for COVID-19 relief, which would include $45 billion for public transportation companies to continue to provide this essential service and weather current harsh economic realities (more details developing).
Nelson Reveley
Director of Operations, RVA Rapid Transit