AgdaPkt 2019-08-26 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

6.H. - Page 2 of 6 ANALYSIS At its September 5, 2019 meeting, the Caltrain Board will consider increasing Go Pass fares by 20% in 2020 and 5% increases every two years starting in 2022. While we appreciate the agency's need to increase revenue, staff is concerned that such an increase would further limit the Go Pass Program's utility and potentially decrease, rather than increase, the number of people who commute on Caltrain. The current annual cost of a Go Pass is $285 per user for companies or residential complexes with more than 84 users. For those with fewer users — the cost is a flat fee of $23,940. Because the program requires payment for all potential users within a business — the cost to participate can go far beyond the benefit that an individual business might receive. A goal from the citywide transportation plan, Redwood City Moves, is for 50% of all trips to be by non - driving modes by 2040. Achieving this goal requires that Caltrain service be affordable to as many potential passengers as possible. Any fare or Go Pass program changes that increase Caltrain revenues should also be accompanied by efforts to expand ridership and availability of the Go Pass Program for our community. The program is a great benefit for businesses. Unfortunately, current pricing makes it unaffordable for many small businesses. In 2017, the City of Redwood City sent a letter requesting that Caltrain consider additional efforts to provide flexibility and availability of the Caltrain Go Pass while considering fare increases. A copy of this letter is provided as Attachment A. As a member of the Managers Mobility Partnership, a collaboration between the cities of Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Redwood City, and Stanford University, Redwood City has been requested to sign a joint letter to Caltrain on the proposed Go Pass increase. A potential change to the Go Pass Program would be to create a reduced fare for government and/or nonprofit entities. Attachment B is a draft joint letter which will be sent, in the name of the participating cities of the Managers Mobility Partnership, to Caltrain when the board considers the Go Pass price adjustments. The sister cities of the Managers Mobility Partnership are reviewing this draft letter and similarly getting approval for the advocacy in the letter. This letter would be modified to allow the Mayor to communicate to Caltrain on behalf of the City Council. Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the Mayor to send a letter on behalf of the City Council and authorize the City Manager to sign a joint letter from the Managers Mobility Partnership to encourage Caltrain to reconsider its planned adjustments of the Go Pass Program to provide greater flexibility and increased Go Pass Program participation and ridership for a larger share of our businesses. FISCAL IMPACT At this time, the City of Redwood City does not purchase Caltrain Go Passes for its employees and would not be directly impacted by the proposed fare increase. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW This activity is not a project under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as defined in CEQA Guidelines, section 15378, because commenting on a proposed policy has no potential for resulting in either a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.ore 100