Standing Committees

Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority

Transportation

Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022
9:00 a.m. — 11:30 a.m. EST

Remote

Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA or RTA) is a political subdivision of the State, created under Chapter 306 of the Ohio Revised Code. All power and authority granted to RTA is vested in, and exercised by, its Board of Trustees, which is charged with managing and conducting RTA’s affairs. The Board also establishes overall RTA administrative policies, which are implemented by the General Manager. Four documents establish the parameters for the governance of RTA, as well as the powers, responsibilities and duties of RTA, its Board of Trustees, officers, management and employees.

Check the source website for additional information

Reporting

Edited and summarized by the Cleveland - OH Documenters Team

Note-taking by Robert (Bob) Rotatori

Transit agency looks to partner with NOACA to install electric-vehicle chargers at RTA stations

View notes

Live reporting by Alicia Moreland

Transit agency looks to partner with NOACA to install electric-vehicle chargers at RTA stations

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative

Morning folks! 🌥️☕️ I'll be covering Greater Cleveland RTA (@GCRTA)'s Standing Committees Meeting starting at 9am this morning. This live twitter coverage is brought to you by #CLEDocumenters @cledocumenters @NeighborUpCle

07:37 AM Jan 11, 2022 CST

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 2/29

During COVID, GCRTA is live streaming meetings via Facebook Live on the GCRTA Facebook page: facebook.com/riderta/

At the time of the meeting (that would be now, folks ) find the livestream at this link: facebook.com/riderta/videos/

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 3/29

The meeting agenda package is posted on RTA's website at riderta.com/board.

The meeting started on time, as did the video stream, but was missing audio for the first minute or so.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 4/29

To avoid confusion- RTA's standing committee "meeting" is actually a combination of many subcommittee meetings strung back-to-back. Roll is called for each one, and each is officially called to close before moving to the next.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 5/29

Today, we have a Operational Planning & Infrastructure Committee meeting, followed by an Organizational, Services and Performance Monitoring Committee meeting. This will be followed by the Committee of the Whole meeting.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 6/29

So- the meeting started off with the Operational Planning & Infrastructure Meeting roll call. 4 committee members are present. https://t.co/1evRTz8sZ8

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 7/29

Director Joseph Shaffer gave a presentation on the procurement of consulting services for the safety certification of forthcoming rail projects. This was followed by a presentation by Jenn Martin, the Contract Admin.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 8/29

This safety consulting contract will go for 36 month, and is not to exceed $400,000. The four projects covered by this contract are:
👉Warrensville-Blue line at Van Aken District
👉W 117th Bridge/Station Platform (Red Line)
👉E 79th Light Rail Trunk Line (Blue/Green Lines)
👉 TBD

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 9/29

K&J Safety and security Consulting Services, Inc. (an experienced firm from FL) is the recommended vendor. 3 firms submitted proposals and were interviewed.

A motion to approve the contract was approved.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 10/29

The next item on the agenda: the Warrensville/Van Aken Substation Reconstruction- An amendment to the utility agreement with the Illuminating Company and an Interagency agreement with Shaker Height is proposed.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 11/29

The amendment would provide for relocation of CEI duct bank. The relocation cost $189,786.57. https://t.co/ZDMfGwcSHp

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 12/29

After presenting this Interagency Agreement, board member Karen Moss had questions. Question: earlier negotiations had the split at 70%/30%, with Shaker responsible for the larger portion. Why is it 50%/50% now? https://t.co/Pv0hN7tPlJ

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 13/29

Another Question: Why does Shaker Heights have a cost limit of $114,000. If something goes wrong, why are we taking on all unanticipated construction costs?

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 14/29

I could not glean a clear, concise answer to her questions, despite almost 40 minutes of lawyers talking. The best answer I can give is the simplest: Shaker Heights realized that had more leverage in the legal negotiations, and negotiated down to 50/50 from a previous 70/30. 🤷‍♀️

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 15/29

Karen Moss voiced discomfort with the new amendment. Committee member Valerie McCall suggested an Executive session. The board members discussed the need to resolve this item today, and decided to suspend discussion, postponing an executive session in the interest of time.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 16/29

The meeting moved on to a presentation on a program that partners NOACA (Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency) with RTA to install public vehicle chargers. This is part of a regional initiative to address air quality/climate change.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 17/29

RTA sites chosen by NOACA:
👉Louis Stokes at Windermere Rapid Station
👉Brookpark Rapid Station (my station!!!!😀)
👉Green Road Rapid Stations

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 18/29

Both Level 2 and Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) are planned. Adapters for Teslas and other proprietary chargers are also planned. Construction is scheduled to begin in July 2022. https://t.co/dBkVAuZHkd

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 19/29

The presenter brought up a point in passing that I thought was especially interesting: He talked about the equity issue with electric vehicles. If you want to buy an EV, but live in an apartment building, you may not have access to a charger like a home owner would.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 20/29

Providing charging stations may help in bridging that divide. Other logistical issues were addressed- followed by a motion to bring this to the full board. Motion approved.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 21/29

Next up: A presentation on technological improvements to the fare collection system. https://t.co/gAKAEqwl78

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 22/29

The CLE App will be replaced in May, with a more robust app, called EZFare, to be used regionally- creating a more connected fare system. https://t.co/k1z3LffzlT

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 23/29

The goal is to have all the contactless payment devices installed by the end of 2022. https://t.co/U32L7h2RJH

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 24/29

The EZFare app is also built into Transit app, which is the most popular Transit app used in the States. After the presentation wrapped, the Operational Planning & Infrastructure Committee was called to a close.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 25/29

Organizational, Services & Performance Monitoring Committee was called to order, with one item on the agenda- a heavy rail traction motor services overhaul. sole source procurement for services was proposed. Organizational, Services & Performance Monitoring Committee adjourned.

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 26/29

Committee of the Whole was called to order. A brief presentation on minor code book revisions was followed by a motion to approve said revisions. Motion was approved and meeting adjourned!

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 27/29

The meeting ended a few minutes before 11.

Have questions? Think we got something wrong? Send any inquiries on the meeting or these tweets to
@cledocumenters

Or email us at documenters@neighborhoodgrants.org

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 28/29

Postscript: HRS rescue bun Scruffy. I can relate to his Monday-face. 😪 (up for adoption soon, btw.😍) https://t.co/6lBBYsFGMg

Alicia Moreland @DDutchCreative 29/29

Wait. It's Tuesday? 😅

View thread

Agency Information

Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority

See meeting notes for details

www.riderta.com

(216) 566-5100

gm@gcrta.org

@https://twitter.com/GCRTA

Facebook page

See Documenters reporting

GCRTA, or RTA, is a political subdivision of the state. Its Board of Trustees is charged with managing and conducting RTA’s affairs. The Board also establishes overall RTA administrative policies, which are implemented by the General Manager.