CITIZENS ADVISORY COMMITTEE (CAC) REPORT

• CAC Chair Larry Shaine noted the presence of fellow CAC members in the audience and reported that at the last CAC meeting:
1. Director Gordon gave an update about what is going on at the board level.
2. Jim Bigelow gave an update on Dumbarton rail.
3. David Cropper gave an update on Measure A and the campaign.
4. Joe Hurley gave a Powerpoint presentation on the quarterly capital projects.
5. There was a discussion on committee direction. The CAC will reach out and be more active. The CAC will be coming back to the board with more information at a later date.
6. The CAC unanimously supported agenda items 10(a), Allocation to the JPB for Improvements at Hillsdale Station, and 10(b), Allocation to the JPB for Environmental Studies Associated with the South San Francisco Station and South Linden Avenue Grade Separation.
7. Due to the election, the next CAC meeting will be on Wednesday, November 3 in the Gallagher conference room.

Mr. Shaine said the CAC will be working with the board as well as with staff. He noted that they are looking at things such as involvement within communities, safety issues, signage, bicycle concerns, etc.

Director Lee asked if the two new members were getting involved.

Mr. Shaine replied that they are.

CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT
Chair Church reported that the TA recently celebrated the completion of 12 miles of auxiliary lanes between Ralston Avenue and Marsh Road. There also was a celebration of the completion of a bike trail from Redwood Shores into Foster City.

SAMTRANS LIAISON REPORT
A written report from the September 8 board meeting was included in the packet to the board.

JOINT POWERS BOARD REPORT
Michael Scanlon, Executive Director, reported that at the October 7 board meeting:

• Caltrain received the MTC Grand Award for the Baby Bullet. The award ceremony was held on September 22. Senator Jackie Speier was awarded Legislator of the Year and Jim Bigelow received the Valuable Citizen Award.
• Chair McLemore reported that VTA is reviewing its plans for the future. They desire to work as a partner with Muni and Caltrain in identifying issues regarding electrification, which will also be included within the VTA Strategic Plan.
• Sue Lempert, Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) liaison, reported that MTC officially supported the various Bay Area sales tax measures. She reported that with all federal or state funding, there will need to be a local match, which is why Measure A is very important for San Mateo County and Caltrain.
• Ms. Lempert also reported that the Bay Bridge cost overruns are still an issue. This project is billions of dollars over estimate.
• There was an update from Bruce Balshone, JPB CAC chairman.
• Congratulated Jose Cisneros for his appointment as Treasurer for the City/County of San Francisco.
• Key Caltrain Performance Statistics:
  August 2004
1. Average Weekday Ridership was up 11.7 percent, from 26,858 riders to 30,000.
2. Total Ridership was up 17.9 percent with 808,794 riders up from 685,813.
3. Total Revenue was up 16.1 percent from $1.71 million to $1.98 million.
4. On-Time Performance was at 96.3 percent versus 95 percent from last August.
5. Shuttle Ridership had a decrease of 1.2 percent with 3,976 riders down from 4,026.
6. Tamien Shuttle ridership is up to 148 riders on the average day on the weekend.
• A Commendation was presented to Amtrak Sergeant Lars Jeffry for his efforts in preventing a suicide along the right of way in June.
• The Mountain View City Council approved a proposal to allow for an additional 120 parking spots at the Mountain View Caltrain station.
• Staff is continuing its efforts to explore alternatives at the Santa Clara crossing in response to public comment from the September board meeting.
• Giants baseball service to SBC Park has concluded for this year.
• There was a public meeting held October 6 in regard to the Stockton Avenue closing.
• Efforts are continuing with the City of Burlingame in an effort to get two Caltrain stations upgraded.
• The Monthly Safety and Security Report was distributed.
• Rita Haskin presented a PowerPoint presentation regarding the Millionaire Club and the Communities in Motion marketing campaigns.
• The Board took the following actions:
1. Approved a five-year lease to Markus Merlino dba Caffe D' Amore at the Caltrain Station at 4th and King Streets in San Francisco.
2. Set the Public Hearing for proposed change in fare media for November 4.
3. Set the Public Hearing for the amended Conflict of Interest Code for December 2.
4. Awarded a contract for providing on-call engineering and construction management services for $80,000,000 for up to five years.
5. Adopted the Caltrain Short Range Transit Plan.

Mr. Scanlon responded that there has been good coverage. He also noted that the receipt of the MTC Grand Award was gratifying.

Director Panza asked why there is a difference between revenue and ridership increases.

Mr. Scanlon replied that the numbers are two separate issues and are not in lockstep.

Director Galligan reported that the Burlingame City Council has no issues in reference to the Broadway station platform modification. However, there was a discussion in reference to Burlingame Avenue station.

REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Mr. Scanlon reported that Measure A is on the ballot for the election of November 2. Staff is continuing to provide information and answering questions on the content of the measure. He reported that there are some outstanding advocating efforts continuing by private parties. The TA has been very careful not to advocate for the measure.

FINANCE
Allocation to the JPB for Improvements at Hillsdale Station
Joe Hurley, Director of Transportation Authority Programs, reported that this item involves safety and operational characteristics improvements at Hillsdale station. Staff proposes that the board increase the Hillsdale Outside Boarding Platform line item in the Caltrain category of the FY2005 Capital Budget by $1,300,000 for a total of $2,200,000 and to allocate $2,100,000 from this line item to the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board for design and construction of improvements at the Hillsdale station. This will enable the TA to capture an additional $4.3 million in Federal funding, which demonstrates the leveraging ability of the TA.

Mr. Hurley introduced Michael Chan, Director of Capital Projects, who noted that the main purpose of this project is to improve safety and operations of Caltrain, to provide enhancements for Baby Bullet service and to upgrade customer experience. Improvements include parking on the east side of the station, two signaled at-grade crossings, improvements to the existing southbound platform on the west side and track rehabilitation work. In addition, the platform will be moved north about 300 feet and the Bay Meadows station will be closed. These improvements also will allow for the elimination of the hold-out rule and is consistent with the larger Hillsdale Station and Grade Separation Project.

Director Panza asked if there will be pedestrian access across the tracks.

Mr. Chan responded that there will be pedestrian access across the tracks at-grade with gates.

Pat Dixon, Redwood Shores, commented that as she understands it, the distance that the platform will be moved is the length of a football field. Because of the distance, she questioned if there would be a shuttle service.

Mr. Chan commented that a shuttle service is not currently in the plans. However, there will be access directly to Bay Meadows from the eastbound platform.

The motion to approve the allocation to the JPB for the improvements at Hillsdale station passed unanimously, by roll call, and Resolution 2004-16 was adopted.

Allocation to the JPB for Environmental Studies Associated with the South San Francisco Station and South Linden Avenue Grade Separation
Mr. Hurley said that staff recommends approval of an allocation of $120,000 from the Station Relocation & Track Improvements line item in the Caltrain category to the JPB for environmental studies associated with the South San Francisco station and to allocate $380,000 from the Grade Separation - South Linden line item in the Grade Separation category to the JPB for environmental studies associated with the South Linden Avenue Grade Separation in South San Francisco.

Mr. Hurley introduced Steve Minden, Senior Engineer, who reported that this project has several different elements including a new station, which consists of new relocated platforms and a grade separated pedestrian crossing. Additionally, there will be some track work and reconfiguration of the Union Pacific Rail Road (UPRR) yard and grade separations of the last two at-grade crossings in South San Francisco, South Linden Avenue and pedestrian crossing at Scott Street. There also will be track rehabilitation and upgrades north of the station as well as an option of adding two tracks, expanding to four tracks, through the project area. This project will allow elimination of the hold-out rule, improving local service, and connection of the station with downtown South San Francisco, which supports the City's development plans for downtown and the biotech industrial area.

Director Panza asked if the model, on display at the meeting, represented the South San Francisco area.

Mr. Minden replied that it was.

The motion to approve the allocation to the JPB for environmental studies associated with the South San Francisco station and South Linden Avenue grade separation passed unanimously, by roll call, and Resolution 2004-17 was adopted.

REQUESTS FROM THE AUTHORITY
None.

REPORT FROM LEGAL COUNSEL
None.

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION TO AUTHORITY
The communication packets were distributed to the Board members.

DATE/TIME OF NEXT MEETING:
November 4, 2004 at 5:00 p.m. at the San Mateo County Transit District Administrative Building, 1250 San Carlos Avenue, San Carlos, CA 94070