WE ARE, RIGHT? GOOD MORNING. I'D
LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THIS
SELECT COMMITTEE ON REGIONAL
TRANSPORTATION SOLUTIONS
INFORMATIONAL HEARING. I'D LIKE
TO THANK THE MEMBERS WHO ARE
HERE WITH US THIS MORNING. WE
PROBABLY HAVE ONE OTHER MEMBER
THAT WILL JOIN US AND
RECOGNIZING THAT THIS THAT TIME
OF YEAR WHERE TIMING ON
CALENDARS IS VERY PRECIOUS, I
WANT TO RESPECT THE MEMBER'S
TIME. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO
BEGIN. IF YOU WOULD JOIN WITH ME
IN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
PLACE YOUR RIGHT HAND OVER YOUR
HEART. READY? BEGIN. I PLEDGE
ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO
THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT
STANDS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD,
INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND
JUSTICE FOR ALL. THANK YOU. I'D
LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR JOINING US
TODAY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS
SELECT COMMITTEE ON REGIONAL
TRANSPORTATION SOLUTION IS SO
IMPORTANT. WE ARE HERE TO LISTEN
AND LEARN FROM EXPERTS IN THE
FIELD, AND BY WORKING TOGETHER,
WE CAN CONTINUE TO DELIVER
SOLUTIONS THAT MATTER TO THE
CONSTITUENTS IN OUR DISTRICTS
AND THROUGHOUT OUR GREAT STATE
OF CALIFORNIA. CALIFORNIA IS
NUMBER ONE SOURCE OF GLOBAL
WARMING. POLLUTION IS FROM OUR
TRANSPORTATION SECTOR. AS MANY
OF YOU KNOW, IN THIS ROOM,
TAKING STEPS IN OUR
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE IS
THE BEST WAY TO CURB OUR CARBON
EMISSIONS AND MAKE OUR
COMMUNITIES SAFER AND HEALTHIER
PLACES TO LIVE. AS LEGISLATORS,
IT'S OUR DUTY TO SERVE THE LONG
TERM INTERESTS OF OUR
CONSTITUENTS AND THE PEOPLE OF
CALIFORNIA, PROVIDING
SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION
OPTIONS DOES JUST THAT. TODAY,
WE WILL HEAR ABOUT AGENCIES THAT
ARE DELIVERING SUSTAINABLE
TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS THAT ARE
CREATING EFFICIENT ALTERNATIVES
TO DRIVING AND IN TURN, REDUCE
VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED AND
SUPPORTING TECHNOLOGIES THAT
REDUCE OUR DEPENDANCE ON DIRTY
FOSSIL FUELS. OVER THE YEARS,
I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO
CONVENE THIS INFORMATIONAL
HEARING IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT
VENUES, FROM LA METRO
HEADQUARTERS TO THE ANTELOPE
VALLEY. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MY
COLLEAGUES AND FRIEND, ASSEMBLY
MEMBER FREDDY RODRIGUEZ, FOR
WELCOMING THIS HEARING TO HIS
ASSEMBLY DISTRICT. THANK YOU,
ASSEMBLY MEMBER. I WOULD ALSO
LIKE TO THANK THE MONTCLAIR CITY
MANAGER, ED STARR, AND HIS STAFF
IN PARTICULAR, MIKE FUENTES AND
EDMUND GARCIA, FOR WORKING WITH
MY TEAM TO HELP MAKE THE
LOGISTICS OF TODAY'S HEARING
HAPPEN. AND TO MAYOR JOHN DUTRA,
MAYOR PRO TEM TANIS JOHNSON AND
COUNCIL MEMBERS BILL RUE, WHO
I'VE KNOWN FOR MANY YEARS NOW.
THANK YOU. BILL, FOR YOUR LONG
STANDING SUPPORT OF THE EFFORTS
OF TRANSPORTATION AND REGIONAL
REGIONALIZING THOSE EFFORTS,
CARISSA MARTINEZ AND BEN LOPEZ,
THANK YOU FOR THE WARM WELCOME
TO YOUR CITY AND COUNCIL
CHAMBERS. BEFORE I INVITE OUR
FIRST PANEL TO BE SEATED, I'D
LIKE TO GIVE THE MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE
ANY OPENING COMMENTS THAT THEY'D
LIKE TO MAKE AT THIS TIME. I'LL
MR. FONG, WE'LL TURN TO YOU
FIRST. THANK YOU. GOOD SO MUCH, CHAIR
HOLDER, FOR HOSTING AND HOLDING
THIS HEARING AND LEADING
COMMITTEE FOR THE PAST DECADE.
AND THANK YOU TO MY COLLEAGUES,
COUNCILMEMBER RODRIGUEZ AND
SENATOR SATO, AND TO EVERYONE
HERE TODAY FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP
AND EFFORTS AND THANK YOU, CHAIR
HOLDEN, FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP WITH
THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND
SERVING THE PEOPLE OF THE LA AND
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES FOR THE
PAST DECADE. AS YOU JUST HEARD
FROM OUR CHAIR, OUR REGION IS
THE SITE FOR MAJOR EVENTS,
INCLUDING THE 2026 WORLD CUP,
2027 NFL SUPER BOWL AND THE 2028
OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC GAMES. WE
MUST USE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO NOT
ONLY PREPARE FOR THOSE EVENTS,
BUT TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE
AND PROGRAMS THAT WILL BOOST OUR
ECONOMIES AND PROVIDE SAFE AND
RELIABLE TRANSPORTATION FOR
YEARS TO COME. TRANSPORTATION IS
IMPORTANT FOR SO MANY REASONS
FOR OUR CLIMATE, FOR OUR ECONOMY,
FOR ACCESSIBILITY, AND EVEN FOR
SOCIAL MOBILITY AS PEOPLE DEPEND
ON DIFFERENT TRANSPORTATION
OPTIONS TO ACCESS EDUCATION,
TRAINING AND WORK. I'M GRATEFUL
TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE
TOURED THE POMONA YARD OF
FOOTHILL TRANSIT RECENTLY, AND
THANK YOU TO THE TEAM THERE TO
DORAN, TO THE ENTIRE TEAM FOR
THEIR LEADERSHIP AND EFFORTS.
THERE AS WELL. WE'VE MADE
INCREDIBLE PROGRESS, BUT WE KNOW
SO MUCH WORK AHEAD AND THANK YOU
SO MUCH. I LOOK FORWARD TO
TODAY'S HEARING. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, SENATOR MEMBER FONG,
SENATOR SATO, WELL, THANK YOU
AND THANK YOU. ASSEMBLY MEMBER
HOLDEN FOR INVITING ME TO JOIN
YOU TODAY. IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO
GET OUT AND FIND OUT WHAT IS
GOING ON. WHAT'S THE LATEST
TECHNOLOGY AND HOW WE'RE GOING
TO PLAN FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR
TRANSPORTATION? I COME FROM A
REGION, OBVIOUSLY, THAT IS WHAT
SAN GABRIEL VALLEY WAS 60 YEARS
AGO, AND WHAT ORANGE COUNTY WAS.
AND POMONA, WALNUT VALLEY WAS
ABOUT 50 YEARS AGO. AND THAT IS
A GROWTH. THE AREA THE NEXT RING
OF GROWTH AND ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT YOU I THINK WE HAVE TO
REMEMBER IN THE BIG SCHEME OF
THINGS, AND WHILE WE'RE HAVING
THESE CONVERSATIONS, IS THAT AS
THOSE AREAS ARE PRESSURED TO
GROW AND ACCEPT MORE GROWTH AND
ACCEPT THE HOUSING AND DEAL WITH
THE IMBALANCE THAT WE HAVE WITH
EMPLOYMENT AND THINGS LIKE THAT,
IT IS IMPORTANT TO REALIZE THAT
IF WE FRUSTRATE CITIZENS BEYOND
WHAT THEY ARE ALREADY FRUSTRATED
WITH NOW, THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE
THAT PAY THE TAXES. AND IF THEY
MOVE OUT OF THE STATE, THEY'RE
NOT PAYING TAXES ANYMORE. TO BE
ABLE TO FUND THESE PROJECTS. SO
WE HAVE A WE HAVE A VERY
DIFFICULT TASK, AND THAT'S
BALANCING OUT THE METROPOLITAN
AREAS. AND JUST LIKE THIS AREA,
POMONA, WALNUT VALLEY, I GREW UP
HERE. I'VE SEEN IT NOW. WE USED
TO I GREW I MOVED INTO LAVERNE
WHEN THEY STARTED TEARING OUT
ORANGE GROVES TO PUT IN OUR
HOUSES, AND WE WERE A GROWTH
RING, BUT THERE WAS NO WAY WE
WOULD EVER BE NOT ACCEPTING, BUT
WE'D BE ABLE TO SUSTAIN A
TRANSIT AND RAIL SYSTEM AT THAT
TIME BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE THE
DENSITY. AND THAT'S WHAT'S
HAPPENING OUT IN OUR REGION NOW
IN RIVERSIDE COUNTY AND BEYOND.
IN COACHELLA VALLEY. THOSE ARE
ALL AREAS THAT I REPRESENT. AND
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE, AS WE
DO THESE, BUT WE ALSO ENSURE
THAT WE HAVE THE BASIC ROAD
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT ALL OF THESE
OTHER AREAS HAVE. NOW, IF WE
DON'T, WE ARE GOING TO FRUSTRATE
PEOPLE BEYOND WANTING TO LIVE
HERE ANYMORE. AND THAT'S ALREADY
HAPPENING. I HAVE FOUR, FOUR
HOUSES ON MY BLOCK THAT ARE
EMPTY RIGHT NOW FROM PEOPLE WHO
MOVED OUT OF STATE. IT'S REAL.
AND SO I, YOU KNOW, BUT ALSO,
YOU KNOW, SOMEDAY WE WILL BE THE
POMONA, WALNUT VALLEY AND WE
WILL NEED THAT TRANSIT OPTION
AND GIVING PEOPLE THOSE THE
VARIETY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO BE
ABLE TO GET WHERE THEY WANT TO
GO IN A CONVENIENT, SAFE MANNER.
THAT'S GOING TO BE REALLY
IMPORTANT. AND TO DO THAT NOW,
TO PLAN FOR THAT NOW IS
IMPORTANT FOR THE FUTURE, SO
THAT PEOPLE ALSO HAVE HOPE THAT
THE GRIDLOCK THAT THEY FEEL ON
THE FREEWAYS ISN'T THERE FOREVER,
YOU KNOW, FOREVER EXISTENCE. SO
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR HAVING ME
THIS MORNING, AND I APPRECIATE
IT. AND ALL THE PRESENTERS. I
LOOK FORWARD TO WHAT YOU HAVE TO
SAY ABOUT THE TRANSIT SYSTEM.
THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE?
RODRIGUEZ ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU,
CHAIRMAN HOLDEN AND COLLEAGUES
FOR JOINING US TODAY. AND REALLY
THANKS TO THE CITY OF MONTCLAIR
FOR ALLOWING US TO HAVE THIS
VERY INFORMATIVE MEETING ABOUT
TRANSPORTATION. LOOKING BACK, MY
11 YEARS, I'M LIKE, WOW, TIME IS
FLYING. I KNOW TALKING WITH
HABIB AND EVEN BILL RUE WHEN I
GOT ELECTED, HOW THIS IS A VERY
IMPORTANT PROJECT AND IT'S GREAT
TO SEE IT. WE'RE AT NOW. HABIB
JUST TOLD ME IN JANUARY, I
BELIEVE IN JULY, AUGUST, IT
SHOULD BE DONE. COMPLETED IN
POMONA AND CAN'T WAIT TO BRING
IT TO MONTCLAIR AND EVENTUALLY
INTO THE AIRPORT. RIGHT? I KNOW
THAT'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE
ANOTHER GROUP OF INDIVIDUALS
ADVOCATING FIGHTING FOR THAT,
BUT I JUST TALK ABOUT WE JUST
TALK ABOUT THE TRANSPORTATION,
THE PROJECT. IT DOES MOVING
PEOPLE GET THEM OFF THE ROADS.
BUT ALSO WE GOT TO LOOK AT THE
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT THAT
BRINGS TO THESE COMMUNITIES,
RIGHT? THOSE TRAIN STATIONS, THE
STOPS THAT ARE COMING ALONG IN
POMONA, LAVERNE AND HERE IN
MONTCLAIR, ALL THE THINGS THAT
BRINGS THE JOB, THE GROWTH,
DEVELOPMENT, THE FUTURE IS HERE
AND WE NEED TO BE ON TOP OF
THESE THINGS AND MAKE SURE THAT
WE CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR
THESE PROJECTS, BECAUSE IT'S A
WIN WIN FOR EVERYBODY AND REALLY
WANT TO JUST THANK EVERYBODY FOR
GIVING ME THE TIME HERE AND LOOK
FORWARD TO A VERY PRODUCTIVE
INFORMATIONAL MEETING ON
TRANSPORTATION AND WHAT ELSE WE
CAN GO FROM HERE. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, ASSEMBLY MEMBER. AND
WE'LL EACH MEMBER WILL HAVE AN
OPPORTUNITY FOR Q&A AFTER EACH
PANEL. ONCE WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR
TWO PANELS, I WILL INVITE THE
PUBLIC TO COME FORWARD FOR
PUBLIC COMMENT. ANY PERSON
WISHING TO SPEAK DURING PUBLIC
COMMENT MUST FIRST COMPLETE A
REQUEST TO SPEAK CARD THAT CAN
BE PICKED UP AT THE REGISTRATION
TABLE. THIS HEARING IS BEING
LIVE STREAMED AND RECORDED. I
WANT TO THANK EVERYONE WHO HAS
JOINED US IN THIS PERSON, IN
PERSON AND ONLINE. AND NOW WE'LL
TRANSITION TO OUR FIRST PANEL.
AND THE FIRST PANEL WE WILL HEAR
ABOUT HOW TWO TRANSPORTATION
AGENCIES ARE DELIVERING
TRANSPORTATION SOLUTIONS AND
EXPANDING SUSTAINABLE TRANSIT
ACCESS AND CONNECTIONS. AS I
INVITE LASHAWN AND HABIB UP TO
THE PANEL. BUT YOU'RE ALREADY
THERE. GOOD. GOT AHEAD OF THE
CURVE. THAT'S GOOD PLANNING.
THERE YOU GO. ALLOW ME TO SHARE
A BIT ABOUT EACH OF THEM.
LASHAWN GREEN, GILLESPIE SERVES
AS THE DEPUTY CHIEF EXECUTIVE
OFFICER AT FOOTHILL TRANSIT, THE
LARGEST PRIMARY FIXED ROUTE BUS
OPERATOR IN THE SAN GABRIEL AND
POMONA VALLEYS OF LOS ANGELES
COUNTY. LASHAWN JOINED THE
FOOTHILL TRANSIT TEAM IN 2006
AND HAS SERVED IN SEVERAL
POSITIONS, INCLUDING DIRECTOR OF
PROCUREMENT, DIRECTOR OF
PLANNING AND DIRECTOR OF
CUSTOMER SERVICE AND OPERATIONS.
HABIB BALIAN SERVES AS THE CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE
FOOTHILL GOLD LINE CONSTRUCTION
AUTHORITY, OVERSEEING PLANNING,
FUNDING AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE
LIGHT RAIL LINE FROM LOS ANGELES
TO MONTCLAIR. DURING HIS TENURE
WITH THE AUTHORITY, HE HAS
OVERSEEN CONSTRUCTION OF NEARLY
14 MILE LOS ANGELES TO PASADENA
SEGMENT, A DESIGN BUILD PROGRAM
THAT CAME IN ON TIME AND UNDER
BUDGET. THE PLANNING, DESIGN,
AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE PASADENA
TO AZUSA SEGMENT COMPLETED ON
TIME AND ON BUDGET AND PUT INTO
SERVICE MARCH 2016. HE IS
CURRENTLY OVERSEEING
CONSTRUCTION OF THE GLENDORA TO
PAPUNYA SEGMENT, AND I'M LOOKING
FORWARD TO THIS HEARING AND
HEARING MORE ABOUT THE POMONA
AND MONTCLAIR SEGMENT. WELCOME
BOTH OF YOU, AND WE'LL START
WITH LASHAWN. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU. ASSEMBLY MEMBER, HOLDING
COMMITTEE MEMBERS, STAFF,
PANELISTS AND ALL OF YOU HERE
THIS MORNING ON BEHALF OF DARREN
BARNES, OUR CEO, AS THE MC ON
NICOLE, A LITTLE CLOSER IS THAT
GOOD? AND THEN HOW'S THAT? IS
THAT BETTER? IT'S ON. I MIGHT
JUST START WITH A PARTITION.
OKAY. NOPE. THERE IT IS. SEE, I
WAS TRYING NOT TO GET IT TOO
CLOSE BECAUSE THEY USUALLY TELL
ME I'M A LITTLE LOUD BECAUSE I
HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF ENTHUSIASM.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN. SO ALL OF
YOU HERE ON BEHALF OF FOOTHILL
TRANSIT CEO DARREN BARNES, THE
FOOTHILL TRANSIT BOARD AND
STAFF, I'M HONORED TO BE HERE TO
PRESENT HOW FOOTHILL TRANSIT IS
WORKING ON EXPANDING MULTI-MODAL
SUSTAINABLE TRANSIT ACCESS AND
CONNECTIONS. AGAIN, I AM LASHAWN
KING GILLESPIE, AND AS YOU
HEARD, I SERVE AS DEPUTY CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER AT FOOTHILL
TRANSIT. BUT WHAT MY BIO DOES
NOT INCLUDE IS THAT I'M AN
ALMOST LIFELONG SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA RESIDENT WHO, AS MANY
OF US HERE HAS HAD THE
OPPORTUNITY TO LIVE, LEARN, WORK,
PLAY IN AND AROUND THIS REGION
AND THROUGHOUT THIS STATE FOR
MANY YEARS. I WOULD DARE TO SAY
THAT BASED ON YOUR PRESENCE HERE
AND BY THE NUMBER OF CARS IN THE
PARKING LOT, WE ALL UNDERSTAND
THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS SUBJECT
AND SHARE A VISION AND
COMMITMENT TO TRANSIT ACCESS FOR
BOTH PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL
INTERESTS. BEFORE I MOVE ON,
THOUGH, I WILL ANSWER ONE OF THE
QUESTIONS THAT I THINK MANY OF
YOU MAY HAVE RIGHT NOW, AND THAT
IS THE PICTURE THAT YOU SEE
BEFORE YOU REAL OR IS IT
PHOTOSHOPPED? THIS PICTURE IS
100% REAL AND WAS TAKEN AT THE
FOOTHILL TRANSIT POMONA
OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE
FACILITY, I BELIEVE. I BELIEVE
IT WAS BY SHEER LUCK THAT WE HAD
A PHOTOGRAPHER, A PHOTOGRAPHER
THERE THAT MORNING TAKING
PICTURES OF OUR NEW HYDROGEN
FUEL CELL BUSSES DURING THE
GREAT CALIFORNIA SNOWSTORM. YES,
I DID SAY GREAT BECAUSE I AM A
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA NATIVE.
LET'S SEE. BY WAY OF BACKGROUND,
FOOTHILL TRANSIT WAS ESTABLISHED
IN 1988 AS A JOINT POWERS
AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE BUS TRANSIT
SERVICE TO THE POMONA AND SAN
GABRIEL VALLEYS OF THE LOS
ANGELES COUNTY, AND HAS OPERATED
WITH THE MISSION OF PROVIDING
PREMIER PUBLIC TRANSIT SERVICE
COMMITTED TO SAFETY, COURTESY,
QUALITY, RESPONSIVENESS,
EFFICIENCY, AND INNOVATION.
THESE ARE THE PRINCIPLES THAT
GUIDE OUR ACTIVITIES EVERY DAY,
AND THIS MORNING, SETTING ASIDE
THE SAFETY THAT WILL PUT ON ITS
OWN PEDESTAL RIGHT NOW, AS WE
SEE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES FACED
IN PUBLIC TRANSIT, IN THE SAFETY
PERSPECTIVE TODAY'S DISCUSSION,
I WILL FOCUS ON FOOTHILL
TRANSIT'S ROLE IN THIS
COMPLICATED QUILT PATTERN OF
PROVIDING REGIONAL COORDINATED
TRANSIT SERVICE, ESPECIALLY IN
THE AREAS OF INNOVATION AND
RESPONSIVENESS. FOR THE PAST 14
YEARS, THE AGENCY HAS BEEN
LEANING IN ON INNOVATION,
ESPECIALLY RELATED TO VEHICLE
TECHNOLOGY. HERE IS A BRIEF
OVERVIEW OF ONE OF OUR CURRENT
INITIATIVES IN THIS AREA. WHAT
MAKES SOMETHING BIG? IS IT HOW
IT LOOKS? HOW IT MAKES YOU FEEL,
OR MAYBE HOW IT CHANGES THE
WORLD HOWEVER YOU DEFINE IT.
FOOTHILL TRANSIT IS DOING IT.
BY. OPENING A BRAND NEW FLEET OF
CLEAN, GREEN HYDROGEN FUEL CELL
BUSSES HAS COME TO SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA. THIS IS BIG. YES, IT
IS BIG. HOWEVER, WHEN WE PUT
INTO PERSPECTIVE OF THE SERVICE
THAT FOOTHILL TRANSIT PROVIDES,
IT'S MORE THAN 9 MILLION
CUSTOMERS THROUGHOUT THE POMONA
AND SAN GABRIEL VALLEYS TO A
SERVICE AREA OF SERVICE AREA
POPULATION OF MORE THAN 2
MILLION PEOPLE ACROSS 327MI²
THROUGH THE PROVISION OF 30
LOCAL AND NINE EXPRESS ROUTES, I
WOULD SAY IT IS BIG, BUT WE HAVE
A BIG ROLE TO FILL AS THE
PRIMARY FIXED OPERATOR, FIXED
BUS OPERATOR IN OUR REGION WHERE
OUR GOAL IS TO USE OUR 359
BUSSES TO CONNECT CUSTOMERS FROM
OUR EASTERNMOST AREAS, WHICH IS
HERE IN MONTCLAIR. SO THANK YOU
FOR HOSTING US AS WELL AS OUR
SERVICE THAT WITH SERVICE THAT
TRAVELS WEST INTO DOWNTOWN LOS
ANGELES WITH STOPS ALONG THE WAY
THAT ARE NOT SERVED BY METROLINK
OR OUR OTHER REGIONAL PARTNERS,
OR THE GOLD LINE, OR FROM OUR
OTHER NORTHERN SERVICE AREA
ALONG THE FOOTHILL CITIES OF
GLENDORA, MONROVIA, LAVERNE ON
DOWN TO THE SOUTHERN AREA.
CONNECTIONS OF ORANGE COUNTY FOR
CUSTOMERS NEEDING TO MAKE THOSE
CONNECTIONS. SO LOOKING AT
FOOTHILL TRANSIT'S ROLE IN THE
PATCHWORK OF MULTI-MODAL TRANSIT
ACCESS AND CONNECTIONS, WE FILL
IN THE CONNECTIONS TO BOTH THE
METRO RAIL, THE HABIB'S AGENCY,
THE GOLD LINE, OTHER BUS SYSTEMS
AND OTHER MODES OF TRANSIT
TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS. I WOULD
LIKE TO TAKE A SHORT DETOUR BACK
TO THE BUSSES. ZERO EMISSION
BUSSES SPECIFICALLY FROM MY
PERSPECTIVE, A SUSTAINABLE
TRANSIT ACCESS INCLUDES THE
EQUIPMENT USED TO PROVIDE THAT
SERVICE. FOOTHILL TRANSIT HAS
BEEN A LEADER IN ZERO EMISSION
TECHNOLOGY SINCE 2010, WHEN WE
LAUNCHED THE FIRST THREE FAST
CHARGE ELECTRIC BUSSES USED IN
TRANSIT SERVICE IN THE NATION.
OUR ELECTRIC BUS JOURNEY
CONTINUED AND EXPANDED THROUGH
THE YEARS TO INCLUDE ADDITIONAL
FAST CHARGE BUSSES. THE
CONSTRUCTION OF INFRASTRUCTURE
AT OUR OPERATIONS AND
MAINTENANCE FACILITIES, TO
TRANSITIONING TO LONG RANGE
ELECTRIC BUSSES. WE HAVE LEARNED
MANY LESSONS ALONG THE WAY,
INCLUDING THAT MANY MEMBERS OF
OUR COMMUNITY ARE CONCERNED
ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT AND SHARE
THAT COMMITMENT TO
SUSTAINABILITY. WE ALSO LEARNED
MANY, MANY YEARS AGO THAT THERE
ARE MANY WHO MAY BE DRAWN TO THE
LOOK OF THE BUSSES. MAYBE BUSSES
AREN'T AS ZIPPY AS SOME OF THE
RAIL PROJECTS THAT WE SEE, BUT I
WOULD SAY THAT WE'RE WORKING TO
MAKE OUR BUSSES LOOK PRETTY COOL.
THAT THOUGHT WAS FURTHER
CONFIRMED WHEN IN 2020, WE
LAUNCHED THE FIRST TWO DOUBLE
DECK ALL ELECTRIC BUSSES IN THE
NATION. DURING THAT TIME, WE
RECEIVED REQUESTS FROM CUSTOMERS
CALLING IN TO REQUEST
INFORMATION ON WHERE THEY COULD
FIND THOSE BUSSES SO THAT THEY
COULD TAKE THEIR KIDS ON RIDES
JUST TO TAKE THE RIDE. CREATING
ENTHUSIASM WITH OUR COMMUNITY
FOR BUSSES, I GET A LITTLE
EXCITED. CONTINUE ALONG THIS
TIMELINE TO CURRENT PROJECTS IN
THE HYDROGEN FUEL CELL ELECTRIC
BUS PROGRAM THAT WE ARE VERY
PROUD OF AND HAS BEEN REMARKABLY
RECEIVED BY THE COMMUNITY,
ESPECIALLY YOUNGER MEMBERS OF
OUR COMMUNITY AND SPECIFICALLY
STUDENTS. FOOTHILL TRANSIT HAS
HAD A PARTNERSHIP WITH COLLEGES
AND PROVIDE TO PROVIDE GREATER
ACCESS TO EDUCATION, ENCOURAGE
RIDERSHIP TO REDUCE TRAFFIC AND
PARKING CONSTRAINTS. SINCE 2003,
THIS PROGRAM EXPANDED TO THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FOOTHILL
TRANSIT CLASS PROGRAM, WHERE WE
ARE PROUD TO PARTNER WITH LOCAL
COLLEGES TO OFFER DISCOUNTED AND
IN SOME CASES FREE RIDES IN
FOOTHILL TRANSIT PASSES TO
STUDENTS. ADDITIONALLY, WE
PARTNER WITH LOS ANGELES METRO
ON THE GO PASS PROGRAM, WHERE
PARTNERING SCHOOLS CAN OFFER
STUDENTS UNLIMITED RIDES ON
FOOTHILL TRANSIT, LA METRO BUS
AND RAIL, AS WELL AS SEVERAL
OTHER LOCAL TRANSIT PROVIDERS
FOR FREE. DURING THE SCHOOL
SEMESTER. AND THEN THERE IS THE
U-PASS PROGRAM, WHICH PROVIDES
STUDENTS IN SEVERAL OTHER
UNIVERSITIES AT SEVERAL OTHER
UNIVERSITIES TO UTILIZE FOOTHILL
TRANSIT'S LOCAL AND SILVER
STREAK LINES, USING THEIR
U-PASS. THIS IS TRUE ACCESS LIKE
TRANSIT AGENCIES THROUGHOUT THE
COUNTRY, FOOTHILL TRANSIT SAW A
SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN
RIDERSHIP EVEN POST PANDEMIC.
HOWEVER, THROUGH THESE
EDUCATIONAL CONNECTIONS AND
OTHER EFFORTS, STUDENT RIDERSHIP
HAS SEEN THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF
GROWTH THROUGHOUT ALL OF OUR
SERVICE LINES SINCE THE PANDEMIC.
AGAIN, LOOKING AT OPPORTUNITIES
TO EXPAND TRANSIT ACCESS, MOUNT
SAN ANTONIO COLLEGE HAS SERVICED
IS SERVICED BY FIVE FOOTHILL
TRANSIT BUS ROUTES. IN
PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COLLEGE, WE
OPENED THE MOUNT SAC TRANSIT
CENTER, WHICH CREATED A TRANSIT
HUB FOR A NUMBER OF STOPS THAT
HAD BEEN LOCATED ON THE STREETS
ALONG THE PERIMETER OF THE
CAMPUS. THIS TRANSIT CENTER HAS
CREATED A GREATER, IMPROVED
SERVICE TO THE TO THE STUDENTS
AND HAS HAS IMPROVED, EXCUSE ME,
HAS IMPROVED THEIR EXPERIENCE BY
HAVING A SINGLE LOCATION TO
BOARD AND DISEMBARK THE BUSSES
IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE CAMPUS
AND CAMPUS ACTIVITIES COMBINED
WITH BEING ABLE TO GET THERE
WITH YOUR STUDENT PASS, THIS
MAKES AN ATTRACTIVE TRANSIT
OFFERING. THE AGENCY HAS BEEN A
MEMBER OF THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY
COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS FOR MANY
YEARS TO STUDY AND IDENTIFY
REGIONAL TRANSIT SOLUTIONS TO
ENHANCE OUR COMMUNITIES BY
PROVIDING HIGH QUALITY MOBILITY
PROJECTS, AS WELL AS SEEING
OPPORTUNITIES TO PROVIDE
LINKAGES TO OUR REGIONAL
PARTNERS. AND I KEEP LOOKING
OVER THERE TO MY REGIONAL
PARTNER. OUR GOALS ARE NOT JUST
TO CONNECT WITH THESE PARTNERS,
BUT TO LOOK AT OPPORTUNITIES TO
PROVIDE EQUITABLE, ACCESSIBLE,
RELIABLE SERVICE AND ENHANCING
THOSE CONNECTION TIMES. AS THE
AGENCY CELEBRATES ITS 35TH
ANNIVERSARY, WE CONTINUE TO LOOK
AT FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES TO
ENHANCE MOBILITY THROUGH A FEW
PROJECTS THAT I'D LIKE TO
QUICKLY HIGHLIGHT. WE SEE GREAT
PROMISES. WE SEE GREAT PROMISE
AS ALL OF US ARE CONTINUING TO
IMPROVE OUR ENVIRONMENT. SO THE
COMMITMENT HAS BEEN MADE TO
EXPAND OUR ZERO EMISSION FLEET.
WE CURRENTLY HAVE, ON ORDER 24
ALL ELECTRIC DOUBLE DECK BUSSES,
WHICH WILL REPLACE SOME OF OUR
AGING FLEET. ADDITIONALLY, 19
FUEL CELL ELECTRIC BUSSES AND
THE CORRESPONDING INFRASTRUCTURE
TO FUEL THOSE BUSSES IS UNDERWAY
FROM OUR TO BE CONSTRUCTED FROM
OUR ARCADIA IRWINDALE OPERATIONS
AND MAINTENANCE FACILITY. BASED
ON THE SUCCESS OF THE MOUNT
TRACK, MOUNT SAC TRANSIT CENTER,
WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH
CAL POLY POMONA ON THE
DEVELOPMENT AND CONSTRUCTION OF
THE CAL POLY POMONA BRONCO
MOBILITY HUB, WHICH WILL ENHANCE
THE MOBILITY OF STUDENTS AND
STAFF AT THE COLLEGE AND THE
FOOTHILL TRANSIT FORWARD STUDY
AND IMPLEMENTATION. THE AGENCY
COMPLETED ITS MOST RECENT
COMPREHENSIVE OPERATIONAL
ANALYSIS AND ANALYZED CURRENT
RIDERSHIP TRENDS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS, RECOMMENDED
ROUTING CHANGES TO BEST ALIGN
WITH TRAVEL PATTERNS. FROM THAT
STUDY, WE HAVE BEGUN AND WILL
CONTINUE IMPLEMENTING ROUTING
CHANGES TO INCREASE FREQUENCY,
IMPROVE REGIONAL TRANSIT
CONNECTIONS, AND PROVIDE ACCESS
TO POPULAR DESTINATIONS SUCH AS
RETAIL AND COLLEGES. ONE OF
THESE THAT IS SPECIFICALLY,
ESPECIALLY CALLED OUT IS THE
GOLD LINE EXTENSION. METRO L
LINE PHASE TWO B AZUSA TO POMONA
CONNECTIONS PROJECT, WHICH WE
ARE CLOSELY WATCHING. LITERALLY,
YOU MAY SEE MY CAR GOING ACROSS
SOME OF THOSE ROADS SOMETIME TO
SEE HOW PROGRESS IS BEING MADE
AT EACH OF THOSE STATIONS AND
ALONG THE AS EACH OF THOSE
STATIONS ALONG THE CORRIDOR ARE
OPEN, WE WILL BE ADJUSTING
ROUTES AND SERVICE TO MEET THOSE
DEMANDS. AND THANK YOU. ASSEMBLY
MEMBER FONG, ONE OF THE AREAS
THAT WE DID NOT COVER HERE WAS
THE MAJOR EVENTS THAT ARE COMING
TO THE REGION. SO WE ARE PAYING
VERY CLOSE ATTENTION IN HOW OUR
MOBILITY DEMANDS WILL CHANGE AND
EVOLVE PRE AND POST THOSE MAJOR
EVENTS. SO AGAIN, AS I STARTED
IN MY OPENING REMARKS, THIS
SUBJECT DOESN'T ONLY RESONATE
PROFESSIONALLY, BUT FOR ME IT
RESONATES. PERSONALLY. I AM SO
EXCITED TO HEAR, LEARN, AND
ENVISION A TIME, HOPEFULLY IN
THE VERY NEAR FUTURE WHERE
INSTEAD OF MY CHOICES BEING ABLE
TO MAKE THE 16 MILE JOURNEY HERE
THIS MORNING IN AN HOUR AND 51
MINUTES USING THREE BUSSES AND A
31 MINUTE WALK, OR THE 28 MINUTE
DRIVE TO GET HERE, THIS MORNING,
I WILL BE ABLE TO EFFICIENTLY,
EFFECTIVELY AND YES, SAFELY TAKE
TRANSIT TO MY DESTINATIONS. YES,
I DO LIVE A LITTLE EASTERN UP
HERE, BUT YOU KNOW THE SKY'S THE
LIMIT RIGHT? AND WE'RE READY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME
AND ATTENTION. THANK YOU AND
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PERSEVERANCE.
HI, BABE. THANK YOU, MR.
CHAIRMAN. MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE APPRECIATE YOU,
INCLUDING THE FOOTHILL GOLD
LINE, THE OTHER ZIPPY SAN
GABRIEL VALLEY PROJECT IN THE
HEARING THIS MORNING. IT'S A
PLEASURE TO BE HERE TO REPORT ON
THE SUCCESS THAT WE'VE HAD. I
LOOK AT YOU, MR. HOLDEN. MR.
RODRIGUEZ, THE TIME THAT WE'VE
WORKED TOGETHER VERY HARD TO GET
US TO THIS POINT, MR. RODRIGUEZ,
FOR THE LAST DECADE, WORKING
WITH YOU, MR. HOLDEN, FOR THE
LAST TWO DECADES, WORKING WITH
YOU FOR THREE DECADES. OKAY. I
WASN'T GOING TO TELL IF YOU
WEREN'T. BUT YOU DID. SO THREE
DECADES FROM YOUR TIME IN
PASADENA OVER THE LAST THREE
DECADES TO GET US TO THIS
SUCCESSFUL POINT. SO I DO
APPRECIATE YOU ALLOWING ME TO
COME HERE AND TALK ABOUT THE
GOLD LINE FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE
BLUE LINE. THE L LINE, AND NOW
THE Ã LINE. AND IT'S NOT
DESIGNATED BY COLOR, BUT TO MOST
OF US, IT WILL ALWAYS BE THE
GOLD LINE. SO WITH THAT, I'D
LIKE TO WALK YOU THROUGH AN
UPDATE OF WHERE WE ARE IN THE
PROJECT AND OF COURSE OUR
SUCCESS. IF I CAN GET THE. GOING
UP. THERE WE GO. THANK YOU. THIS
IS A MAP OF THE SAN GABRIEL
VALLEY AND LA TO LA RAIL
NETWORK. AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S
EXTENSIVE NETWORK THAT METRO HAS
PLANNED OVER THE LAST FOUR
DECADES. I'VE BEEN AROUND TO
WATCH FROM THE INITIAL PLANNING
OF THAT PROJECT, OF ALL THOSE
PROJECTS TO NOW, WE HAVE A VERY
COMPREHENSIVE MAP. IT WAS THE
VIEW OF THE LEGISLATURE BACK IN
1999 TO CARVE OUT THE GOLD LINE
OR THE BLUE LINE AT THE TIME,
AND HAVE THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY
PROJECT BUILT BY A SEPARATE
CONSTRUCTION AUTHORITY. WE BUILD
THE PROJECT FOR METRO, AND THEN
WE TURN IT BACK OVER TO METRO TO
OPERATE AT LONG TERM. WITH
REGARD TO THE PROJECT THAT IS
UNDERWAY NOW, OOPS, IS THIS OKAY?
WE HAVE BUILT THE PROJECT IN IN
THREE SEPARATE PHASES. IT'S
ROUGHLY A $4 BILLION INVESTMENT
IN PUBLIC TRANSIT. FIRST, FROM
LOS ANGELES TO PASADENA WAS
COMPLETED AND PUT INTO SERVICE
IN 2003. THE PASADENA TO AZUSA
PROJECT WAS COMPLETED IN 2015.
ALSO ON TIME AND ON BUDGET AND
NOW IN THE THROES OF ANOTHER
SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION, GLENDORA
TO MONTCLAIR PROJECT, WE BROKE
GROUND IN DECEMBER OF 2017, AND
IT'S BEING BUILT IN TWO
SEGMENTS, AND THAT PROJECT IS
NEARING COMPLETION NOW. THE
PROJECT THAT IS UNDERWAY TO
POMONA, THAT PROJECT SEGMENT,
IT'S 9.1 MILES. IT GOES THROUGH
THE CITIES FROM GLENDORA TO
POMONA. THE PROJECT BEGAN IN
JULY OF 2020. WE'RE ABOUT 91%
COMPLETE. THE PROJECT REMAINS ON
SCHEDULE AND ON BUDGET. WE'LL
COMPLETE IT AND TURN IT OVER TO
METRO IN JANUARY 3RD OF 2025.
YOU CAN SEE HERE THE
CONSTRUCTION ELEMENTS AS IT'S
BROKEN DOWN. THE FREIGHT WORK
RELOCATION COMPLETED, THE
RENOVATED BRIDGES, 19 OF THEM OR
NEW NEWLY BUILT BRIDGES. THEY'RE
COMPLETED AND 21 AT GRADE
CROSSINGS HAVE NOW BEEN
COMPLETED THROUGH THE FOUR
CITIES. THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM
ITSELF, THE TRACK HAS BEEN
INSTALLED. THE POWER AND TRAIN
CONTROL SYSTEMS ARE COMPLETE.
AND NOW WE'RE IN THE FINAL
STAGES OF SYSTEMS INTEGRATION
TESTING THROUGHOUT THE LINE. WE
DO HAVE FOUR STATIONS. AS I
MENTIONED, GLENDORA, SAN DIMAS,
LA VERNE AND POMONA. NORTH. THEY
ARE APPROXIMATELY 85% COMPLETE.
YOU CAN SEE IT'S REALLY PARKING
THAT'S BEING COMPLETED AND FINAL
FINISHING WORK AT EACH OF THE
STATIONS, WHICH YOU'LL SEE UP
CLOSE. HERE'S THE GLENDORA
STATION, ITS CONSTRUCTION
STATUS. YOU CAN SEE THE ON THE
LEFT SIDE OF THE SCREEN. THE
STATION CANOPIES AND BASICALLY
THE RIGHT OF WAY IS ALL CLEANED
UP AND ESSENTIALLY READY FOR
PRE-REVENUE TESTING. AND ON THE
RIGHT SIDE YOU SEE SOME OF THE
ART PIECES AT THE GLENDORA
STATION. THAT'S ME ON THE RIGHT
AT THE COLUMN. THESE ARE WE HAD
AN EXTENSIVE PROGRAM TO DESIGN
THE ART AT EACH OF THE STATIONS,
WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY.
HERE'S THE SAN DIMAS STATION.
YOU CAN SEE THE ARTWORK AND THE
FABRICATION MODE AS WELL AS
LAVERNE STATION AND THE POMONA
STATION. HERE YOU SEE THE
OVERALL PROJECT PROGRESS IS 91%
COMPLETE THROUGHOUT THE LINE,
AND WITH THE REMAINDER OF 2024,
AS I MENTIONED, SYSTEMS
INTEGRATION TESTING HAS BEEN
COMPLETED. WE'VE COMPLETED
NEARLY ALL OF THE FINAL GRADE
CROSSING WORK AT EACH OF THE
CITIES. THE COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
INSTALLATION IS UNDERWAY AND ON
SCHEDULE. IT'S GONE VERY WELL,
AND WE COMPLETE ALL THE STATION
WORK BY THE END OF THE YEAR. AND
THEN SYSTEMS INTEGRATION TESTING
ALSO BY THE END OF THE YEAR, SO
THAT WE RECEIVE SUBSTANTIAL
COMPLETION JANUARY 3RD. SO WE'RE
FEELING VERY GOOD ABOUT THIS,
STAYING ON TIME AND ON BUDGET.
WE BELIEVE THAT THE CONTRACTOR
HAS BEEN A GREAT PARTNER THROUGH
THIS, AS WELL AS THE CITIES HAVE
DONE A LOT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE
GET THIS PROJECT COMPLETED ON
SCHEDULE. WE ARE NOW LETTING
EVERYONE KNOW OF THE FUTURE
STATION DEDICATION DATES WE HAVE
COMING UP. EACH OF THE STATIONS
IN THIS EARLY, LATE SPRING EARLY
SUMMER OF NEXT YEAR. YOU'RE ALL
INVITED. THIS IS A MAJOR EVENT
FOR EACH OF THE CITIES. OF
COURSE, THEY'VE BEEN PLANNING
FOR THIS FOR OVER A DECADE. SO
IT'LL BE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR
THEM TO CELEBRATE EACH OF THE
STATIONS THAT WILL BE PART OF
THEIR CITIES WITH REGARD TO THE
NEXT SEGMENT OF THE PROJECT,
POMONA TO MONTCLAIR, IT'S ABOUT
A 3.2 MILE SEGMENT. IT'S WE'VE
IT'S A SHOVEL READY PROJECT AT
THIS POINT, WE'LL BE RECEIVING
$798 MILLION OF SB 125 FUNDS
THANKS TO THE LEGISLATURE AND
THE HARD WORK OF MR. RODRIGUEZ
AND MR. HOLDEN THAT GOT US TO
THIS POINT. WE'LL BE WORKING
WITH METRO. THEY'VE BEEN THE
LEAD APPLICANT SINCE 2023, AND
THEN THE FUNDING WILL BE
DISTRIBUTED TO THE CONSTRUCTION
AUTHORITY THROUGH A SIGNED
AGREEMENT. WE HOPE IN THE NEXT
MONTH. THIS IS JUST A SNAPSHOT
OF WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT AT THE
CLAREMONT STATION AND THE
MONTCLAIR STATION. WE'VE WORKED
EXTENSIVELY WITH THE CITIES AND
THE PLANNING TO MAKE SURE THE
STATIONS WERE LOCATED WHERE THE
CITIES LIKED THEM. ALSO, WITH
THE PARKING AND THE DESIGN OF
THE PARKING AND OF COURSE, THE
ART, THE CITIES HAVE ALL PLAYED
A PART IN THE SELECTION OF THE
ARTISTS AS WELL AS THE ART
COMPONENTS ITSELF. WITH REGARD
TO OUR FUNDING WE HAVE, YOU CAN
SEE THE CONSTRUCTION AUTHORITIES
AT THE BOTTOM SQUARE, BUT IF YOU
LOOK WHERE THE FUNDING IS COMING
FROM, SUBSTANTIAL FUNDS ARE
COMING THROUGH. KALISTA. THE
$798 MILLION THROUGH SB 125, $41
MILLION FROM THE 2018 TRCP GRANT.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE ESTÁ METRO
GRANT AGREEMENTS THAT WILL MAKE
THOSE FUNDS AVAILABLE TO US. AND
THEN THROUGH SBCTA, THERE'S $39
MILLION THAT ARE COMMITTED. WE
ESTIMATE THAT THERE'S AN
ADDITIONAL $18 MILLION THAT WILL
BE NEEDED, AND THEN THERE'LL BE
SEPARATE AGREEMENTS THAT
TRANSFER THOSE FUNDS FROM SBCTA
TO METRO, WHO THEN WILL FUND THE
CONSTRUCTION AUTHORITY'S WORK TO
THE TUNE OF ABOUT $896 MILLION.
ALL OF THIS ASSUMES THAT WE
AWARD A CONTRACT NEXT SPRING
THAT KEEPS US ON SCHEDULE AND
IDEALLY ON BUDGET, BASED ON OUR
ESTIMATES. LOOKING AHEAD AT OUR
PROJECT SCHEDULE, WE'LL COMPLETE
THIS PHASE OF THE PROJECT TO
POMONA IN 2025. JANUARY 2025.
AND THEN WE'LL BEGIN THE WORK IN
POMONA TO MONTCLAIR. THAT WORK
WILL BE A PROCESS THAT WE'VE
GONE THROUGH. WE BEGAN A TWO
STEP PROCUREMENT PROCESS DESIGN
BUILD PROCESS TO HIRE A
CONTRACTOR AND THEN WE EXPECT A
CONTRACT AWARD IN SPRING OF NEXT
YEAR. AND IT'S ESSENTIALLY A 60
MONTH PROJECT TO COMPLETE. I DO
WANT TO THANK THE ENTIRE SAN
GABRIEL VALLEY LEGISLATIVE
CAUCUS FOR ALL OF YOUR
LEADERSHIP. THAT GOT US THE
FUNDING. I KNOW IT WAS A LOT OF
WORK. MR. HOLDEN'S OFFICE, YOUR
STAFF, MR. RODRIGUEZ, YOUR STAFF
HAVE BEEN EXCELLENT TO WORK
WITH, KEPT A SURPRISE OF
ANYTHING THAT WE NEED TO DO. AND
WORKING WITH THE RUBIOS AND
EVERYONE THAT WAS PART OF THIS,
WE TRULY APPRECIATE IT.
APPRECIATE YOUR INVOLVEMENT AT
AT EVERY LEVEL. WE WOULDN'T BE
AT THIS POINT OF A SUCCESS
WITHOUT THAT, AND I'M HAPPY TO
TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. MEMBERS ARE
THERE ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU
HAVE? NO QUESTIONS. OKAY. OTHER
QUESTION REGARDING FOOTHILL
TRANSIT. THAT'S OKAY. YEAH. SO I
SEE WE'RE USING THE ELECTRIC AND
THE HYDROGEN BUSSES. DO YOU
THINK THERE'S ONE OF THEM
PERFORMING BETTER THAN THE
OTHER, OR HOW DOES THE FUTURE
LOOK THAT WE MAY ALL BE ALL
HYDROGEN, ALL ELECTRIC? JUST A
QUESTION ON HOW THAT'S WORKING
OUT. I'M THIS IS A CONVERSATION
THAT TRANSIT AGENCIES ACROSS THE
COUNTRY ARE HAVING. AS FOOTHILL
TRANSIT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST TO
IMPLEMENT THE ELECTRIC
TECHNOLOGY. AS YOU CAN SEE, WE
HAVE LOTS OF EXPERIENCE. SO
DURING THAT WHOLE TIMELINE OF
DOING THE ELECTRIC, WE FOUND
THAT THAT TECHNOLOGY WAS NOT AS
SOPHISTICATED AS WE HAD THOUGHT
THAT IT WOULD BE. SO WE HAVE
TRANSITIONED TO FUEL CELL
ELECTRIC BUSSES, AND THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO IS IF
YOU DRIVE AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE,
I'LL USE THAT AS AN ANALOGY
VERSUS A GAS VEHICLE. MOST OF
OUR FLEET, THE 319, ARE CNG. OUR
OPERATORS KNOW HOW TO USE THEM.
THE FUELING DOES NOT TAKE AN
EXTENDED AMOUNT OF TIME. IN
CONTRAST, YOU HAVE THE ELECTRIC
BUSSES WHERE THERE WE HAVE THE
INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED. WE HAVE
THE CHARGING REQUIRED, THE
ENROUTE CHARGING ASPECT DOES
HAVE SOME OPERATIONAL CONCERNS.
I SAY ALL OF THAT TO SAY WE
DON'T KNOW. I BELIEVE MY BELIEF,
MY PERSONAL BELIEF, AND I THINK
THE BELIEF OF MANY AGENCIES WHO
ARE GOING THROUGH THIS WILL BE
IT DEPENDS ON THE TECHNOLOGY,
THE ADVANCEMENT IN THE
TECHNOLOGY AS WELL AS WE MAY SEE
THAT AS A COMBINATION. WHEN YOU
LOOK AT SOME OF THE BROWN
OUTAGES THAT THE STATE HAS
EXPERIENCED OVER THE YEARS, AND
IF WE WERE TO HAVE 100% ELECTRIC
FLEET, WHAT THAT WOULD DO TO OUR
CUSTOMERS. SO THAT GIVES ME
PAUSE. WHERE THE HYDROGEN
THERE'S SOME GIVES AND TAKES ON
THAT AREA AS WELL. THE COST OF
HYDROGEN IS EXTREMELY HIGH RIGHT
NOW. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF
EFFORTS BEING MADE TO BRING THAT
COST DOWN SO LONG ANSWER. BUT
THE SHORT ANSWER IS I BELIEVE
IT'S GOING TO BE A COMBINATION
OF BOTH OF THOSE TECHNOLOGIES.
THANK YOU. AND I THINK THAT
MAKES SENSE. THANK YOU. YEAH.
ALL RIGHT. WELL THAT WAS ONE OF
MY QUESTIONS. WAS SO WHERE ARE
WE HEADED ELECTRIC OR HYDROGEN
FUEL CELL. AND YOU'VE ADEQUATELY
ANSWERED THAT. SO ARE THERE CARB
CREDITS THAT YOU GUYS GET AS AN
AGENCY. DO YOU GET THEM FOR THE
HYDROGEN FUEL CELL AS WELL AS
BECAUSE I'M NOT SURE WE GET THEM
FOR THE HYDROGEN FUEL CELL, BUT
I'M GOING TO VENTURE OUT AND
SAY, I BELIEVE SO BECAUSE
HYDROGEN FUEL CELL BUSSES ARE AN
ELECTRIC BUS, RIGHT? IT'S JUST
THE WAY THOSE BATTERIES ARE
CHARGED. AND I AM GETTING A
SCIENCE LESSON IN THAT EVERY
DAY. BUT WE WILL CONFIRM AND
JUST MAKE SURE. BUT I DO BELIEVE
THAT WE ARE RECEIVING THOSE
CREDITS, BECAUSE I ALSO AM
LOOKING AT THESE AS AN
OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU AND THE
AGENCIES THAT ARE INVOLVED TO
LET US KNOW IN THE LEGISLATURE
WHAT WE CAN DO TO BE HELPFUL, TO
KIND OF GET SOME OF THE HURDLES
OUT OF THE WAY SO YOU CAN BE
SUCCESSFUL IN IN GETTING, YOU
KNOW, ACCOMPLISHING YOUR MISSION
AND, AND SO WHEN, WHEN WE ARE
NOT ALLOWING CARB CREDITS
BECAUSE SOMEBODY IS USING
HYDROGEN FUEL CELL, WHEN THERE
IS ZERO EMISSION. WAY OF
POWERING OR ENERGY PRODUCTION.
I'M SORRY, WE REALLY SHOULD BE
GIVING THAT. AND SO ANYWAY, I
WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU GUYS
ARE GETTING THE FUNDING THAT YOU
NEED AND TO BE ABLE TO BE
SUCCESSFUL. AND PART OF THAT IS
GETTING CREDIT WHEN YOU ARE
MOVING TO VERY EXPENSIVE,
BECAUSE I THINK THE BUSSES ARE
PRETTY DARN EXPENSIVE. BOTH THE
ELECTRIC BUSSES AND THE HYDROGEN
FUEL CELL BUSSES ARE VERY
EXPENSIVE. AND THEN ALSO WHAT
YOU HAD POINTED OUT WITH THE
INFRASTRUCTURE CHALLENGES GOING
A LITTLE BIT FORWARD. THERE'S
OTHER AGENCIES TO THE EAST. YOU
SAY YOU LIVE TO THE EAST. WELL,
SO DO I LIVE TO THE EAST. AND
THE REASON WE LIVE THERE IS
BECAUSE WE COULDN'T AFFORD TO BE
OUT HERE. AND SO WE BOUGHT
HOUSES OUT THAT WAY AND ARE PART
OF THAT GROWTH RING. WHAT IS THE
INTERAGENCY COOPERATION IN
TRYING TO PLAN THESE, THESE
FUTURE RAIL ROUTES? BECAUSE
THESE WILL HAVE TO BE EXTENDED
SOMEDAY AND THEY CAN EXTEND ALL
THE WAY DOWN INTO THE COACHELLA
VALLEY. AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE
HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE OMNITRANS,
THE RTA, RCTC, THOSE ARE ALL
TRANSIT AGENCIES IN THE
RIVERSIDE, SAN BERNARDINO AREA,
AS WELL AS SB TRANSIT OR THE SAN
BERNARDINO TRANSIT AGENCIES. SO
IS THERE COORDINATION GOING ON
SO WE CAN IDENTIFY ROUTES AND
KIND OF BUY THOSE LANDS NOW SO
THAT WE HAVE WE'RE NOT FACED
WITH TRYING TO ACQUIRE THEM
THROUGH EMINENT DOMAIN IN THE
FUTURE OR, YOU KNOW, LIKE THEY
HAD TO DO IN THE FOOTHILL
FREEWAY WHEN LAVERNE BUILT A
BUNCH OF HOUSES IN THE PATH OF
THE FREEWAY. WELL, AS FAR AS OUR
AGENCY GOES, OUR STATUTE TAKES
US TO MONTCLAIR, AND WE LOOK NO
FURTHER THAN MONTCLAIR. WE'VE
HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THE
COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO IN THE
PAST, BUT AT THIS POINT, THAT'S
OUR JURISDICTION. AND WE LOOK
FORWARD TO OTHER AGENCIES BEING
CREATED AS WE WERE TO TAKE THE
PROJECT, EVEN FURTHER EAST.
RIGHT. I WOULD HATE TO SEE A
SITUATION WHERE THE EAST AREAS
THAT ARE JUST DEVELOPING ARE NOT
ANYWHERE NEAR PUTTING IN
TRANSIT, HAVE DIFFERENT LINES,
AND SO WE WIND UP WITH
DISCONNECTED LINES BETWEEN
COUNTIES WHEN SOMEDAY I THINK
THE IDEA IS IT'S A YOU KNOW, IT
ALL KIND OF CONGRUENT. IT ALL
WORKS TOGETHER. AND SO I THINK
THAT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THOSE
DISCUSSIONS EARLIER THAN LATER.
SO THAT AS THOSE AREAS ARE
PLANNING THEIR RAIL SYSTEM FOR
IN 20 OR 30 YEARS, WHEN THEY CAN
GET IT IN THAT IT WILL ACTUALLY
WORK WITH, WITH OUR IN
CONJUNCTION WITH THE ONES WE
HAVE NOW. LET'S SEE THE
CLAREMONT AND MONTCLAIR STATIONS
THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT ARE
THOSE ARE ALREADY IN, AREN'T
THEY? BECAUSE I'VE SEEN TRANSIT
FOR METRO RAIL. ARE THEY SHARING
THAT OR ARE THEY. THAT'S
METROLINK IS CURRENTLY THERE AND
THEY WILL BE COMBINED STATIONS
IN THE FUTURE. BUT THE GOLD LINE
DOESN'T REACH MONTCLAIR AND
CLAREMONT AT THIS TIME. THAT'S
THE NEXT PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION.
RIGHT. BUT OKAY. BUT THEY WILL
CONNECT WITH BUT WITH THE GOLD
LINK WITH I MEAN, THE NOT THE
GOLD LINK. THE METRO RAIL. YES,
HAS ALREADY GONE. IT GOES
THROUGH THOSE AREAS ALREADY AND
THEY HAVE TRAIN STATIONS SET UP
IN CLAREMONT. THAT'S CORRECT. I
KNOW IT'S JUST SOUTH OF THE
VILLAGE OR PART OF THE VILLAGE
ACTUALLY. AND THEN MONTCLAIR IS
JUST ACROSS FROM THE FIRE
STATION, IS THAT CORRECT? AND
WE'LL CONNECT WITH BOTH THOSE
STATIONS. OKAY. SO THAT'S NOT A
HUGE CONVERSION RIGHT. WELL I
THINK IT'S HUGE THAT WE'RE GOING
TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION. I THINK
THAT THE CONNECTION IS
ACHIEVEMENT. YEAH. YOU HAVE TO
BUILD A WHOLE NEW STATION.
THAT'S WHAT I WAS GETTING AT.
YEAH. OUR STATIONS WILL BE NEW
AND THEN THERE'LL BE SOME
RECONFIGURATION DONE AT BOTH
MONTCLAIR AND CLAREMONT STATIONS
TO ACCOMMODATE THE CONNECTION.
ALL RIGHT. SO WITH THAT, I WOULD
JUST LEAVE WITH BOTH OF YOU.
PLEASE COMMUNICATE HONESTLY WITH
THE LEGISLATURE ABOUT YOUR NEEDS
AND WHAT IT TAKES, BECAUSE WE
HAVE TO FIND ADDITIONAL FUNDING
BEYOND, YOU KNOW, WE TAKE IN OUR
$29 BILLION OF FUNDING EVERY
YEAR, BUT WE HAVE TO FIND
ADDITIONAL DOLLARS BEYOND THAT
BECAUSE WE CAN'T KEEP TAKING
AWAY FROM OTHER IMPORTANT
PROJECTS TO MAKE ANOTHER PROJECT
MORE IMPORTANT THAN THAT ONE,
BECAUSE THEN WE HAVE THIS
IMBALANCE, AND THEN WE HAVE
UNHAPPY CUSTOMERS OUT THERE WHO
GO OUT AND GET THEIR U-HAULS AND
ALL THEIR ALL THEIR FAMILIES
AWAY. AND WE DON'T WANT THAT
ANYMORE. SO ANYWAY, THANK YOU SO
MUCH FOR THAT GREAT INFORMATION,
REALLY EXCITING PROJECTS AND
LOOK FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO
JUMP ON ONE ONCE IN A WHILE.
THANK YOU. I'D LIKE TO JUST PICK
UP ON WHAT THE SENATOR WAS
IDENTIFYING AS MAKING SURE THAT
COUNTIES ARE COORDINATED, AND I
DON'T WANT TO, BUT BUT I THINK
THAT THAT'S REALLY THE SORT OF
THE UNDERLINING MESSAGE. AND I
THINK WE MADE AN EFFORT TO WE
HAD AN INVITATION OUT FOR SBCTA
TO BE A PART OF THIS DISCUSSION,
BUT I THINK THEY HAD A LOT OF
THEIR KEY MEMBERS WHO WERE OUT
OF TOWN. BUT NOTWITHSTANDING
THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S GOING TO
BE A SUCCESSFUL PROJECT IN THE
HIGH SPEED RAIL WITH BRIGHT LINE
FROM VEGAS TO RANCHO CUCAMONGA
AND WE AT OUR HEARING LAST YEAR,
THEY GAVE AN AMAZING
PRESENTATION. AND I KNOW THAT
THE ASSEMBLY MEMBER AND THE
SENATORS THAT REPRESENT THE HIGH
DESERT ARE LOOKING AT A PALMDALE
CONNECTION TO THAT HIGH SPEED
RAIL AS IT MAKES ITS WAY INTO
THE RANCHO CUCAMONGA, SAN
BERNARDINO AREA. AND I WOULD I
WOULD ALSO SAY THAT AND WE'LL
HEAR A PRESENTATION ON THE
ONTARIO AIRPORT. IT IS A ANOTHER
REGIONAL HUB THAT CAN BRING IN
OTHER COMMUNITIES AND OTHER
COUNTIES AND WITH THE GOLD LINE
ACTUALLY BEING SERVING LA COUNTY
AND A PORTION OF SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTY, WHICH WE'RE IN, IS THE
KIND OF PROJECT THAT WE WANT TO
SEE UTILIZED BECAUSE WE'RE
DROPPING A VERY LONG PLANNED
PROJECT CALLED THE Ã LINE TO
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY DOORSTEP,
SIX MILES FROM WHERE WE I MEAN,
FROM MONTCLAIR TO THE ONTARIO
AIRPORT IS A MAJOR CONNECTOR.
WE'LL HEAR FROM ONE OF THE OTHER
PRESENTERS FROM MTA, WHERE
RESOURCES WERE MADE AVAILABLE TO
MTA TO START THE STUDY OF
EXTENDING THE A LINE TO THE
BURBANK AIRPORT. SO TO THE
SENATOR'S POINT, THE VISION OF
THIS COMMITTEE, WHEN WE FIRST
PUT IT TOGETHER WAS TO TRY TO
FIND WAYS OF CREATING REGIONAL
CONNECTIVITY AND WHAT BETTER HUB
THAN TO HAVE AN AIRPORT ON THE
EAST AND AN AIRPORT ON THE WEST,
CONNECTED BY A RAIL SYSTEM. SO I
THINK THE CONVERSATIONS HAVE
BEEN LONG STANDING, AND I THINK
THAT THERE'S CERTAINLY WITHIN
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY IS A
PRIORITY TO CONNECT TO THE
AIRPORT. BUT I THINK IT'S ALSO A
PRIORITY OF TRYING TO FIND WAYS
OF UTILIZING REGIONAL OR DOLLARS
FOR SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY TO
CONNECT SAN BERNARDINO
COMMUNITIES. SO BUT NOT TO BE
LOST IN THAT. IS THAT LINKING
COUNTIES, EVEN IN ORANGE COUNTY
TO THE AIRPORT, IT COULD BE AN
AMAZING HUB IN THE FUTURE IS
BRIGHT ON ALL OF THESE EFFORTS.
I WANTED TO REAL QUICKLY FROM
BOTH OF YOU, CAN YOU KIND OF
GIVE US AN IDEA OF. AND I THINK
WE'RE HAVING A CLEAR IDEA OF
WHERE THE GOLD LINE WILL BE BY
2028, AND THE OLYMPICS. HOW DO
YOU SEE OR HAVE YOU EVEN BEGIN
TO ENVISION A PROJECT THAT WILL
BE COMPLETED IN POMONA THAT
STILL CAN BE LINKED TO THE TO
THE AIRPORT? HAS THERE BEEN ANY
CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW THAT'S
BEING INTEGRATED NOW IN TERMS OF
VISITORS THAT ARE COMING INTO
ONTARIO AIRPORT, AND I CAN SAVE
THIS CONVERSATION OR THIS
QUESTION FOR THE ONTARIO AIRPORT
AS WELL. BUT GOLD LINE, HAVING
ANY CONVERSATIONS AT THIS POINT
AND THEN FOOTHILL TRANSIT,
WHAT'S YOUR PIECE OF HOW WE'RE
GOING TO PROVIDE ACCESSIBILITY
AND TRANSPORTATION FOR SO MANY
PEOPLE COMING INTO THIS REGION?
SO THE FOOTHILL TRANSIT PIECE IS
WE'RE ALL IN. I CAN TELL YOU
THAT WE'RE ALL IN FROM THE
CONVERSATIONS AND THE DIRECTION
THAT WE'VE BEEN RECEIVING FROM
LA METRO, WHICH IS THE LEAD
AGENCY IN ALL OF THIS. THE BUS
REQUIREMENT IS GOING TO BE
APPROXIMATELY 3000 BUSSES TO
TAKE BOTH THE CUSTOMERS. I'M
SORRY, THE PASSENGERS. I USE
CUSTOMERS IN MY WORLD. I
APOLOGIZE. THE CUSTOMERS, THE
ATHLETES, ALL OF THE PARTIES WHO
ARE GOING TO BE COMING IN AROUND
THE REGION, THE LA METRO FLEET
IS APPROXIMATELY 1100 BUSSES, SO
THERE'S MANY DISCUSSIONS ABOUT
WHERE WE'RE GOING TO GET THE
BUSSES, OPERATORS, MECHANICS
FROM FOOTHILL TRANSIT. SPECIFIC
ROLE WILL BE TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE ARE PROVIDING AS MUCH SERVICE
AS WE CAN FOR THOSE GAMES, AS
WELL AS THE OTHER GAMES THAT YOU
MENTIONED, AS WELL AS MAKING
SURE THAT WE HAVE THE CORE AREAS
OF OUR SERVICE AREA, TAKING CARE
OF MAKING SURE PEOPLE CAN GET TO
THEIR MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS IN
THE SCHOOLS AND THOSE TYPES OF
THINGS, EVEN THOUGH THERE'S A
LOT OF ACTIVITY GOING ON, WE'RE
HAVING SOME PRELIMINARY
DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HOW MANY
BUSSES, WHERE THOSE BUSSES ARE
GOING TO COME FROM. IF WE'RE
GOING TO RETIRE SOME OF OUR BUS
OR DELAY RETIREMENT OF SOME OF
THOSE BUSSES TO LEND TO THOSE
EFFORTS, RIGHT NOW IT'S A LOT OF
DISCUSSION AND WE'RE PUTTING
THOSE PIECES TOGETHER, BUT I
ASSURE YOU THAT WE ARE HAVE A
FULL TEAM ON BOARD. LOOKING AT
EACH OF THOSE ASPECTS. AND THE
ONE AREA THAT WE'RE SPECIFICALLY
FOCUSING ON IS THE ADA AREAS,
MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THOSE
ACCESSIBLE VEHICLES READY AND
AVAILABLE TO TRANSPORT THOSE
CUSTOMERS, BOTH FOR THE OLYMPICS
AS WELL AS THE PARALYMPICS, AND
THEN LOOKING A LITTLE BIT
CLOSER, THE SUPER BOWL, WHICH IS
COMING SOON. AND SO WE'RE GOING
TO HAVE A LOT OF PRACTICE
BETWEEN NOW AND THEN ON THESE
MASS EVENTS. AND I GUARANTEE
THAT WE'RE GOING TO PUT OUR
100%, 110% EFFORTS TOWARD
LEANING IN ON EACH OF THOSE TO
MAKE A SUCCESSFUL GAMES FOR THE
COUNTRY. SO THANK YOU. AND METRO
IS THE OPERATOR WILL BE THE ONE
THAT DECIDES THE SCHEDULE. I
EXPECT THAT THEY WILL INCREASE
THEIR SERVICE DURING THE
OLYMPICS, PARTICULARLY MAKING
SURE THAT THEY HAVE HEADWAYS,
PROBABLY IN THE SEVEN MINUTE
RANGE AT PEAK TIMES. THAT'S WHAT
I WOULD EXPECT, BUT I DEFER TO
METRO. OKAY, WELL, WE'LL RAISE
THAT QUESTION AGAIN WHEN THEY
JOIN OUR SECOND PANEL, BUT I
JUST WANT TO THANK BOTH OF YOU
FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND
CERTAINLY WE LOOK TO YOUR
LEADERSHIP, AND CERTAINLY YOU'VE
DEMONSTRATED THAT IN YOUR
AGENCIES HAVE BEEN VERY
SUCCESSFUL. AND SO I REALLY WANT
TO APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE IS
SO IMPORTANT. BUT IT IS SO HARD
TO SOMETIMES GET FUNDED AND, AND
RESOURCES THAT CAN COME FROM
STATE OR LOCAL. AND IN THE CASE
OF THE GOLD LINE, LOCAL
SUPPORTED IT FOR MUCH OF ITS
EXISTENCE WITH REGIONAL TAX
MEASURES THAT THEY SAID THIS IS
IMPORTANT AND WE WANT TO MAKE
SURE THAT IT GETS DONE. AND WHEN
THERE WERE GAPS, THE STATE HAD
TO DRAG THEM IN KICKING AND
SCREAMING. BUT WE WERE ABLE TO
DO THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE
GAPS WERE FILLED. SO IT'S A IT'S
A FASCINATING PROCESS OF SEEING
THESE PROJECTS FROM BEGINNING TO
END. AND WHEN YOU ASK OR
DESCRIBE HOW LONG WE HAD BOTH
BEEN A PART OF THIS, AND WHEN I
THINK 30 YEARS, THAT'S A THAT'S
A LONG TIME. AND CONSIDERING I'M
ONLY 40 NOW, YOU KNOW. BUT LET
ME JUST SAY THIS AS WE CONCLUDE
THIS SEGMENT AND WE TALK ABOUT
THE GOAL LINE AND THE Ã, AND
NOW IT'S A1, YOU HAVE BEEN A
PART OF THIS FOR A LONG TIME.
AND SOMEONE ELSE WHO HAS BEEN A
PART OF THIS PROJECT, THAT HAS
BEEN BY YOUR SIDE FOR A LONG
TIME, IS LISA LEVY BUSH. AND SO
I WANTED TO TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO SAY THANK YOU TO
BOTH OF YOU FOR YOUR LONG
STANDING COMMITMENT TO THIS
PROJECT, BECAUSE YOU LITERALLY
RODE THE WAVE, THE HIGHS AND THE
LOWS. AND FOR A PROJECT THAT HAD
TO BE TAKEN AWAY FROM THE
REGIONAL OPERATOR BASED ON
LEGISLATION THAT THEN STATE
SENATOR ADAM SCHIFF WAS THE LEAD
ON IN CREATING THE GOLD LINE
AUTHORITY TO SEEING HOW
SUCCESSFUL A DESIGN BUILD AND ON
TIME AND UNDER BUDGET THAT
DOESN'T HAPPEN VERY OFTEN. AND
SO WITH YOUR LEADERSHIP AND ALSO
WITH LISA'S, I JUST WANTED TO
HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THIS
COMMITTEE TO SAY THANK YOU. AND
IF YOU'LL JOIN ME AT THE PODIUM,
JOIN THE COMMITTEE. I'D LIKE TO
PRESENT BOTH OF YOU WITH A TOKEN
OF APPRECIATION. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU GUYS, PLEASE, MIKE,
PLEASE JOIN ME.
IN. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU.
THANKS.
SO. GENTLEMEN. VERY NICE MEETING.
THANK YOU. WE'LL TRANSITION.
SPORTS. ANNOUNCER. AND NOW, AS.
AND NOW AS WE BEFORE WE
TRANSITION INTO OUR SECOND
PANEL, I WANTED TO RECOGNIZE
COUNCIL MEMBER BILL RUSSO, WHO
WANTED TO SHARE A QUICK COMMENTS.
WE HAVE. THANK YOU. ASSEMBLY
MEMBER HOLDEN ASSEMBLY MEMBER
FONG. ASSEMBLY MEMBER. SEYARTO.
ASSEMBLY MEMBER RODRIGUEZ AND
ASSEMBLY MEMBER FRIEDMAN FOR
BEING HERE TODAY ESPECIALLY.
THANK YOU TO ASSEMBLY MEMBER
HOLDEN WHO HAS SEEN THIS PROJECT
FROM THE VERY INFANT STAGES TO
WHAT IT IS TODAY. WE APPRECIATE
THIS AND WHEN IT EVENTUALLY
MAKES IT TO THE CITY OF
MONTCLAIR, EACH OF YOU WILL HAVE
MY PERSONAL INVITATION TO JOIN
US ON THAT DAY FOR THE RIBBON
CUTTING AND THE OFFICIAL RIDES
AND ALL OF THAT. THE GOLD LINE
OR THE A LINE OR THE L LINE OR
WHATEVER WE'RE GOING TO CALL IT
AGAIN, IS IMPORTANT TO THE
REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT. YES, IT'S
IMPORTANT TO THE CITY OF
MONTCLAIR, WHERE I'M A LIFETIME
RESIDENT. I WAS BORN IN THIS
CITY, BUT IT'S A WAY TO MOVE
PEOPLE THROUGH A REGION AND OUR
TRANSPORTATION NETWORK AND
COMPONENTS TIE TOGETHER. IT'S
NOT JUST LIGHT RAIL, IT'S NOT
JUST HEAVY RAIL. IT'S NOT JUST
THE BUS. AND IT'S NOT JUST AN
AUTOMOBILE. EACH ONE OF THEM
PLAYS THAT INTEGRAL ROLE, TYING
ALL OF THIS TOGETHER SO WE CAN
MOVE THROUGH THE REGION, GET OUR
STUDENTS TO SCHOOL, OUR
WONDERFUL UNIVERSITIES,
CLAREMONT, THE UNIVERSITY OF LA
VERNE, PASADENA CITY COLLEGE,
AND MANY OTHERS ON THIS LINE,
MOVING PEOPLE TO WORK, MOVING
PEOPLE TO RECREATE. THIS IS ALL
IMPORTANT. IT'S ALSO SOMETHING
ELSE THAT SOMETIMES IS LOST IN
THIS. THE GOOD JOBS IT CREATES
FOR THE RESIDENTS OF THE SAN
GABRIEL VALLEY AND THE INLAND
EMPIRE, HELPING TO LIFT THEM UP,
MOVE THEM UP THAT LADDER SO THAT
THEY CAN AFFORD TO LIVE THE LIFE
MOST OF US GREW UP LIVING. SO I
APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE TODAY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. ESPECIALLY
ASSEMBLYMAN HOLDEN. YOU'VE BEEN
SUCH A CHAMPION FOR THIS.
CONTINUE THE GOOD WORK YOU'RE
DOING AND EVERYBODY CONTINUE TO
BE THE ADVOCATES YOU'VE BEEN TO
HELP BUILD THIS REGION, MAKE IT
STRONGER AND CONNECT EVERYBODY.
WE GO ACROSS CITY AND COUNTY
LINES EVERY DAY. WE DON'T THINK
ABOUT IT. THEY'RE ALREADY
CONNECTED. LET'S CONTINUE TO
CONNECT THAT. THANK YOU. THANK
YOU BILL. THANK YOU. AND LET ME
ACKNOWLEDGE MY OTHER COLLEAGUE
LAURA FRIEDMAN, WHO KIND OF
SNUCK IN ON ME THERE. BUT I WANT
TO THANK HER FOR BEING HERE. AND
AS THE FORMER CHAIR OF THE
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON
TRANSPORTATION, SHE HAS BEEN
VERY MUCH PIVOTAL TO A LOT OF
THE GOOD SUCCESS THAT WE'RE
SEEING HERE AS WELL. NOW, AS WE
INTRODUCE OUR SECOND PANEL,
WHICH INCLUDES LEADERS FROM
ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE
DEMONSTRATED THE ABILITY TO
DELIVER SOLUTIONS THROUGH
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND
COLLABORATIVE PLANNING, TODAY,
WE WILL BENEFIT FROM RECEIVING
TESTIMONY FROM SARAH DOMINGUEZ
FROM SCAG, MICHAEL TURNER FROM
LA METRO, WHO HAS ALSO BEEN A
PART OF THESE PROJECTS FOR A
VERY LONG TIME. AND WE
APPRECIATE HIS LEADERSHIP AND
STEVE LAMBERT FROM THE ONTARIO
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. SARAH
DOMINGUEZ IS THE MANAGER OF
PLANNING STRATEGY FOR SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF
GOVERNMENTS. IN THAT ROLE, SHE
OVERSEES THE AGENCY'S
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AND
PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS TEAM
MEASUREMENT TEAM. AS WE AS WELL
AS THE DEVELOPMENT OF CONNECT
SOCAL, THE LONG RANGE REGIONAL
TRANSPORTATION PLAN,
SUSTAINABILITY, COMMUNITY
STRATEGY MICHAEL TURNER IS THE
EXECUTIVE OFFICER, GOVERNMENT
RELATIONS AT THE LOS ANGELES
COUNTY METROPOLITAN
TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY IN THAT
ROLE, MICHAEL TURNER MANAGES THE
AGENCY'S GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
DEPARTMENT. HIS TEAM IS
RESPONSIBLE FOR ADVOCACY ON ALL
STATE AND FEDERAL LEGISLATION
AFFECTING TRANSPORTATION AND
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING. ON
BEHALF OF THE AGENCY, MR. TURNER
HAS WORKED ON METRO SPONSORED
LEGISLATION RELATED TO A VARIETY
OF TRANSPORTATION ISSUES, FROM
INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING,
INNOVATIVE PROJECT DELIVERY,
CONGESTION PRICING, AND THE
LEGISLATION AUTHORIZING MEASURE
R. STEVE LAMBERT SERVES AS A
STRATEGIST, CONSULTANT AND
PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER FOR
ONTARIO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.
STEVE HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN SOME
OF THE MOST IMPORTANT
TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS IN THE
REGION, INCLUDING THE ARROW
LINE, WEST VALLEY CONNECTOR, AND
BRIGHTLINE WEST, AS WELL AS
ONTARIO AIRPORTS. DRAMATIC
GROWTH SINCE ITS RETURN TO LOCAL
OWNERSHIP IN 2016. I WANT TO
WELCOME ALL OF YOU, AND WE'LL
FIRST TURN TO SARAH FOR YOUR
PRESENTATION. THANK YOU AND GOOD
MORNING. I'M HAPPY TO PRESENT TO
YOU TODAY ON CONNECT SOCAL 2020
FOR OUR RECENTLY ADOPTED
REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN AND
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY STRATEGY,
AND KIND OF GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW
OF THE REGIONAL PLANNING LEVEL.
WE LIKE TO SAY THAT WE KIND OF
PLAN AT THE TEN ZERO ZERO ZERO
FOOT LEVEL IN COLLABORATION WITH
PARTNERS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.
NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE CLICK. OH
HERE WE GO. THERE WE GO. THANK
YOU. SO TO GIVE THAT BIG PICTURE
PERSPECTIVE ABOUT WHAT OUR ROLE
IN THE REGION IS, IS WE PROVIDE
A LEADERSHIP ROLE. AND BY THAT
I'M TALKING ABOUT THE 86 MEMBER
REGIONAL COUNCIL THAT WE HAVE.
AND THAT'S REPRESENTED BY
ELECTED OFFICIALS FROM CITIES
AND COUNTIES ACROSS THE SIX
COUNTY REGION OF SCAG, INCLUDING
TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS, AS WELL. AND
SO WE'RE DEVELOPING POLICIES,
STRATEGIES AND PLANS SUCH AS
CONNECT SOCAL TO HELP DEFINE
WHAT THE VISION FOR THE REGION
IS. BUT SCAG, AS AN AGENCY, DOES
NOT IMPLEMENT, WE DO NOT HAVE A
LOCAL LAND USE AUTHORITY. WE DO
NOT OPERATE ANY TRANSPORTATION
PROGRAMS OR DEVELOP ANY CAPITAL
PROJECTS. SO WE RELY ON PARTNERS
LIKE LA METRO TO ACTUALLY
IMPLEMENT THE PLAN, AS WELL AS
LOCAL JURISDICTIONS AS THEY MAKE
THEIR LOCAL PLANNING DECISIONS.
AND THEN SCAG HAS AN EVALUATION
ROLE. SO NOT JUST FORMALLY
THROUGH OUR FEDERAL PERFORMANCE
MEASUREMENTS, BUT AS WE DEVELOP
THE PLAN, WE LOOK AT HOW ARE WE
DOING AS A REGION AND MEETING
THOSE GOALS THAT WE SET FOR
OURSELVES AND USING THAT TO
AUGMENT AND DEVELOP OUR NEXT SET
OF PLANS AND POLICIES. SO
SPEAKING MORE SPECIFICALLY TO
THE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN
AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
STRATEGY, THIS IS A FEDERAL
REQUIREMENT AND A STATE
REQUIREMENT. SO THIS IS ONE OF
OUR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES AS
THE METROPOLITAN PLANNING
ORGANIZATION FOR THE REGION. ON
THE FEDERAL SIDE, WE NEED TO
UPDATE THIS PLAN EVERY FOUR
YEARS. WE NEED TO LOOK LONG TERM
LOOKING AT LEAST 20 YEARS INTO
THE FUTURE. AND IN CONTRAST TO
SOME OTHER PLANS SUCH AS THE
STATE LEVEL CALIFORNIA
TRANSPORTATION PLAN 2050, WE
HAVE TO BE FISCALLY CONSTRAINED,
MEANING THAT EVERY PROJECT IN
THE PLAN NEEDS TO BE SUPPORTED
BY REASONABLY FORESEEABLE
REVENUES. AND WE HAVE A NUMBER
OF OTHER REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO
CONFORMITY AND PUBLIC
INVOLVEMENT. AND MEETING ALL OF
THOSE REQUIREMENTS IS NECESSARY
FOR THE PROJECTS IN OUR PLAN TO
GET FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION
FUNDING. AND THEN ON THE STATE
REQUIREMENTS SIDE, UNIQUE TO THE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA IS SB 375.
SO THAT MEANS WHEN WE'RE
DEVELOPING THIS PLAN, WE ALSO
NEED TO LOOK AT THE LAND USE
PATTERN. SO HOW ARE WE GOING TO
GROW AS A REGION. HOW IS THAT
DEVELOPMENT INTEGRATED WITH OUR
TRANSPORTATION NETWORK THAT WILL
ALLOW US TO REACH GREENHOUSE GAS
EMISSION REDUCTION TARGETS FROM
PASSENGER VEHICLES AND MEETING
THAT STATE REQUIREMENT IS
NECESSARY FOR US TO BE ABLE TO
GET SB ONE FUNDING FROM PROGRAMS
SUCH AS SOLUTIONS FOR CONGESTED
CORRIDORS AND THE TRADE CORRIDOR
ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM. SO IN THE
PAST ABOUT FOUR YEARS SINCE WE
HAD OUR CES ACCEPTED BY CARB,
OUR 2020 PLAN, WE'VE RECEIVED
ALMOST $2 BILLION FROM THOSE TWO
PROGRAMS TO OUR REGION. SO BOTH
MEETING BOTH OF THESE
REQUIREMENTS IS NECESSARY FOR TO
KEEP THE REGION MOVING FORWARD
IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO BUILD
THE PROJECTS THAT SERVE THE
REGION. SO NOW TALKING ABOUT
CONNECT SOCAL 2024 MOST RECENTLY
ADOPTED PLAN, WHICH WAS ADOPTED
IN APRIL OF THIS YEAR. REALLY
WHAT THIS IS DOING IN TERMS OF
LONG RANGE PLANNING IS, IS WE
TAKE THE EXISTING REGIONAL
CONDITIONS, UNDERSTANDING WHERE
WE ARE AS A REGION, WORKING WITH
OUR LOCAL JURISDICTIONS TO
UNDERSTAND THEIR ADOPTED PLANS.
WE DO A LOT OF DIFFERENT
RESEARCH AND TRENDS ANALYSIS,
YOU KNOW, WHERE ARE WE GOING IN
THE FUTURE? WHAT'S THE
DEMOGRAPHIC PROJECTIONS? AND
THEN A LOT OF COORDINATION
ACROSS THE REGION, BECAUSE WHAT
WE'RE LOOKING TO DO IS SEE WHERE
WE'RE HEADED ALONE, YOU KNOW, IN
TERMS OF EVERYBODY'S INDIVIDUAL
PLANS AND WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO
TOGETHER AS A REGION? WHAT ARE
OUR BARRIERS THAT WE NEED TO BE
ABLE TO ADDRESS AND BE ABLE TO
MOVE FORWARD TO REACH OUR
REGIONAL GOALS? SO ONE MORE
SLIDE ON ON THE PROCESS JUST
BECAUSE IT IS IMPORTANT. AND
THEN I'LL GO GET TO A LITTLE BIT
OF DETAILS ON THE PLAN ITSELF.
SO I HAD MENTIONED THAT THIS IS
SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO DO
EVERY FOUR YEARS, AND IT TAKES
US ABOUT FOUR YEARS TO DO THAT.
SO WE'LL BE STARTING REALLY SOON
ON ON THE FOUNDATIONS AND
FRAMEWORKS FOR THE NEXT CYCLE.
BUT IN TERMS OF HOW WE DEVELOP
THE PLAN, WE HAVE A LOT OF
DIFFERENT WORKING GROUPS AND
TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES,
INCLUDING AN AVIATION TECHNICAL
ADVISORY COMMITTEE, INCLUDING
TRANSIT TECHNICAL ADVISORY
COMMITTEE. SO WE'RE MEETING WITH
A LOT OF THE TECHNICAL EXPERTS
AT AGENCIES AND LOCAL
JURISDICTIONS THROUGHOUT THE
REGION TO UNDERSTAND SO THAT WE
HAVE THE CORRECT DATA INPUTS FOR
OUR PLAN. WE ALSO ENGAGE WITH
THE PUBLIC. SO WE HAVE A NUMBER
OF PUBLIC WORKSHOPS. WE DID BOTH
IN-PERSON AND VIRTUAL FOR THIS
LAST CYCLE. AND WE COLLECT AND
WE COLLECT INFORMATION FROM THE
PUBLIC THROUGH A SURVEY. NOW WE
HAVE ALMOST 19 MILLION PEOPLE IN
OUR REGION. SO WE KNOW THAT WE
ARE NOT GOING TO REACH EVERYONE.
SO ONE OF THE STRATEGIES THAT WE
HAVE DEVELOPED FOR THE PAST TWO
CYCLES, IN ORDER TO GET INPUT
FROM UNDERREPRESENTED
COMMUNITIES, IS PARTNERING
DIRECTLY WITH COMMUNITY BASED
ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT THE
REGION. NOW, IN TERMS OF THE
GOVERNMENT TO GOVERNMENT
COLLABORATION, I DO WANT TO
HIGHLIGHT THESE LAST TWO
BULLETS. TWO OF THE MOST
IMPORTANT KIND OF INGREDIENTS TO
THE PLAN IN TERMS OF ON THE
TRANSPORTATION SIDE, THE PROJECT
LIST, WE GET THAT INPUT DIRECTLY
FROM THE COUNTY TRANSPORTATION
COMMISSIONS. THAT'S WHO WE WORK
WITH TO DEVELOP THAT PROJECT
LIST. AND THEN ON THE LAND USE
SIDE TO UNDERSTAND BOTH THE
CURRENT AND FUTURE LAND USE AND
DEVELOPMENT PATTERN FOR OUR
REGION. WE WORK DIRECTLY WITH
JURISDICTIONS, SO MEETING WITH
MOST OF THE JURISDICTIONS
THROUGHOUT THE REGION AND
GETTING THEIR INPUT ON THE DATA
THAT WE HAVE FOR THE PLAN. SO
NOW GETTING MORE INTO THE PLAN
ITSELF, IT'S REALLY FOCUSED
AROUND FOUR KEY PILLARS, WHICH
IS MOBILITY, COMMUNITY,
ENVIRONMENT AND THE ECONOMY. AND
SO WORKING WITH OUR STAKEHOLDERS
AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, WE
ASKED ABOUT WHAT IS OUR VISION
FOR THE REGION IN 2050, WHICH IS
THE HORIZON OF THIS PLAN. AND
WHAT WE HEARD AND DEVELOPED FOR
THE VISION IS TO HAVE A HEALTHY,
PROSPEROUS, ACCESSIBLE AND
CONNECTED REGION FOR A MORE
RESILIENT AND EQUITABLE FUTURE.
AND WHAT THAT MEANS IN TERMS OF
MOBILITY IS BEING ABLE TO BUILD
AND MAINTAIN AN INTEGRATED
MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION
NETWORK FOR COMMUNITIES. THAT
MEANS TO DEVELOP, CONNECT AND
SUSTAIN LIVABLE AND THRIVING
COMMUNITIES FOR THE ENVIRONMENT,
TO CREATE A HEALTHY REGION FOR
THE PEOPLE OF TODAY AND
TOMORROW, AND FOR THE ECONOMY TO
SUPPORT A SUSTAINABLE, EFFICIENT
AND PRODUCTIVE REGIONAL
ENVIRONMENT THAT PROVIDES
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL PEOPLE IN
THE REGION. SO, AS A SNAPSHOT OF
WHAT THE REGION IN 2050, LIKE I
SAID, WE HAVE ABOUT 19, ALMOST
19 MILLION PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN
THE REGION TODAY, AND WE'RE
EXPECTING TO HAVE THAT GROW BY
ABOUT 2 MILLION NEW PEOPLE. AND
THE ADDITION OF 1.6 MILLION NEW
HOUSEHOLDS. SO A LOT OF NEW
HOUSEHOLDS COMPARED TO THE
POPULATION PROJECTION. BUT
THAT'S THANKS TO WHAT WE'RE
SEEING AT THE LOCAL
JURISDICTIONS FOR THEIR WORK.
AND PLANNING FOR HOUSING AND IN
TERMS OF THE DEVELOPMENT
PATTERN, WE'RE LOOKING AT THAT
BEING A LITTLE BIT MORE
EFFICIENT THAN IT IS TODAY. SO A
LOT MORE HOUSEHOLDS AND JOBS
LOCATED NEAR CURRENT, JOBS NEAR
CURRENT AMENITIES AND NEAR
TRANSIT. AND THEN I'LL SPEAK A
LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE
INVESTMENTS IN THE PLAN NEXT.
BUT I DO WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT
IT'S THE PLAN REPRESENTS ALMOST
$752 BILLION IN INVESTMENTS AND
WHAT THOSE INVESTMENTS AND THE
DEVELOPMENT PATTERN WILL LEAD TO
IS LESS CONGESTION. SO LESS
DELAY PER PERSON PER DAY. AND
THE ACHIEVEMENT OF MEETING OUR
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSION
REDUCTION TARGET FROM PASSENGER
VEHICLES. AND WE'RE DOING THIS
THROUGH THINGS LIKE OVER 4000
NEW MILES OF BIKE LANES, ALMOST
200,000 NEW MILES OF TRANSIT
REVENUE SERVICE AND THE RTP HAS
MORE THAN 2000 PROJECTS LISTED
IN IT. AND WHAT THIS MEANS FOR
THE ECONOMY IS THAT WE'RE WE
ANTICIPATE TO HAVE ABOUT $2 IN
BENEFITS FOR EVERY $1 INVESTED
FROM THE PLAN, AND THAT'S COMING
BOTH FROM THE DIRECT INVESTMENTS
IN THE TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS
THEMSELVES, BUT ALSO FROM
INCREASED REGIONAL
COMPETITIVENESS. SO I WANT TO
HIGHLIGHT A LITTLE BIT MORE
ABOUT THE PLAN INVESTMENTS,
BECAUSE I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT
TO NOTE THAT, YOU KNOW, ALMOST
TWO THIRDS OF THIS PLAN'S
INVESTMENTS ARE FOR OPERATIONS.
AND MAINTENANCE. AND WHAT THAT
MEANS IS THAT WE ARE AT THE
POINT IN THE REGION THAT WE ARE
MORE ABOUT MAINTAINING WHAT
WE'VE ALREADY INVESTED IN. SO IN
TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, A STATE OF
GOOD REPAIR, FIX IT FIRST
STRATEGIES AND MAINTAINING OUR
TRANSIT OPERATIONS AS WELL. AND
THEN WHEN IT COMES TO THAT, 37%
OF CAPITAL PROJECTS, I WANT TO
POINT OUT THAT ABOUT 100 BILLION
IS FOR TRANSIT AND RAIL. THE
NEXT BIGGEST SLICE THERE IS
GOODS MOVEMENT, WHICH INCLUDES
GRADE SEPARATION AS WELL AS A
NUMBER OF THE OTHER BUCKETS OF
CAPITAL PROJECTS AND PROGRAM
EXPENDITURES NOTED. THERE. SO I
WANT TO CLOSE THAT OUT BY
HIGHLIGHTING SOME OF THE WAYS
THAT WE WORK TOGETHER WITH OTHER
STAKEHOLDERS IN THE REGION TO
MAKE THIS PLAN HAPPEN. HOW DO WE
ACTUALLY IMPLEMENT? BECAUSE LIKE
I MENTIONED AT THE BEGINNING,
SCAG DOESN'T HAVE LOCAL LAND USE
AUTHORITY. WE ARE NOT BUILDING
ANY PROJECTS DIRECTLY OURSELVES.
SO WE'RE WORKING THROUGH KIND OF
FOUR KEY WAYS. ONE IS THE
COLLABORATION POLICY,
LEADERSHIP. SO NOT JUST WITH THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLAN, BUT HOW
ARE WE HELPING CITIES DEVELOP
MODEL ORDINANCES, DOING REGIONAL
PLANS LIKE THE LAST MILE FREIGHT
PROGRAM TO HELP REDUCE EMISSIONS
FROM THE GOODS MOVEMENT SECTOR?
WE ALSO HAVE A ROLE IN FEDERAL
FUNDING ADMINISTRATION. SO
MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE HELPING
THOSE FEDERAL FUNDING PROGRAMS
HELP FLOWING TO THE REGION, WE
ALSO HAVE A ROBUST DATA
COLLECTION, ANALYSIS AND
RESEARCH TEAMS THAT HELP US TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON IN
THE REGION, HOW DO WE INFORM
THOSE POLICIES AND STRATEGIES
BASED ON THE BEST AVAILABLE
INFORMATION? AND THEN LASTLY,
WITH LOCAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.
SO THAT'S BOTH TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE IN TERMS OF HELPING
JURISDICTIONS WITH GIS TRAINING
HOSTING TOOLBOX. TUESDAY'S ABOUT
BEST PRACTICES THROUGHOUT THE
REGION AND THEN ALSO FUNDING
PROGRAMS LIKE OUR LONG STANDING
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES PROGRAM,
WHICH HELPS TO FUND LOCAL
PROJECTS. SO OVER THE PAST,
ABOUT TEN YEARS, WE'VE FUNDED
ABOUT $70 MILLION IN PROJECTS
THROUGHOUT THE REGION, LIKE
HELPING JURISDICTIONS DO EITHER
SPECIFIC AREA PLANNING OR
DEVELOPING AN ACTIVE
TRANSPORTATION PLAN. AND THOSE
PROGRAMS ARE CONSISTENTLY
OVERSUBSCRIBED. SO WE ARE ALWAYS
LOOKING AT WAYS TO HELP OUR
JURISDICTION TO IMPLEMENT THEIR
LOCAL VISIONS. AND SO I THINK
I'LL LEAVE IT THERE AND BUT
HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS AND
I WILL TAKE WE'LL POSE QUESTIONS
AT THE END OF THE PRESENTATIONS.
BUT THANK YOU FOR YOUR
PRESENTATION. THANK YOU MICHAEL.
THANK YOU. ASSEMBLY MEMBER, AND
I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR WORKING
WITH US THROUGH OVER THE YEARS
ON, I CAN THINK OF A NUMBER OF
ISSUES WE'VE WORKED ON WITH
ASSEMBLY MEMBER FRIEDMAN, WITH
YOURSELF, ASSEMBLY MEMBER
RODRIGUEZ, IT'S AN HONOR TO BE
HERE TODAY. A PLEASURE WORKING
WITH ALL OF YOU. MY NAME IS
MICHAEL TURNER, AND AS YOU
MENTIONED, I'M THE EXECUTIVE
OFFICER FOR GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
AT METRO. AND WE ARE UNIQUE IN
WITH RESPECT TO TRANSPORTATION
AGENCIES IN CALIFORNIA BECAUSE
WE HAVE THREE KEY FUNCTIONS. WE
ARE THE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION
PLANNING AGENCY AND IN OUR CASE,
LA COUNTY IS LIKE A REGION. SCAG
IS THE REGIONAL PLANNING AGENCY,
BUT WE'RE ONE OF THE LARGEST
COUNTIES IN THE COUNTRY. SO WE
YOU KNOW, IF YOU COMPARE US TO
OTHER COUNTIES IN THE STATE,
WE'RE EFFECTIVELY A REGION WE
ALSO OPERATE THE REGIONAL
TRANSIT SERVICE, MEANING THE
REGIONAL BUS SERVICE AND RAIL
SERVICE. AND THEN WE WORK WITH
OUR MUNICIPAL PARTNERS,
MUNICIPAL OPERATORS SUCH AS
FOOTHILL TRANSIT IN THIS AREA.
WE ALSO ADMINISTER THE FOUR
LOCAL SALES TAXES, WHICH ARE ALL
HAVE ALL BEEN APPROVED BY THE
VOTERS OF OVER TWO THIRDS VOTE
MARGIN. SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS
ESSENTIALLY, IF IT MOVES ON THE
GROUND IN LOS ANGELES, WE HAVE
SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT. WE PLAN
FOR IT, WE OPERATE IT, WE PAY
FOR IT. WE'RE GOVERNED BY A
BOARD OF 14 MEMBERS. THAT
INCLUDES THE MAYOR OF THE CITY
OF LOS ANGELES, THE ALL THE
COUNTY SUPERVISORS, PLUS
REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL OF THE
SUBREGIONS IN LOS ANGELES
COUNTY. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
OUR CEO NOTES THAT, YOU KNOW,
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BIG. I DON'T
MEAN TO INTERRUPT YOU, BUT SINCE
YOU WERE ON THAT POINT OF SORT
OF THE STRUCTURE, CAN YOU TAKE A
MOMENT JUST TO SHOW HOW SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY, THE
RELATIONSHIP SIMILAR AND HOW IT
AND HOW YOU GUYS WORK TOGETHER
AND. SURE. SO I'M GONNA
INTERRUPT YOUR PRESENTATION.
SURE, SURE. I WOULD SAY TWO
THINGS ABOUT THAT. I WOULD SAY
ONE IS THAT EACH OF THE COUNTIES
HAVE A COUNTY TRANSPORTATION
COMMISSION, AND IN OUR CASE, WE
ARE A COMBINATION OF A COUNTY
TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION AND A
TRANSIT PROVIDER. THAT'S NOT THE
SAME IN OTHER COUNTIES IN
RIVERSIDE AND SAN BERNARDINO,
FOR EXAMPLE, THEY'RE SEPARATE
ENTITIES. IN OUR CASE, THEY'RE
COMBINED. THE TO ME, THE ONE OF
THE IMPORTANT POINTS OF THAT IS
THAT THE DECISIONS ABOUT THOSE
STRUCTURES ARE MADE FROM A
THROUGH A BOTTOMS UP PROCESS. I
THINK, YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN A
LOT OF DISCUSSION IN OUR COUNTY
ABOUT THE STRUCTURE OF OUR BOARD
AND WHO SHOULD BE ON OUR BOARD,
BUT FOR OUR PURPOSES, AND I
THINK THIS WOULD APPLY IN MOST
COUNTIES, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT
THOSE DECISIONS ARE MADE THROUGH
A BOTTOMS UP PROCESS. IN OUR
CASE, THE BALANCE IS HAVING THE
MAYOR OF THE CITY OF LOS
ANGELES, THE FIVE COUNTY
SUPERVISORS, AND THEN
REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL OF THE
SUBREGION. I THINK THERE'S NINE.
IF I'M GETTING MY NUMBERS RIGHT,
THERE'S NINE COGS COUNCILS OF
GOVERNMENTS IN LOS ANGELES
COUNTY. AND THOSE PART THE
PARTNERSHIPS WE HAVE THERE ARE
IMPORTANT WHEN WE DO OUR OUR
TRANSPORTATION PLAN, OUR LONG
RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN, AND
OUR SHORT RANGE TRANSPORTATION
PLAN. WE WORK THROUGH A BOTTOMS
UP PROCESS WITH THE COGS TO
DEVELOP THAT. AND THAT IS VERY
IMPORTANT IN ORDER FOR THOSE
PROGRAMS TO SUCCEED, ONE OF THE
THINGS YOU'LL HEAR FROM OUR CEO
IS STEPHANIE WIGGINS, IS THAT
SHE SAYS, PEOPLE FIRST,
EVERYTHING WE DO SHOULD HAVE A
PEOPLE FIRST FOCUS. AND I THINK
YOU'LL SEE THAT THROUGH OUR
PRESENTATION, THAT AND THAT WAS
ACTUALLY THE TITLE OF OUR, OF
OUR PANEL IS THE COMMUNITY
ENGAGEMENT. BECAUSE COMMUNITY
ENGAGEMENT, YOU KNOW, WE TALK
ABOUT, YOU KNOW, BIG LOFTY TERMS
ABOUT REGIONAL PLANNING AND A
LOT OF, YOU KNOW, TECHNICAL
THINGS WE DO. BUT AT THE CORE OF
IT, IT HAS TO BE ENGAGEMENT WITH
THE COMMUNITY. AND WE HAVE TO
ENSURE THAT WHAT WE'RE DOING IS
GOING TO SERVE THOSE COMMUNITIES
IN WHICH WE'RE BUILDING THE
PROJECTS. SO I THINK YOU'LL
YOU'LL SEE THAT THROUGH THROUGH
DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE
PRESENTATION. ONE OF THE FIRST
ISSUES WE HAVE TO ADDRESS NOW, I
THINK EVERYONE IS AWARE OF, IS
THE SAFETY AND SECURITY ISSUES
ON OUR SYSTEM. AS I MENTIONED,
WE HAVE ONE OF THE LARGEST
TRANSIT AGENCIES IN THE COUNTRY.
OUR RIDERSHIP, IF WE'RE NOT PAST
CHICAGO, WE SHOULD BE PAST
CHICAGO SOON. BUT WE HAVE ONE OF
THE LARGEST AND MOST COMPLEX
SERVICE AREAS IN THE COUNTRY,
AND WE OBVIOUSLY HAVE, AS WITH
OTHER PARTS OF SOCIETY, WE ARE
FACING SAFETY AND SECURITY
CHALLENGES. WHAT WE ARE DOING
HERE AGAIN, FOLLOWING
STEPHANIE'S LEAD ABOUT HAVING A
PEOPLE FIRST APPROACH, WE'RE
TAKING A LAYERED APPROACH TO
ADDRESSING THOSE ISSUES ON OUR
SYSTEM AND WHAT THIS REFLECTS IS
THAT FOR THE THINGS WE'RE
EXPERIENCING, THE SOLUTION ISN'T
ALWAYS SENDING OUT SOMEBODY WITH
A BADGE AND A GUN. AND A LOT OF
CASES, THERE'S OTHER KIND OF
ASSISTANCE THAT'S NEEDED. AND
THAT'S WHERE WE HAVE THIS
STRUCTURE, WHERE WE START WITH
TRANSIT AMBASSADORS, TRANSIT
AMBASSADORS ARE STREET TEAMS
WHERE THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE
OUT IN THE SYSTEM. YOU CAN SEE
THEY'RE WEARING GREEN SHIRTS. SO
PEOPLE CAN SEE THEM. THEY ARE
THERE FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS.
THEY HELP PEOPLE JUST NAVIGATE
WHERE THEY'RE GOING, HOW TO GET
YOUR TICKET, HOW TO GET ON. YOU
KNOW, WHERE YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE
CONNECTIONS, THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT THEY'RE ALSO THERE TO HELP
CONNECT PEOPLE TO SERVICES. IF
THERE'S SOMETHING GOING WRONG,
THEY CAN CONTACT THE POLICE. IF
SOMEBODY NEEDS SOME KIND OF
COUNSELING, THEY CAN PROVIDE
THAT. THEY'RE ALSO EQUIPPED WITH
NARCAN AND THEY HAVE SAVED A
NUMBER OF LIVES ON THE SYSTEM
BECAUSE THEY ARE EQUIPPED WITH
NARCAN. WE ALSO HAVE HOMELESS
OUTREACH TEAMS AND MENTAL HEALTH
CRISIS TEAMS, BECAUSE IN A LOT
OF THESE CIRCUMSTANCES, WHAT WE
NEED TO DO IS HELP CONNECT
PEOPLE TO SERVICES, NOT
NECESSARILY USE LAW ENFORCEMENT
TO ADDRESS THAT. SO WE HAVE
IMPLEMENTED ESSENTIALLY OUR OWN
HOMELESS OUTREACH PROGRAM THAT
WE HAVE FUNDED. I WANT TO THANK
ASSEMBLY MEMBER FRIEDMAN FOR
WORKING WITH US ON LEGISLATION
TO HELP INCORPORATE THOSE ISSUES
INTO THE STATE AND LOCAL
PLANNING, SO THAT WE CAN BECOME
MORE A PART OF THOSE SERVICES.
BUT WE HAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL
IN CONTACTING INDIVIDUALS,
GETTING THEM INTO PERMANENT
HOUSING, TEMPORARY HOUSING, AND
IN A LOT OF CASES, OUR CONTACT
WITH PEOPLE EXPERIENCING
HOMELESSNESS IS THE FIRST
CONTACT THEY HAVE WITH ANY
SYSTEM. SO WE BECOME THE POINT
OF CONTACT THAT HELPS CONNECT
THEM TO OTHER SERVICES. WE ARE
ALSO REVAMPING OUR OUR ESSENTIAL
POLICE AND TRANSIT SECURITY
SYSTEM, WHERE WE HAVE BOTH METRO
IN-HOUSE SECURITY AND CONTRACTED
SECURITY, AND WE ARE REBUILDING
A METRO POLICE FORCE. IF YOU GO
BACK IN TIME, WHEN THERE WAS, WE
USED TO BE THE SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA RAPID TRANSIT
DISTRICT, THERE WAS A AN RTD
POLICE FORCE. WE NOW CONTRACT
WITH THE SHERIFF, LONG BEACH
POLICE AND LAPD, AND WE'RE
TRANSITIONING THAT TO BE
IN-HOUSE POLICE. WE'RE ALSO
EXPERIMENTING WITH NEW
TECHNOLOGIES AND HOW WE CAN USE
THOSE TO HELP SECURE THE SYSTEM.
PART OF THAT IS CONTROLLING
ACCESS TO OUR STATIONS. WE'VE
HAD SOME CHALLENGES, OF COURSE,
WITH FARE EVASION AND WHAT
HAPPENS WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE
ESSENTIALLY NOT PAYING FARE, BUT
THEN GOING INTO THE SYSTEM AND
COMMITTING CRIMES. SO ONE OF THE
WAYS WE'VE ADDRESSED THAT IS TO
START WITH A TAP TO EXIT
PROGRAM. IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH
OUR SYSTEM, WHEN YOU GO IN, YOU
TAP THAT OPENS THE GATES. YOU
CAN GO IN, BUT THERE'S NO
REQUIREMENT TO TAP OUT. SO WE'VE
TESTED THAT AT THE NORTH
HOLLYWOOD STATION AND THE BOARD
RECENTLY EXPANDED THAT TO AN
ADDITIONAL TEN END OF LINE
STATIONS. SO THAT'LL HELP US
CONTROL ACCESS INTO THE SYSTEM.
ONE OF THE IMPORTANT THINGS
WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON AND THIS
IS AN INITIATIVE I KNOW WE'VE
WORKED HARD TO GET THROUGH THE
ATTEMPTING TO GET THROUGH THE
LEGISLATURE IS STUDENT TRANSIT
PASSES, AND THESE PASSES SERVE
NOT JUST K TO 12 STUDENTS, BUT
THEY ALSO SERVE COMMUNITY
COLLEGE STUDENTS. AND YOU HAVE
THE NUMBERS IN FRONT OF YOU.
THIS HAS BEEN A VERY SUCCESSFUL
PROGRAM, BUT I WANT TO TALK
ABOUT MORE THE SORT OF HUMAN
ASPECT OF WHAT THIS MEANS TO
STUDENTS. A LOT OF COMMUNITY
COLLEGE STUDENTS, NOT JUST
ACTUALLY COLLEGE STUDENTS IN
GENERAL, HAVE HOUSING INSECURITY,
FOOD INSECURITY, TRANSPORTATION
INSECURITY. IF WE CAN HELP TAKE
CARE OF ONE OF THOSE ISSUES, IT
HELPS THEM ADDRESS THOSE OTHER
TWO THINGS. AND IF THOSE KIDS
CAN GET TO SCHOOL, THEY GET A
CAREER. SO WE'RE ONE PART OF A
PROBLEM. WE'RE WORKING WITH THE
STATE SUPERINTENDENT. WE'RE
WORKING WITH THE COUNTY BOARD OF
EDUCATION TO SEE HOW WE CAN
COLLABORATE SO THAT WE SOLVE ONE
OF THOSE PROBLEMS, AND THEN
THOSE KIDS GET CAREERS, THOSE
KIDS BECOME SUCCESSFUL, AND
INDEPENDENT, BUT THEY ALSO
BECOME TRANSIT RIDERS. AND WE
HAVE HAD VERY GOOD SUCCESS WITH
THIS PROGRAM. YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT
JUST A MATTER OF HAVING A LOT OF
PEOPLE SIGNED UP. IT'S WHAT THEY
TURN INTO BECAUSE THEY DO BECOME
DEDICATED TRANSIT RIDERS. WE'VE
ALSO DONE A LOT TO LOOK AT
CONNECTING THE RAIL SYSTEM TO
AIRPORTS. THAT HAS BEEN A MAJOR
ISSUE IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY. WE
ARE HAPPY TO NOTE THAT LATER
THIS YEAR, AND I KNOW THE CLOCK
IS TICKING ON 24, BUT WE ARE
GOING TO BE OPENING THE MAJOR
RAIL AND BUS CONNECTION TO THE
AIRPORT. THIS IS A PROJECT. IT'S
ABOUT $900 MILLION, PRIMARILY
FUNDED WITH STATE AND LOCAL
FUNDS. THERE'S NO FEDERAL FUNDS
ON THIS, BUT IT IS A MAJOR
IMPROVEMENT TO CONNECTING RAIL
TRANSIT TO THE AIRPORT. THIS IS
IF YOU GO OUT TO THE SITE,
YOU'LL SEE IT'S A THERE'S A HUGE
COMPLEX THAT IS BOTH THE RENTAL
CAR FACILITY, THE NEW UBER AND
LYFT LOT, OUR STATION AND THE
COMBINED PARKING FOR LAX. IT'S
ALL CONNECTED BY THE PEOPLE
MOVER, AND OUR STATION WILL BE
OPENING LATER THIS YEAR. IT
CONNECTS TO THE K LINE. THERE IS
A HUGE BUS AND PLAZA WITH
CONNECTIONS TO ALL OF THE
REGIONAL OPERATORS. THERE IS A
LARGE BIKE HUB BECAUSE WE HAVE
FOUND THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT
WORK AT LAX USE THEIR BICYCLE,
AND SO WE HAVE A VERY LARGE BIKE
FACILITY FOR PEOPLE TO STORE
THEIR BIKES, SHOWER, GO TO WORK,
HAVE HUGE CUSTOMER SERVICE
FACILITIES. AND AS I MENTIONED,
IT'S A DIRECT CONNECTION TO THE
PEOPLE MOVER. THE OTHER WAY
WE'RE LOOKING AT CONNECTING TO
THE AIRPORT, AND THIS IS THROUGH
A LINE ITEM IN THE BUDGET THAT
ASSEMBLYMEMBER HOLDEN, YOU
SECURED. THIS WILL LOOK AT HOW
WE CAN MAKE CONNECTIONS FROM THE
Ã LINE TO THE BURBANK AIRPORT.
I KNOW THE ULTIMATE GOAL OUT
HERE IS TO HAVE THE A LINE. I
THINK I SAID GOAL LINE, BUT
THAT'S ALL RIGHT. IT'S STILL A
CHANGE THAT HAS TO HAPPEN UP
HERE. BUT THE ULTIMATELY THAT
LINE, I KNOW THE DESIRE HERE IS
TO CONNECT THAT TO THE ONTARIO
AIRPORT. WE'RE LOOKING HOW WE
CAN ALSO CONNECT THAT TO THE
BURBANK AIRPORT THROUGH THE
STUDY. WE AT THE PHASE NOW WHERE
WE SHOULD BE STARTING THAT STUDY
IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS. CAN
I Tð BECAUSE I KNOW THAT
ASSEMBLY MEMBER FRIEDMAN ALSO
REPRESENTS THAT AREA. AND AS SHE
MOVES ON TO CONGRESS, I'M SURE
SHE'LL WANT TO FIND WAYS OF
STAYING CONNECTED. SO I THINK
THAT SHE DOESN'T SEEM VERY
EXCITED ABOUT IT, BUT BUT I JUST
WANTED TO MAKE THE CONNECTION
BECAUSE WE HAD TALKED ABOUT THIS
A WHILE AGO, AND I KNOW METRO
HAS MADE ITS WAY TO THE PLACE OF
WHERE THAT PROCESS CAN BEGIN. SO
I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE
EXCITING, ESPECIALLY IN THE
CONTEXT OF PLANNING, WHICH THIS
PART OF THE PANEL IS FOCUSED ON.
SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. YEAH,
WE'VE WE'VE ALSO I KNOW WORKED
WITH THE ASSEMBLY MEMBER ON ONE
OF THE THINGS ASSEMBLY MEMBER
FRIEDMAN HAS BEEN FOCUSED ON IS
ALL THE CONNECTIONS TO BURBANK
AIRPORT. BECAUSE WE HAVE AMTRAK,
METROLINK ALL CONNECT RIGHT OUT
THERE. SO IT'S THIS IS ANOTHER
THING WE WOULD BRING TO THE
TABLE. THE OTHER THING, LAST
THING I WANTED TO MENTION IS
ANOTHER LINE THAT WILL HELP
CONNECT TO LAX. AND THIS IS THE
EXTENSION OF THE K LINE. IF YOU
KNOW THE CRENSHAW LINE AS A VERY
IMPORTANT LINE REACHING DOWN
INTO SOUTH LOS ANGELES, THIS
WOULD BE AN EXTENSION NORTH THAT
COULD ULTIMATELY GO UP TO WEST
HOLLYWOOD, BUT THAT WOULD
PROVIDE A RAIL CONNECTION
THROUGH THE HEART OF MOSTLY THE
CITY OF LOS ANGELES, BUT UP INTO
POTENTIALLY WEST HOLLYWOOD, DOWN
INTO THE AIRPORT, CONNECTING TO
THE METRO AIRPORT CONNECTOR. SO
WITH THAT, I THINK I WILL CLOSE
UNLESS ANY MORE FULLER. OKAY.
GREAT. THANK YOU. GOOD. GOOD
MORNING EVERYBODY. MY NAME AGAIN
IS STEVE LAMBERT AND I DO WANT
TO THANK THE ASSEMBLY MEMBER AND
THE PANEL FOR GIVING US THE
OPPORTUNITY TO TELL OUR STORY.
YOU KNOW, AS A 23 YEAR RESIDENT
OF THE INLAND EMPIRE, 16 YEARS
IN, IN UPLAND, I'M THRILLED BY
THE EMPHASIS ON CONNECTIVITY,
THE INNOVATIVE PROJECTS THAT ARE
LITERALLY COMING DOWN THE PIKE
AND THE EMERGING NARRATIVE OF
THE INLAND EMPIRE. AS A PREMIER
DESTINATION, WE'RE GOING TO TALK
A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN
A SECOND. I ALSO WANT TO GIVE A
SHOUT OUT TO MR. RUE OVER THERE,
WHO'S BEEN A DEAR FRIEND TO OUR
FAMILY AS MY WIFE HAS NAVIGATED
THE WORLD OF PUBLIC SERVICE AS A
MEMBER OF THE CHAFFEY COLLEGE
GOVERNING BOARD. SO, MR. RUE,
THANK YOU. WE'RE I'M HERE TODAY
REPRESENTING ONTARIO
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, WHICH IS
JUST AN AWESOME STORY TO BE ABLE
TO TELL. OUR MISSION IS TO
BOLDLY SEIZE EVERY OPPORTUNITY
TO CONNECT THE INLAND EMPIRE TO
THE WORLD. AND YOU CAN SEE A MAP
OF SOME OF THE DESTINATIONS WE
HAVE NOW, MORE THAN 20 DIRECT
DESTINATIONS THIS YEAR ON TÊ
WILL EXCEED 7 MILLION PASSENGERS
SERVED. THAT'S UP 75% SINCE THE
RETURN TO LOCAL CONTROL IN 2016.
NOW, THE ALL TIME RECORD FOR
ONTARIO WAS 7.2 MILLION BEFORE
THE GREAT RECESSION. THEN IT
WENT THROUGH A PERIOD OF SORT OF
OWNERSHIP QUESTIONS AND REALLY
NEGLECT. IN 2016, IT RETURNED TO
LOCAL OWNERSHIP THROUGH THE
ONTARIO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
AUTHORITY, WHICH IS A JOINT
POWERS AUTHORITY BETWEEN THE
CITY OF ONTARIO AND SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY. AND ALMOST
IMMEDIATELY, WE STARTED SEEING
RENEWED INTEREST IN ONTARIO AS
AS AN AIRPORT FROM THE CARRIERS.
AND, OF COURSE, THE POPULATION
GROWTH HERE HAS BEEN A BIG
CONTRIBUTOR TO THAT. WE'RE WE'RE
ABOUT TO ANNOUNCE 43 CONSECUTIVE
MONTHS OF YEAR OVER YEAR GROWTH,
WHICH MAKES US ONE OF THE ONLY
AIRPORTS IN THE WORLD THAT CAN
REPORT THAT WE WERE ONE OF THE
FIRST AIRPORTS IN NORTH AMERICA
TO FULLY RECOVER PASSENGER
VOLUME FROM PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS.
AND AGAIN, A LOT OF THAT IS THE
EXTRAORDINARY TEAM WE HAVE AT
ONT, BUT ALSO IT'S THE REGION WE
SERVE AND THE GROWTH THAT'S
OCCURRING HERE. AND IT'S NOT
JUST POPULATION GROWTH, BUT IT'S
ECONOMIC GROWTH. THIS IS A
WONDERFUL AREA. WE RANK JUST
RECENTLY NUMBER THREE AMONG
MIDSIZE AIRPORTS IN THE US BY
J.D. POWER FOR CUSTOMER
SATISFACTION. AND NUMBER TWO
AMONG ALL AIRPORTS IN
CALIFORNIA. SO THERE'S A REAL
EMPHASIS ON ENHANCING THE
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE. THAT'S NOT
ONLY WHEN YOU ARE ON THE AIRPORT
PROPERTY, OBVIOUSLY, BUT IT'S
WHEN YOU GET THERE AND THE TIME
IT TAKES YOU TO GET THERE. WE
NOW HAVE TWO INTERNATIONAL
DESTINATIONS IN LATIN AMERICA
AND TAIWAN, AND WE'RE EXPECTING
AT LEAST TWO ADDITIONAL ASIAN
CARRIERS IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF EXCITEMENT
HAPPENING THERE. SO LET'S TALK A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE I.E, YOU
KNOW, I MENTIONED THAT I'VE
LIVED HERE 23 YEARS. I'LL NEVER
FORGET MOVING TO THE INLAND
EMPIRE FROM NEW ENGLAND IN
JANUARY. I HADN'T SEEN SUNLIGHT
IN 300 DAYS. AND I WAKE UP ON A
SUNDAY MORNING AFTER FLYING INTO
OAN TÊ. I LOOK OUT THE
MOUNTAINS HAVE THAT BEAUTIFUL
FROSTING OF SNOW. THE SUN WAS
OUT. IT WAS 55 DEGREES. I
THOUGHT I'D LANDED IN HEAVEN AND
I STILL FEEL THAT WAY. WE'RE NOW
THE 12TH LARGEST METRO AREA IN
THE US AND WE'RE SOON TO BE
NUMBER 11, AND BEFORE LONG WILL
BE NUMBER TEN. AND THINK ABOUT
THAT. IS THERE ANOTHER AREA IN
THE COUNTRY WHERE YOU HAVE TWO
SIDE BY SIDE METRO AREAS THAT
ARE IN THE TOP TEN? THE ANSWER,
OF COURSE, IS NO. SO IT'S REALLY
BEEN A REMARKABLE STORY. WE HAVE
4.7 MILLION PEOPLE TODAY. I LOVE
SARAH'S PRESENTATION. WE DO WORK
WITH A SCAG, BUT SAN BERNARDINO
AND RIVERSIDE COUNTIES ARE THE
FASTEST GROWING SEGMENTS OF
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. WE'VE GOT
THESE VIBRANT EMPLOYMENT
SECTORS. YOU KNOW, WE TALK A LOT
ABOUT LOGISTICS AND HOW THAT THE
BIGGEST EMPLOYER IN SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY AND THE INLAND
EMPIRE IS HEALTHCARE, WITH MORE
THAN 200,000 EMPLOYEES THROUGH
THE, I.E, AND THEN ONTARIO
ITSELF GENERATES NEARLY $4
BILLION IN ANNUAL ECONOMIC
IMPACT AND SUPPORTS 30,000 JOBS.
SO WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT? YES,
THE INLAND EMPIRE IS A BIG PART
OF OUR MARKET, BUT WE'RE REALLY
A SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AIRPORT,
AND WE'VE DONE STUDIES THAT HAVE
SHOWN THAT WHEN YOU FACTOR IN
COMMUTE TIME, 10 MILLION
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIANS LIVE OR
WORK CLOSER TO Ó AND TÊ THAN
ANY OTHER AIRPORT. SO THAT'S THE
INLAND EMPIRE, THAT'S SAN
GABRIEL VALLEY, THAT'S PORTIONS
OF NORTHERN ORANGE COUNTY. WE
RECENTLY WERE DEAD, HAD OUR
DESIGNATION FROM US CUSTOMS AND
BORDER PATROL ENHANCED. AND WHAT
THAT MEANS IS THAT IT OPENS THE
DOOR FOR MORE INTERNATIONAL
FLIGHTS IN THE PAST, WE'VE HAD
VERY LIMITED CUSTOMS AND BORDER
PATROL RESOURCES TO PROCESS, NOT
ONLY PASSENGERS COMING IN
INTERNATIONALLY, BUT ALSO CARGO
VOLUMES INTERNATIONALLY. AND ONE
CRAZY THING CHINA AIRLINES,
WHICH MAKES A GREAT DEAL OF ITS
REVENUES FROM SHIPPING CARGO IN
THE BELLY OF ITS AIRPLANE WHEN
THEY'RE TRANSPORTING PASSENGERS.
WHEN THOSE FLIGHTS CAME IN, THE
CARGO HAD TO BE PUT ON A TRUCK
SHIPPED TO LAX AND THEN BACK
BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE THE
APPROPRIATE CUSTOMS AND BORDER
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S CHANGING
NOW. AND SO IT OPENS UP TO MORE
INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS AND ALSO
MORE CARGO. AND SCAG IS PART OF
THE MOST RECENT CONNECT SOCAL
PROJECTS. OUR CAPACITY AT 36.2
MILLION BY 2050. THINK ABOUT
THAT. WE'RE AT 7 MILLION NOW 30.
THAT'S FIVE TIMES WHERE WE ARE.
WILL IT ACTUALLY TAKE SHAPE THAT
WAY? HARD TO TELL, BUT WE HAVE
TO BE ON, YOU KNOW, THE FORWARD
EDGE OF NOT HAVING THE KIND OF
MESS THAT THAT PEOPLE CURRENTLY
EXPERIENCE GOING TO THE OTHER
BIG AIRPORT IN OUR, IN OUR
REGION. SO TRANSIT ACCESS IS THE
KEY. AND THIS PICTURE IS WHAT
YOU SEE AT LAX RIGHT NOW. AND WE
WANT TO AVOID THIS AT ALL COSTS.
THE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED
ONTARIO'S RETURN TO LOCAL
OWNERSHIP AND WE HAVE A
RESPONSIBILITY TO SERVE THIS
COMMUNITY AND AVOID THE KINDS OF
HEADACHES THAT THEY MIGHT SEE
ELSEWHERE. SO WE WORK CLOSELY
WITH OUR COUNTY TRANSPORTATION
PARTNERS, SBCTA, BUT ALSO
OMNITRANS, WHICH IS A VERY BIG
PARTICIPANT HERE, AND WE WANT TO
LEVERAGE THE OPPORTUNITIES OF
BRIGHTLINE WEST WILL BRING TALK
A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT. SO
THE WEST VALLEY CONNECTOR, IT'S
A 100% ZERO EMISSION BUS RAPID
TRANSIT SYSTEM 19 MILES FROM
POMONA TO VICTORIA GARDENS.
IT'LL LINK ONTARIO WITH TWO
METROLINK SYSTEMS, THE SAN
BERNARDINO LINE AND THE
RIVERSIDE LINE, AND MULTIPLE
ACTIVITY CENTERS ALONG ITS
ROUTE. IT'S UNDER CONSTRUCTION
AND IS EXPECTED TO LAUNCH IN
2026. CUCAMONGA STATION I
MENTIONED BRIGHTLINE WEST. I
AGAIN, I'M A BIG ADVOCATE OF THE
INLAND EMPIRE. I THINK WE'RE
ABOUT TO PRESENT AND BUILD AND
UNVEIL PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST
INTERESTING DYNAMIC, BEAUTIFUL
TRANSIT HUBS ANYWHERE IN THE
COUNTRY, RIGHT AT CUCAMONGA
STATION, IT'LL BE THE
INTERSECTION OF METROLINK'S SAN
BERNARDINO LINE, WHICH IS, I
BELIEVE IT'S BUSIEST LINE. IT'LL
BE WHERE BRIGHTLINE WEST COMES
IN, AND WE'RE GOING TO TALK IN A
MINUTE ABOUT THE DIRECT
CONNECTIONS TO ONTARIO. AN
IMPORTANT PART OF THIS, THIS
EQUATION IS THE RECENT ARROW
LINE BETWEEN THE SAN BERNARDINO
METROLINK STATION AND REDLANDS.
THAT'S A NINE MILE CONNECTOR
THAT HAS NOW LOW EMISSIONS, BUT
IT'S ABOUT TO INTRODUCE THE
FIRST FEDERALLY APPROVED
HYDROGEN POWERED PASSENGER TRAIN.
SO N TÊ CONNECT. WE TALKED A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS BEFORE.
OMNITRANS IS NOW OFFERING FREE
SHUTTLE SERVICE BETWEEN THE
EXISTING RANCHO CUCAMONGA
STATION AND Ó AND TÊ, AND IT
OPERATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
SOON IT WILL BECOME SOMETHING
FAR MORE SOPHISTICATED. SO SBCTA
HAS SHORT LISTED TWO COMPANIES
TO DESIGN. BUILD COMPANIES TO
BUILD A 4.2 MILE TUNNEL BETWEEN
THE CUCAMONGA STATION AND N TÊ.
THE SBCTA BOARD HAS ALLOCATED
$190 MILLION TO THIS PROJECT. I
BELIEVE THE TOTAL COST IS ABOUT
540 MILLION. IT'LL OPERATE WITH
AUTONOMOUS ZERO EMISSION
VEHICLES. AT ONE POINT, THE
BORING COMPANY WAS INVOLVED IN
THIS. BUT THEY ARE THEY ARE NO
LONGER INVOLVED IN IT, AND THE
PLANNED LAUNCH WILL COINCIDE
WITH WITH BRIGHTLINE WEST. SO
THEORETICALLY, IN TIME FOR THE
2028 OLYMPICS AND I MENTIONED
THE AIRLINE, AMERICA'S FIRST
HYDROGEN POWERED PASSENGER
TRAIN. IF YOU HAVEN'T TAKEN A
RIDE ON IT, I ENCOURAGE YOU TO
DO SO. SO CONTINUED CHALLENGES
AND OPPORTUNITY. WE NEED TO
PROVIDE MORE DIRECT TRANSIT
CONNECTIONS TO AND FROM
RIVERSIDE COUNTY. THE GROWTH OF
THE I. WE MAY ADD UP TO A
MILLION MORE PEOPLE BY 2050.
FUNDING FOR FEW FUTURE PROJECTS
AND EXPANSION. THE CURRENT
MEASURE I FUNDS FOR SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY ARE ACCOUNTED
FOR AND THE POTENTIAL FOR AN Ó
TÊ TRANSIT CENTER. THE BIGGER
VISION IS BETWEEN OUR TWO
EXISTING TERMINALS TO BUILD WHAT
COULD BE AN INTERNATIONAL
TERMINAL WITH A TRANSIT CENTER
AS PART OF THAT, AND HAVE THAT
BE THE MAIN ENTRY INTO THE
AIRPORT. I DIDN'T MENTION THE
GOLD LINE BECAUSE I DIDN'T WANT
TO OVERLAP WITH ALL OF THE OTHER
CONVERSATION THAT HAPPENED TODAY,
BUT CERTAINLY HAPPY TO ANSWER
ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE.
THANK YOU. WE'LL TURN TO THE
PANEL AND WELL, THE THREE OF US
LARA AND I APOLOGIZE THAT I'M
GOING TO. CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES.
I'M SORRY. I'M GOING TO HAVE TO
LEAVE IT IN TWO MINUTES. I WISH
THERE WAS A BETTER TRAIN BECAUSE
I HAVE TO GO TO SANTA MONICA
FROM HERE. OH. THANK YOU. SO,
YEAH, I APOLOGIZE THAT I HAVE TO
LEAVE. I REALLY DO APPRECIATE
ALL OF THE PRESENTATIONS.
CERTAINLY APPRECIATE THE YEARS
OF PARTNERSHIP WITH ALL OF YOU
AND FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK. I
AM CURIOUS ABOUT THE ONTARIO
AIRPORTS CONTINUING PLANS FOR
THE TUNNEL WITH THE WITH THE
VEHICLES AND WHY AT THIS POINT
THAT MAKES MORE SENSE THAN JUST
A LIGHT RAIL, WHICH SEEMS LIKE
IT CARRIES A LOT MORE PEOPLE, A
LOT MORE EFFICIENTLY. WHY?
WITHOUT BORING COMPANY STILL
PURSUE THAT PARTICULAR PROJECT?
WELL, I CAN'T SPEAK FOR THE
BORING COMPANY, BUT IN TERMS OF
WHY THERE'S INTEREST, IT'S
BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE ACTIVITY
THAT'S CONVERGING AT THE
CUCAMONGA STATION BETWEEN
BRIGHTLINE, BETWEEN THINKING
ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY. DID YOU
SAY THAT? THAT'S A TUNNEL THAT'S
GOING TO HAVE WHAT WHAT IS GOING
TO RUN IN THE TUNNEL? YEAH. I'M
NOT THE BEST PERSON TO ASK THAT.
IT WOULD BE AUTONOMOUS ZERO
EMISSION VEHICLES, BUT I AM NOT.
YES. RIGHT. THAT'S WHAT I'M
WONDERING AS TO WHY THAT'S STILL
WHAT WHAT THE JUSTIFICATION IS
FOR THAT, AS OPPOSED TO A MORE
TRADITIONAL TYPE OF SHUTTLE.
YEAH, I THINK THE MOST
APPROPRIATE GROUP TO ASK THAT
WOULD BE SBCTA AND OMNITRANS.
IT'S WHAT IT, WHAT IT KIND OF
WAS. I MEAN, LOOK, I'VE, I'VE
WRITTEN SOMETHING THAT MAKES A
LOT OF SENSE AT THE BOSTON LOGAN
AIRPORT, WHICH IS A BUS THAT
RUNS THROUGH A TUNNEL, WHICH
MAKES SENSE. I WAS CURIOUS AS TO
WHETHER THIS WAS THAT MODEL,
WHICH TO ME IS PERFECTLY
REASONABLE, LESS MONEY THAN
PUTTING DOWN TRACKS OR WHAT
THEY'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IN
VEGAS AND WHAT THEY HAVE IN
VEGAS WITH A BUNCH OF TESLAS
RUNNING THROUGH A TUNNEL. SO I
WAS JUST CURIOUS IF YOU IT'S
MORE OF THE VEGAS MODEL. OKAY,
OKAY. I'M NOT SOLD ON THAT AS A
MODEL. AND I DON'T KNOW THAT
ANYONE IN VEGAS IS SUPER HAPPY
WITH WHAT THEY HAVE. BUT, YOU
KNOW, AT SOME POINT I'D LOVE TO
HEAR MORE DETAILS ABOUT THAT.
OKAY. BUT THANK YOU. AND LET ME
JUST THANK YOU FOR MAKING TIME
TO BE HERE. I TURN TO SENATOR
SALADA, BUT USUALLY THESE SELECT
COMMITTEE HEARINGS ARE ON THE
OFF YEAR OF AN ELECTION YEAR AND
OTHER THINGS THAT ARE PRESSING
FOR MEMBERS. SO AS MEMBERS HAVE
TO GO, WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU
BEING HERE. THANK YOU. YES.
DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE EXPRESS
LANES ON THE TEN ALL THE WAY
DOWN. IT'LL GET YOU ALMOST TO
SANTA MONICA. YEAH. I HAVE TO BE
IN A CARPOOL FOR THAT. NO, NOT
FOR THE EXPRESS LANES. YOU JUST
PEEL OFF A COUPLE OF BUCKS,
OKAY? ALL RIGHT. HAVE A FAST
TRACK. YEAH, THEY JUST COMPLETED
THOSE NOT TOO LONG AGO. IT'S
GREAT. SO, ANYWAY, I THINK PART
OF THE ANSWER TO MISS FRIEDMAN
HAD BROUGHT UP WAS SO THAT THAT
TRAFFIC IS UNDERGROUND, NOT
OVERGROUND. AND WE DON'T WANT TO
MAKE THE SAME, SAME MISTAKES.
AND THEY'RE NOT REALLY MISTAKES.
THEY'RE JUST EVOLVEMENT THAT WE
HAVE AT LAX. IT IS AN ABOVE
GROUND NIGHTMARE, AND IF WE
COULD GET SOME OF THOSE OFF THE
ABOVE GROUND WHERE PEOPLE ARE
JUST TRYING TO GET FROM
WESTCHESTER TO THE SOUTH BAY
CITIES AND, AND ALSO INTO THE
HAWTHORNE, INGLEWOOD AND THOSE
AREAS, THAT WOULD BE THAT WOULD
HAVE BEEN REALLY GOOD FORESIGHT.
AND SO ANYWAY, I, I KIND OF
DISAGREE THAT THAT MIGHT BE A
SOMETHING WE DON'T WANT TO LOOK
AT. I HAD A QUESTION ON LA METRO
LAST. YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD WE PUT
ASIDE $5 BILLION, AS YOU KNOW,
TO HELP STABILIZE OUR RAIL
SYSTEMS. BOTH LA METRO AND ALSO
SAN FRANCISCO BART SYSTEM AND
THE ASSOCIATED 19 METROS THAT
THEY HAVE UP THERE. AND THAT'S
THIS IS THE LAST YEAR, I BELIEVE
THAT THEY'RE GOING TO GET THEIR
ONE POINT, WHATEVER ALLOCATION
AND I'M I'M KIND OF CURIOUS WHAT
THE INCREASE IN RIDERSHIP IS
THAT FUELED BY WELL PAYING
RIDERS, OR IS THAT FUELED BY
OFFERING FREE RIDES FOR
STUDENTS? WHERE'S THAT 1 MILLION
PERSON RIDERSHIP COMING FROM?
AND IS THAT EXPECTED TO HELP
WITH THE REVENUE SITUATION OR OR
AM I GOING TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH
THIS IN BUDGET NEXT YEAR, IN THE
NEXT YEAR? AFTER THAT? I'D SAY
IT'S A IT'S A SORT OF AN ALL OF
THE ABOVE APPROACH HERE. WE ARE
FORTUNATE THAT WE'VE JUST
REACHED OUR MILLIONTH RIDER. SO
WE HAVE HAD A VERY STRONG RETURN
IN OUR RIDERSHIP FROM PRE-COVID
LEVELS. A LARGE MAJORITY OF OUR
RIDERS ARE FROM REALLY THE
LOWEST ECONOMIC LEVELS IN IN LOS
ANGELES AND SO THAT IS THAT'S
WHERE A LOT OF OUR A LOT OF OUR
RIDERS, TRANSIT DEPENDENT
RIDERSHIP. AND SO OUR BOARD HAS
WORKED VERY EXTENSIVELY TO LOOK
AT REDUCED FARE PROGRAMS AND
SUCH AS THE GO PASS PROGRAM. BUT
WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT OTHER WAYS
WE CAN CONNECT PEOPLE WHO ARE IN
EXISTING SOCIAL SERVICE PROGRAMS
SO THEY CAN ACCESS TRANSIT. AND
THAT'S A BIG PART OF OUR
RIDERSHIP. WE OBVIOUSLY WANT TO
GROW THAT, AND I ACTUALLY SERVE
ON A TRANSIT TRANSFORMATION TASK
FORCE THAT WAS ACTUALLY
LEGISLATION THAT ASSEMBLY MEMBER
FRIEDMAN AUTHORED, WHERE WE'RE
LOOKING AT HOW ACROSS THE BOARD
IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA, WE
CAN TRANSFORM TRANSIT SO THAT WE
GET MORE PEOPLE RIDING IT. THAT
WAS ACTUALLY IT WAS ALMOST A TWO
PART DEAL WITH THE STATE WHERE
THE STATE PROVIDED THAT FUNDING.
BUT THEN WE ALSO CREATED THIS
TASK FORCE SO WE CAN LOOK AT THE
LONG TERM CHALLENGES. WHAT WE
HAVE DECIDED TO DO WITH THAT
MONEY REALLY REFLECTS THE
BOTTOMS UP APPROACH IN LOS
ANGELES COUNTY, WHERE WE ONE OF
THE WAYS WE NEED TO INCREASE
TRANSIT RIDERSHIP IS BY GETTING
THE TRANSIT SERVICE TO THOSE
VERY TRANSIT DEPENDENT
POPULATIONS. THERE ARE
SIGNIFICANT PARTS OF LOS ANGELES
COUNTY WHERE WE HAVE TRANSIT
DEPENDENT POPULATIONS THAT DON'T
HAVE ACCESS TO THE RAIL SYSTEM.
SO WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH THIS
FUNDING IS WE'RE, AS HABIB
MENTIONED, WE'RE COMPLETING THE
GOLD LINE THROUGH LOS ANGELES
COUNTY. ULTIMATELY INTO SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY. WE ARE USING
THAT MONEY TO HELP FUND THE
SOUTHEAST GATEWAY LINE, WHICH IS
A LIGHT RAIL LINE THAT WILL GO
FROM ARTESIA ALL THE WAY TO
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES.
ULTIMATELY, THAT FUNDING HELPS
LEVERAGE FEDERAL FUNDING FOR
THAT PROJECT. SO WE'RE USING IT
FOR THOSE PURPOSES. THERE'S ALSO
FUNDING IN THERE FOR ZERO
EMISSION BUS PURCHASES WHERE WE
ARE WORKING WITH OUR MUNICIPAL
OPERATORS TO DO A JOINT
PROCUREMENT. YOU KNOW, THERE'S
ONLY TWO BUS MANUFACTURERS
AVAILABLE IN THE UNITED STATES
NOW, WHICH IS QUITE A CHALLENGE.
SO IS THE PRICE FOR THOSE BUSSES
REFLECT THAT. AND OUR CEO HAS
SERVED ON A WHITE HOUSE TASK
FORCE TO ADDRESS THAT. WE'VE
JUST ISSUED ONE OF THE LARGEST
BUS PROCUREMENTS IN THE COUNTRY
USING THAT MONEY. SO WE CAN HELP
STANDARDIZE BUS PURCHASES. BUT
THAT'S HOW WE'RE USING THAT'S
HOW WE'RE USING THAT MONEY LONG
TERM. I DO WANT TO ADDRESS THE
ISSUE ABOUT LIKE, ARE WE, YOU
KNOW, WHERE ARE WE GOING TO BE
GOING FORWARD? IS MY QUESTION,
BECAUSE THAT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE
USING THAT MONEY, BUT THERE'S
GOING TO BE WE'RE GOING TO NEED
TO KEEP USING MONEY. YEAH. AND I
THINK AT THE STATE LEVEL WE'RE
LIKE I SAID, THERE'S THE TRANSIT
TRANSFORMATION TASK FORCE IS
LOOKING AT THIS NOW. WE'VE NOT
LOOKED AT FUNDING ISSUES. WE'RE
LOOKING AT LIKE, YOU KNOW, WHAT
ARE SOME THINGS THAT TRANSIT
AGENCIES CAN DO TO INCREASE
THEIR RIDERSHIP, RIGHT. YOU
KNOW, HOW CAN THE STATE BEST
PARTNER WITH US ON THAT? I'M
ALWAYS HESITANT TO GET INTO A
FUNDING DISCUSSION ON SOMETHING
LIKE THIS BECAUSE IT'S I THINK
ULTIMATELY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE
TO GET THERE, BUT WE'VE GOT TO
LOOK AT LIKE QUITE FRANKLY, CAP
AND TRADE, YOU KNOW, CAP AND
TRADE EXPIRES IN 2030. THERE'S
SOME FUNDING FOR THAT THAT'S
AVAILABLE TO TRANSIT THAT COULD
PERHAPS BE INCREASED, MAYBE MADE
A LITTLE BIT MORE FLEXIBLE. WE
NEED TO LOOK AT, FOR EXAMPLE,
HOW HIGH SPEED RAIL INVESTMENTS
ARE MADE. RIGHT. BECAUSE THAT'S
ALSO A PART OF CAP AND TRADE.
YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME THINGS
THAT CAN BE DONE ON THE HIGH
SPEED RAIL SYSTEM THAT WOULD
ULTIMATELY BE IN SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA, THAT COULD PROVIDE
BENEFITS NOW. AND LIKE I SAID,
ULTIMATELY NEEDED FOR THE FOR
THE FUTURE LINE. SO THERE'S A
THERE'S A VARIETY OF THINGS
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO LOOK AT
AT THE STATE LEVEL. SOME OF
THOSE ARE CAPITAL, SOME OF THOSE
ARE OPERATIONS. BUT, YOU KNOW,
THEY'RE QUITE FRANKLY DIFFICULT
DISCUSSIONS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I
KNOW HOW HARD IT WAS TO WORK OUT
THAT LAST ARRANGEMENT AND THAT
WAS THAT WAS ONE TIME FUNDING.
RIGHT. AND PART OF THAT LAST
ARRANGEMENT, WE TALKED A LOT
ABOUT THE DIFFICULTIES WITH THE
RIDERSHIP, WHICH WAS PEOPLE
DIDN'T SEE IT AS RELIABLE, SAFE
OR CLEAN. RIGHT. AND THOSE WERE
SOME OF THE THINGS THAT I SEE,
AND I'M GLAD TO SEE IT THAT
WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS. AND
SOME OF THEM OVERLAP THE, YOU
KNOW, BEING RELIABLE AND SAFE
WITH WITH THE PEOPLE THAT ARE
THERE TO HELP THE AMBASSADOR
PROGRAM AND THOSE THINGS, I
THINK HELP WITH THAT. BUT
EVENTUALLY WE HAVE TO GET THAT
RIDERSHIP BACK. THAT IS NOT, YOU
KNOW, JUST THE STUDENTS OR OR
THE, THE, THE PEOPLE THAT ARE IN
AREAS THAT THAT'S THEIR ONLY
TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE THOSE ARE
AREAS WHERE WE'RE GETTING
MINIMAL GATE RECEIPT AND, AND
THEREFORE YOU KNOW, THE BOX, SO
TO SPEAK, THE FAIR FARE BOXES
DON'T NECESSARILY SUSTAIN THE
SYSTEM. AND SO WE HAVE TO FIGURE
OUT, YOU KNOW, HOW WE GET THOSE
OTHER PEOPLE ON BOARD SO THAT WE
HAVE SOME MORE WAYS OF
SUSTAINING THE SYSTEM WITHOUT
MAKING THE POT FOR ALL OF THE
OTHER TRANSPORTATION ISSUES IN
CALIFORNIA, A LOT SMALLER,
BECAUSE OTHER AREAS ARE THAT ARE
GROWING RIGHT NOW, INCLUDING THE
REGION THAT I REPRESENT, ALSO
NEED TRANSPORTATION DOLLARS TO
DO THE INFRASTRUCTURE, BASIC
INFRASTRUCTURE. AND IN THE WORLD
OF TRANSPORTATION, IT'S, YOU
KNOW, CARS, BUSSES, BOTH NEED
ROADS. EVEN ELECTRIC CARS NEED
ROADS. THEN YOU GO TO THE RAIL
SYSTEM AS THE DENSITY
ACCOMMODATES THAT AND THE
DIFFERENT TYPES OF RAIL THAT ARE
AVAILABLE. AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE
TRYING TO MAKE THAT TRANSITION.
AND EVERY DIFFERENT AREA HAS
DIFFERENT LEVELS OF WHERE
THEY'RE AT. AND SO THOSE ARE THE
THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY
YOU CAN WORK WITH THE
LEGISLATURE AND MAKING SURE THAT
WE KNOW WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO
ALLOW YOU GUYS TO BE SUCCESSFUL.
AND THANK GOD THE ONTARIO
AIRPORT HAS RESURRECTED ITSELF,
BECAUSE THAT IS A GOLDMINE FOR
US, NOT JUST FINANCIALLY, BUT
FROM A FROM AN ECONOMIC
PERSPECTIVE. BUT FROM A, A USE
AND CONVENIENCE FOR THE PEOPLE
THAT LIVE OUT AND HAVE BRAVED
THE HEAT OF THE INLAND EMPIRE.
SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF
YOUR PRESENTATIONS. ARE VERY,
VERY HELPFUL AND I ENCOURAGE YOU
TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE
LEGISLATURE TO ADDRESS WHATEVER
IT IS THAT WE NEED TO DO TO MAKE
YOU SUCCESSFUL. THANK YOU.
BEFORE I ASK JUST A FEW
QUESTIONS AND MAKE A FEW
STATEMENTS, I JUST WANTED TO
REMIND THE PUBLIC WE'RE GOING TO
BE TRANSITIONING INTO PUBLIC
COMMENT. SO IF YOU'D LIKE TO
HAVE A QUESTION POSED, THERE ARE
CARDS THAT YOU CAN FILL OUT AND
PRESENT THAT TO THE STAFF, AND
WE WILL SURELY GET TO THEM. I
WANTED TO JUST FIRST OF ALL, ON
WHAT THE SENATOR WAS
HIGHLIGHTING IN TERMS OF HOW
TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE
EAGERNESS OF MEMBERS TO WANT TO
TRY TO FIND WAYS OF CONNECTING
INTO THE REGIONAL PLANNING AND
HOW PROJECTS COME OUT OF THAT,
AND THEN HOW THE STATE CAN PLAY
AN EFFECTIVE ROLE IN FINDING
RESOURCES AND THE GOAL LINE IS
CERTAINLY OR A LINE HAS BEEN
CERTAINLY HIGHLIGHTED TO TODAY
AS A KIND OF PROJECT THAT BOAST
OF THE SUPPORT OF AN ENTIRE
CAUCUS OF SAN GABRIEL VALLEY,
BUT ALSO LA COUNTY DELEGATES WHO
WEIGHED IN ON ON ITS SUPPORT AND
FUNDING. AND WITH THE SAN
BERNARDINO, SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTY HAS A DELEGATION AS WELL.
AND SENATOR CIOTTA, I BELIEVE,
IS THE CHAIR OR FORMER CHAIR OF
THE SAN BERNARDINO. YOU WERE THE
CHAIR. YEAH. OKAY. HE WILL BE
THE CHAIR AT SOME POINT OF THE
THANK YOU CHAIR OF A LOT OF
DIFFERENT THINGS. BUT JUST TO
HIGHLIGHT THE FACT THAT THERE
ARE LEGISLATORS IN THE SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY, INCLUDING
MYSELF, THAT HAS A PORTION OF
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY AND ALSO
LA COUNTY, BUT THAT DELEGATION
IS VERY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHEN
YOU ARE LOOKING FOR SOLIDARITY
AND SUPPORT, A BUILT IN UNIT OF
LEGISLATORS, ASSEMBLY MEMBERS
AND SENATORS WHO CAN THEN WRAP
THEIR ARMS AROUND A SPECIFIC ASK
AND THEN TO BE ABLE TO WORK
THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS WHERE
IT MAY HAVE FISCAL PRIORITY, OR
IF IT'S POLICY, THEN CERTAINLY
TO HELP. AS MICHAEL POINTED OUT,
HAPPENS OCCASIONALLY WITH THE
WITH LA METRO AND LARA. FRIEDMAN
AND OTHERS HAVE AUTHORED
LEGISLATION THAT SPACE. SO I
JUST ENCOURAGE SCAG AND OTHERS
TO REALLY MAYBE EVEN LOOK TO
MAKE PRESENTATIONS TO THE
DELEGATION SO THAT THEY HAVE.
AND I THINK THAT'S HAPPENED IN
THE PAST. BUT JUST TO STICK A
POINT, A PIN IN THAT, I ALSO
WANTED TO JUST ASK WHEN WE
TALKED ABOUT IN YOUR
PRESENTATION ABOUT GOODS
MOVEMENT AND UNDERSTANDING WHAT
WE WENT THROUGH OR CAME OUT OF A
PANDEMIC, WHICH WAS A 100 YEAR
PANDEMIC, AND WHAT IMPACT THAT
HAD ON SUPPLY CHAIN, AND THEN
ULTIMATELY, HOW IT'S HARD TO
PLAN FOR THOSE TYPE OF THINGS.
BUT CAN YOU KIND OF LOOK AT
LESSONS LEARNED OR HOW WE CAN
MAYBE PREPARE BETTER FOR
RESPONDING TO MOVEMENT OF GOODS
WHEN WE HAVE CERTAIN KIND OF
CATASTROPHES OR UNEXPLAINED
IMPACTS THAT THAT IMPACT OUR
SUPPLY CHAIN? SURE. AND
UNFORTUNATELY, I'M PROBABLY NOT
THE BEST ONE TO SPEAK TO THAT WE
DO HAVE A REALLY STRONG GOODS
MOVEMENT TEAM AT SCAG, BUT I
WOULD SAY IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE
WORKING ON WITH THAT AND KIND OF
UNDERSTANDING THOSE DYNAMICS AND
VULNERABILITIES IN THE REGION,
NOT TO MENTION THAT NOT JUST
THAT SPECIFIC INSTANCE, BUT JUST
HOW THE REGION HAS GROWN. WE
HAVE TWO OF THE LARGEST PORTS IN
THE WORLD. WE HAVE YOU KNOW,
WE'RE WE'RE SERVING THE COUNTRY
IN TERMS OF GOODS MOVEMENT. AND
THAT DOESN'T MEAN JUST OUR
TRANSPORTATION, BUT IN TERMS OF
LAND USE AND WAREHOUSING
FACILITIES. AND A LOT OF THAT IS
BASED IN THE INLAND EMPIRE. SO
WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON, WE
HAVE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT
PROGRAMS RELATED TO GOODS
MOVEMENT. SOME OF THAT IS LAST
MILE FREIGHT. SO HOW ARE WE
REDUCING THE EMISSIONS OF THE
GOODS MOVEMENT WITHIN OUR
REGION? AND LOOKING AT WAYS OF,
YOU KNOW, MORE THIS ISN'T
SOMETHING NECESSARILY THAT WE
WOULD IMPLEMENT AGAIN, BUT JUST
LOOKING AT HOW DO WE KEEP GOODS
CLOSER TO WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO
END UP AND, AND WORK ON HOW
GOODS ARE MOVING WITHIN THE
REGION? ALSO, ANOTHER ROLE THAT
SCAG IS PLAYING IS IN THE BASED
ON THE STATE GOALS, IS
TRANSITIONING THE GOODS MOVEMENT
SECTOR TO ZERO EMISSION. AND
THAT REQUIRES A LOT OF
COLLABORATION, NOT JUST WITH THE
PORTS BUT WITH THE PRIVATE
SECTOR. AND JUST CREATING THE
INFRASTRUCTURE. SO I THINK FOR
US, IT'S YES, WE ARE
UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PANDEMIC
AND THOSE THOSE HICCUPS AND KIND
OF JUST THE MANAGEMENT, BUT ALSO
HOW ARE WE TAKING A BROADER LOOK
AT HOW THE GOODS MOVEMENT SECTOR
FITS INTO THE REGIONAL
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM AND TO OUR
GOALS IN TERMS OF THE ECONOMY
AND THE ENVIRONMENT? APPRECIATE
THAT, STEVE. YOU'RE YOU'RE ONE
OF THE BIGGEST CHEERLEADERS FOR
THE INLAND EMPIRE THAT I'VE HAD
THE PLEASURE OF MEETING. AND I
APPRECIATE YOUR COMMITMENT. AND
SO I'D ASK THE QUESTION IN TERMS
OF SINCE SOME OF THE
CONVERSATION HAS REVOLVED AROUND
EXPANDING REGIONS AND GETTING
REGIONAL ACTIVITY AND
CONNECTIVITY, THE ONTARIO
AIRPORT SORT OF SITS RIGHT IN
THE MIDDLE, NOT ONLY OF SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY, BUT ORANGE
COUNTY AND PORTIONS OF LA
COUNTY. RIGHT. AND THAT'S PART
OF YOUR MARKET. WHEN WE'RE
LOOKING AT PROJECTS LIKE THE
GOLD LINE THAT'S GOING TO
COMPLETE, ARE THERE OTHER
PROJECTS THAT YOU CAN SEE FEET
AND YOU MENTIONED BRIGHT LINE
AND OTHERS THAT MIGHT COME FROM
THAT IN TERMS OF EXTENSION, ARE
THERE IS THERE A CONVERSATION
HAPPENING AROUND ORANGE COUNTY
AND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IN
TERMS OF CONNECTING TO THE
AIRPORT? RIGHT. THANK YOU FOR
ASKING THAT. YEAH, WE WANT
CONNECTIVITY FROM EVERYWHERE.
AND I KNOW THE PRESIDENT OF OUR
AIRPORT AUTHORITY HAS MADE
REALLY CLEAR THAT, YOU KNOW, ANY
AND ALL IDEAS WOULD BE TOTALLY
WELCOMED AND ENCOURAGED BY THE
AIRPORT. ORANGE COUNTY BEING ONE
OF THEM. THERE IS NOTHING IN
THE, THE PUBLIC SECTOR THAT
THAT'S BEING DISCUSSED. BUT I
THINK EVERYBODY'S LOOKING AT THE
BRIGHT LINE MODEL. AS YOU KNOW,
A LARGELY PRIVATE DRIVEN TYPE
TRANSPORTATION OPTION. AND COULD
THOSE APPLY TO ORANGE COUNTY, TO
RIVERSIDE COUNTY AND OTHER
PARTS? AND I KNOW THERE ARE
DISCUSSIONS AROUND THAT, BUT
NOTHING CONCRETE AT THIS POINT.
GOTCHA. WELL, I KNOW THAT THIS
THE VALUE OF THIS SELECT
COMMITTEE OVER THE LAST EIGHT
YEARS HAS AFFORDED ME THE
OPPORTUNITY AND MEMBERS THE
OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY START TO
LOOK BIG PICTURE. AND I THINK
THAT TO THE EXTENT THAT THERE
CONTINUES TO BE A COMMITTEE LIKE
THIS MOVING FORWARD, WHICH I
SUSPECT THAT THERE WILL BE, THE
SENATOR CERTAINLY IS POISED TO
CHAIR A COMMITTEE LIKE THIS,
BECAUSE I THINK THAT HAVING THAT
KIND OF INFORMATION GATHERING
AND SOLIDIFYING AROUND PROJECTS
THAT WE CAN, BECAUSE IT'S GOING
TO TAKE A WHILE, WHATEVER IT IS,
IT'S GOING TO TAKE RESILIENCY TO
STAY IN THE GAME AND FIGHT FOR A
WHILE TO MAKE SURE THAT WHETHER
IT'S FEDERALLY FUNDED OR LOCAL,
IT'S GOING TO REQUIRE A BROAD
BASE OF SUPPORT TO MAKE THAT
HAPPEN. SO I WOULD I WOULD JUST
ENCOURAGE THERE TO BE AN ONGOING
PROGRAM OF OUTREACH TO MAKE SURE
THAT YOUR PRIORITY ISSUES ARE
AND SB CGRTS ARE MAKING ITS WAY
TO, I THINK SOME AMAZING LEADERS
WHO ARE GOING TO WANT TO WRAP
THEIR ARMS AROUND THEM. NO, I
COULDN'T AGREE MORE. I THINK
THAT THE KEY WORD IN IN ALL OF
THIS IS COLLABORATION. YOU KNOW,
NO ONE PROJECT IS GOING TO FILL
ALL OF OUR NEEDS RIGHT? I MEAN,
IF WE THINK THAT THAT A 4.2 MILE
TUNNEL FROM THE CUCAMONGA
STATION TO THE AIRPORT IS GOING
TO FIX EVERYTHING THAT'S JUST
NOT REALISTIC. SO IT'S GOING TO
TAKE THIS VARIETY OF THINGS AND
A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT
JURISDICTIONS WILLING TO KIND OF
CROSS THAT THAT BARRIER AND WORK
TOGETHER. I TOTALLY AGREE. AND I
MEAN, YOU MAKE A GOOD POINT. THE
AIRPORT COULD BE A CATALYST FOR
THAT. THAT'S EXCITING. YEAH.
THANK YOU STEVE AND MICHAEL AND
SARAH FOR BEING A PART OF OUR
SECOND PANEL. AND I'D LIKE TO
THANK LASHAWN AND HABIB FOR
BEING A PART OF OUR FIRST PANEL.
YOUR PRESENTATIONS WERE VERY
ILLUMINATING, AND I THINK IT ALL
WHEN YOU LEAVE A HEARING LIKE
THIS, YOU WANT TO BE THINKING,
YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT GOING TO
PROVIDE ALL OF THE ANSWERS, BUT
IT IS GOING TO PROVIDE,
HOPEFULLY SOME THOUGHT PROVOKING
PATHWAYS THAT CAN BE OPENED UP
FOR COMMUNITIES TO BE ABLE TO
COME TOGETHER AND TO MAKE THEIR
VOICES HEARD. IF LA COUNTY HAD
NOT ENGAGED IN ALLOWED FOR THERE
TO BE A REGIONAL TAX MEASURE, M
MEASURE R OVER THE YEARS, I'M
NOT SURE WHERE THE GOLD LINE
WOULD BE. SO REGIONAL SUPPORT
AND COMMUNITY SUPPORT FOR SEEING
THE VALUE IN THESE PROJECTS OR
IS GOING TO BE PARAMOUNT. AND I
THINK THAT'S HOPEFULLY
COMMUNITIES ARE GOING TO THIS IS
A IS BEING LIVE STREAMED. SO I'M
HOPING OTHERS ARE PAYING
ATTENTION TO THIS IS GOING TO BE
A PART OF THEIR ENGAGEMENT WITH
LOCAL CITY COUNCILS AS WELL.
WE'RE GOING TO BEFORE WE TURN TO
THE PUBLIC COMMENT. AND AGAIN, I
THANK ALL OF OUR PRESENTERS FOR
BEING HERE AND I'M ENCOURAGED BY
THE COLLABORATIVE AND COMMUNITY
CENTERED APPROACH TO
TRANSPORTATION PLANNING AND
OPERATIONS SHOWN BY THE
PROVIDERS IN OUR REGION.
POLICYMAKERS, PLANNERS,
ADVOCATES AND GOVERNING BODIES
HAVE A LOT OF TO CONSIDER AS WE
PLAN FOR A MORE SUSTAINABLE
FUTURE AND PROTECTING OUR
ENVIRONMENT WHILE GETTING PEOPLE
AND GOODS TO WHERE THEY WANT AND
NEED TO GO. TOGETHER, WE CAN
DELIVER BETTER TRANSPORTATION
SOLUTIONS. AND SO I THANK YOU
ALL FOR BEING HERE, AND WE LOOK
FORWARD TO NOW HEARING FROM THE
PUBLIC. WE'LL TURN TO CLOSING
COMMENT. BUT BEFORE WE TURN TO
THE PUBLIC COMMENT, SENATOR, LET
ME JUST TURN TO YOU. IF YOU HAVE
ANY CLOSING COMMENTS THAT YOU'D
LIKE TO MAKE. YOU KNOW WHAT? I
DON'T HAVE ANY CLOSING COMMENTS,
BUT I DID HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION.
OUTSIDE OF FUNDING, WHAT'S THE
BIGGEST FRUSTRATION IN VERY
BRIEFLY, YOU CAN SAY IT IN ONE
WORD IF YOU WANT. BIGGEST
FRUSTRATION YOU FIND IN BEING
ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH THE MISSION
OF YOUR AGENCIES. I THINK
GETTING CONSENSUS OKAY,
CONSENSUS FROM PUBLIC CONSENSUS
FROM I THINK IT'S LAYERED. IT'S
ALL OF THEM. I MEAN, IT'S BUT
IT'S CRITICAL TO OUR BEING ABLE
TO SUCCEED. I MEAN, WE HAVE TO
HAVE CONSENSUS AT A PROJECT
LEVEL, CONSENSUS AT A BOARD
LEVEL. GO UP, GO UP. SARAH. NO,
NO. USING HIS. WELL, YOU TOOK
AWAY THE NUMBER ONE, WHICH IS
FUNDING. AND I THINK YOU KNEW
THAT. AND THAT'S WHY THAT WAS
OFF THE TABLE. BUT IF I CAN JUST
USE A MOMENT, I WAS REMISS IN MY
PRESENTATION NOT TO APPRECIATE
THE UPHOLDING OF THE REGIONAL
EARLY ACTION PROGRAM FUNDING FOR
THE REGION, BECAUSE THAT WAS THE
BIGGEST INFUSION THAT WE'VE EVER
HAD TO IMPLEMENT THE RPCS. SO
THAT'S BEEN HUGE. SO THEN BEYOND
THAT, IT HAS BEEN. AND IF IT'S
NOT, YEAH, COLLABORATION. I
THINK FOR US IT'S JUST THE YOU
KNOW, THE COMPLEXITY OF THE
REGION. I MEAN FOR US, WE'RE
DEALING WITH ALMOST 19 MILLION
PEOPLE. WE HAVE ALL KINDS OF
DIFFERENT SIZES OF JURISDICTIONS
AND, YOU KNOW, ALL KINDS OF
DIFFERENT NEEDS. SO I THINK IT'S
JUST FOR US BEING ABLE TO MANAGE
THAT COMPLEXITY AND BE ABLE TO
SERVE EVERY RESIDENT EQUALLY AND
EQUITABLY ACROSS THE REGION.
GREAT. STEVE, CAN I GIVE TWO
ANSWERS? YOU CAN GIVE TWO
ANSWERS. QUICK, EASY. ALONG THE
LINES OF COLLABORATION, THE
ARTIFICIAL, GEOGRAPHIC AND
JURISDICTIONAL BARRIERS THAT
EXIST. AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT,
JUST THE PURE GEOGRAPHY OF SAN
BERNARDINO COUNTY ALONE IS
20,000MI². I MEAN, IT'S IMMENSE.
THE REGION WE'RE SERVING
CERTAINLY A CHALLENGE. AND MY
CLOSING COMMENTS ARE THAT, YOU
KNOW, FOR ONE THING, THANK YOU
ALL FOR YOUR VALUABLE
PRESENTATIONS AND GIVING US THE
INFORMATION. THE BIGGEST THING
FOR, FOR LEGISLATORS TO KNOW IS
HOW THEY CAN BE HELPFUL, NOT
HURTFUL. AND YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES
WE CREATE PROCESSES AND WE
CREATE LAWS THAT REALLY STAND IN
THE WAY OF PEOPLE GETTING THEIR
JOBS DONE. AND THOSE ARE THINGS
THAT AS YOU GO FORWARD AND FIND
FRUSTRATIONS, BECAUSE I KNOW
THERE ARE SOME OTHER
FRUSTRATIONS OUT THERE BECAUSE I
SEE THEM ON THE CITY LEVELS ALL
THE TIME IN THE COUNTY LEVELS,
ALL THE TIME. AND THAT IS, YOU
KNOW, WHEN, WHEN STATE, STATE IS
BEING THE STATE IS BEING LESS
HELPFUL AND, AND MORE INTRUSIVE
THAN THEY NEED TO BE. AND THE
ONLY WAY WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE
DOING THAT IS IF YOU'RE LETTING
US KNOW AND HOW WE CAN BE
HELPFUL IN ENSURING THAT YOU
HAVE A PATHWAY TO GET YOUR
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. SO AGAIN,
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THIS IS ALL
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY
FOR THE FUTURE. YOU KNOW, I
WON'T BE AROUND TO SEE ALL THIS
STUFF, BUT MY KIDS CERTAINLY
WILL BE. AND MAYBE MY GRANDKIDS
AS WELL, IF THEY STILL LIVE IN
OUR STATE AND I'M HOPING THEY
WILL. BUT FOR ALL OF YOUR
EFFORTS, THAT'S WHY THEY WOULD
BE THERE, IS BECAUSE YOU GUYS
ARE MAKING THE EFFORT TO MAKE IT
SO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AND
CALIFORNIA IN GENERAL STAYS A
LIVABLE PLACE, AND THAT'S WHAT
WE NEED TO DO NOW. SO THANK YOU
SO MUCH AGAIN. AND APPRECIATE ME
BEING ABLE TO BE PART OF YOUR
PANEL TODAY OR THE DISCUSSION.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO WE'LL
TAKE OUR FIRST SPEAKER AND TIME
IS LIMITED TO 1 TO 2 MINUTES.
BRIAN GIANNETTI, WHO IS
REPRESENTING THE RAIL PASSENGER
ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA. HELLO.
GOOD AFTERNOON. I THINK IT IS
ALREADY CHAIR HOLDEN AND SENATOR
SUGIARTO, AND THANK YOU TO THE
CITY OF MONTCLAIR FOR HAVING
THIS MEETING. I'M VICE PRESIDENT
SOUTH OF THE RAIL PASSENGERS
ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA. MY
NAME IS BRIAN YANITY AND OUR
ORGANIZATION HAS LONG SUPPORTED
ELECTRIC TRAINS LIKE THE Ã GOLD
LINE LIGHT RAIL AND THE
INTERCITY HIGH SPEED RAIL.
BRIGHTLINE WEST. BUT WE HAVE
BEEN OPPOSED TO HYDROGEN TRAINS.
AND ALL THIS TALK ABOUT HYDROGEN
TODAY, THERE IS NO MENTION OF
WHERE IT'S ACTUALLY COMING FROM.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE HYDROGEN THAT'S
GOING TO THAT ARROW TRAIN
BETWEEN SAN BERNARDINO AND
REDLANDS, WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN
AN ELECTRIC LIGHT RAIL LINE FROM
THE START. CORRECT ME IF I'M
WRONG, BUT IT'S COMING FROM AN
AIR LIQUIDE PLANT IN RANCHO
CUCAMONGA, FROM NATURAL GAS,
HYDROCARBON, FOSSIL FUEL SOURCES
AND BEING TRUCKED WITH A DIESEL
TRUCK. TEN MILES OVER TO SAN
BERNARDINO. WITH ALL THOSE
EMISSIONS AND PUBLIC HEALTH AND
SAFETY IMPACTS OF HAVING A BIG
HYDROGEN TANK ON THE HIGHWAYS,
IT'S JUST HYDROGEN RAIL HAS AT A
VERY BAD TRACK RECORD IN GERMANY,
THE FIRST TWO PASSENGER
RAILROADS, WHICH INTRODUCE
HYDROGEN TRAINS HAS BEEN A
COMPLETE DISASTER. AND THEY JUST
RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THEY'RE NOT
MOVING FORWARD WITH THEM.
THEY'RE GOING TO SCRAP THEM. ONE
OF THE REGIONAL LINES AROUND
FRANKFURT, WHICH INTRODUCED
HYDROGEN TRAINS, THEY HAD SO
MANY CANCELLATIONS AND SO MANY
BREAKDOWNS. THE PASSENGERS WERE
SO ANGRY THAT THEY OFFERED FREE
SERVICE FOR TWO MONTHS, OR FREE
TICKETS FOR EVERYONE FOR TWO
MONTHS TO WIN RIDERS BACK. SO I
HOPE THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN HERE.
SO PLEASE GO WITH ELECTRIC
TRAINS AND NOT HYDROGEN. THANK
YOU. APPRECIATE THAT. MELBA
DENMAN UPDATE ON DRIVER PAINT
PART DRIVERS UNITED WELCOME.
WE'RE COMING TOGETHER BECAUSE
SPEAKERS AND THANK YOU SO MUCH
FOR ALLOWING US THE TIME TO DO
THIS. MY NAME IS MELBA DENMAN
AND I AM A FORMER DRIVER, BUT
ALSO ON THE COMMITTEE FOR
RIDESHARE DRIVERS UNITED. AND WE
ARE BASED RIGHT NOW OUT OF LOS
ANGELES. SO I'M JUST GOING TO
READ THIS QUICK NOTE WHO WE ARE.
RIDESHARE DRIVERS UNITED IS A
GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATION OF MORE
THAN 20,000 UBER AND LYFT
DRIVERS IN CALIFORNIA. WE ARE AN
INDEPENDENT ORGANIZATION OF
DRIVERS RUN BY DRIVERS
ADVOCATING FOR FAIR TREATMENT
AND PAY FOR PLATFORM DRIVERS. IN
CALIFORNIA, THE OUR CONTEXT FOR
ADDRESSING THIS GATHERING IS
UBER AND LYFT DRIVERS HAVE
BECOME AN ESSENTIAL PIECE OF
REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION ACROSS
CALIFORNIA, AND ESPECIALLY OUR
BIG METROPOLITAN AREAS OVER THE
PAST 8 TO 10 YEARS, A 2020
REPORT SHOWED THAT OVER 250
MILLION RIDES WERE COMPLETED IN
THAT YEAR. IN OUR STATE, WE HAVE
A DIRE SITUATION HERE AMONG OUR
DRIVERS DRIVING THOSE MANY RIDES
ARE PEOPLE LIKE US, ESTIMATED TO
BE MORE THAN 100,000 OF US IN
THE STATE. THEY ARE ALMOST NØ.
THERE ARE ALMOST NO SAFETY
REGULATIONS FOR THE INDUSTRY,
AND WITH PROP 22, THE
EXPLOITATION OF DRIVERS IS HARD
FOR MANY TO EVEN UNDERSTAND. OUR
PAY STUDY IN 2021 SHOWED THAT
DRIVERS, AFTER EXPENSES AND
ACCOUNTING FOR OUR COMPLETE LACK
OF SAFETY NET BENEFITS AFFORDED
MOST WORKERS, WE ARE MAKING LESS
THAN $6.20 AN HOUR. YOU WILL
CONTINUE. HI. HI. I CONGRATULATE
TO WHAT YOU'RE ALL DOING HERE.
IT'S A VERY BIG STEP AND WE HAVE
OUR PART. I'M SORRY. TELL ME
YOUR NAME. MY NAME IS YASHA.
OKAY. VOLUNTEER WITH RIDESHARE
DRIVERS UNITED. WHAT I WANT TO
TELL YOU IS THAT OUR OUR OUR
BASIC SAFETY, OUR NET
UNEMPLOYMENT, WORKMAN'S
WORKMAN'S COMP AND DISABILITIES,
WE DON'T HAVE IT. THAT'S GONE.
HEALTH BENEFITS. AS FAR AS PROP
22, WE ALL KNOW IT DOESN'T HELP
US. THE HEALTH STIPEND IS
COMPLETELY NOT THERE BECAUSE
WE'RE ALL GETTING MEDI-CAL. SO
BENEFITS DOESN'T WORK WITH US.
THE ACTIVATIONS HAPPENS ON THE
CONSTANT 6 TO 10 DRIVERS HAVE
HAVE BEEN BEEN THROWN UNDER THE
BUS. WHAT DO WE GET OUT OF IT?
NOTHING. WHERE DO WE GO? WE
DON'T KNOW WHERE TO GO. WE GO TO
ANOTHER COMPANY. WHAT ELSE CAN
WE DO? YEAH. SO WHILE WE PROVIDE
ESSENTIAL TRANSPORTATION TO THE
PEOPLE OF THE STATE, WE WORK
UNDER HORRIBLE CONDITIONS AND
OFTEN TAKE OURSELVES FILLING UP
GAS BETWEEN THAT OR GETTING A
PIECE OF SANDWICH. HOPEFULLY WE
COULD GET SOMETHING BY THE END
OF THE DAY. RIGHT. AND I DON'T
MEAN TO CUT YOU OFF, WE'RE JUST
TAKING 1 TO 2 MINUTES. BUT
YOU'RE BOTH WELL. BUT BUT YOU
COMBINED AND I THINK WE'RE LIKE
AT FOUR BUT BUT THAT'S OKAY. I
AND I AND I APPRECIATE IT'S DONE
VERY CLOSE. SORRY GUYS. AND LET
ME JUST SAY THIS. WE'RE TRYING
TO STAY TO A REALLY TIGHT TIME
FRAME. BUT AND YOU'RE A LITTLE
OFF A LITTLE OFF SUBJECT OF WHAT
WAS THE FOCAL POINT OF THE OF
THE HEARING. AND WE'RE NOT AND I
WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU GET A
SOLUTION TO, TO YOUR QUESTION.
OKAY. SO IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION
THAT YOU'D LIKE FOR US TO MAYBE
CARRY TO THE RIGHT AGENCY, THEN
WE'RE HAPPY TO DO THAT. OKAY.
I'LL JUST GO STRAIGHT TO THE
QUESTION, PLEASE, SINCE WE'RE
ALL TALKING ABOUT LIKE THE
OLYMPIC GAMES AND OTHER MAJOR
EVENTS. RIGHT? HOW ARE THE
PEOPLE AS FAR AS TRANSPORTATION
GOING TO GET AROUND MAJOR CITIES
WITHOUT ANY BLOCKAGES? LIKE WHAT
HAPPENED IN LAS VEGAS WITH THEIR
FORMULA ONE? THE STRIP CIRCUIT.
YEAH, YEAH. WHEN THERE WAS A LOT
OF BLOCKAGES, DRIVERS,
TRANSPORTATIONS NOBODY COULD
GET. SO YOU WANT TO IT WAS
IMPOSSIBLE. YEAH. I JUST WANT TO
HONE IN. WE'RE GOING TO GET
AROUND ALL THAT. I APPRECIATE
THAT. AND IT'S A FAIR QUESTION.
AND I THINK THAT WHAT WE CAN
PROBABLY DO IS WE'LL TAKE THAT
QUESTION AND WE'LL FIGURE OUT
MAYBE MORE THAN JUST ONE AGENCY.
IT MAY BE LOCAL, IT MAY BE
STATE. WHEN I SAY I MEAN
REGIONAL AND MAYBE STATE. BUT
LET US TAKE THAT QUESTION AND
GET AN ANSWER FOR YOU, PUT YOU
IN TOUCH WITH THE RIGHT AGENCY
THAT CAN GET YOU WHAT YOU NEED
AROUND THAT. BECAUSE I KNOW THAT
THE LOCAL PLANNING IS LÀ 28 FOR
THE FOR THE OLYMPICS. BUT
THERE'S METRO, THERE'S ALSO THE
STATE AND OTHERS THAT MIGHT BE
ABLE TO GET YOU SOME ANSWERS TO
THAT QUESTION. OKAY. THANK YOU
VERY MUCH I APPRECIATE IT. THANK
YOU. THANK YOU. BEEN PART OF
THIS HEARING. THANK YOU FOR
BEING HERE. THANK YOU. JUSTIN
SIMONSON. SIMONSON. THANK YOU.
HI, I'M JUSTIN SIMONSON. I'M A
CLAREMONT RESIDENT. TWO
QUESTIONS. FIRST, AS FAR AS THE
STATIONS GO, I'M HEARING ABOUT
POTENTIALLY NEW TRANSIT HUB AT
ONTARIO. I'M HEARING ABOUT A NEW
STATION IN RANCHO, AND WE HAVE
THE GOLD LINE EXTENSIONS THAT
I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT. BUT THE
PICTURES WEREN'T VERY PROMISING.
WE'RE REGULARLY HITTING 115°F
HERE IN CLAREMONT AND MONTCLAIR,
AND THAT'S 120 OUT IN ONTARIO.
IT'S GOING TO BE HOTTER IN TEN
YEARS. IT'S GOING TO BE HOTTER
TEN YEARS AFTER THAT. DO WE HAVE
INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE IN THESE
NEW STATIONS THAT WILL ALLOW
PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY COMFORTABLY
USE THE METRO RIGHT. IF WE CAN'T
MAKE IT MORE COMFORTABLE THAN
DRIVING, DRIVING ON THE LA
FREEWAYS IS HELL. BUT IF WE
CAN'T MAKE IT MORE COMFORTABLE,
HELL, WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET
RIDERSHIP FROM ANYONE ASIDE FROM
THOSE WHO HAVE NO OTHER OPTIONS.
AND MY SECOND QUESTION IS ABOUT
FUNDING. I KEEP SEEING FREEWAY
EXPANSIONS, MORE LANES ADDED,
AND WE KNOW THAT ONLY ADDS TO
FREEWAY CONGESTION. SO WHY ARE
WE STILL WASTING MONEY ON THAT?
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WOULD YOU
IS THERE SOMEONE ON THE PANEL
THAT WOULD LIKE TO MAYBE TAKE
THE SECOND QUESTION? AND THEN ON
THE ISSUE OF THE PLANNING FOR
MAKING SURE THAT THE STATIONS
ARE REFLECTIVE OF CLIMATE CHANGE
AND ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF
COMFORT, I CAN YEAH, I CAN
ADDRESS THE SHELTER ISSUE
BECAUSE THAT IS A BIG CHALLENGE
WE FACE. AND THE BOARD HAS BEEN
GRAPPLING WITH THAT BECAUSE WE
HAVE A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF
TRANSIT BUS STOPS, PRIMARILY
AROUND THE COUNTY. SO THE
ABILITY TO PROVIDE SHELTER TO
THOSE PEOPLE IS VERY IMPORTANT.
NOT SUPPOSED TO TALK ABOUT
FUNDING, BUT THAT WILL BE A
SIGNIFICANT FUNDING CHALLENGE.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT THE THOUSANDS
OF BUS STOPS WE HAVE AROUND THE
COUNTY. OKAY. AND THERE'S THE
BOARD IS DOING AN ONGOING PUBLIC
CONVERSATION AROUND HOW THAT IS
GOING TO BE ADDRESSED. SO MAYBE
WE CAN DIRECT MR. SIMONSON TO A
METRO BOARD MEETING THAT THAT
MIGHT BE ON THE AGENDA, OR HOW
WOULD YOU DIRECT? YEAH, WE CAN
GET THE WEBSITE, GET THEM THE
INFORMATION TO CONTACT TO OUR
BOARD MEETINGS. AND THERE'S SOME
OTHER INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT
WE'RE DOING ABOUT THAT ON OUR
WEBSITE. SOUNDS GOOD. AND THEN
IF I CAN ADDRESS THE ROADWAY
EXPANSION FROM A REGIONAL LEVEL
AND WHAT'S IN OUR PLAN, THE
MAJORITY OF LIKE I HAD GONE
THROUGH LIKE THE BREAKDOWN OF
THE BUDGET FOR THE PLAN IS ON
OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AND
THEN ON CAPITAL PROJECTS. THERE
ARE SOME ROADWAY PROJECTS. I
DIDN'T CALL THIS OUT, BUT IN
TERMS OF THE HIGHLIGHT FOR THE
PLAN, A LOT OF THE INVESTMENTS
IN ROADWAYS FOR TRANSITIONING TO
THE REGIONAL EXPRESS LANES
NETWORK, WHICH IS AIMED AT
HELPING WITH OVERALL CONGESTION.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF HOW WE
DEVELOP THE PLAN. SO ANY SORT OF
CAPACITY EXPANSION PROJECTS THAT
MAY BE IN THERE, A LOT OF THEM
ARE LEGACY PROJECTS THAT HAVE
BEEN IN IN THE PLAN AND IN THE
COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
PROJECT LIST FOR A LONG TIME. SO
I THINK I CAN'T SPEAK TO ANY OF
THOSE IN PARTICULAR, BUT IN
TERMS OF LIKE THE BIG PICTURE,
THE MAJORITY OF THE INVESTMENTS
IN THE PLAN ARE OPERATION AND
MAINTENANCE, THEN TRANSIT, AND
THEN THERE'S SOME GOODS MOVEMENT
PROJECTS TO ADDRESS. KIND OF TO
YOUR QUESTION, MAKING SURE THAT
WE MOVE GOODS EFFICIENTLY
THROUGH THE REGION. I APPRECIATE
THAT. AND AS WE WHEN WE ADJOURN,
THERE MAY BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR
QUICK MINGLING AMONGST THOSE WHO
HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR
CLARIFICATION. OUR NEXT SPEAKER
IS I'M GOING TO JUST SAY THE
FIRST NAME OR IS THE LAST NAME
ABDUL? YES. WELCOME. GOOD
AFTERNOON. THANK YOU FOR TAKING
ME TO TALK. I SIMPLY CHRIS, MR.
CHRIS ALDEN, MR. KELLY, I
REPRESENT DRIVERS THAT COMPANIES
THAT DO CHARTER CARRIERS. OKAY.
I'M A VETERAN TOO. ALL RIGHT.
AND WHEN IT COMES TO LOGISTICS
AND TRANSPORTATION MOBILITY, I
UNDERSTAND BECAUSE I WAS
DEPLOYED TO AFGHANISTAN TOO. SO
WE COMPANIES WERE THE CHARTER
CARRIERS ARE TRYING TO FIGURE
OUT HOW DO WE PLAY A ROLE IN
FILLING THIS GAP ON THE MOBILITY
ASPECT? OKAY. AND ANOTHER
CONCERNS WE HAVE IS MOSTLY LIKE
SAFETY ISSUES, LIKE DROPPING
OFF, PICKING UP PEOPLE AND
MAKING IT ACCESSIBLE FOR US TO
COME IN. OKAY, INTO THOSE AREAS
LIKE THOSE METRO AREAS,
AIRPORTS. ACTUALLY, I WAS I WAS
AT A LARA MEETING YESTERDAY. SO
COMING IN TO PICK UP PEOPLE, YOU
KNOW, THERE'S IT'S GOING TO BE
IT'S GOING TO MAKE IT EASY FOR
US TO JUST TRANSPORT BACK AND
FORTH. AND THE OTHER THING IS I,
I RUN A COMPANY HERE AND I RUN
COMPANIES, ALL THE STATES, ALL
RIGHT. AND HOW DO WE COMPANIES
IN THE CHARTER CARRIERS COMPETE
OR FILL IN THIS GAP INSTEAD OF
UBER OR LYFT MONOPOLIZING THE
SYSTEM? ALL RIGHT. BECAUSE WHAT
YOU GUYS ARE DOING IS I MEAN,
CALIFORNIA IS DOING IS HUGE.
I'VE BEEN TO A LOT OF COUNTRIES.
MY MOM IS FROM EDINBURGH.
EDINBURGH HAS A VERY GOOD
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM, AND I
FEEL THIS IS GOING TO PROBABLY
TAKE 30 YEARS OR FOUR YEARS TO
DO. THE WAY I SEE IT, BUT I WE
FEEL THAT METRO, I DO HAVE A LOT
OF CERTIFICATION FROM METRO. I
DID GET MY CERTIFICATION FROM
METRO, AND I DO FEEL THAT WE
NEED TO BE BROUGHT IN INTO THIS
BECAUSE COMPANIES INTO
TRANSPORTATION, SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA ITSELF, NOT ONLY
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, WE ARE LOST
AND WE ARE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
WHAT'S GOING ON. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU. MICHAEL, YOU MIGHT
WANT TO I KNOW THAT IN THE
DESCRIPTION OF WHAT YOU'RE
DOING, YOU HAD MENTIONED THE LAX
PROJECT AND HOW THERE WOULD BE
KIND OF A CARVE OUT FOR UBER,
LYFT, AND I'M ASSUMING CHARTER
WOULD BE A PART OF THAT. BUT
MAYBE YOU CAN ELABORATE. YEAH.
WELL, THE FACILITY WE'RE
BUILDING IS THE METRO AIRPORT
CONNECTOR IS A CONNECTION FOR
OUR K LINE. THE REGIONAL BUS
SERVICE. AND THEN THERE'S A
SEPARATE UBER AND LYFT LOT THAT
LAX IS DEVELOPING. WE'LL HAVE TO
CHECK ABOUT HOW CHARTER CARRIERS
CAN ACCESS THAT BECAUSE I'M NOT
SURE HOW THAT WORKS. WE HAVE I
MEAN, WE HAVE WE HAVE VERY LARGE
BUS FACILITY, BUT I'M NOT SURE
OF HOW THE CHARTER OPERATORS FIT
INTO THAT. BUT WE CAN WE CAN
CERTAINLY FOLLOW UP. SO YOU
RAISE A GOOD POINT, AND I THINK
IT'S CERTAINLY ONE THAT I'M
SORRY, BUT THE ACTION TAKEN BY
THIS MICROPHONE. YEAH. BUT WHAT
HAPPENED IS THEY ACTUALLY
COMBINE CHARTER CARRIERS WITH
TNC TOGETHER, WHICH THEY ARE NOT
SUPPOSED TO DO EVEN IN THE CITY.
YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THEY HAVE TAXI
ZONES AND THEY, THEY INCLUDE
CHARTER CARRIERS. WE PAY A LOT
TO THE TO CALIFORNIA AND TO THE
CITY. RIGHT. AND WE ARE LIKE,
OKAY, WE ARE LEFT OUT FROM
EVERYTHING. LET ME JUST SUGGEST,
I THINK THAT MICHAEL'S INDICATED
THAT THERE MAY BE A CONVERSATION
TO BE HAD AND MAYBE SOME
DIRECTION THEY ACTUALLY ALLOW US
ACTUALLY SENT ME AN EMAIL. I
JUST SAW THE EMAIL JUST NOW.
OKAY. BUT I'M STILL GOING TO
HAVE THE MEETING WITH LA COUNTY,
LA CITY TO DISCUSS. AND SOME OF
US ARE STILL GOING TO COME.
OKAY. YOU KNOW, BUT WE'RE JUST
TAKING A STEP BY STEP. THANK
YOU. I APPRECIATE YOU RAISING
THE ISSUE. I APPRECIATE IT,
BERNARD KARMITZ. WELCOME. THANK
YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO
ADDRESS THE PANEL TODAY. AND
CONGRATULATIONS FOR ALL THE
INFORMATION YOU'RE PRESENTING.
I'M A RETIRED LEGISLATIVE
LIAISON WITH THE STATE ON
TRANSPORTATION, AND I'M JUST
ADDRESSING AND REFLECTING ON A
STUDY THAT WAS DONE BY A
CLAREMONT COLLEGE PROFESSOR
REGARDING THE IMPACT THE
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF THE
GROWING HUB OF WAREHOUSES IN
RIVERSIDE COUNTY. AND I WANTED
TO GET SOME ADDITIONAL COMMENT
FROM THE SENATOR IN PARTICULAR
ABOUT WHAT IS BEING DONE TO
ADDRESS THE POLLUTION AND THE
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES THAT ARE
SURROUNDING THAT GROWING ISSUE.
THANK YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU.
HAPPY TO ANSWER. OKAY. FOR ONE
THING, THE GOVERNOR JUST SIGNED
A BILL THAT I DID NOT AGREE WITH
LIMITING THE CITIES AND LOCAL
AGENCIES ABILITY TO CONTROL A
LOT OF THAT PART OF THE
DISCUSSION OF THAT WAS THE
DIESEL PARTICULATE THAT'S GOING
TO BE EMITTED FROM THESE VARIOUS
WAREHOUSES. AND, YOU KNOW, YOU
HAVE TO ALSO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT
WHERE THOSE GOODS, GOODS COME
FROM EVENTUALLY AND WHERE THEY
GET DISTRIBUTED TO. AND THE
RESPONSE OF COMPANIES TO HELP
MEET THE DEMANDS OF CONSUMERS.
NOWHERE IN MY LAST IN 20 YEARS
AGO, I COULD NEVER ORDER
SOMETHING ONLINE AND EXPECT IT
TO BE AT MY HOUSE AT 3:00 IN THE
AFTERNOON AND NOW THAT'S ALMOST
A DEMAND THAT THE CONSUMERS HAVE.
THEY WANT THAT CONVENIENCE IN
ORDER TO MEET THAT CONVENIENCE,
THEY HAVE TO HAVE DISTRIBUTION
CENTERS THAT ARE CENTERED IN
AREAS THAT ARE LOCATED CENTRAL
TO SAN DIEGO, EAST OF US,
NORTHERN, YOU KNOW, UP IN THE
DESERT AREAS, AND ALSO SOME
ORANGE COUNTY. BUT SO THE DIESEL
PARTICULATE THAT YOU'RE TALKING
ABOUT IS GOING TO GO AWAY,
RIGHT? WE'RE DOING ELECTRIC CARS
AND ELECTRIC TRUCKS. WE'RE
MAKING WE'RE SPENDING GOBS AND
GOBS OF MONEY DOING THAT
TRANSITION. AND SO EVENTUALLY
THAT'S NOT THE ISSUE. THE REAL
ISSUE WITH THE WAREHOUSES IS
THEY'RE NOT PARTICULARLY
ATTRACTIVE IF YOU'RE LIVING IN
THAT COMMUNITY. AND THE TRUCKS,
WHETHER THEY'RE ELECTRIC OR
DIESEL OR WHATEVER TYPE OF FUEL
THEY USE, THEY'RE LARGE, THEY GO
SLOW AND THEY OBSTRUCT YOUR
VISION WHEN YOU'RE TRYING TO
DRIVE. THAT'S WHAT'S IRRITATING
TO ME. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET
PAST THAT BECAUSE WHEN WE HAVE
GOODS MOVEMENT IN CALIFORNIA, WE
CAN'T JUST HOLD IT ALL AT THE
PORT AND THEN HAVE ALL THE
TRUCKS TRYING TO GET TO THE
LOCATIONS THAT THEY GO NOW. SO
IT'S MORE CONVENIENT FOR THEM TO
MOVE THOSE GOODS, ESPECIALLY AT
NIGHT, TO GET THEM INTO THOSE
WAREHOUSES. SO THOSE TRIPS
TRAFFIC INTO THE VARIOUS
LOCATIONS OF THE VARIOUS RETAIL
LOCATIONS THAT THEY NEED.
THEY'LL BE ABLE TO DO THAT
WITHOUT CLOGGING UP EVEN MORE.
THE FREEWAYS OF THE 60, THE TEN,
THE TWO, TEN, YOU KNOW, ALL OF
THEM THAT COME EAST AND SO, YOU
KNOW, THERE'S A BALANCING ACT TO
BE HAD BETWEEN CONSUMER DEMAND
AND WHAT WE'RE BUILDING. AND
ALSO WHAT THE PRIVATE INDUSTRY
SEES AS THE, THE NEED AND AN
OPPORTUNITY. AND SO RIGHT NOW,
THE CITIES, THERE'S BEEN SOME
PUSHBACK BY CITIES. AND WE NEED
TO ALLOW THE CITIES TO DO THAT.
WHAT WE DID WAS STATE
INTERVENTION. AND NOW WE'VE ALSO
CLOSED THE DOOR A LITTLE BIT ON
ON THE LOCAL AGENCIES AS FAR AS
THEIR PLANNING ABOUT TRAFFIC, I
MEAN, TRUCK ROUTES IN THEIR
COMMUNITIES. AND THEN ALSO WE'VE
PUT SOME EXPENSES ON THOSE
CITIES BECAUSE SOME HAVE ALREADY
DONE THEIR CIRCULATION ELEMENTS.
THEY ALREADY HAVE THEIR TRUCK
ROUTES, BUT NOW THEY HAVE TO
OPEN IT UP AGAIN AND DO THAT. SO
THERE'S A BALANCE. AND FOR ME
IT'S ABOUT LOCAL CONTROL.
RIVERSIDE COUNTY SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTY AND ALL THE CITIES THAT
ARE IN THERE ARE PERFECTLY
CAPABLE. AND THEY ALSO HAVE VERY
ACCESSIBLE ELECTED OFFICIALS
THAT CAN DEAL LOCALLY WITH THE
PROBLEMS AS THEY PRESENT LOCALLY.
THERE'S NO ONE SIZE FITS ALL IN
CALIFORNIA. WE KEEP TRYING TO DO
IT, BUT IT DOESN'T WORK. SO
THAT'S WHAT I HAVE TO SAY ABOUT
THE THAT ISSUE. WE'LL BE
MONITORING IT TO ENSURE THAT THE
CONSUMERS GET WHAT THEY WANT,
THAT THE COMPANIES ARE ABLE TO
BE SUCCESSFUL, THAT WE'RE NOT
CREATING MORE TRAFFIC THAN WE
WOULD ORDINARILY IF WE DIDN'T
HAVE THEM. AND THAT YOU KNOW,
THEY FIT IN WITH WHAT WE'RE
DOING. THE LAST THING I DID WANT
TO MENTION, ONE MORE THING. IT'S
WHERE A LOT OF THESE ARE BEING
BUILT ARE ON THE CORRIDORS OF
THE FREEWAYS, ALONG THE
CORRIDORS. AND THAT'S EXACTLY
WHERE THE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
FOLKS DON'T WANT HOUSES TO BE
BUILT. SO THE QUESTION BECOMES,
WELL, WHAT THE HECK DO YOU PUT
THERE? AND ALSO THEY DO PROVIDE
A BUFFER BETWEEN THE FREEWAYS,
THE CORRIDORS, THE TRAIN
CORRIDORS. IF YOU IF YOU THINK
THE 215 FREEWAY, FOR INSTANCE,
THEY PROVIDE A BUFFER BETWEEN
WHERE THE HOUSING TRACKS ARE AND
THE FREEWAYS, AND WE HAVE ONE OF
THOSE THAT WE BUILT. AND IT
WASN'T A WAREHOUSE. IT WAS JUST
A SHOPPING CENTER TYPE OF THING.
IN MURIETTA, WHERE WE HAD A
NEIGHBORHOOD THAT ALL THEY HEARD
WAS FREEWAY NOISE, AND NOW THEY
DON'T. AND SO IT KIND OF
PROTECTS THEM FROM THAT, TOO. SO
THERE'S A LOT TO IT. AND I HOPE
I EXPLAINED IT IN ABOUT TWO IN
AN APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF TIME
AND APPRECIATE THE QUESTION.
THANK YOU. I JUST WANT TO AND
AGAIN, I APPRECIATE ALL OF THE
QUESTIONS THAT WERE RAISED. WE
ALSO HAD QUESTIONS THAT WERE
BROUGHT TO OUR ATTENTION ON THE
LIVE STREAM. AND SO WE'LL BE
RESPONDING TO THOSE AS WELL. AND
I JUST WANT TO AGAIN THANK THE
STAFF AND THE MAYOR AND THE CITY
COUNCIL FROM MONTCLAIR FOR THEIR
HOSPITALITY. TODAY, I WANT TO
ALSO RECOGNIZE AND APPRECIATE MY
STAFF BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I AM
NOT NEARLY AS EFFECTIVE AS I
APPEAR TO BE. IF I DID NOT HAVE
SOME GREAT FOLKS WORKING WITH
ME, AND I JUST WANT TO CALL THEM
OUT, MATT LYONS, WHO'S BEEN SORT
OF MY ASSISTANT TO KIND OF KEEP
THE MEETING MOVING COMFORTABLY,
CATHERINE DEL ROSARIO, WHO IS
AND ALSO MATT IS MY DEPUTY
DISTRICT DIRECTOR, WHO
REPRESENTS THE EASTERN PART OF
OUR CITIES IN THE DISTRICT.
CATHERINE DEL ROSARIO, MY
DISTRICT DIRECTOR IN THE BACK.
THANK YOU, CATHERINE AND
HICKENBOTTOM. THANK YOU FOR YOUR
GREAT WORK, TIMMY MACKEY, THANK
YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND KAREN
WINGARD, WHO YOU MET AS YOU
CHECKED IN AND THANK YOU, KAREN,
WITHOUT THAT KIND OF SUPPORT,
THEN OF COURSE I'M NOT NEARLY AS
EFFECTIVE. SO I WANT TO ALSO
RECOGNIZE THEM. AND THIS IS
REALLY KIND OF OUR OUR LAST
MEETING OF THIS TYPE. AND OF
COURSE, I TURN OUT AT THE END OF
NOVEMBER. BUT THIS HAS BEEN AN
AMAZING EXPERIENCE FOR ME, AND I
THINK WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO
COLLABORATE ON THE LOCAL LEVEL,
BUT ALSO ON THE REGIONAL LEVEL
TO GET SOME GOOD WORK DONE. AND
IT'S NOT JUST ONE MEMBER THAT
DOES IT. IT'S A IT'S A COMMUNITY
OF PEOPLE WHO COME TOGETHER AND
VOICE THEIR CONCERNS. AND THOSE
WHO SPOKE AT PUBLIC COMMENT,
YOUR THIS IS PART OF THE PROCESS
TOO. AND SO I THANK YOU FOR THAT.
THAT BEING SAID, THANK YOU FOR
ALL BEING HERE. THIS MEETING IS
ADJOURNED.