Resolution 5333 - Laserfiche WebLink

Executive Summary Project Overview Since the last Comprehensive Transit Service Plan was developed for Everett Transit in 1994, much has changed in the Everett Transit service environment, both physically and in a regulatory sense. The City of Everett has undergone considerable growth since the last Comprehensive Plan was completed, increasing travel and traffic congestion and presenting other challenges to both transit and highway planners in the Everett region. The passage of Initiative 695 by the voters of Washington State in the Fall of 1999 significantly reduced the amount of state funding available to public transit systems and to municipalities, causing many cities and transit systems to contract services and to seek alternative sources of funding. While the passage of 1-695 did not significantly impact Everett Transit, ET's ability to expand services and programs to meet additional needs was severely curtailed. Other changes have taken place since the last comprehensive plan update. Sound Transit has developed into a regional transit provider in the central Puget Sound region and during the past few months, Community Transit, a sub-regional service provider, has significantly reduced its operations in the City of Everett. Everett Transit stakeholders have come to expect that Everett Transit would step in and provide many of the services formerly provided by Community Transit within the City. The recommendations of the Comprehensive Plan Update reflect many of the views and opinions of the Everett community as expressed during the conduct of this project. As a result, the findings of this study represent a new and expanded role for Everett Transit as a manager of transportation programs as well as a provider of public transportation services. Recent economic conditions constitute a challenge to Everett Transit's expanded transportation expectations. Sales tax collections in the City have fallen far short of expectations, forcing Everett Transit to implement short-term reductions in service in 2004 in order to maintain financial stability. While these service contractions are viewed as temporary in nature, they do represent a transitory retreat from many of the recommendations of this project. Project Recommendations The project recommended actions cover a number of functional areas, including service recommendations, both fixed route and demand response as well as recommendations on other transportation-related programs and policies. These will be summarized in the following sections. Perteet Engineering,Inc. Page i