Administrative
Report
H.9., File # 22-5263 Meeting Date: 12/20/2022
To: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
From: CAMERON HARDING, COMMUNITY SERVICES DIRECTOR
TITLE
APPROVE THE 2023 PUBLIC TRANSIT AGENCY SAFETY PLAN FOR BEACH CITIES TRANSIT
AS REQUIRED FOR FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION GRANT RECIPIENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
As a Municipal Transit Operator, and recipient of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funds, Beach Cities Transit (BCT) must comply with FTA’s safety requirement to develop a Public Transportation Agency Safety Plan (PTASP). The purpose of the PTASP is to improve public transportation safety by guiding transit agencies to manage safety risks more effectively and proactively in their systems.
The federal regulation requires regular updates to the plan to be compliant with regulatory and program changes. City Council approved the initial BCT PTASP on December 1, 2019. The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) included changes to the PTASP requirements. The regulatory changes have been incorporated into the BCT PTASP update (Version 2).
FTA requires that the PTASP be approved by the public transportation system governing body, City Council, by December 31, 2022. The BCT PTASP must be certified by the City Manager and Accountable Executive, the Community Services Director, after approval by the City Council.
BACKGROUND
The PTASP requires public transportation operators to develop and implement safety plans that establish processes and procedures that support the Safety Management System’s (SMS) comprehensive and collaborative approach which helps manage safety through the improved control of risk, early detection and correction of safety problems, sharing and analyzing safety data more effectively and through more precise measurement of safety performance. As part of PTASP requirements, transit agencies must set safety performance targets in their safety plans based on safety performance measures that include fatalities, injuries, safety events and system reliability. The PTASP is required to be updated annually, and FTA will assess compliance with the PTASP through its triennial oversight review program.
The BIL, signed by President Biden in November 2021, amended the PTASP regulations. The changes have been incorporated in the BCT PTASP Version 2. The BIL amended the FTA’s safety program 49 U.S.C. Section 5329(d) which requires the establishment of a Safety Committee. In addition, the BIL requires transit agencies to address strategies to minimize exposure to infectious diseases, consistent with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or State health authority guidelines, and strategies to reduce the risk of assaults on transit workers.
The BCT PTASP is designed to establish more accountability in developing and maintaining a safety
H.9., File # 22-5263 Meeting Date: 12/20/2022
The BCT PTASP is designed to establish more accountability in developing and maintaining a safety culture in transit operations by identifying an Accountable Executive that has the ultimate responsibility for ensuring a safe environment for BCT employees and passengers, and has access to the human and capital resources needed to implement and maintain the PTASP. The BCT PTASP Accountable Executive is the Transit Division’s Department Director (Community Services Director), the City Manager or a City Manager Designee. The PTASP also details the roles of key staff within the BCT transit operations contractor, Transportation Concepts, which is the General Manager and Safety Trainer, and the City’s Transit Division, which is the Transit Manager and support staff, in the development of a safety culture. The Safety Committee, and related responsibilities, have been incorporated into Version 2. These roles include instituting methods to identify potential hazards and monitor safety risk mitigation activities, and providing periodic reporting on safety performance and the identification and correction of physical hazards to increase safety awareness.
The PTASP also updated safety performance targets that will be reviewed and updated annually.
The specific performance targets are based on the safety performance measures established under the National Public Transportation Safety Plan. These performance targets include annual goals for reportable fatalities, injuries, safety events and system reliability.
To effectively implement the PTASP, a major component of the plan is clear and open communication of safety concerns and safety performance information throughout the organization. The plan identifies various methods to be used by BCT to communicate with employees including: Employee Safety Meetings and Safety Training, Safety Bulletin Boards and Bulletins and Information Flyers Provided to Transit Operations Staff.
COORDINATION
The PTASP was updated based on current regulatory guidance and is under final review by the Safety Committee. The initial PTASP was developed in coordination with Transportation Concepts.
FISCAL IMPACT
The PTASP serves as a guide for the identification and management of safety risks and does not commit Redondo Beach to specific expenditures. Recommended safety management activities and safety enhancements are included in the Transportation Concepts operations agreement. Other costs outside of the Agreement will be included in the Transit Fund during the annual budgeting process. General Funds do not support Transit operations or programs.
APPROVED BY:
Mike Witzansky, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
· Beach Cities Transit Public Transportation Agency Safety Plan Update Version 2 · Beach Cities Transit Public Transportation Agency Safety Plan, December 1, 2020