Bus Technology & Maintenance
AppalCART – Boone, NC
Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts
Capital District Transportation Authority – Albany,
NY
Capital District Transportation Authority – Albany,
NY
Central Florida RTA (LYNX) – Orlando, FL
Centre Area Transit Authority – State College, PA
City of Calgary, Alberta
City of Edmonton, Alberta
Delaware Transit Corporation (DTC)
Greater New Haven Transit District – Hamden,
CT
Illinois Department of Transportation – Chicago,
IL
Jacksonville Transportation Authority – Jacksonville,
FL
Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority
(LANTA) – Allentown, PA
Montgomery County, Maryland
Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority
Flagstaff, Arizona
Norwalk Transit – Norwalk, CA
OMNITRANS – San Bernardino, CA
PACE Suburban Bus – Chicago, IL
Phoenix Public Transit - Phoenix, Arizona
Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission
(PRTC) – Woodbridge, VA
Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) of Southern
Nevada – Las Vegas, NV
Rochester-Genesee Regional Transportation Authority – Rochester, NY
SAMTRANS - San Francisco, CA
San Diego Metropolitan Transit System – California
The City of Glendale, CA
Toronto Transit Commission – Toronto,
Ontario
Topeka Metropolitan Transit Authority (TMTA) – Topeka,
KS
Transit Cooperative Research Board • Project No. C-15
Westchester County Department of Transportation – White
Plains, NY
Wichita Falls Transit – Wichita Falls,
TX
Yolo County Transit District – Woodland, CA
York Regional Transit– Ontario, Canada
Transit Management
Human Services Transportation Consortium – Bridgeport,
CT
Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools – Edgartown,
MA
Martha’s Vineyard Regional Transit Authority – Edgartown,
MA
York County Transit Authority – York, PA
Transit Planning & Management
Consulting
Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG) Long Range Transit Plan
Independent Assessment of Fremont/Newark Transit Services for AC Transit
City of Menlo Park Community Transit Plan
City of Paso Robles Short Range Transit Plan and Marketing Plan (2006)
Imperial Valley Association of Governments El Centro Circulator Shuttle Study
Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation (COAST) – Portsmouth/Dover,
NH
Imperial County Transit – El Centro, CA
SLOCOG – San Luis Obispo, CA
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2003
In March 2003, AppalCART experienced a major bus fire on bus B5.
This bus was a 1995 Blue Bird, 35-foot bus. TRC contracted with
AppalCART to send an inspector to view bus B5 and determine the
cause of the fire.
According to a report published by the U.S. Department of Transportation
in 1988, most bus fires are caused by the electrical system and
electrical components. These fires can be fed by a variety of bus
materials such as upholstery, filters, plastics, and liquids such
as hydraulic oil, antifreeze, engine oils, and fuels.
Such was the case with the fire on AppalCART’s B5 bus. The
initial cause of the fire was due to a direct short of the heavy
battery cables to ground, followed by the burning of a diesel fuel
line that was in direct contact with the battery cables.
TRC presented AppalCART with a comprehensive report which included
a sequence of events, major findings, and other photographic support
to our conclusions, as well as recommendations for AppalCART to
prevent reoccurrence of this costly event on the remainder of their
fleet.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2006 - Present
Boston College provides a substantial campus bus operation to link its several campuses which are located in different parts of the Boston metropolitan area. Boston College owns the Gillig bus fleet which it leases to a private bus operator. The private operator is responsible for operation and maintenance of the buses.
Boston College retained TRC to conduct a mid-life engineering review of its Gillig bus fleet to determine if the fleet was in a state of good repair, and to evaluate mid to long term strategies for fleet management and replacement. This evaluation considered a number of options including:
- Run-out of the current fleet without a mid-life rebuild
- Mid-life rebuild of the current fleet
- Phased replacement of the current fleet
- Fleet replacement with fleet leasing program coupled with a maintenance package.
- Complete fleet replacement at a stage earlier than full life cycle
TRC identified important deficiencies in the maintenance program of Boston College’s bus fleet, made recommendations for maximizing Boston College’s economic investment in its current bus fleet, and presented recommendations on long-term fleet acquisition and management strategies.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1998
The CDTA selected TRC to conduct quality control inspections on
82 Orion VI 40 foot buses. TRC supported CDTA during seven-days-per-week
production schedules, and assisted CDTA on engineering modifications
at the beginning of the production run.
CDTA also contracted with TRC to carry out Post-Delivery Buy-America
Audits on this fleet of 82 Orion buses, as well as a previous purchase
of a group of Orion II small buses.
Working from the success of these contracts, CDTA then placed
TRC under contract to carry out vehicle inspection services on
23 NABI buses.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2003 to Present
TRC recently conducted a comprehensive fleet condition audit
for the Capital District Transportation Authority as part of
an overall assessment of the maintenance department of this 280
bus transit system. The fleet condition audit encompassed a total
evaluation of the physical condition and maintenance records
of 75 buses selected at random from the 280 bus fleet. Findings
from the fleet audit were reported separately then incorporated
into the overall maintenance department evaluation.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2005 to Present
To assess the effectiveness of its fleet maintenance operation, the Central Florida Regional Transportation Authority (LYNX), Orlando, FL, selected TRC to benchmark its overall performance, identify deficiencies, and make meaningful recommendations. Following a site visit to become familiar with LYNX’s operation, TRC approached the project in two tasks. In Task I TRC conducted a physical audit of a random number of buses and their related maintenance records to obtain a general indication of the overall fleet condition and the agency’s approach to maintenance documentation.
After analyzing the initial Task I findings, TRC conducted a more complete investigation of LYNX’s maintenance department with a focus on:
- Content, accuracy, legibility and consistency of maintenance-related records;
- Maintenance information system (MIS) utilization;
- Adherence to schedule preventive maintenance inspection (PMI) intervals;
- Administration of fluid analysis program to detect early sign of major component damage;
- Maintenance workflow process, policies and procedures;
- Outsourcing of goods and services;
- Tire program management;
- Safety and hazardous materials handling;
- Maintenance facility condition and utilization;
- Technical training and workforce adequacy;
- Workforce morale and management;
- Procurement and materials management;
- Warranty management;
- Monitoring of maintenance performance; and
- Comparing the maintenance performance of LYNX to similar agencies.
TRC recently completed its Phase II evaluation of LYNX and comprehensive action plan that established priorities for addressing the needs of LYNX’s maintenance department. In doing so TRC identified the deficiencies observed and the corrective actions needed, ranked all remedial actions to be taken according to the most urgent in terms of safety and service reliability, and identified the resources, timeframe and estimated costs required to make LYNX’s maintenance operation more efficient and cost effective.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2007
The Centre Area Transit Authority (CATA) operates a joint campus/community transit system for Penn State University, the town of State College, and surrounding communities. CATA operates a fleet of about 55 CNG powered 40 foot transit buses from a relatively new facility.
The retirement of CATA’s long time maintenance director became the occasion for CATA to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of its maintenance program, including an assessment of what to do about its aging bus feet in the face of inadequate capital funding sources.
CATA retained TRC to carry out the evaluation of its maintenance program, to develop recommendations for a fleet renewal program, and to recommend a reorganization of the maintenance department’s management structure.
TRC inspected CATA’s fleet and facilities, interviewed virtually the entire maintenance staff, analyzed CATA’s capital financial plan, evaluated CATA’s draft fleet replacement plan, conducted an engineering assessment of CATA’s CNG infrastructure, and reviewed CATA maintenance staffing levels against peer transit systems.
TRC’s final report recommended ways to reorganize the layout of the current facility to maximize its utility without a major capital expansion. TRC also made recommendations for a more cost effective deployment of CATA’s management personnel; savings from this reorganization of staff would make funds available to hire additional technicians to reduce the number of buses per mechanic. For the renewal of its bus fleet, TRC recommended a carefully crafted overhaul of the CNG fleet while efforts are made to secure replacement funding.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2001 to Present
The City of Calgary has repeatedly contracted with TRC to
perform bus quality control inspection services at New Flyer’s
facilities. TRC currently is inspecting a fleet of 41 forty-foot
New Flyer buses. Prior to this TRC has inspected a group
of 50 New Flyer buses assembled at the Crookston facility.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2000 to Present
Since June 2000, TRC has been under contract with the
City of Edmonton, Alberta, Division of Mobile Equipment
Services, to provide technical support services to the
City during its acquisition of 130 New Flyer diesel buses.
TRC’s resident inspectors have worked on three separate
bus orders, including a group of 8 articulated buses, which
have been assembled in Winnipeg and St. Cloud.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2001 to 2002
The Delaware Transit Corporation selected TRC to conduct
in-plant inspection services during the manufacture
and delivery of 57 wheelchair lift-equipped paratransit
vehicles from the Goshen Coach Corporation in Elkhart,
IN. In addition, TRC conducted Pre-Award and Post-Delivery
Buy America Audits for Delaware Transit Corporation.
TRC recently completed inspection services on a group
of 63 forty-foot, heavy-duty transit buses, including
44 low-floor and 19 standard-floor models from NABI
at their Budapest, Hungary, and Anniston, AL plants.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1994 to Present
The Greater New Haven Transit District (GNHTD) acts
as a consolidated purchasing agent statewide in Connecticut
for procurement of paratransit vehicles for many
different transit organizations.
TRC has a multi-year consulting contract to provide
technical support services to GNHTD. These services
include development of paratransit vehicle specifications,
bid evaluations, contract negotiations with manufacturers,
in-plant quality control inspections, and FTA Buy
America Audits. During the contract term, TRC has
assisted GNHTD with the specifications, procurement,
and in-plant inspections of approximately 250 paratransit
vehicles
TRC conducted a series of maintenance turnover audits
for GNHTD when it was in the process of taking in-house
its paratransit operation from a private contractor.
These audits were preliminary and final and were
intended to help the District receive its buses back
in good operating condition.
TRC also assisted GNHTD in acquiring its own maintenance/administration
facility following their decision to move operations
in-house. TRC conducted a planning analysis to determine
the optimal location for GNHTD’s maintenance
center and once the best area was identified, TRC
conducted a comprehensive search in this area for
existing industrial-rated properties suitable for
a transit maintenance center. After the candidate
sites were identified, TRC then examined them through
extensive field visits and follow-up analyses. These
assessments evaluated each property for such issues
as access to the road network, zoning, capacity for
current and future operating requirements, functional
layout, structural integrity, and potential conflicts
with surrounding businesses. From this process TRC
identified a preferred site that best met GNHTD’s
needs. TRC then assisted the District in acquiring
this site and preparing it for occupancy. In this
final phase of the project, TRC assisted the District
in negotiations for the purchase of the property
and managed all of the implementation tasks, including
environmental assessments, final functional design,
shop layouts, selection and acquisition of vehicle
lifts and other shop equipment, and installation
of fuel tanks.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2001 to Present
TRC was awarded a 5-year contract by the Jacksonville
Transportation Authority (JTA) to conduct bus manufacturing
quality assurance inspections and Buy America Audits.
During this 5-year contract, TRC conducted new bus
inspections at Gillig and NovaBus. Each inspection
project has involved between 12 and 25 buses at least
once per year.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1996 to Present
TRC has provided LANTA with vehicle inspection
services and related technical support on several
projects involving the purchase of new city transit
buses.
Recent and current projects involve the manufacture
of buses at New Flyer Industries. Inspections have
been completed at the Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Crookston,
MN, plants.
Technical support services have been provided
to LANTA on warranty issues and Post-Delivery Buy
America Audits.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2007
Montgomery County, Maryland recently retained TRC to conduct a 100 percent fleet turnover audit on 93 medium-duty paratransit vehicles prior to a change in service contractors. The County recognized that the fleet was not being well maintained and wanted to conduct a turnover audit which documented the outgoing contractor’s liability, and provided a base line for the fleet condition for the fleet condition before the new contractor took over possession of the fleet. TRC documented over 2,100 significant defects in the County’s transit fleet, including many Class “A” defects that required vehicles to be removed from service until repairs were made.
Subsequent to the completion of the audit, the County retained TRC to calculate the cost of repairs to this fleet.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2007
The Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority (NAIPTA) provides transit service to the Flagstaff-Sedona area and coordinates its services with the transit system servicing Northern Arizona University.
NAIPTA contracts out its bus maintenance to outside private contractors, but operates the buses with its own staff. NAIPTA does not currently have its own maintenance facility.
NAIPTA engaged TRC to carry out an evaluation of the effectiveness and costs of its bus maintenance program, and to determine if the bus fleet was operating at high safety standards.
TRC performed thorough inspections of 20 per cent of NAIPTA’s bus fleet to develop an independent data base on the fleet’s condition. TRC also conducted extensive interviews with NAIPTA staff as well as the outside maintenance contractor staff to gather information about NAIPTA’s maintenance program. TRC also conducted extensive evaluations of technical training and workforce adequacy of the maintenance workforce that services NAIPTA’s buses.
Other areas of focus during NAIPTA’s maintenance audit included procurement and materials management, warranty management, safety and regulation compliance, maintenance performance monitoring, and maintenance costs. This audit uncovered a number of important deficiencies in NAIPTA’s fleet maintenance program. Based on the audit findings TRC recommended that NAIPTA accelerate its plans to build a new maintenance facility, and that it should consider leasing an interim facility until the new facility can be built. TRC recommended also that NAIPTA move to take maintenance in-house in order to reduce the high costs and inadequate results of using outside commercial maintenance contractors. TRC recommended also that NAIPTA institute a formal maintenance monitoring program and acquire a suitable maintenance information software program.
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SCOPE OF SERVICE
2003 to Present
Transit Resource Center has worked with Norwalk
Transit (NT) for five years on various project
assignments. Initially he worked with NT to complete
an overall assessment of their current maintenance
facilities (built in the late 1940’s) and
P.M. program.
TRC reviewed the architectural plans for the
new maintenance facilities, made a number of
recommendations, and was an advisor during the
start-up and completion of the entire project.
Recently TRC completed a facilities review before
the official dedication and is currently involved
with development of a facilities study for safety
and state compliance issues.
TRC is also working on a maintenance department
policy and procedures manual as well as technical
training on bus inspection, repair, and P.M.
maintenance service functions specific to each
type of bus in the NT fleet.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1997 to 2002
OMNITRANS, the transit system serving the
San Bernardino, CA area has contracted TRC
to conduct in-plant Quality Assurance Inspections
on a group of 30 Orion buses. TRC inspectors
reviewed production activities in Mississauga,
Ontario, during frame assembly, and conducted
in-plant inspections and final testing of the
fleet at the Oriskany, NY plant.
OMNITRANS also contracted with TRC to inspect
a total of 105 paratransit vehicles at Goshen
Coach in Indiana, and a group of 44 New Flyer
buses assembled in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and
Crookston, MN.
TRC recently completed a contract with OMNITRANS
to inspect a fleet of 30 New Flyer buses in
both Winnipeg and Crookston.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to 2004
TRC has completed two large contracts with
PACE Suburban Bus in Chicago, IL, to provide
engineering support and quality assurance inspection
services on two separate orders of buses, including
151 Orion buses and 140 ElDorado paratransit
vehicles. These projects required considerable
coordination of resources, multiple inspection
teams, and resolution of many technical engineering
problems during production. TRC currently is
performing in-plant quality control inspections
on 385 NABI buses for PACE.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2007
The city of Phoenix Public Transit System contracts out 100 per cent of its bus operations and fleet maintenance to private transit contractors. Nearly 800 buses are divided among several contractors. In 2007 Phoenix Public Transit changed contractors for its Westside operations which owns about 95 fixed route buses. Phoenix Public Transit contracted with Transit Resource Center (TRC) to conduct a turnover fleet maintenance audit of 100 per cent of this bus fleet prior to the new contractor assuming responsibility for its maintenance.
TRC sent a team of inspectors to audit the fleet condition and provide a report to the City. Every bus was inspected on an inspection pit, then road tested. All maintenance records for every bus were examined. Fluid sample analyses were performed on engines and transmissions on all buses.
TRC then prepared an interactive report on the whole fleet on a CD Rom which allowed the City to sort fleet defects by make, model, year, and by type of defect on all 95 buses subject to the fleet audit.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to Present
In 2002, the Potomac & Rappahannock
Transportation Commission (PRTC) retained
TRC to provide multi-year fleet maintenance
consulting services on its fleet of 90 commuter
buses and local transit buses. In the first
year of the project TRC conducted a 100%
maintenance audit of PRTC’s active
bus fleet as a means of reviewing the performance
of PRTC’s third-party contractor.
TRC more recently conducted the first phase
of a turnover bus maintenance audit following
a decision by PRTC to change bus contractors
in mid-2003. Both of the above audits involved
a detailed a physical inspection of every
bus, including performing oil sample analysis
on the fleet, testing all A/C units, reviewing
maintenance records, and analyzing the cost
of deferred maintenance.
TRC also provides a variety of miscellaneous
maintenance consulting services to PRTC.
These projects have included an investigation
into the causes of a bus fire, the review
of a contractor’s bus maintenance plan,
the preparation of Buy America audits, and
inspection of new buses.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1996 to 2003
The Regional Transportation Commission
of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas was one
of the first U.S. transit systems to
purchase buses from North American Bus
Industries (NABI). The RTC purchased
46 articulated buses from NABI, whose
production facilities are based in Budapest,
Hungary and Anniston, Alabama.
TRC was selected to conduct in-plant
inspection services at NABI as well as
pre-award and post-delivery audits for
Las Vegas. As a result of winning this
contract, TRC became one of the first
American firms to conduct bus inspection
services in Hungary. With the success
of this first project, and with TRC’s
work experience at NABI’s plants,
the RTC of Las Vegas again selected TRC
to conduct inspection services on another
order of 60 NABI forty-foot buses. Inspection
work involved both the Budapest and Anniston
plant sites.
Recently, TRC served as the prime contractor
to provide engineering support and bus
inspection services for the high-profile
Las Vegas Irisbus project. Irisbus is
supplying its Civis BRT vehicles with
optical guidance systems and are built
entirely in France. TRC provided on-site
support over the two-year period of production
of this unique fleet.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2007
The Rochester-Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA) engaged Transit Resource Center to evaluate the feasibility of merging its two separate maintenance garages, one of which served its large, fixed route buses, and the other which served its mid-size paratransit bus fleet.
The fixed route garage served 248 standard and articulated buses, while the paratransit garage served about 50 vehicles.
The evaluation focused on the feasibility of the merger and the economic effect it would have for the RGRTA. Total employment numbers, labor contract issues, mechanic specialization, maintenance facilities, service lanes, storage, employee parking, and operational concerns were all addressed in this analysis.
The analysis resulted in several findings, including the following key conclusions:
- The RGRTA paratransit garage was insufficient for the existing paratransit fleet, a condition which was expected to grow gradually worse since the paratransit fleet was forecast to grow by sixty-three percent (63%) over the next 5 to 10 years.
- The merger of the paratransit and fixed route maintenance garages would require a major capital improvement program to accommodate the paratransit fleet at the existing East Main Street facility. Capital expenditures of $5 million over ten years would be needed to accommodate the merged fleets of the two divisions at the existing fixed route base.
- The economic impact on RGRTA operating costs would be quite negative as a result of merging the lower paid paratransit employees with the higher paid fixed route employees. The added labor costs were expected to exceed greatly the saving that would come from merging the two garages.
TRC recommended that the RGRTA plan and implement a new paratransit maintenance facility in central Rochester which would accommodate the growth of the paratransit system. This could help RGRTA avoid the added labor costs that would accompany the merger of two distinctly separate work forces with a significant difference in wages and benefits. Moving the paratransit garage closer to the center of paratransit ridership was expected to reduce vehicle deadhead costs.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2006 - Present
The Sam Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans) awarded TRC a multi-year contract to conduct quarterly bus maintenance audits and turnover audits of its contracted Urban Bus Service (CUBS). This contract is designed to monitor the on-going fleet condition of 57 forty-foot transit buses that are contracted out to a private service provider. TRC conducts a full-scale audit of part of the fleet on a quarterly basis. This involves a physical inspection of the vehicles, testing of oil samples, a review of maintenance records, and the development of a comprehensive data base which records trend lines in fleet condition over time.
The contract also provides for the performance of turnover audits of 100 percent of the fleet in the event of a change in service contractors.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2004
The San Diego Transit Corp. a unit of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS), observed a number of frame cracks in the turntable area of some of its 60 foot articulated buses. The MTS engaged TRC to carry out an inspection and testing program to catalogue the extent of the frame cracking problem, and to conduct a testing program to determine if an earlier campaign to retrofit these buses with larger, heavier engines was the cause of the frame cracks. TRC was also charged with the task of designing an engineering solution to the problem.
TRC conducted a thorough inspection and testing of twenty per cent (20%) of the fifty (50) buses in the articulated fleet.
Following an initial visual inspection of all of the selected buses, TRC cleaned and sandblasted the frames in the effected areas, and then performed dye penetrant testing of these same areas on the frame. The procedure highlights cracks that are not visible readily to the naked eye.
After completing an examination of the affected areas and surrounding weldments, TRC conducted dynamic load tests on four (4) of the selected buses. Buses were driven in simulated revenue service over regularly scheduled routes. All frame cracks were found to be around the articulation joint.
Based on TRC’s testing and evaluation, TRC concluded that the engine retrofit program was not responsible for the frame cracks. Instead the cause was rooted in improper maintenance of hydraulic rams in the articulation mechanism, and hyperextension of the articulation joint during backing maneuvers. The latter was added by the malfunctioning of many of the anti-jackknife alarms on the buses.
TRC designed an engineering repair for the frames, which was implemented by the transit system.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2006 - Present
The City of Glendale, CA awarded TRC a contract to conduct quarterly fleet maintenance audits and ADA reviews of the contractor that operates the City of Glendale’s transit buses. This contract is designed to monitor a fleet of thirty-five (35) transit buses to ensure that they meet all federal, state, and CHP safety standards and that they are being maintained in ways that will maximize their useful life while remaining compliant with ADA regulations.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1996 to 2003
Since April 1996, TRC has provided
continuous vehicle technical support
services to the Toronto Transit Commission,
the largest transit operator in Canada.
The first phase of this project involved
the TTC’s purchase of 235 forty-foot
Orion buses. The order was sub-divided
into 135 diesel, standard-floor buses,
50 CNG-powered buses, and 50 low-floor
buses. TRC’s role in this project
involved the provision of in-plant
quality control inspections, re evaluation
of vehicle specifications, and assistance
in designing and implementing engineering
modifications to many features on the
buses during this production run.
Working from the success of the Orion
project, the TTC retained TRC to provide
vehicle inspection and technical support
services on an order of 50 forty-foot
NovaBus buses manufactured at Roswell,
NM, and 50 buses from New Flyer of
America.
Currently, TRC is under contract with
the TTC to inspect a total of 121 paratransit
buses being produced by Starcraft.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1999
TRC was engaged to manage a comprehensive
bus procurement program for the TMTA.
The project involved the development
of vehicle technical specifications,
overall bid specifications, and procurement
management services involving review
and evaluation of vendor requests for
approved equals, vendor bids, compliance
with specifications, management of
best and final offer, and contract
negotiations with the vendors.
In addition, TRC recently provided
in-plant bus inspections for the TMTA
for twenty-six (26) Gillig buses manufactured
at Hayward, California.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2004-2008
TRC along with West Virginia University and Battelle was selected by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) to evaluate hybrid, diesel and compressed natural gas (CNG) buses under the TCRP C-15 project. TRC’s primary role was to produce a life cycle costing (LCC) model, the first major one of its kind, to compare various transit bus propulsion options. The model is unique in that unlike other such efforts, TRC made sure that the tool is objective and would not become obsolete shortly after being developed. Instead, TRC built in flexibility so the model could be used over time as technologies mature and agencies gain additional information. To achieve this, TRC staff designed the LCC model to include a series of default costing values based on current data. To provide the needed flexibility, the model also offers users a low and high range as comparison alternatives. Most importantly, the model allows users to manually input costs based on the latest information and agency-specific conditions.
TRC utilized its vast understanding of bus technology and maintenance to develop costing inputs that reflect a thorough understanding of diesel, hybrid and CNG buses being compared and made every effort to ensure LCC results are not skewed or biased. To do so, TRC relied on vendor-supplied information only as a starting point, but then used its extensive contacts to verify costing data with transit agencies that have actual experience with the buses and bus products being evaluated.
In some cases, experiences are either non existent or limited and LCC projections need to be made. These projections must be made by individuals that have a solid understanding of the products/vehicles involved, any impending legislation, and other factors that will affect the final LCC outcome. TRC is well aware of this and made future projections based on its comprehensive understanding of the related issues involved. And as additional information becomes available over time, the user is not “stuck” with preset values but instead can add more current costing data to make the analysis timely and accurate.
The C-15 LCC model developed by TRC automatically accounts for inflation based on historical trends, fuel pricing trends, and future maintenance costing predictions. Again, an important feature of this LCC model is the ability of the user to override specific inputs as needed by manually inserting recent costing data.
To make the model easy to use TRC based it on a standard Excel program, elements of which can easily be modified by agency personnel to conduct LCC evaluations. The user-friendly program includes step by step instructions to allow even those with basic computer skills to maneuver through the program with ease. In addition, information boxes located in the program contain instructions that “pop up” when needed to assist users. The complete C-15 report including the model is expected to be published in 2008.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to 2003
Westchester County, New York is a
non-attainment area under federal air
quality standards. The County is under
pressure to take remedial actions to
reduce emissions from its fleet of
385 diesel buses.
Westchester County DOT retained Transit
Resource Center to undertake a program
of bus emissions tests to evaluate
the effectiveness of several potential
emissions control strategies.
TRC, in conjunction with the heavy
equipment testing laboratories at West
Virginia University, conducted research
into all available technologies for
reducing diesel fuel emissions on WCDOT
buses.
After collecting on-board data to
map the typical duty cycle of WCDOT
buses, TRC then shipped two Westchester
County buses down to the testing laboratories
at West Virginia University. There
they were outfitted with competing
after-treatment emissions control devices
and operated on WVU’s dynamometer
using selected types of diesel fuels.
Emissions outputs were measured for
various particulate and chemical elements.
Results of these tests were subjected
to rigorous analysis, and recommendations
were prepared for Westchester County
on the best combinations of fuel types
and emissions treatment systems.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2003
The City of Wichita Falls, Texas
owns and manages the Wichita Falls
Transit System, which operates a
fleet of twelve (12) 33-passenger
handicapped buses. Although the transit
system was eligible to purchase a
new bus through the Texas Department
of Transportation’s (DOT) Vehicle
Replacement Program, the Texas DOT
rejected the City’s application
because the specified bus was not
powered by alternative fuels.
In the summer of 2001, the Texas
Transportation Commission notified
the Texas Department of Transportation,
Public Transportation Division that
Commission approval of funding for
all public transportation purchases,
including vehicle capital replacement
(VCR) program purchases, would be
continent upon the vehicles being
alternatively fueled.
Because of this new development,
the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Planning
Organization (MPO) contracted with
TRC to undertake an independent study
of the costs and impacts of converting
the Wichita Falls Transit System
to the use of alternative fuels.
Additionally, TRC evaluated the feasibility
of expanding the transit system alternative
fuels program to other municipal
vehicles such as school buses, automobiles,
Type II and Type III vehicles, and
other heavy equipment.
The findings of this study were
documented and presented to Wichita
Transit in a comprehensive final
report which included an overview
of the range of propulsion and fuel
alternatives for buses, clean diesel,
and liquefied petroleum gas.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2001
YCTD contracts with Laidlaw to operate
and maintain a fleet of forty-three
buses owned by YCTD. In September
2001 a changeover in contractors
took place.
YCTD contracted with Transit Resource
Center to conduct a turnover maintenance
audit to identify the mechanical
defects of each bus so that Laidlaw
could make the necessary repairs
before the new contractor assumed
the fleet. The turnover audit was
conducted in two phases. The first
phase analyzed the current condition
of the fleet, existing Laidlaw maintenance
records, and denoted critical defects
requiring immediate attention. The
second phase focused on determining
if Laidlaw had repaired the defects
requiring immediate attention. Each
bus was summarized by whether or
not the repair was made.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2004
Transit Resource Center recently
provided interim fleet maintenance
management services to the York County
Transit Authority (YCTA) in York,
PA. The YCTA operates a fleet of
85 transit buses of various types.
The maintenance shop is open 7 days
a week on two shifts. TRC directed
all maintenance operations through
a resident maintenance manager who
was assisted by special maintenance
support personnel on TRC’s
central office staff. The scope of
TRC’s work included running
all day-to-day maintenance operations
while carrying out a complete turnaround
program of the maintenance department.
This included development of a comprehensive
preventive maintenance program, formal
evaluation of technician skills,
development and implementation of
in-house maintenance training programs,
restructuring of lines of responsibility,
and recruiting of new technician
talent.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to Present
The Human Services Transportation
Consortium (HSTC) is a non-profit corporation
that for 25 years has served the consolidated
transportation needs of a wide variety
of school and social service agencies
throughout Fairfield County, Connecticut.
For the past ten years or so, HSTC
has operated out of a former Post Office
maintenance facility in Bridgeport,
Connecticut.
Faced with swiftly deteriorating operations
and finances, HSTC retained TRC to
conduct a “turnaround” operation
on the agency. TRC guided HSTC successfully
into a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy and has
proceeded to help HSTC restructure
its operations and repair its financial
condition. HSTC is now growing again
and taking on new contracts.
As HSTC’s operations have begun
to expand, and as its fleet size begins
to exceed 40 vehicles, the company
has found its operations are hampered
by the inadequacies of the former Post
Office garage facility.
As part of its program to rebuild
the HSTC organization, TRC began an
evaluation last year of HSTC’s
future maintenance facility needs.
This evaluation began with an operations
plan forecast of HSTC’s projected
fleet size over the next 10 years.
This forecast assumed that HSTC would
need to accommodate not only its current
fleet of paratransit vehicles, but
also full size diesel buses.
A location analysis was undertaken
to determine the optimal areas where
a new maintenance facility should be
located. This analysis determined that
it was important for HSTC to keep its
maintenance/operations center close
to the source of HSTC’s driver
labor pool. This meant that any new
facility would need to be close to
the central cities of Bridgeport or
Stratford even if deadhead miles could
be reduced by choosing another area.
This study effort is now at the stage
of identifying and evaluating specific
real estate sites for the new maintenance
facility. This evaluation is focusing
on the modification of existing properties
since there is very little available
land for new construction in the area
where there is access to the labor
pool needed to operate the company.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2004 to Present
Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools
recently contracted with Transit
Resource Center to provide school
bus services for the Martha’s
Vineyard Public School system. TRC
operates this contract through a
subsidiary corporation, Martha’s
Vineyard Coach Lines, Inc. The company
manages and operates 22 Model Year
2000 school buses for the transportation
of school children on regular school
bus routes and other special trips
for sports, field trips, etc.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to Present
Martha’s Vineyard Regional
Transit Authority (VTA) is a public
transportation organization providing
year round fixed route and paratransit
bus service bus services to the Island
of Martha’s Vineyard, specifically
the towns of Tisbury, West Tisbury,
Oak Bluffs, Chilmark, Aquinnah, and
Edgartown. Due to the seasonal nature
of Martha’s Vineyard, the bus
system increases from three routes
daily in the winter to approximately
18 routes daily in the summer.
VTA selected TRC for a multi-year
management contract to operate fixed
route and paratransit services with
a fleet of 34 vehicles throughout
Martha’s Vineyard. TRC formed
an operating subsidiary, Transit
Connection, Inc., to recruit, schedule,
and pay the vehicle operators. TRC
provides a General Manager and two
Transit Supervisors to manage the
operation. Mr. Champ has provided
technical support to the General
Manager to ensure operational efficiency.
A significant challenge each year
is the recruitment of seasonal qualified
vehicle operators. Recruitment efforts
have included college students and
Europeans on work visas. TRC has
implemented a new training program
to provide competent vehicle operators
during the busy summer months.
Transit Resource Center has developed
detailed policies and procedures
that provide vehicle operators with
a very clear understanding of application
procedures, training requirements,
employee classifications, pay rates,
bonus program, discipline program,
drug free workplace program, and
details of the daily routine.
Transit Resource Center also has
developed a comprehensive safety
program for VTA operations. It included
establishing training standards to
ensure vehicle operator safety, safety
ride checks, and a safety awards
program.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2003
The Civis vehicle is marketed
by Irisbus as an alternative to
steel wheel light rail systems
and is the only known, guided BRT
project in revenue service operation
in the world currently in production.
TRC, in association with its French
engineering partner Semaly, recently
contracted with York Regional Transit
to conduct a Vehicle Engineering
and Operational Feasibility assessment
of the Civis articulated Bus Rapid
Transit vehicle produced by Irisbus.
A final report was given to YRT
which included a technical description
and assessment of the main sub-systems,
production process, bus quality
assurance plan, vehicle design,
life-cycle analysis, and operational
feasibility analysis of the Civis
bus.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2005 - PRESENT
TRC is the prime consultant for developing the Long Range Transit Plan (LRTP). The core effort is to develop a Visionary Scenario that matches the transit service levels and transit needs of the SACOG Blueprint vision as well as projected demographic changes. Interviews have been completed with the transit operators and external stakeholders to solicit input on the future vision of public transportation in the SACOG region. Workshops were held with the Sacramento RT Executive Management group and the Transit Coordinating Committee. Based on this input, a working paper on transit demand thresholds was developed and was recently distributed to the operators.
Phase I of the LRTP is complete and focused on developing a 2005, 2012, and 2032 baseline transit network, demand analysis,and financial plan based on known and adopted funding sources. Recently adopted transit operator Short Range Transit Plans are being utilized for the 2012 baseline transit network and financial plan. A series of meetings were held with Sacramento Regional Transit (RT) staff to develop a 2012 and 2035 baseline network in their service area. The team has worked extensively with SACOG modeling staff to validate the 2005 transit network in the SACMET model and to provide an accurate reflection of existing services that can be utilized in both Phases I and II. The 2035 baseline transit network is being adjusted to reflect the 2035 Blueprint map. The effort will result in a fully validated baseline alternative for comparison with the four MTP 2035 alternatives.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2004
Transit Resource Center was hired by AC Transit and the cities of Fremont and Newark to complete a comprehensive assessment of the nine AC Transit routes provided in this auto-dominated southern area of AC Transit. TRC and Transit Marketing developed a series of working papers on 1) Best Practices of Community Oriented Transit; 2) Market research report on over 50 key informant interviews, four focus groups, and an on-board survey; 3) Evaluation of existing transit network; and 4) Three service-based scenarios combining mainline fixed route and community oriented transit. Based on input from a Technical Advisory Committee and Policy Advisory Committee, a final plan was adopted in September 2005. Significant interest has been generated by community stakeholders and the AC Transit Board in doing business in a whole new way in the Fremont and Newark service area. This will likely include 15-20 minute service on several key mainline routes during peak periods, seven new community service routes, three commuter shuttles to BART, and a demand response service that matches BART hours.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
1997 - Present
Transit Resource Center was hired to conduct two studies: 1) an evaluation of the Menlo Park mid-day shuttle service, a community service route designed to serve the needs of seniors and the disabled; and 2) to design an employee transportation questionnaire and write up the survey results. Recommendations to the mid-day shuttle service for seniors resulted in a doubling of ridership, and a reduction in the cost of a passenger trip from $11.34 to $4.62. Transit Resource Center now has an ongoing technical assistance contract to provide an array of transit planning duties. This project description demonstrates how fixed route and paratransit needs can be successfully integrated. Prior to joining TRC, Cliff Chambers developed a community transit plan for the City of Menlo Park in 1997. A new local fixed-route service was recommended, while maintaining a community service route for seniors and three shuttle services to Caltrain. Non-ADA paratransit services were developed. A detailed financial plan was prepared, including project costs and possible revenue sources.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
Cliff Chambers in TRC’s California office just completed a Short Range Transit Plan and Transit Marketing Plan (prepared by Selena Barlow with Transit Marketing) for the City of Paso Robles. Through extensive stakeholder interviews and public outreach, TRC identified key transit needs within the community which included transportation for low income families and workers, senior transportation, and transportation for those with special needs. Mr. Chambers created a service plan that enhanced service for each of these three groups by matching service design to passenger needs. Existing riders were benefited by more direct, fixed route service with improved transfer and fare options. Seniors and persons with disabilities will be served by a new senior-oriented community service route which took the burden off of an overloaded Dial-a-Ride system while providing an improved mode for travel to medical appointments, shopping, and recreation.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
Imperial County Transit operates intercity service among Imperial County communities. The City of El Centro was recently designated a new urbanized area and is eligible for FTA 5307 funds. The study’s purpose was to evaluate options for a local circulator bus service that would complement intercity services. Two public workshops and interviews with 19 community leaders provided significant public input into the planning process. A survey of El Centro residents utilizing Imperial County Transit also provided potential user input. Standard service features were developed that would be common to all three alternative service scenarios and included the use of 30-foot low-floor buses, a proposed new transit hub, hourly timed transfers with Imperial County Transit, a future transit development phase in three years for emerging growth areas, and basic fare structure. Operating and capital costs and revenues were compared. Phase one was successfully implemented. TRC was awarded an add-on contract to provide scheduling services to rural areas of Imperial County and is currently conducting a feasibility study for a downtown transfer terminal. TRC also conducted an alternative fuels study.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to Present
The Cooperative Alliance for Seacoast Transportation
(COAST) is the regional transit operator for
southeastern New Hampshire, serving the area
of Portsmouth, Dover, and surrounding towns.
The Portsmouth/Newington area was previously
the home of Peese Air Force Base, a major military
installation that once employed over 10,000 military
and civilian workers. When the Peese Air Base
was closed, the State created a business and
technology center on the former base which became
known as the Peese Development Authority (PDA).
To help attract new employers and to minimize
traffic and air quality impacts of new large
scale businesses, COAST and the City of Portsmouth
implemented a new fixed-route, trolley-type bus
system serving the PDA base, downtown Portsmouth,
the Portsmouth Transportation Center (commuter
buses to Boston), and surrounding shopping malls
and neighborhoods
Ridership on this new route never reached levels
that COAST and the City of Portsmouth considered
being acceptable.
COAST retained Transit Resource Center to evaluate
this route and to find ways to significantly
improve ridership. TRC carried out an analysis
of ridership patterns, performed a needs analysis
of PDA employers and employees, evaluated route
and schedule structures, and reviewed related
transit operations at COAST.
Based on this evaluation, TRC recommended a
major restructuring of the PDA route and a redistribution
of excess vehicle miles/hours of service to a
new unserved area of the City of Portsmouth.
COAST accepted TRC’s recommendations and
retained TRC to assist in implementation of the
new service, including having TRC write the new
schedules and run cuts.
As of October, 2003 ridership on the revised
route had increased by 136% over the same period
the year before.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002 to Present
Imperial County Transit operates intercity
service among Imperial County communities. The
City of El Centro was recently designated a new
urbanized area and is eligible for FTA 5307 funds.
The study’s purpose was to evaluate options
for a local fixed-route transit service that
would complement intercity services. Two public
workshops and interviews with 19 community leaders
provided significant public input into the planning
process. A survey of El Centro residents utilizing
Imperial County Transit also provided potential
user input. Standard service features were developed
that would be common to all three alternative
service scenarios and included the use of 30-foot
low-floor buses, a proposed new transit hub,
hourly timed transfers with Imperial County Transit,
a future transit development phase in three years
for emerging growth areas, and basic fare structure.
Routes and associated operating costs were developed
for four-bus, three-bus, and two-bus scenarios.
Bus stops and bus stop amenities were developed.
Operating and capital costs and revenues were
compared. An administrative draft recommended
a detailed scheduling study to determine if the
demand based Imperial County Transit schedules
could be realigned for timed transfers with the
recommended clock headways of the recommended
four-bus scenario.
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SCOPE OF SERVICES
2002
Transit Resource Center was hired by the San
Luis Obispo Council of Governments to conduct
a feasibility study of a coordinated maintenance
and dispatch facility in the San Luis Obispo
area. The project was a collaborative effort
that included Central Coast Area Transit, South
County Area Transit, Runabout, Ride-On, and San
Luis Obispo (SLO Transit services). The study
assessed the short-term (3-year) and long-term
(15 year) potential to consolidate some or all
of bus maintenance, wash, fueling, and dispatch
functions among several regional bus operators.
The study defined the total space need to accommodate
a joint facility including the number of bus
bays, required lot size, and facility size. Total
building and site improvement costs were estimated.
The study found that over a five-year period,
there is a significant opportunity for consolidation
of different maintenance functions. A centralized
facility in San Luis Obispo could accommodate
the routine maintenance repairs for CCAT, Runabout,
and Ride-On. It would also accommodate major
repairs including engine overhauls, transmission
work, and paint and body work for all five participating
agencies.
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