Mass Transit - 20

At this time, VIA had several
routes that operated only once
an hour, creating lengthy wait
times if someone just missed the
bus. And while VIA wanted to
increase frequency, it would require the agency to either eliminate some service to reallocate
funds to increase frequency or it
would require additional funding - something VIA, like a lot
of agencies, had been struggling
to secure. However, Saldaña had
been an advocate for public transit
and recognized the need of improving the system.
"He said, 'I'm going to make it
my mission to find you additional
funding,'" Arndt said.
And in January 2018, Saldaña
completed his mission when the
city of San Antonio allocated
$4.3 million to VIA. Beginning
October 2018, the city elected
to allocate $10 million annually.
The additional funding made the
partnership plan possible, which
is an agreement between the city
and VIA and focuses on increasing
frequency throughout the system.

Minding the Gap

The additional funding from city
council was a big financial gain for
VIA. VIA operates on what Arndt
calls a half-cent system. Unlike the
Dallas and Houston transit agencies that receive a one-cent sales
tax, VIA receives a half-cent share
of local sales tax. VIA also receives
a one-eighth cent share from the
Advanced Transportation District
(ATD), which is funded by a one-

20 |

quarter-cent sales tax. The remaining one-quarter cent-the state of
Texas allows up to one full cent of
local sales tax to be used for transit
funding-is allocated to the city to
protect the Edwards Aquifer and
Linear Creekways and fund the
city's Pre-K for SA program.
"Although we could ask for
another half cent under the limits of the [state] legislature set for
[metropolitan transit agencies], we
cannot ask for that half cent under the limit that the state has set
on local sales tax funding," Arndt
said. "That's our conundrum."
To put this into perspective,
sales tax makes up about three
quarters of VIA's budget. In FY20,
sales tax accounted for 73 percent
of VIA's revenue. Over the past
20 years, this half-cent difference,
along with the greater economic
level in Dallas and Houston, has
created around a $5-6-billion gap
when compared to the revenue the
Dallas and Houston agencies have
earned, Arndt explains.
"So, that put VIA-from day
one-at a financial disadvantage
compared to these other big systems," Arndt said. "It's not like
we're bringing in half of the money
that Dallas is bringing in or Houston is bringing in. We're bringing
more like a third or fourth of the
money that they're bringing in."
With the funding allowance
for VIA at capacity, this left little
to no room for the agency to implement transformational plans,
such as VIA Reimagined, which
is currently unfunded.

Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | APRIL/MAY 2020

IN THE past five years, VIA has invested in replacing
nearly its entire fleet of diesel buses with CNG.

PART OF VIA's Reimagined Plan focuses on
increasing frequency throughout the entire system.

VIA's Reimagined Plan builds
on years of planning. In 2014, the
city of San Antonio started to create SA Tomorrow, a comprehensive, long-range plan that includes
three elements: the comprehensive
plan, the sustainability plan and
the multimodal transportation
plan. In August 2016, VIA's Board
of Trustees adopted VIA's Vision
2040 Plan, which was created in

PART OF the
Smart Transit
concept, which
is part of VIA
Reimagined, aims
to use technology
to better
communicate
information to
customers.


http://www.MassTransitmag.com

Mass Transit

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Mass Transit

Ad Index
Editor's Notebook: On the importance of professional associations
People and Places
NRC Chairman's Column: NRC Working Committees Get the Job Done
Industry Insights: Empowering Your Next Gen Leaders through Stewardship
Cover Story: It Takes a Village
Bus Fleets Special Report: What data reveals about upcoming trends
Transit Bus and Motorcoach Populations and Fleet Metrics
Vital Protection During Critical Work
What Will Transit and Mobility Look Like After the COVID-19 Crisis?
Products: Buses & Components
Mass Transit - 1
Mass Transit - 2
Mass Transit - 3
Mass Transit - 4
Mass Transit - 5
Mass Transit - Ad Index
Mass Transit - 7
Mass Transit - Editor's Notebook: On the importance of professional associations
Mass Transit - 9
Mass Transit - People and Places
Mass Transit - 11
Mass Transit - 12
Mass Transit - 13
Mass Transit - NRC Chairman's Column: NRC Working Committees Get the Job Done
Mass Transit - 15
Mass Transit - Industry Insights: Empowering Your Next Gen Leaders through Stewardship
Mass Transit - 17
Mass Transit - Cover Story: It Takes a Village
Mass Transit - 19
Mass Transit - 20
Mass Transit - 21
Mass Transit - 22
Mass Transit - 23
Mass Transit - 24
Mass Transit - 25
Mass Transit - Bus Fleets Special Report: What data reveals about upcoming trends
Mass Transit - 27
Mass Transit - 28
Mass Transit - 29
Mass Transit - 30
Mass Transit - 31
Mass Transit - 32
Mass Transit - Transit Bus and Motorcoach Populations and Fleet Metrics
Mass Transit - 34
Mass Transit - 35
Mass Transit - Vital Protection During Critical Work
Mass Transit - 37
Mass Transit - 38
Mass Transit - 39
Mass Transit - What Will Transit and Mobility Look Like After the COVID-19 Crisis?
Mass Transit - 41
Mass Transit - Products: Buses & Components
Mass Transit - 43
Mass Transit - 44
Mass Transit - 45
Mass Transit - 46
Mass Transit - 47
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