Live reporting by
Alicia Moreland
Transit agency looks to partner with NOACA to install electric-vehicle chargers at RTA stations
Alicia Moreland
@DDutchCreative
Morning folks! 🌥️☕️ I'll be covering Greater Cleveland RTA (@GCRTA)'s Standing Committees Meeting starting at 9am this morning. This live twitter coverage is brought to you by #CLEDocumenters @cledocumenters @NeighborUpCle
07:37 AM Jan 11, 2022 CST
During COVID, GCRTA is live streaming meetings via Facebook Live on the GCRTA Facebook page: facebook.com/riderta/
At the time of the meeting (that would be now, folks ) find the livestream at this link: facebook.com/riderta/videos/
At the time of the meeting (that would be now, folks ) find the livestream at this link: facebook.com/riderta/videos/
The meeting agenda package is posted on RTA's website at riderta.com/board.
The meeting started on time, as did the video stream, but was missing audio for the first minute or so.
The meeting started on time, as did the video stream, but was missing audio for the first minute or so.
To avoid confusion- RTA's standing committee "meeting" is actually a combination of many subcommittee meetings strung back-to-back. Roll is called for each one, and each is officially called to close before moving to the next.
Today, we have a Operational Planning & Infrastructure Committee meeting, followed by an Organizational, Services and Performance Monitoring Committee meeting. This will be followed by the Committee of the Whole meeting.
So- the meeting started off with the Operational Planning & Infrastructure Meeting roll call. 4 committee members are present. https://t.co/1evRTz8sZ8
Director Joseph Shaffer gave a presentation on the procurement of consulting services for the safety certification of forthcoming rail projects. This was followed by a presentation by Jenn Martin, the Contract Admin.
This safety consulting contract will go for 36 month, and is not to exceed $400,000. The four projects covered by this contract are:
👉Warrensville-Blue line at Van Aken District
👉W 117th Bridge/Station Platform (Red Line)
👉E 79th Light Rail Trunk Line (Blue/Green Lines)
👉 TBD
👉Warrensville-Blue line at Van Aken District
👉W 117th Bridge/Station Platform (Red Line)
👉E 79th Light Rail Trunk Line (Blue/Green Lines)
👉 TBD
K&J Safety and security Consulting Services, Inc. (an experienced firm from FL) is the recommended vendor. 3 firms submitted proposals and were interviewed.
A motion to approve the contract was approved.
A motion to approve the contract was approved.
The next item on the agenda: the Warrensville/Van Aken Substation Reconstruction- An amendment to the utility agreement with the Illuminating Company and an Interagency agreement with Shaker Height is proposed.
The amendment would provide for relocation of CEI duct bank. The relocation cost $189,786.57. https://t.co/ZDMfGwcSHp
After presenting this Interagency Agreement, board member Karen Moss had questions. Question: earlier negotiations had the split at 70%/30%, with Shaker responsible for the larger portion. Why is it 50%/50% now? https://t.co/Pv0hN7tPlJ
Another Question: Why does Shaker Heights have a cost limit of $114,000. If something goes wrong, why are we taking on all unanticipated construction costs?
I could not glean a clear, concise answer to her questions, despite almost 40 minutes of lawyers talking. The best answer I can give is the simplest: Shaker Heights realized that had more leverage in the legal negotiations, and negotiated down to 50/50 from a previous 70/30. 🤷♀️
Karen Moss voiced discomfort with the new amendment. Committee member Valerie McCall suggested an Executive session. The board members discussed the need to resolve this item today, and decided to suspend discussion, postponing an executive session in the interest of time.
The meeting moved on to a presentation on a program that partners NOACA (Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency) with RTA to install public vehicle chargers. This is part of a regional initiative to address air quality/climate change.
RTA sites chosen by NOACA:
👉Louis Stokes at Windermere Rapid Station
👉Brookpark Rapid Station (my station!!!!😀)
👉Green Road Rapid Stations
👉Louis Stokes at Windermere Rapid Station
👉Brookpark Rapid Station (my station!!!!😀)
👉Green Road Rapid Stations
Both Level 2 and Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) are planned. Adapters for Teslas and other proprietary chargers are also planned. Construction is scheduled to begin in July 2022. https://t.co/dBkVAuZHkd
The presenter brought up a point in passing that I thought was especially interesting: He talked about the equity issue with electric vehicles. If you want to buy an EV, but live in an apartment building, you may not have access to a charger like a home owner would.
Providing charging stations may help in bridging that divide. Other logistical issues were addressed- followed by a motion to bring this to the full board. Motion approved.
Next up: A presentation on technological improvements to the fare collection system. https://t.co/gAKAEqwl78
The CLE App will be replaced in May, with a more robust app, called EZFare, to be used regionally- creating a more connected fare system. https://t.co/k1z3LffzlT
The goal is to have all the contactless payment devices installed by the end of 2022. https://t.co/U32L7h2RJH
The EZFare app is also built into Transit app, which is the most popular Transit app used in the States. After the presentation wrapped, the Operational Planning & Infrastructure Committee was called to a close.
Organizational, Services & Performance Monitoring Committee was called to order, with one item on the agenda- a heavy rail traction motor services overhaul. sole source procurement for services was proposed. Organizational, Services & Performance Monitoring Committee adjourned.
Committee of the Whole was called to order. A brief presentation on minor code book revisions was followed by a motion to approve said revisions. Motion was approved and meeting adjourned!
The meeting ended a few minutes before 11.
Have questions? Think we got something wrong? Send any inquiries on the meeting or these tweets to
@cledocumenters
Or email us at documenters@neighborhoodgrants.org
Have questions? Think we got something wrong? Send any inquiries on the meeting or these tweets to
@cledocumenters
Or email us at documenters@neighborhoodgrants.org
Postscript: HRS rescue bun Scruffy. I can relate to his Monday-face. 😪 (up for adoption soon, btw.😍) https://t.co/6lBBYsFGMg