• Day 1 - Feb 11, 2005
• Day 2 - Feb 12, 2005
• Day 3 - Feb 13, 2005

      Conference Live 2001   

• Understanding our Past
• Total Group Mind Map
• Understanding/ Owning the Present
• Envisioning the Future
• Common Ground for the Future
• Crafting Vision Statements
• Action Planning
• Reflection and Celebration
• News Articles

Understanding/ Owning the Present

Red and Blue Conference

Understanding the Present – Stakeholder Perspective on Trends

Divided into two groups, the "Red Conference" and the "Blue Conference", conference attendees were further separated into "Shareholder" groups for additional discussion based on the Mind Map exercise. Each group was asked to identify trends based on their perspective, as well as what they or their organizations were doing now and wanted to do to address those trends.

 

Red Conference:

Shareholder Perspective on Trends

Business Group

Trends:

• Taxes to subsidize public government causing private to go out of business
• Household spending on transportation
• Increasing suburban congestion
• Environmental Issues

Doing Now	Want to Do
Subsidize all kinds of transportation	More cooperation between governments and private businesses
Have tried to work with environmentalists (Legacy Highway)	Encourage business

 

Combined Community Development and Oversight Group

Trends:

• Increasing population
• Increased use of trails
• Urban sprawl/ urban planning
• Improve efficiency of private car use
• Air quality/ Congestion issues
• Quality of life
• Need to support populations unable to use private transportation
• Mass transit growth –3%
• TRAX –1.5%
• Number of cars increasing
• Private cars is 99% of transportation while 35% of transit dollars go to UTA
• The need to move growing masses of people
• Family costs increasing
• Cost of all transportation increasing

Doing Now	Want to Do
Provide transport for special needs group from private sources.	Improve transportation with more vehicles available. Teach people to use available public transportation. Improve efficiency of the bus system (empty buses). Provide specialized, on-call transportation.
Smart growth planning – planning transportation with growth	Improve means of accessing TRAX. Promote development that supports transportation options.
Limit urban sprawl	Support liveable communities.
Lack of funding.	Need funding for new transportation technologies.
Air Quality: improving fuel efficiency/ alternative energy	More

 

Combined Governments (City and Other) Group

Trends:

• Economics/ stability to accomplish transportation needs. Taxation issues: fewer dollars.
• Olympics: more federal funding to Utah (highway funding), interagency cooperation (but some steam rolling)
• Growth: land use, population
• Response not keeping up with demand
• Accessibility for all

Doing Now	Want to Do
Mass transit not meeting all needs.	Look at funding for mass transit. Some toll roads?
Asking legislature to look at tax system	Good fast transportation
Salt Lake County employees (hiring freeze) – increasing volunteers	Smarter transportation – mass transet priority
Taxing gasoline to provide sales tax to support transit	Efficient transportation – economical?
Large employee subsidizing transportation – i.e. U of U, LDS Church	Clean up air
Increasing accessability	Encourage transit and develop efficient for business/ residence. More/ smarter transportation increases accessibility.
Senior citizens don’t have money or can’t get to bus stops.	Fix sidewalks – infrastructure inadequate
	UTA provide service for schools
	Design infrastructure to promote public transit and alternative transportation
	Insurance companies give break for taking public transportation – Taxes help to cover uninsured

 

User Group

Trends:

• ADA/ Seniors/ Minorities
• Not enough land or money
• Lack of efficient system

Doing Now	Want to Do
ADA/ Senior/Minorities ADA announcements 80% lifts on buses Paratransit weekend and Holiday service limited Fare rate affordable Available Alternative format: Braille, Bi-lingual	ADA better system Go to 100% lifts on buses Better paratransit scheduling system Expand services for employment Maintain affordable fare rate Expand to multiple languages - publicize
Not enough land or money Park and Ride – Expanded some Tax base in SL, Davis and Weber Counties	Expand all parking lot size Expand to Utah County Tax base in Utah County
Lack of efficient system Good North/ South for SL valley Current freeway system HOV lane Poor freeway signage Freeway sound barriers Freeway lighting	Increase East/West system Expand into Utah County Continue HOV lane North and South Improve freeway signage Continue freeway sound barriers Increase freeway lighting

 

 

 

Transportation Group

Trends:

• Changing nature of public policy/ planning. Plans and funding determine system.
• Better public transit system – tighter and more frequent, competitive with automobile choice. Better system takes funding.
• More expensive equipment, fuel, right of way.

Doing Now	Want to Do
Transit Tax	More coordinated planning
WVC, WJ, SJ, Taylorsville, Midvale coalition	Better and more efficient equipment
More planning and coordination	Use technology for better service
Expanding transit service	Expanded service

 

 

Blue Conference:

Shareholder Perspective on Trends

Oversight group

Trends:

• Accessibility
• Independence
• Security/Choice

• Money (Payer/user, Revenue Sources, Maintenance, Government vs. Private, Expansion, Equipment)

• Quality of life
• Liveable communities
• Easy access to employment
• Environmental issues/
• Safety-Security

• Technology
• Economic Growth

Doing Now	Want to Do
Compliance	Different seating configuration
Bike racks	Surveillance cameras
Transit security officer	Local government negotiates with landowners for density exchange for ROW
Partnerships with Employment Centers	Accountability through accurate records
Rail expansion- U of U Medical Center	Expanding outreach for partnerships
Sacrificing bus for Light Rail	Balanced transportation modes
Work from home	Change of service- flexible
Still have traffic congestion after major investments	Frequent service 24/7
Wheelchair access	Smaller more flexible bus
	Intermodal transit hubs
	Computerized departure, destination routes

 

Combined Government (City and Other) Group

Trends:

• Affordability (user and system)

• Accountability (better information)

• Environmental
• Safety
• Sustainability
• Road construction and maintenance

 

Doing Now	Want to Do
Funding	Education
Education- financing	Innovative Financing
Corridor preservation	Balance funding
Use of mass transit	Subsidize Transit passes- large businesses
Air quality	Corridor preservation
Land use planning	Efficient land use planning
Congestion relief	Inter-jurisdictional planning cooperation

 

Transportation Group

Trends:

• Sustainability
• Technology
• Independence Modal Choice Accessibility
• Funding, Availability/Affordability

Doing Now	Want to Do
NOW	Enact
Envision Utah	Proactive planning/involvement
Reacting to decisions made by others	Better modeling
Commuter link	Alternative Fuels
S=I-L	System integration between modes
TRAX	More TRAX spurs
Flex Trans	Commuter ADA ramps
Bike lanes	DMU
Different vehicles	Available 24/7
Prioritizing competing demands	More roads
Subsidize	Bike/pedestrian
	Move Forward with all modes
	Pay full cost for transportation (Private funding or non-profit funding)

 

User Group

Trends:

• Affordability
• Safety (round-abouts, road rage)
• Accessibility/Tidiness

Doing Now	Want to Do
Discussion on CAT committee	Alternate funding sources
Conducting surveys	Proportionate Fare increase/ across the board
Hitting hardest on those who can least afford it	Educate the engineers
UTA holding public hearings	Safe bike routes and walking paths
Presentation at schools	Other city’s layouts
Community TV	Graphic PSA’s
Pedestrian safety flags	Expansion of service area
Very little law enforcement
Routing studies

 

Combined Business and Destination Centers Group

Trends:

• Individuality- freedom of choice

• Flexibility of work times/modes

• Getting people to and from (patients, visitors, staff)

• Increasing number of vehicles p/household

• Affordability- cost

• Accessibility to alternative forms of transportation

Doing Now	Want to Do
Company incentive to employees for carpooling (bus/TRAX)	More rail alternatives
Telecommute	Good mix of transportation choices
Flex time	Healthy mix of housing products
Large parking lots	Apply technology/ R & D
Parking garage	More choice
Houses with three car garages
Larger freeway
SUV promotion
Building light rail and commuter rail

 

Community Development Group

Trends:

• Sustainability - long term investment & dividends
• Livable Communities - Pedestrian/Bicycle Friendly
• Technology
• Alternatives/Choices - Reliable and Convenient

Doing Now	Want to Do
Planning for rail transit	Regional planning
Envision Utah process	Equitable sales tax distribution
New service	Transit/employment center coordination
Partnerships/Coordination	Telecommuting- take advantage of technology
Pedestrian/Bicycle planning	Address/interconnecting planning issues
	Good examples (local and other)

 

 

Owing the Present – "Prouds" and "Sorries" Owning Up

To learn how they feel about the current situation and to understand what stakeholders see as contributions to what’s working and what’s not working "Red Conference" and "Blue Conference", in "Shareholder" groups, continued by identifying individual "Prouds" and "Sorries".

Red Conference:

Business Group

Proud	Sorry
Worked with Legacy Highway group	Thought light rail was a bad idea
With Chamber of Commerce, worked to help Redwood Road businesses during construction	Didn’t know then what I know now
Worked on coordinated highway/traffic projects	Couldn’t have more influence with environmentalists
At home business	Make mass transit more efficient.

 

Combined Community Development and Oversight Group

Proud	Sorry
Participation in shift to mass transit	Lack of success on issues of open space with some communities.
Advocate for smart growth and liveable communities	Growth patterns that force automobile dependence.
Research on ineffectiveness of current dead paradigms for transit.	Unable to secure funds to fight East/West light rail.
Helped make image of public transit better within the community	Local independent mass transit entities succumbed to other pressures.
Support and implementation of the trails systems.	Inability to completely convince communities of the dangers of urban sprawl.
Support, study and implementation of Utah County corridors.	Haven’t had support for traffic calming techniques.
Helped immigrants/refugees in need of transportation to find it.	Haven’t met the need yet.

Combined Governments (City and Other) Group

Proud	Sorry
Designed and built I-215 West	Bring UTA service into Payson
Carpool	Not enough funding to fix old road under his responsibility
Manage a transportation program for older adults	Don’t use public transit enouth
Speaks out for all who need transportation	Not enough options
Supported mass transit in community – Referendum that failed and succeeded	Can’t help everyone in need, lack of resources
Bring UTA service to Payson	Didn’t understand how to get referendum passed in ‘92
Supported sales tax increase for public transit	Angry, burned out and bitter
	Can’t adequately fund all that is needed including current infrastructure

 

User Group

Proud	Sorry
Use public transit	Don’t use public transit as often as one should
Effort to improve urban mobility	Didn’t voice opinion on poor lighting
Use public transit with bike	Need to bike more
Vocal at Town Meetings	Need to be more impactful
Ride TRAX occasionally	Need to walk more often – car less
Paratransit Operator	Denied rides as a paratransit operator
Use TRAX to downtown SLC	Don’t take the bus to work
We all use public transit	We don’t use public transit enough

 

Transportation Group

Proud	Sorry
Made tough decisions	System is less than SL City Lines
Increased paratransit rides	No transit formula funding to plan on
Built TRAX	Spread transit resources too thin
Rebuilt I-15	Don’t have alternate fuels
Added Holiday and Sunday service	UDOT road focus
Public vote of confidence	Can’t get ahead
Cooperation with State, County, UTA, Cities	Haven’t been more successful in education

 

Blue Conference:

Oversight Group

Proud	Sorry
Compliance	Mind set
Speed of construction of rail system	Inflexibility
Flex Trans	Environment of Stops
Proud	Cooperation between other government agencies and private organizations
Express shuttles	Waste of our dollars
TRAX	Cost comparison of modes
Encourage brownfield development	Unfunded mandates
Technology	Cost of sprawl
Fuel efficiency	Unfair compliance on environmental issues
Home base jobs	Minimum standards

 

Government Group

Proud	Sorry
Light rail	Abandoned old lines
Started Commuter Rail	Didn’t push harder on corridor preservation bill
I-15 Expansion	Lack of pedestrian and bike right of way
¼ cent sales tax	Urban sprawl
Transit safety is a priority
Transit outreach to communities
State stimulus of land use/transit dialogue

 

Transportation Group

Proud	Sorry
To work in this industry	Not using better technology to measure ridership
Balance transit/versus roads	Educate communities on transportation land use
Sales tax passed	Remaining in the box for solving issues
Building better and safer systems	Takes so long to get things done
Pro-active in design and development of multi modal centers
Coalitions along the Wasatch Front
Finish I-15 & TRAX early
Olympic Readiness

 

User Group

Proud	Sorry
Increased independence of disabled	Haven’t educated traffic engineers on the needs of the disabled
Have become involved in the decision making process	Did not allow myself to do so much sooner
Courteous driver of a motor coach	Let other people influence my thinking
I use public transportation to work	Involved in public transportation earlier in my career
Become proactive	Unaware of possibilities that existed
Being able to connect the population that I advocate for / liaison with UTA and group	All of the above +

 

Combination Business and Destination Centers

Proud	Sorry
Parking, garage planning	Not using public transportation (but not necessarily enough to change)
Helped create bike paths
Livable communities
Encouraging public transit

 

Community Development Group

Proud	Sorry
Light rail	Don’t have more money/resources
Effect change	Sometimes principles take a back seat
Public vote for transit	Takes so long to implement plans and build projects
Moving towards pedestrians as a priority	Don’t always see the "big picture"
Bike/transit interface	Too little cooperation
Changes in attitude about "smart growth"	Too little communication
Education

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Understanding the Present – Stakeholder Perspective on Trends and

Owing the Present – "Prouds" and "Sorries" Owning Up

In the "Red Conference" and "Blue Conference" groups, participants discussed the ‘Understanding the Present" and "Owning the Present" activities.

Red Conference Group Discussion Regarding Understanding/ Owning the Present:

 

• I didn’t think about this until today, because I am oriented toward highway building, but John Inglish mentioned that every time you ride the bus it’s a toll system. If you think that way then we need to work out a better way for buses to get from point A to point B, as highway builders, so that buses can travel just as fast as any other system.
• I think about what you say about more efficient bus systems. I have lived in Washington, DC and enjoyed an excellent bus transportation system. It seems to me that if the people moving industry as a whole works together to come up with the most efficient and usable plan it benefits all. She noted that states that have toll roads tend to have excellent people moving systems.
• What we are seeing is dots all over the place and issues about coordination and cooperation. It seems that what we have done in the past is focus on one area over others and what we need is to focus on transportation issues as a whole. The highway people need to work with transit on bus priorities, the transit system needs to work with cities on curb cuts and sidewalks, the paratransit users need to work within the system for improvements. Cooperation and coordination is essential to get the most benefit for all.
• As part of the Transportation Planning Group, I think that what we need to be doing from this day forward is keep in mind to incorporate transit friendly roads whenever we widen, improve or build new roads. We have never asked a transit planner to help us design a far-side bus access stop, for instance and this could make a huge difference in accessibility issues, etc. I think that we need to start incorporating the transit expert in the design of these facilities.
• Funding for these improvements is an issue. We need to make sure that we are prioritizing system wide, not city wide, to spend the money wisely. If we want the continued support of the people we need to focus on their needs and expectations.
• I understand that in the past, Aging Services did work in an alliance with UTA. It seems that this would be a valuable effort. We recently received funding for the purchase of two vehicles in 2002 for our program.
• Work smart with what we have and also remember that we all have a disability or are a step away from ending up with a disability. We all need to come together and work together instead of saying "This is mine", or "My budget is more important than your budget".
• As we have worked together today in our individual groups and larger groups, what often comes up is the issue of a lack of funds. I am wondering about the possibility of looking outside the box and going somewhere besides local taxpayers for that funding. A new Federal program has been developed to grant funds to new inventive transportation systems. We need to find ways to get funding from Federal sources instead of State funding.

Think about what you have done about these problems and what you could do about them.

• Is there some other city with a similar geographic nature to the Wasatch Front that we could study for the future?
• Today we talked about 1960 to today and when we think about how far we have come we need to pat ourselves on the back. We have done some innovative, creative things like the design/build projects, that we can be really proud of.
• One of the things to be proud of that I don’t think most people in the region understand, is that UTA provides more service per dollar spent than almost any other agency of its size in the United States. A very important thing that needs to happen is a coordination of land use decisions and decisions about transportation. This is an area that we really haven’t figured out yet.
• We are seeing some change already today. I have heard highway people talking about coordination with transit services, when just a few years ago this was impossible. There are some areas in urban design as well where we could make improvements in design for public transit. We design some neighborhoods as fortresses against public transit service when with a few small changes they could be accessible. These are areas that we need to all come together to improve the quality of all of our services.
• I love to take credit for the fact that we run one of the best mediocre transit systems in the country. It doesn’t work not because it is an inherently bad system, but because it hasn’t had enough attention paid to it. A good system is one that works equally well for everyone, whether they are disabled or not, whether they have a car or not.

Red Conference Group Discussion Regarding Understanding/ Owning the Present:

• A lot of have the same ideas.
• Were not there yet, how are we going to get there it is going to be difficult to get to where we want to be.
• I learned that there is a genuine concern by all of us about public transportation and safety. Nice to learn we’re on the same track.

Thoughts about day 1

• Impressed with the diversity, part enjoyed the most was the brainstorming on the big chart, all those branches coming out. I have such a different view of the entire picture than I did before. Not just a little slice of my personal experience, I realize what the bigger picture is. We are all trying to get to the same place and have more in common than I originally thought.
• Not alone with what I thought should be done, a lot of good ideas have come out of this and will come out over the next few days.
• I was impressed with Senator Bennett’s presentation this morning. It helps us to know that we have leaders in Washington and a senator in Utah that shares the same interest as us. I was impressed with his comments this morning.
• One thing that stood out is Senator Bennett’s comment that put transportation in perspective, make it possible in the right place. Growth in our economy, what were here for.
• We come from quit a diverse background and we got down tot the nuts and bolts and found same issues and desires. We are not on opposite sides of the fence, we are all in the same game. If we can get together on the same bill as a unified group rather than segments than we can accomplish the goals that we are working toward.