HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 02/25/2025 - Memorandum from Kaley Zeisel and Melina Dempsey re Transfort Optimization Plan UpdateFC Moves
200 W. Mountain Ave. Suite A
PO Box 580, Fort Collins, CO 80522
970-221-6705
fcmoves@fcgov.com
MEMORANDUM
Date: February 19, 2025
To: Mayor and City Councilmembers
Through: Kelly DiMartino, City Manager
Caryn Champine, Director of Planning, Development, and Transportation
Drew Brooks, Deputy Director of Planning, Development, and Transportation
From: Kaley Zeisel, Transit Director
Melina Dempsey, Senior Transportation Planner
Subject: Transfort Optimization Plan Update
Executive Summary
This memo provides an update on the Transfort Optimization Plan, a strategic initiative aimed at aligning
Fort Collins’ transit system with community needs, financial realities, and future growth. As Transfort
marks its 50th anniversary, this plan focuses on optimizing transit services for the next five to ten years,
guided by the aspirations of the 2019 Transit Master Plan (TMP), informed by robust community
engagement, and grounded in analysis of recent performance and national best practices.
Transfort currently operates at 78% of its 2019 service levels, with ridership recovery reaching 71% of
pre-pandemic levels. Efforts to restore and expand service remain constrained by staffing and budgetary
limitations, with a total annual funding gap of $13 million required to sustain 2019 service levels and fully
implement the TMP vision. The Optimization Plan seeks to recalibrate services to balance coverage,
frequency, and financial sustainability while exploring innovations such as micro-transit and post -
pandemic recovery lessons from peer agencies.
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Central to this effort is a robust and inclusive Public Involvement Plan (PIP) designed to ensure
meaningful participation from diverse populations, with a particular emphasis on transit -dependent
groups. This approach will help prioritize community needs and set measurable outcomes. By refining
transit priorities, operationalizing the community-supported 2050 transit tax, and developing actionable
recommendations, this plan aims to create a clear path toward phased implementation beginning in Fall
2025.
Through this plan, Transfort reaffirms its commitment to building a resilient, accessible, and innovative
transit network that meets the evolving mobility needs of Fort Collins residents.
Project Purpose
As Transfort celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2024, we reflect on our journey as a vital component of
Fort Collins' mobility network and look ahead to a strategic future aligned with the City’s vision for transit.
At full-service levels, Transfort operates a diverse network of 23 routes, including the HORN campus
circulator, FLEX regional route connecting Fort Collins to Boulder and the communities in between, and
MAX, our premier bus rapid transit (BRT) service. Supported by a fleet of 53 buses, Transfort provided
4.5 million rides in 2019. Additionally, we manage the Dial-A-Ride paratransit service through a
contracted provider. Our workforce includes approximately 160 employees, the majority of whom are
operators.
The 2019 Transit Master Plan outlines an aspirational vision for the future, incorporating three additional
BRT routes, 30-minute or better service system-wide, regional connections, mobility hubs, and innovation
zones (utilizing micro-transit) tailored for lower-density areas. This vision is central to creating a robust,
equitable, and innovative transit system for the community.
Recent milestones include Transfort’s transition to a permanently fare-free system, enhancing
accessibility for all riders. However, like many transit agencies, we continue to address post -pandemic
challenges, including staffing shortages and service recovery. While operator levels have increa sed to
91% of pre-pandemic levels, a sustainable service model will require recalibrating staffing levels to
ensure operational consistency.
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Currently, Transfort operates at 78% of 2019 service levels, with plans to fully restore service as staffing
and budget allow. Ridership recovery has been strong, reaching 71% of pre-pandemic levels, with
specific corridors operating at 83% recovery. The return of MAX to full 10-minute peak frequencies in
January 2025 is expected to further accelerate this trend.
Budgetary constraints remain a critical factor, which are summarized in the bullets below:
The current deficit to operate 2019 service levels today, combined with the funding needed to
build out the Transit Master Plan, results in a total gap of $13 million annually. A further
breakdown of this funding gap is provided in the next bullets.
Fully building out the Transit Master Plan by 2040 necessitates an additional $15 million annually,
however the passage of the dedicated transit tax is expected to provide $5 million annually
narrowing this gap to approximately $10 million.
Additionally, operating 2019 service levels under current conditions would require an additional
$2.7 million annually, driven by increased inflationary costs in personnel, fuel, and maintenance.
To align service delivery with financial realities, Transfort has initiated a system optimization assessment
and action plan. This process will evaluate existing services, engage the community to prioritize elements
of the Transit Master Plan, and identify strategies for delivering high-quality transit services within
budgetary constraints.
We remain committed to advancing a resilient and future-focused transit system, guided by the principles
of the Transit Master Plan (TMP).
Project Overview
In an ideal scenario without budget constraints, Transfort would fully implement the Transit Master Plan
(TMP), designed to expand geographic coverage and increase transit frequency, ensuring high-quality
service for both transit-dependent and aspiring riders. However, budget shortfalls are a reality, and the
community has expressed a strong desire for a transit system aligned with the TMP's vision. To address
these challenges, Transfort will evaluate the current network, incorporate best practices, engage with the
community, and identify trade-offs to optimize the system efficiently over the next five to ten years.
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Project goals:
To redesign a system that is fiscally sustainable
To revisit, confirm, and prioritize the concepts of the TMP
To create an equitable dialogue with the community around what Transfort could be in the
future
To learn from other communities seeing success in rebuilding ridership and launching
innovative services post-COVID (including micro-transit)
To define what Transfort routes and services should look like (where they go, how often they
run, who they primarily serve, etc.) for the next 5-10 years
To operationalize the 2050 tax revenue and the community’s support of transit
To develop measures of effectiveness (such as ridership growth and transit access)
To continue to minimize barriers to transit access, building on the recent decision to remain
fare free
Project phases: Each project phase will be informed by prior work and build on that information to provide
a clear and consistent narrative of this planning process to assist in final decision making.
• Project Work Plan & Kick-Off (Sept. – Nov. 2024): Develop work plan and public involvement
plan. Stakeholder kick -off meeting and project introduction to select city boards and commissions.
Completed.
• Best Practices & Literature Review (Oct. – Dec. 2024): Review peer transit agencies for
pandemic recovery and micro transit best practices. Draft report being reviewed.
• Background & Current Conditions (Oct. – Jan. 2024-25): Review Transfort and compare with
best practices. In progress.
• Innovation Zone Discovery & Analysis (Jan. – Mar. 2025): Develop goals, review operational
parameters, and cost/benefit analysis for micro-transit. In progress.
• Scenarios & Trade-Offs (Mar. – Jun. 2025): Develop three system alternatives for growth and
adaptation under resource constraints.
• Community Dialogue (Jun. – Aug. 2025): Engage community with scenarios and trade-offs to
determine recommendations.
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• Recommendations (Aug. – Sept. 2025): Create recommendations and implementation plan for
community review and adoption by City Council.
Public Involvement Plan
For the Transfort Optimization Plan to be successful it is absolutely critical that we get a complete
understanding of the transportation needs of our community. Equitable engagement with Fort Collins
residents will provide the feedback necessary to set goals for near-term transit service and create metrics
to measure implementation success. With assistance from our consultant team, Fehr & Peers, we have
created a Public Involvement Plan (PIP) outlining who, how, and when we plan engage the community.
Guiding Principles:
Engage Equitably
This engagement strategy will prioritize meaningful participation from people across the target
audience populations, particularly marginalized populations who have likely experienced
discrimination or exclusion from other public processes. This outreach process will strive to
ensure that materials, activities, and venues are accessible, inviting, and inclusive regardless of
race, ethnicity, language, ability, gender, sexual orientation, or financial means.
Develop a Dialogue
Outreach will be approached as a two-way and ongoing dialog rather than a one-time transaction.
Community engagement should set clear expectations about the public’s role in affecting project
outcomes. Interactive tools and different meeting formats will aid in expanding the dialog with the
public. Participants should have a clear understanding of how their feedback will be used in the
decision-making process and should feel ownership of the final plan.
Communicate Effectively
Many transportation metrics and engineering design solutions can be complex. Communicating
ideas succinctly and effectively is essential for public understanding. This public outreach strategy
will incorporate high-quality visuals, straight-forward language, and ask targeted questions. This
process will include bilingual staff to engage participants who speak a different language.
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Meet People Where They Are
This engagement process will strive to reach a broad cross-section of people as they go about
their daily lives. This approach allows for participation from community members who have limited
time in their schedule and who do not have a means of transportation to a central meeting
location. Online engagement, intercept events, and focus groups are some of the strategies
outlined in this plan that allow the project team to engage people where they are and in the format
they feel most comfortable participating.
Target audiences:
The following groups are populations that the public involvement strategies will seek to engage but are
not limited to. When possible, participation will be tracked according to these groups and future rounds of
engagement can be adjusted to better target groups we did not hear as much from in the initial phases of
outreach. We are working to determine organizations which represent each target audience and
specifically tailor engagement activities for each.
Fort Collins transit users
Transit-dependent populations
Latino/Hispanic and Spanish-speaking
community members
Culturally diverse community members
Older adults (Ages 60+)
Youth/schools
Lower-income and under-served
community members
Disabled community members
Unhoused community members
Transit/Active Modes/Sustainability
advocates
Business representatives
Colorado State University
Engagement activities:
The following strategies are being planned to provide the easiest and most meaningful engagement
opportunities for all community member regardless of their background, mobility, or technical acumen.
Advertising & Information Sharing
Social media posts (Facebook, Instagram, NextDoor, etc.)
City of Fort Collins website
Physical flyers (posted at key locations such as libraries and government buildings)
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Emails to key partners
Ads/information on buses
Physical boards at in-person events
In-Person Events
When planning in-person events, the project management team will consider the physical accessibility of
the location, its connectivity to transit, and weather.
Open Houses
Open houses are a more traditional-style engagement event where project management staff
host a one-off event at a community center or similar location in the City. The sole purpose of the
event is to share information and obtain feedback on the project, and staff are present with a
collection of informational boards.
Intercept Events
Intercept events are meant to meet people where they are at. Project management staff bring
project materials to an existing event to interact with and collect feedback from participants.
These events capture input from community members who may not otherwise attend an open
house or related project event.
Focus Group Meetings
Focus group meetings are smaller-scale meetings targeting a specific audience or segment of the
community. Focus group meetings provide an opportunity to build trust with community members
and obtain more in-depth feedback from target audiences. Focus groups often capture input from
community members who may not otherwise attend an open house or related project event. The
ideal size of focus groups is 10-15 people.
Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) Meetings
TAC meetings are smaller-scale meetings comprised of City of Fort Collins staff from FC Moves
and Transfort to meet regularly and provide feedback throughout the process.
Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Meetings
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CAC meetings are smaller-scale meetings comprised of representatives from different
organizational and community groups. The CAC will meet during key phases of the project to
provide feedback on project deliverables.
Work to Date and Next Steps
In mid-October, Transfort held a kick-off meeting with City staff, the TAC and CAC. The content was
similar to that which is included in this memo: an overview of Transfort, the purpose of this process, and
the overall strategies being proposed. Following the kick-off meeting, the project management team
visited the Transportation Board, Senior Advisory Board, Disability Advisory Board, Climate Equity
Committee, and Dial-A-Ride & Transit Accessibility Committee (DARTAC) to provide an introduction to
this planning process.
Strategic questions were asked and excellent conversations ensued. The general feedback from this
initial engagement was:
Prioritize transit-dependent populations when considering changes
Focus on high-frequency routes
We anticipate more engaging conversations that will create more interesting questions. Such as, how do
we create high-frequency routes that target transit-dependent populations when they don’t necessarily
live on high-frequency transit corridors?
Beginning in Q1 2025, we are shaping our scenario development process through stakeholder
conversations such as with the TAC and CAC. W e will follow this in Q2 2025 with more community-wide
engagement efforts including an interactive map and online survey, followed by community events, focus
groups, intercept events, and visits to various stakeholder groups. Three Transfort system alternatives
(aka scenarios) that compare and contrast different service options will be presented for public input.
We are scheduled to visit City Council in a May 2025 Work Session to discuss vision, priorities, and trade-
offs.
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