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TO: |
Board of Trustees |
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THROUGH: |
Jay Fox, Executive Director |
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FROM: |
Cherryl Beveridge, Acting Chief Operating Officer |
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PRESENTER(S): |
Cherryl Beveridge, Acting Chief Operating Officer |
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TITLE:
title
Canadian Travel Approval
end
AGENDA ITEM TYPE:
Discussion
RECOMMENDATION:
Authorize UTA staff (Bruce Cardon, David Hancock, Kyle Stockley, and Bryan Sawyer) to travel to Toronto, Canada to explore the purchase or lease of used bi-level cars for FrontRunner.
BACKGROUND:
There is a potential need to purchase used bi-level commuter rail cars for Front Runner as a replacement for the Comet cars, which have surpassed their expected useful life.
Additionally, UTA FrontRunner is beginning the process of overhauling the bi-level fleet, and within the next two years will require three or more bi-levels to be out of service for extended periods of time for certain aspects of the overhaul process. This will decrease the spare ratio to 6%, which is not sustainable to meet service requirements. It is anticipated UTA will purchase or lease 5 bi-level cars to obtain a 21% spare ratio for the fleet throughout the overhaul process.
Toronto has the largest fleet of bi-level coaches in North America (more than 900) and has indicated they may be able to fulfill our potential needs.
Per Board of Trustees Policy 2.1 Financial Management, the “Board of Trustees will approve work-related international travel for the Authority’s employees in a public meeting.”
DISCUSSION:
To explore the purchase or lease of used bi-level cars in Toronto, UTA staff is requesting approval to travel internationally to Canada. Bruce Cardon, David Hancock, Kyle Stockley, and Bryan Sawyer represent the operations, capital development and engineering functions required to conduct an evaluation of this opportunity to meet a critical need for FrontRunner.
ALTERNATIVES:
Research vehicle alternatives within the United States
FISCAL IMPACT:
Associated travel expenses
ATTACHMENTS:
None