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TO: |
Board of Trustees |
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THROUGH: |
Jay Fox, Executive Director |
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FROM: |
William Greene, Chief Financial Officer |
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PRESENTER(S): |
Monica Morton, Fares Director |
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Kensey Kunkel, Mgr. Business Dev. and Sales |
TITLE:
title
Fare Agreement: Education Pass (Salt Lake School District and Salt Lake Education Foundation)
end
AGENDA ITEM TYPE:
Service or Fare Approval
RECOMMENDATION:
Authorize the Executive Director to enter into an Education Pass Agreement with the Salt Lake School District.
BACKGROUND:
History
The Salt Lake School District (“District”) and Utah Transit Authority are longstanding partners and have historically worked together to provide transit passes and UTA services to students living within the district’s boundaries. The school district currently partners with UTA through two fares programs: Pay per Trip and Human Service Agreement.
Pay per Trip
The UTA pay per trip agreement is an agreement wherein the district pays for use on Bus and TRAX by authorized users when they tap-on/off the UTA system. This program is limited to approximately 1,300 students that meet specific criteria as determined by the district.
Human Service Agreement
The Human Service Agreement is a Fares Agreement wherein the district purchases monthly and daily passes at a 75% discount from UTA, then provides the passes at no charge to qualified low-income individuals. NOTE: UTA also partners with the Salt Lake Education Foundation (“Foundation”) through the Human Service Agreement.
Last Fall, the Fares team was approached by the Education Foundation, on behalf of the School District, to find a way to eliminate the need for multiple contracts as well as to expand the current fare agreements to serve all the district’s students, faculty, and staff. Some of the Education Foundation’s primary goals in partnering with UTA included:
• Supplementing existing yellow bus service to connect students with school and after school activities and career opportunities
• Enabling the district to recruit faculty and staff living across the Wasatch Front by providing a transit pass as an incentive
Ed Pass Review
In 2021, the Board of the Authority requested a review of all higher education transit pass agreements. The Fares team performed an in-depth review of all higher education pass contracts including the review of terms and conditions, ridership, and pass utilization, as well as revenue received compared to actual use (“pay per trip value”). The Fares team used the review findings to formulate a plan and set goals to align the negotiations of all future Education Pass Contracts, including the Salt Lake School District.
The Fares team presented various partnership options to the Foundation and District for consideration. The options varied based upon:
• Authorized user population
o Include/exclude faculty and staff
o Include/exclude passes for parents
• Timeframe
o 9 Month or 12 Month Pass
• UTA Services
o Premium or Local Service
Ultimately, the Foundation, District, and UTA came to an agreement to provide a Local Service transit pass to all students, faculty, and staff for the entirety of the upcoming school year. In the spirit of partnership, staff proposes that the District and UTA sign a one-year Ed Pass Agreement. This agreement will give twenty-four thousand four hundred (24,400) district students and employees access to a transit pass valid on Bus, TRAX, and Streetcar from August 1, 2022 through July 31, 2023. The total value of this contract is $379,000 and is based on estimated usage. Of the total contract value, the District and the Foundation will pay $279,000 through contract 22-F0280. The remainder of the agreement ($100,000) will be subsidized through a funding agreement (22-F0285) with the Salt Lake City Corporation.
DISCUSSION:
Staff proposes that UTA enter into a one-year education pass agreement with the Salt Lake City School District as described above.
CONTRACT SUMMARY:
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Contractor Name: |
Salt Lake School District and Salt Lake Education Foundation |
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Contract Number: |
22-F0280 |
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Base Contract Effective Dates: |
August 1, 2022 through July 31, 2023 |
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Extended Contract Dates: |
NA |
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Existing Contract Value: |
NA |
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Amendment Amount: |
NA |
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New/Total Contract Value: |
$279,000 |
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Procurement Method: |
NA |
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Budget Authority: |
NA |
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ALTERNATIVES:
Do not enter into an agreement with the district and maintain status quo thus foregoing additional revenue and ridership
FISCAL IMPACT:
Additional $279,000 in revenue
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Contract