San Luis Obispo - Caltrans - State of California

SAN LUIS OBISPO REGION
COORDINATED HUMAN SERVICES-PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION PLAN
human services providers with 115 vehicles. Not included are an additional 85 vehicles
reported by two school districts and by commercial providers which could be double counted
among vehicles reported by their contracting agencies. The age of vehicles was not
collected in this survey, but other surveys have shown human service agency vehicles to be
generally older, with substantially higher mileage as compared with vehicles operated by
public transit agencies. Responding agencies did indicate that just 15 percent of the human
service agencies are lift-equipped, wheelchair accessible, contrasting sharply with the public
transit vehicles of which six out of ten are lift equipped.
Expenditures Reported
Information on expenditures and their sources was notably different between the two sectors,
public transit versus human and social services. While $11.7 million was reported in total
operating expenditures, these funds were expended differently between the two groups.
Public transit accounted for almost $10 million, 93 percent of all funds reported. Transit
providers are allocating eight out of ten dollars into direct vehicle operations, with another two
in ten dollars expended for administration or for vehicle replacements. Less than one
percent is going to special bus pass, bus token or mileage reimbursement/ taxi voucher
programs.
Human and social service providers reported a much smaller proportion of the total dollars
expended at $778,000 (7 percent), with about one-third used for direct vehicle operations.
Only three percent of reported human services’ dollars is expended for vehicle replacement.
Vehicle replacement is less than one percent. Almost one quarter of these funds are
expended for mileage reimbursement, bus passes/ tokens and taxi vouchers. Less than one
percent of funds was reported for administration of human service transportation programs.
The significant subsidy that CalPoly provides to SLO Transit for its university students
accounted for 41 percent of reported human services transportation expenditures.
Funding sources are substantially different in that city-operated systems and public transit
operators report continuing, stable funding from federal, state and local dedicated transit
sources. Human and social service agencies/organizations reported private donations,
general fund allocations and special grants. For many human and social service
agencies/organizations, particularly the smaller ones, funding availability from year to year is
an on-going issue.
Infrastructure Differences
Public transit operators have access to formula funding for vehicle replacement which helps
to ensure that high percentages of their vehicle fleets are lift-equipped. In addition, transit
agencies have funding for facilities to maintain vehicles and staffing to regularly perform
preventative vehicle maintenance. There is the increasing introduction of technology to
perform both administrative and operational support functions, such as data management
and accounting, billing, trip scheduling, dispatching, AVL, automated fare payment and call
taking and information applications. Such infrastructure does not commonly exist within the
human service systems, the exception being the developing maintenance facility for RTA and
Ride-On transportation programs.
98
OCTOBER 2007