Grand Jury Report Response Form Grand Jury Report Title : Your Ticket to Ride: Mendocino Transit Authority

In addition to the listed responsibilities, the Maintenance Department also maintains vehicles of outside agencies (cost +), repairs and maintains all MTA buildings and facilities including shelters.

Most MTA employees have been represented by Teamsters, Local 624, since March 26, 2006 (not January 1, 2006) as stated in finding #11.

MTA will be hiring a bilingual Mobility Management Coordinator in August 2009. The Coordinator is not a Management position. (S)he will report to the Manager of Marketing & Planning.

The Dodge Sprinter has a diesel engine. The Trolley is also used in regular public service. Footnote 2 is misleading. All of MTA’s vehicles used in public service are accessible to persons confined to wheelchairs or with other disabilities.

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) forbids the acquisition and operation of heavy-duty buses with emissions in excess of specified standards for NOx and PM- 10 (smoke). These standards are becoming more and more stringent, but engine manufacturers continue to make improvements to satisfy them. Therefore, buses with CARB certified diesel engines can be used; alternatively fueled engines are not required. Never the less, MTA will be buying hybrid and eventually electric powered vehicles for emissions and economic reasons.

The 2007 grant helped to fund 14 new or replacement passenger waiting shelters, 17 new or replacement benches and solar lighting on 13 shelters. The beautiful new shelter for the town of Mendocino will be installed in August or September 2009.

MTA operates two routes from Mendocino County to Santa Rosa. One runs from Point Arena to Bodega and into Santa Rosa. The other serves Mendocino, Fort Bragg, Willits Ukiah and Hopland on its way to Santa Rosa. Therefore, most of the county has direct bus access to Santa Rosa and connecting transit services.