Transit Bus Stops: Ownership, Liability, and Access (2008)

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30 related passenger facilities. However, the responsible jurisdiction must review and approve all bus stop loca- tions. Improvements within the right-of-way, such as bus shelters or benches, must go through the permit process. Most projects that involve excavation, concrete work, or installation of structures require payment of a permit fee. If the structure is to be on private property, Metro Transit must obtain a right-of-way use agree- ment from the property owner in addition to building permits. In the case of new construction, part of the work may be done under the construction permit, but actual installation will require its own building permit. Often a traffic control plan for the equipment necessary for installation will be required as part of the permit. Lighted shelters may require separate permits for wir- ing and power supply.344 Metro’s minimum threshold for installing a bus shel- ter is 50 passenger boardings per day. When commu- nity or business owners want a shelter for a location that does not meet Metro’s threshold, Metro offers three alternatives: First, in the case of new construction, the property owner can install the proper footings for a shelter, which Metro will install and maintain once the ridership threshold is met. Second, Metro staff will dis- cuss “transit-friendly alternatives such as awnings, benches and passenger leaning rails.” Third, Metro staff will consult with business districts, communities, or property owners who are willing to design, build, and maintain a shelter about design, materials, and main- tenance issues.345 Where property owners are interested in nonstandard designs, it may be necessary for the property owner to contribute to or cover completely the cost of maintaining the bus shelter. 4. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota Metro Transit, which has about 18,000 bus stops and 897 bus shelters in the metropolitan area,346 has mini- mum boarding criteria for adding a bus shelter of 40 passengers per day in the metropolitan area and 25 per day in the suburbs. A higher threshold of 100 passen- gers per day is required for custom shelters.347 Metro Transit allows art on bus shelters at the request of 344 Per Jan. 29, 2007, email to author from Ross Hudson, Senior Planner, King County Metro Transit Route Facilities. See SMC 11.16.280, Traffic Engineer—Authority—Special Zones: The Traffic Engineer establishes bus zones (“portion of the roadway along the curb which is reserved for loading and unloading of either transit coaches of the Metro Transit Sys- tem, or school buses.” SMC 11.14.070, Bus zone.) 345 Seattle Metro Bus Shelters, www.seattle.gov/economicdevelopment/biz_district_guide/biz_d ist_pages/METRO_bus_shelters.htm. 346 Minn. Metropolitan Council, Program Evaluation and Audit: Passenger Shelter Costs, Dec. 22, 2006, at 2, http://councilmeetings.metc.state.mn.us/audit/2007/Q1- 2007/2007-A03.pdf. 347 Id. at 17 (Guideline for Metro Transit Standard/Custom Shelters Installation), http://councilmeetings.metc.state.mn.us/audit/2007/Q1- 2007/2007-A03.pdf. community groups, but Metro Transit will not maintain any art added to the shelters.348 Metro Transit does not own or control the location of bus benches. Benches are placed by a private company at its discretion, under a contract with the City of Minneapolis. 349 5. Klamath Falls, Oregon Basin Transit Service (BTS), which operates five large buses, two mini-vans, and one small bus serving a population area of 45,000, has a lower threshold for adding bus stops/shelters. Bus stops are spaced to pro- vide three to four stops per mile. There must be at least an average of 5 boardings per day to merit a bench, and 10 boardings per day to merit a shelter. In all cases BTS considers safety as well as the number of board- ings in adding benches and shelters.350 V. AGREEMENTS A. Franchise Arrangements Numerous municipalities have entered into franchise agreements with private companies to design, install, operate, and/or maintain bus shelters, often in ex- change for the company’s right to advertise on the bus shelters. Frequently different portions of the right-of- way are controlled by more than one government entity, often none of them being the actual transit service pro- vider. This diffusion of responsibility may require multi-party coordination on, if not signatories to, fran- chise agreements, particularly for transit agencies that provide service to more than one jurisdiction.351 It is not uncommon for bus stop/shelter agreements to involve multiple jurisdictions. In Westchester County, New York, for example, the county has a license agree- ment with a private franchisee to construct and main- tain bus shelters. Municipalities within the county that have signed a cooperative agreement with the county can use the franchise services under the county’s fran- chise agreement.352 AC Transit has an umbrella agree- ment with a bus shelter franchisee, which municipali- ties in its service area can utilize.353 A comparison of the major issues covered by several franchise agreements illustrates the generally common aspects of elements such as franchise obligation and time frame, as well as the range of revenue available to the franchising entity, from $9 million for San Mateo 348 www.kingfield.org/NRP/NRP%20mnts%2005-1.htm. 349 Id. 350 Bus Stop and Bus Shelter Location Policy, Basin Transit Service, Klamath Falls, OR, www.basintransit.com/newriderpolicy.shtml. 351 Geluardi, supra note 336 (AC Transit had agreement with franchisee to install shelters in seven cities; each city had to approve agreement as to shelters in its jurisdiction). 352 Westchester County, supra note 102, at 18, www.westchestergov.com/transportation/images/Bus%20Servic e%20Guidelines.pdf . 353 Geluardi, supra note 336.

31 County over 15 years to over $1 billion for New York City over 20 years. The District of Columbia354 • Franchisee: Clear Channel Adshel • Obligation: Installation of shelters, provisions of bus maps, real-time bus arrival information in cooperation with WMATA and a computerized bicycle rental pro- gram • Number of shelters: 700. • Shelter amenities: Made of vandal and graffiti- resistant materials. • Payment to municipality: More than $150 million • Time frame of agreement: 20 years. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. • Planned use of revenue from franchise: $100 million earmarked to finance the District’s Great Streets pro- gram to improve and beautify some of the major trans- portation corridors in the District. MBTA355 • Franchisee: Cemusa North America. • Number of shelters: At least 200. • Payment to agency: Unspecified percentage of adver- tising fees (also payments to jurisdictions where shel- ters are located). • Time frame of agreement: 10 years. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. Milwaukee356 • Franchisee: Clear Channel Outdoor. • Obligation: Design, install, and maintain bus shel- ters; market and sell space on 250 displays and 425 buses. • Number of shelters: 125. • Time frame of agreement: 7 years. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. • Planned use of revenue from franchise: Reinvest the proceeds in Milwaukee County Transit System bus ser- vice. Minneapolis357 354 District of Columbia DOT, Bus Shelter Franchise Agreement, www.ddot.dc.gov/ddot/cwp/view,a,1255,q,633272.asp. 355 Naomi Aoki, T Awards 10-Year Pact to Build Bus Shel- ters. Contract Calls for Ad Revenue to Pay for Installations, BOSTON GLOBE, Dec. 1, 2004, www.boston.com/business/articles/2004/12/01/t_awards_10_yea r_pact_to_build_bus_shelters/. 356 Katy Bachman, CC Outdoor Wins Milwaukee Transit Contracts, Sept. 6, 2006, www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content _id=1003117460. 357 Exhibit A—Recommended Appendix G Ordinance Changes (dated Aug. 14, 2006), www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/2006- meetings/200060901/ docs/02_Appendix_G_revision_081406_v2.pdf; Public Hearing for Transfer of the Transtop Bus Shelter Franchise to CBS Outdoor and Extension of Shelter Franchise to Year 2015, • Franchisee: CBS Outdoor, Inc. (nonexclusive). • Obligation: Furnish litter container to bus shelters citywide (with or without a bench) located in a commer- cial corridor; service containers 2.5 times per week (3 times per week in the summer, 2 times per week in the winter), for average fee of $30 per month per container. • Number of shelters: 210. • Payment to municipality: $100,000 minimum guaran- tee (with 6-year extension, increasing to $115,000 in 2006, escalating annually up to $260,000 in 2015) plus 13 percent of advertising revenues–maintenance ceiling credits. • Time frame of agreement: 10 years; 6-year extension in exchange for adding 20 shelters. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. New York358 • Franchisee: Cemusa. • Obligation: Build and install 650 bus shelters, 110 news stands, and 10 public toilets; repair existing bus shelters. • Number of shelters: 3,300. • Payment to municipality: Over $1 billion. • Time frame of agreement: 20 years. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. San Mateo County359 • Obligation: Bus shelter construction, installation, advertising, and maintenance services. • Number of shelters: 202 (replacing old shelters) (50 shelter minimum in 12 months). • Payment to municipality: Up to $9,054,703. • Time frame of agreement: 15 years. • Advertising by franchisee: Yes. • Other: SamTrans will maintain direct control over shelters if community in service area refuses to allow advertising or if shelter is needed based on ridership but location does not meet franchisee requirements. Franchisee does not allow advertising related to alcohol or tobacco. B. Other Agreements Short of comprehensive franchise agreements, the public entity responsible for bus stops and bus shelters may enter into maintenance and other service agree- ments with private providers. These service provider agreements may be less complex than franchise agree- ments, depending on the service area.360 Bus shelter www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/2006- meetings/20060922/Docs/04_Bus_Shelter_Franchise.pdf. 358 Charles V. Bagli, Lawsuits Seek to Void $1 Billion New York City Deal for Bus Shelters, Newsstands and Toilets, NEW YORK TIMES, Aug. 24, 2006. 359 San Mateo County Transit District, Minutes of Finance Committee Meeting, Feb. 22, 2006, www.samtrans.org/pdf/BOD_Agenda_Reports/03_15_06/FIN_1 _Minutes.pdf. 360 Lincoln, NE (contracting out maintenance), www.lincoln.ne.gov/city/finance/purch/pdf/con05219.pdf.