The MPO has
scheduled a joint work session
for the Charlottesville City Council and the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to discuss the proposed Regional Transit Authority (RTA). The meeting will be held at the Charlottesville Community Design Center on August 5, 2008 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM.
The MPO Policy Board will be reviewing the final draft of the RTA Study being conducted by Vanasse Hangen Brustlin in advance of the meeting. The objective is to draft legislation to enable an authority in time for the 2009 General Assembly. One remaining question is the structure for the RTA Board, a key component required for legislative approval.
According to a memo from MPO Transportation Program Director Melissa Barlow
, the goal is to have the RTA created as of July 1, 2009 and to assume responsibility for transit services on January 1, 2010.
At their meeting on Wednesday
, the MPO will hear from David Blount, the legislative liaison for the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission. Blount will give an assessment of how the recently concluded special session of the General Assembly may affect the area’s chances of getting Richmond’s approval to form an authority.
This will be the second time that the Board and Council have met in a joint session to work on the RTA proposal.
In February, the two elected bodies agreed
to further pursue the authority in order to obtain more funding for expanding transit.
Sean Tubbs
