Public Transit Partnerships: Additional Information Needed to Clarify Data Reporting and Share Best Practices
Fast Facts
Have you tried bike- or car-sharing? Local transit agencies are partnering with private companies offering these and other new options to help riders connect to and use mass transit systems.
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) wants to support transit agencies undertaking such efforts. But transit agencies are seeking more information from FTA to help them form successful partnerships, including details on what data FTA needs—such as on the number of rides shared—to grant money to these agencies.
We recommend that FTA share more information with transit agencies, including about how to report this data to FTA.
Docking station for bike-sharing program
Photo of two bikes docked at a bikeshare station.
Highlights
What GAO Found
Some local transit agencies are pursuing partnerships with private mobility companies—including car-share and "ridesourcing" companies such as Lyft and Uber, which provide access to a shared vehicle “on demand”—with the aim of offering public transit riders more efficient and convenient service options. Most of the transit partnership projects that GAO selected (14 of 22) involved private partners providing on-demand transportation for the “first- and last-mile” connections to or from public transit stations (see figure). Local transit agencies use first- and last-mile connections to increase their public transit ridership. Other services provided through selected projects included filling transit service gaps in under-served areas. Most selected projects have not yet been evaluated to determine whether they achieved intended outcomes.
Concept of First- and Last-Mile Connections to Access Public Transportation
The Department of Transportation's (DOT) efforts, especially the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) initiation of the Mobility on Demand Sandbox program, have facilitated partnerships, but confusion about how to meet some requirements and how to report data pose challenges to implementing projects. In October 2016, FTA announced the selection of 11 projects to receive grants and has since provided assistance to the grantees. FTA also issued clarifications about how certain federal requirements—such as those related to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)—apply to transit partnerships. However, most selected local transit agencies (14 of 16) said that additional information beyond what FTA has already disseminated, including how agencies have successfully structured partnerships and met federal requirements, would be helpful. Collecting and disseminating such information could help FTA be better positioned to respond to changes in the transit industry that could impact its own efforts and goals, such as planning for future Mobility on Demand grants. In addition, most selected local transit agencies reported confusion related to reporting information about their on-demand projects into the FTA's National Transit Database, including confusion about which on-demand project data would qualify for entry. This confusion has led to possible reporting inconsistencies by some local transit agencies. Ensuring that data contained in the National Transit Database are complete and accurate is important, since according to FTA officials, FTA uses these data (1) to apportion certain grant funds to local transit agencies based on factors such as passenger miles traveled, and (2) to track its progress in achieving goals such as promoting efficient transportation systems, among other things.
Why GAO Did This Study
The public transit landscape is changing, as advances in technology have enabled more on-demand mobility services, such as ridesourcing and bike-share services. In response, some transit agencies have started to partner with private mobility companies with the aim of offering public transit riders more efficient and convenient options through on-demand services. FTA supports public transportation systems through a variety of federal grant programs.
GAO was asked to review various issues related to such partnerships. This report examines, among other things: (1) the types of partnership projects that selected transit agencies have initiated with private mobility companies and (2) how DOT's efforts and funding and federal requirements may impact such partnerships. GAO interviewed DOT officials and reviewed DOT documents; interviewed 16 local transit agencies and 13 private mobility companies involved in transit partnerships; and reviewed 22 projects initiated by the selected partners, including 5 funded by the Mobility on Demand Sandbox grant program. GAO selected these partners to represent a range of service types and geographic locations; the results are non-generalizable.
Recommendations
GAO is making three recommendations including that FTA disseminate information about how partnership projects met federal requirements and how data on partnerships should be entered into the National Transit Database. DOT concurred with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Transit Administration | FTA should gather and publicly share information on transit partnerships, including those that did not receive funding through the Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox program, to include examples regarding how various local transit agencies complied with federal requirements--such as procurement, drug and alcohol testing, ADA, and Title VI requirements--while offering new on-demand services in partnerships. (Recommendation 1) |
Local transit agencies have started to partner with private mobility companies-including bike-share companies, taxis, and "ridesourcing" companies such as Uber and Lyft-with the aim of offering public transit riders more efficient and convenient service options. Such partnerships may become more common as mobility technologies emerge, many of which are enabled by smartphone applications. In 2018, GAO reported that the Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) had taken steps to facilitate and better understand such transit partnerships through the Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox program. Since first announcing the selected 11 MOD projects to receive funding in October 2016, FTA has supported the program through various efforts, such as providing technical support to participants. However, most (14 of 16) selected local transit agencies in GAO's review wanted additional information from FTA-beyond what the agency had already disseminated-describing how transit partnerships have met federal requirements, such as related to procurement requirements and to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). For instance, officials from some local transit agencies told us that without examples of how agencies are structuring their partnerships, they were unclear about how such partnerships could ever meet the federal requirements. Finally, the majority of local transit agencies that participated in partnerships were not in the MOD Sandbox program; and many of their projects may have already been underway or completed. Gathering information from those local transit agencies would provide FTA with more information about how partnerships are meeting federal requirements. It would also likely provide FTA with more examples to disseminate to all local transit agencies. Consequently, GAO recommended that FTA gather and publicly share information on transit partnerships, including those that did not receive funding through the MOD Sandbox program, to include examples regarding how various local transit agencies complied with federal requirements while offering new on-demand services in partnerships. In 2019, GAO confirmed that FTA had taken sufficient action to provide local transit agencies-including agencies outside of the MOD Sandbox program participants-with such information. Specifically, in October 2019, FTA hosted a webinar on "Compliance with FTA Requirements in Transit Shared Mobility Partnerships," in which FTA provided an overview of how the federal requirements, such as the ADA, apply to such partnerships. In preparation for this webinar, according to officials, FTA gathered information from local transit agencies within and outside of the MOD Sandbox program. To advertise this webinar, FTA posted an announcement on its bulletin accessible to transit agencies and the public. As part of this webinar, FTA also provided additional guidance about the successful management of these requirements. For example, the webinar included a speaker from FTA who discussed details about how requirements apply to ridesourcing partnerships as well as two speakers from local transit agencies who described how their partnerships addressed requirements; one of these transit agencies was in the MOD Sandbox program and while other agency was outside of the program. FTA published the video and transcript of this webinar, and additional guidance documents, on its public Shared Mobility Partnerships website. By FTA clearly communicating about ways to successfully structure partnerships, local agencies nationwide will be better positioned to gain the efficiency and other potential benefits from such partnerships while addressing requirements related to accessibility and equity.
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| Federal Transit Administration | FTA should determine which on-demand services qualify as "public transportation" based on the statutory definition and disseminate information to clarify whether and how to report data from such services into the National Transit Database (NTD). (Recommendation 2) |
Local transit agencies have started to partner with private mobility companies-including bike-share companies, taxis, and "ridesourcing" companies such as Uber and Lyft-with the aim of offering public transit riders more efficient and convenient service options. Such partnerships may become more common as mobility technologies emerge, many of which are enabled by smartphone applications. In 2018, GAO reported that DOT's FTA had taken steps to facilitate and better understand such transit partnerships through the Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox program. To track its progress toward achieving its goals, such as increasing the efficiency of public transit services,, FTA can use data from its National Transit Database (NTD)-the agency's primary source for information and statistics on U.S. transit systems. NTD is intended to provide timely, accurate information to help both Congress and FTA apportion funding and assess the continued progress of the nation's public transportation systems. A key goal of FTA's NTD is to gather information from local transit agencies. According to FTA officials, transit agencies only report data to the NTD for transportation services provided that meet the statutory definition of public transportation. To help local transit agencies with reporting, FTA issues NTD manuals annually that describe how to report all the various NTD data requested. Despite the available NTD manuals that discuss the statutory definition of public transportation, officials from most (10 of 16) selected local transit agencies we interviewed for this review expressed confusion about NTD reporting for on-demand projects, such as about which types of on-demand rides qualify as "public transportation" for reporting purposes and how qualifying rides should be entered into NTD. These officials told GAO that further clarification was needed from FTA about this issue. GAO reported that without clarified information from FTA, some local transit agencies would likely remain confused, potentially leading to inaccurate data in the NTD. Consequently, GAO recommended that FTA determine which on-demand services qualify as "public transportation" based on the statutory definition and disseminate information to clarify whether and how to report data from such services into NTD. In 2020, GAO confirmed that FTA had taken sufficient action to clarify this issue for local transit agencies. Specifically, in 2019, FTA published a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comment on proposed reporting changes to NTD and clarifications for on-demand services, such as rides provided through ridesourcing companies. In 2020, FTA published a second Federal Register notice responding to comments received and finalizing proposed changes to NTD reporting requirements. Also in the same year, FTA issued an updated version of its NTD Policy Manual and posted it on the agency's website. The updated manual includes clarification about when and how to report on-demand services. To notify local transit agencies about the release of the updated manual, FTA sent an email announcement to all NTD reporters. FTA's email emphasized that changes to NTD reporting for 2020 include a new type of services-for transportation provided through a ridesourcing company-as well as how and when to report these services. This email also included a link to FTA webinar training sessions about these and other changes to NTD reporting. By clarifying for local transit agencies which on-demand services should be entered into NTD and how to enter them, FTA has enhanced the ability of local transit agencies nationwide to meet NTD reporting requirements and also improved the likelihood of more complete and accurate NTD data. In turn, having such NTD data will help FTA to track its own progress in achieving its goals of promoting more integrated and efficient transit systems.
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| Federal Transit Administration | FTA should gather and publically share information on transit partnerships, including those that were not part of the MOD Sandbox program, to include: information on how the local transit agencies and their private mobility company partners are facilitating data sharing, and minimum data needed from a private partner to facilitate NTD reporting. (Recommendation 3) |
Local transit agencies have started to partner with private mobility companies-including bike-share companies, taxis, and "ridesourcing" companies such as Uber and Lyft-with the aim of offering public transit riders more efficient and convenient service options. Such partnerships may become more common as mobility technologies emerge, many of which are enabled by smartphone applications. In 2018, GAO reported that the Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) had taken steps to facilitate and better understand such transit partnerships through the Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox program. A key goal of FTA's National Transit Database (NTD)-the agency's primary source for information and statistics on U.S. transit systems-is to gather information from local transit agencies. However, selected local transit agencies reported difficulties obtaining data from some ridesourcing partners, including some data that many transit agencies are required to report into NTD, such as the total miles travelled with passengers on board. To help address data collection issues, several transit officials suggested that FTA could circulate effective practices for data sharing, such as a template contract between a local transit agency and a private mobility company that includes data sharing obligations. NTD is intended to provide timely, accurate information to help both Congress and FTA apportion funding and assess the continued progress of the nation's public transportation systems. However, the timeliness and accuracy of NTD data could diminish if local transit agencies continue to experience difficulties in obtaining needed data. Consequently, GAO recommended that FTA gather and publicly share information on transit partnerships to include information on how the local transit agencies and their private mobility company partners are facilitating data sharing, and minimum data needed from a private partner to facilitate NTD reporting. In 2019, GAO confirmed that FTA had taken sufficient action to provide local transit agencies with such information. Specifically, in October 2019, FTA hosted a webinar on Data Sharing in Transit and Share Mobility Partnerships that was open to all local transit agencies nationwide, including those participating in the MOD Sandbox program as well as local transit agencies outside of the program. According to FTA, to prepare for this webinar, the agency planned to gather success stories from the MOD Sandbox grantees and also from local agencies outside of the MOD Sandbox program. The webinar session highlighted practices around the establishment of data sharing arrangements in partnerships, and described FTA's agency requirements for data storage and ways to report data from such partnerships in the NTD. FTA published the video and transcript of this webinar, and additional guidance documents, on its public Shared Mobility Partnerships website. By sharing information about ways for local transit agencies to structure their partnerships to receive important data-such as on ridership-FTA will be in a better position to ensure the accuracy of NTD and local agencies nationwide will be better positioned to meet NTD requirements and to gain the potential efficiency and other benefits from such partnerships.
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