Contracting Commuter Rail Services, Volume 2: Commuter Rail System Profiles (2018)

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95 MetroRail is a commuter rail line provided by the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Capital Metro) in Austin, Texas. Capital Metro is the metropolitan rapid transit authority responsible for providing mass transit service within Austin and the surrounding communities of Leander, Lago Vista, Jonestown, Manor, San Leanna, Volente, and Point Venture, as well as the unincorporated area of Travis County within Precinct 2 and the Anderson Mill area of Williamson County. Capital Metro’s current service area is 534 square miles. In addition to the MetroRail commuter rail, Capital Metro operates fi xed-route buses, bus rapid transit, the Americans with Disabilities Act paratransit, and a vanpool program. Capital Metro began in January 1985 when the regional agency assumed operation of the transit services formerly provided by the city-owned Austin Transit System. In 1986, Capital Metro partnered with the City of Austin to purchase the 162-mile Giddings-to-Llano segment of the Austin and Northwestern Railroad from the Southern Pacifi c Transportation Company (SP). In 1998, Capital Metro acquired the City of Austin’s share in the railroad subdivisions (east, central, and west) and four industrial leads (Giddings, Llano, Scobee, and Marble Falls). Capital Metro contracts freight service to Watco Companies. Freight traffi c includes aggregates, crushed limestone, calcium bicarbonate, lumber, beer, chemicals, plastics, and paper. Voters approved Capital Metro’s plans to develop a commuter rail corridor in 2004. After overcoming many challenges in funding, construction, and mobilization of the commuter rail line, Capital Metro began MetroRail commuter rail service in March 2010. Branded as the Red Line, the 32-mile commuter rail operates from the suburban communities of Leander and Lakeline to downtown Austin on Capital Metro–owned track. The Red Line serves nine stations. Capital Metro operates express and local bus routes from MetroRail stations for continued travel to key destinations in the area. Red Line rail service operates during peak service hours with 5- to 30-minute headways. Each one-way trip from Leander to downtown is approximately 1 hour. MetroRail Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Austin, TX HISTORY Capital Metro partnered with the City of Austin to purchase the 162-mile Giddings-to-Llano segment of the Austin and Northwestern Railroad from SP. Capital Metro acquired the City of Austin’s share in the railroad purchased from SP. Capital Metro held a voter referendum for a 52-mile rail system that included a north– south Red Line and an east–west Green Line. The proposal was defeated by less than 2,000 votes. Capital Metro presented MetroRail commuter rail as part of the All Systems Go Long-Range Transit Plan. This proposal won 62% voter approval. Capital Metro contracted with railcar manufacturer Stadler for six GTW 2-6 DMUs. Capital MetroRail began service on the Red Line. Capital Metro added additional MetroRail trains during midday. Capital Metro added MetroRail regularly scheduled service Friday evenings and Saturdays. Capital Metro ordered four new DMU railcars to increase MetroRail capacity. Capital Metro was awarded a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant to make commuter rail improvements, including additional sidings and double tracking. 1986 1998 2000 2004 2005 2010 2011 2012 2014 2013 purchased from SP. Today the Capital Metro railroad is divided into three

96 Contracting Commuter Rail Services, Volume 2: Commuter Rail System Profiles PERFORMANCE STATISTICS Past Trends 2012–2016 Service Data in RY* 2016 Data source: NTD *Report year: for each report year, NTD collects data refl ecting the reporter’s operation in the same fi scal year. Note: In 2016, MetroRail executed a new contract that expanded responsibility for maintenance of way and incorporated the cost of DMU vehicle overhaul into the operating contract. Annual Operating Cost: $23,076,368 Total Directional Route Miles: 64 Passenger Car Revenue Miles: 298,379 Unlinked Passenger Trips: 806,331 Annual Total Passenger Miles: 13,241,488 Operating Cost per Passenger Car Revenue Mile Operating Cost per Passenger Passenger Trips per Passenger Car Revenue Mile Passenger Miles per Passenger Trip $77.34 $51.37 $56.51 $49.09$47.90 20162015201420132012 $28.62 $17.76 $20.71 $16.43 $21.54 20162015201420132012 2.70 2.892.73 2.99 2.22 20162015201420132012 16.4216.1915.7215.9116.18 20162015201420132012 Capital Metro is led by an eight-member board of directors appointed by various governing entities within the service area. The board consists of three members appointed by the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, including an elected offi cial; one member representing the smaller cities within Capital Metro’s service area; one member each appointed by the Travis County Commissioners and Williamson County Commissioners; and two members appointed by the Austin City Council, one of whom is an elected offi cial. The board is authorized to hire a president/chief executive offi cer to manage the authority’s day-to-day operation and report to the board monthly. Capital Metro contracts for operations and maintenance services for freight and commuter rail. The commuter contractor, Herzog Transit Services, Inc. (HTSI), provides dispatching services for the entire railroad. The freight contractor, Watco, Inc., fulfi lls the authority’s common carrier obligation. Because the DMU vehicles on the commuter rail do not meet the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) requirements for crashworthiness, commuter trains are segregated from freight trains by temporal separation on the Red Line. Capital Metro conducted a competitive procurement for a new contract eff ective October 1, 2015. Capital Metro awarded this contract to HTSI. In the new contract, Capital Metro revised the manner in which the contractor provides and bills for commuter services. For instance, all capital maintenance is now included in the base cost except for major corridor upgrades. The initial term for this contract is 7 years with two 4-year options, for a possible total of 15 years. This contract provides the following services: CONTRACTED SERVICE • Rail operations/transportation • Rail dispatching* • Safety testing and training • Accident and incident investigation • Regulatory compliance • Track maintenance • Drainage system maintenance • Bridge maintenance • Rail vehicle maintenance** • Signal system maintenance • Communication systems maintenance • Material/inventory management • Contract administration and fi nance * For commuter rail and freight rail on the Capital Metro railroad. ** Including DMU overhauls. Capital Metro owns a fl eet of 10 Stadler GTW 2-6 articulated railcars running on diesel-electric engines [diesel multiple units (DMUs)]. GOVERNANCE General Contracted Service Informaon During midday hours, commuter rail service operates at 1-hour headways between the Lakeline and Downtown stations. Each one-way trip from Lakeline to the Downtown Station is approximately 42 minutes. Service expansion plans include operating trains at 15-minute headways during peak periods.

MetroRail 97 Notes for Matrix 1. HTSI dispatches commuter and freight operation for the entire Capital Metro Railroad. 2. The requirements for operation and maintenance for the PTC system are under way through a design– build contract with Modern Railway Systems, Inc. Capital Metro intends to modify the HTSI scope of work to provide maintenance and support of PTC. 3. Capital Metro contracts security for rail services and stations to the Austin Police Department. A—Agency; B—Host Railroad (RR); C—Amtrak; D—Independent Contractors (RR or Non-RR) A B C D Train Operations Maintenance of Infrastructure Maintenance of Equipment Specifi cally: Train Dispatching Services (1) Train Operations Maintenance of Equipment Facilities Maintenance Maintenance of Way Provision of Electric Traction (na) Signals and Communication Positive Train Control (PTC) Maintenance (2) Station Operations and Maintenance Non-revenue Equipment Provision Safety Management Security Services (3) Environmental Services Management/Oversight Services Materials Management Services Risk Management Assessment Customer Service Functions Marketing Communications Ticketing/Sales Revenue Collection Information Technology Systems Accident/Fatality Investigations/Support Supplemental Work (na) Other (na) Contracted Service Matrix Oversight and Responsibilies Capital Metro relies on HTSI to be responsible for compliance with FRA regulations for commuter service. Capital Metro’s Railroad Operations Department provides contractor oversight. Capital Metro is responsible for meeting Federal Transit Administration (FTA) obligations. Capital Metro reports operations, financial, and safety data to the FTA National Transit Database (NTD) for MetroRail. The matrix below illustrates the responsibility for major service functions for MetroRail. The capital letters A and D represent the Capital Metro in-house staff (MetroRail) and the independent contractor (HTSI), respectively. In this case, B for the host railroad and C for Amtrak are not applicable.