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355 Member Heimerl suggested that staff include some of the information materials 356 (e.g. Blue Book) as attachments to tonight's meeting minutes for information to the 357 public. 358 359 As a transit rider to commute to work, including airport travel, using both the A- 360 Line and Green and Blue Lines as well, Member Heimerl questioned the 361 commitment to make public transportation a good fit. Member Heimerl opined that 362 it seemed to receive half commitment at best, using the example of the time required 363 to go from downtown Minneapolis to downtown St. Paul, opining that he could ride 364 his bike faster than that. Since part of that delay was caused by stopping for traffic 365 lights along the way, Member Heimerl questioned why the train didn't get the right - 366 of -way versus cars allowed to dictate to trains, especially given the significant 367 investment in light rail and ultimate goal of attracting ridership with a faster option. 368 If the trains aren't proven successful, Member Heimerl opined that they were just 369 a waste of money; and stated his preference for either a full commitment or 370 abandoning the effort completely. If people were to be encouraged to ride it, 371 Member Heimerl stated that there was the need for a public push to make that 372 happen. Member Heimerl also noted his safety concerns when riding a bus along 373 the shoulder of the Interstate next to a retaining wall, opining it was just an accident 374 waiting to happen. Member Heimerl asked how to get sufficient commitment to 375 support transit; and therefore it had prompted one of his questions as to Metro 376 Transit's overall budget and the percent collected from fares versus that total 377 budget. Member Heimerl opined that the A -Line was a great improvement; but 378 stated if he was a person with limited mobility, he would have concerns at the 379 stations when the bus didn't stop at the same location on the pad each time. 380 381 Mr. Thompson advised that the buses should do so. 382 383 If someone was handicapped, Member Heimerl noted the inconsistency could 384 create issues; and suggested that improvements such as this would make a strong 385 statement for customers who would in turn support public transportation. At this 386 point, however, Member Heimerl opined that there was mixed support and 387 therefore mixed messages on the program. 388 389 Mr. Thompson reviewed the running time for the Green and Blue Lines from one 390 downtown to the other, agreeing that there were significant interruptions at 391 insignificant intersections as pointed out by Member Heimerl. Mr. Thompson gave 392 credit to the City of St. Paul and MnDOT in recent corrections made to improve 393 those issues. Regarding one specific intersection cited in Member Heimerl's email, 394 Mr. Thompson advised that he had spoken to the rail operation staff, who had 395 informed him that some intersections could not have priority (e.g. traffic flow issues 396 from Lexington Avenue onto University due to vehicle stacking at I-94). However, 397 Mr. Thompson agreed that there were some locations where it seemed that trains 398 should have signal priority but didn't at this time. 399 Page 9 of 14