ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT REVIEW RECOMMENDATION #6a

 

Title:                             Charter Bus/Berkeley Bus

Description:                  Is Charter Bus/Berkeley Bus paying its share of overhead costs?  Is the bus program located in the correct division?

Team Leader:               Dave Franklin, Mark Robinson

Team:                           Valerie Ozella, Carolyn Pfanner, Don McGann, Elma Olguin

Identified Issues:           Is Unitrans interested in taking over Fleet bus operations?

Separating Charter Bus costs/income from Fleet costs/income is a key component in making Charter Bus self supporting.  Berkeley Bus is already self supporting.

Fleet Proposal:             Fleet Services' management team met with Geoff Straw, Unitrans General Manager.  Fleet proposed to Geoff that Unitrans take over the operation of the Fleet Charter Bus/Berkeley Bus program.  Geoff requested statistics on the operation. See attachment # 1 for information that was forwarded to Geoff.  After reviewing the statistics, Geoff replied that Unitrans is not interested in taking over the bus operation at this time.  He cited the following two reasons:

1.                     Unitrans is currently experiencing the same operational problems as Fleet Services in hiring drivers.  Unitrans’ business model depends upon the flexibility of using UCD undergraduate students as employees.  The students have the flexibility of choosing work shifts in one- to three-hour shifts.  Relying upon part-time student employees for a multiple-hour or overnight charter would be problematic. 

Fleet and Unitrans will continue to be in conversation about joint driver issues. Fleet has difficulty in recruiting drivers because Fleet cannot guarantee 100% employment time.  Unitrans is considering hiring staff drivers when Covell Village or the West Village areas are developed.  There is the possibility that Fleet and Unitrans may be able to share drivers on dual payroll in order to meet the operational needs of both departments. 

2.                     Unitrans receives funding from USDOT (United State Department of Transportation) Federal Transit Administration.  Unitrans is mandated (by receiving these grants) to not compete with outside agencies. The USDOT is questioning the charters that Unitrans currently accepts. 

Geoff thinks the above two issues are serious enough to turn down the proposal to take over the Fleet Services' bus operation.

Fleet Services has inaugurated a new financial system that will insure that Charter Bus/Berkeley Bus operations are separated from Fleet Services cost accounting.  The buses have been transferred to a new inventory number and the bus program will be responsible for collecting its own depreciation and reserve funding. 

Justification:                  Charter Bus/Berkeley Bus operations will stay within the management reporting structure of Fleet Services.  At the current time, there is no other department on campus to manage this business.

Impact:                         The bus program will develop an operating structure and utilization rate that allows it to be self-supporting.