[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 12, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46975-46977]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-18388]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[Docket No: FTA-2008-0009]


National Transit Database: Policy on Reporting of Coordinated 
Human Services Transportation Data

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

[[Page 46976]]


ACTION: Notice of Proposed New Policy on Reporting of Coordinated Human 
Services Transportation Data to the National Transit Database.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice provides interested parties with the opportunity 
to comment on changes to the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) 
National Transit Database (NTD) policy on the reporting of coordinated 
human services transportation data. For many years, it has been FTA's 
policy to require transit agencies reporting demand response service to 
the NTD to exclude service data for certain sponsored trips from their 
reports. These trips were typically arranged and paid for by a third 
party for a specific group of clients (such as participants in programs 
like Medicaid, Head Start, sheltered workshops, or assisted living 
centers), and were often not open to the general public at large. Data 
for these trips were thus excluded from the calculation of the 
apportionment of Urbanized Area Formula Grants. In light of FTA's 
policies and guidance on Coordinated Human Services Transportation, FTA 
is proposing to clarify this policy for the 2008 NTD Report Year to 
specify that transit agencies are to report data for all of their 
demand response service as public transportation, except for those 
services that are defined as charter service under FTA's recently 
revised charter rule (49 CFR Part 604, 73 FR 2326, January 14, 2008). 
FTA also proposes to require transit agencies in urbanized areas to 
separately report their ``regular unlinked passenger trips'' and their 
``sponsored demand response unlinked passenger trips'' for demand 
response service. FTA invites the public to comment on this proposed 
policy change.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 11, 2008. FTA 
will consider comments filed after this date to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments [identified by DOT Docket ID Number 
FTA-2008-0009] at the Federal eRulemaking Portal at: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., West Building Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 
New Jersey Ave., SE., West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Instructions: When submitting comments, you must use docket number 
FTA-2008-0009. This will ensure that your comment is placed in the 
correct docket. If you submit comments by mail, you should submit two 
copies and include the above docket number.
    Note that all comments received will be posted, without change, to
    Note that all comments received will be posted, without change, to 
http://www.regulations.gov including any personal identifying 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program issues, John D. Giorgis, 
Office of Budget and Policy, (202) 366-5430 (telephone); (202) 366-7989 
(fax); or [email protected] (e-mail). For legal issues, Richard 
Wong, Office of the Chief Counsel, (202) 366-0675 (telephone); (202) 
366-3809 (fax); or [email protected] (e-mail).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The National Transit Database (NTD) is the Federal Transit 
Administration's (FTA's) primary database for statistics on the transit 
industry. Congress established the NTD to ``help meet the needs of * * 
* the public for information on which to base public transportation 
service planning. * * *'' (49 U.S.C. 5335). Currently, over 650 transit 
providers in urbanized areas report to the NTD through an Internet-
based reporting system. Each year, performance data from these 
submissions are used to apportion over $5 billion of FTA funds under 
the Urbanized Area Formula Grants and the Fixed Guideway Modernization 
Grants Programs. These data are also used in the annual National 
Transit Summaries and Trends report, the biennial Conditions and 
Performance Report to Congress, and in meeting FTA's obligations under 
the Government Performance and Results Act.

II. Proposed Policy Change

    For many years, it has been FTA's policy to require transit 
providers reporting demand response service to the NTD to exclude 
certain trips that were sponsored by a third party from their reports. 
A ``trip sponsor'' refers to a third party that reimbursed the transit 
provider in whole or in part for the trip, and in many cases, handled 
all or part of the trip arrangements. These trips were typically 
arranged and paid for by some third party for a specific group of 
clients (such as participants in programs like Medicaid, Head Start, 
sheltered workshops, or assisted living centers), and were often not 
open to the general public at large. Data for these trips were thus 
excluded from the calculation of the apportionment of Urbanized Area 
Formula Grants.
    FTA proposes to clarify this policy in light of FTA's policy and 
guidance on Coordinated Human Services Transportation, and in light of 
PTA's recently revised charter rule (49 CFR Part 604, 73 FR 2326, 
January 14, 2008). FTA proposes in this notice that transit providers 
reporting to the NTD for the 2008 NTD Report Year, should report all of 
their demand response services to individuals as public transportation 
services, regardless of whether the trip was sponsored in whole or in 
part by a third party. Trips that meet the definition of charter 
service at 49 CFR 604.3(c) must be reported on a quarterly basis on the 
charter registration Web site, as required by the charter rule, and 
data for these trips should not be reported as revenue service to the 
NTD.
    A key component of FTA's charter rule is the concept of 
``exclusivity.'' Charter service is defined, in part, as 
``transportation provided * * *, at the request of a third party for 
the exclusive use of a bus or van at a negotiated price,'' with the 
caveat that ``charter service * * * does not include demand response 
service to individuals.'' Transit providers reporting to the NTD may 
distinguish their demand response services, particularly their 
sponsored demand response service, from charter service a number of 
ways: (1) Charter service is exclusive, whereas demand response service 
is shared-ride. If the transit provider may mix passengers from a trip 
sponsor with other demand response passengers on the same trip, then 
the trip is on shared-ride service, and service data for that trip 
should be reported to the NTD as public transportation. (2) Charter 
service is service to a group, whereas demand response service is 
service to individuals. Service to individuals can be identified by a 
vehicle trip that includes multiple origins, multiple destinations, or 
both, even when the clients have exclusive use of the vehicle. Some 
demand response sponsored trips carried out as part of a Coordinated 
Human Services Transportation Plan, such as trips for Head Start, 
assisted living centers, or sheltered workshops, may be provided on an 
exclusive basis, but are provided to service multiple origins to a 
single destination, a single origin to multiple destinations, or even 
multiple origins to multiple destinations. Transit providers should 
report service data for these trips to the NTD as public 
transportation. (3) Charter service is for a specific event or

[[Page 46977]]

function, whereas demand response service is regular and continuing. 
Some demand response sponsored trips carried out as part of a 
Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan may be exclusive, and 
may be for a group from a single origin to a single destination, but 
may occur on a frequently reoccurring basis, such as daily, weekly, 
biweekly, or monthly. Transit providers should report service data for 
these trips to the NTD as public transportation. Demand response 
service that is exclusive, from a single origin to a single 
destination, and that reoccurs on a less-frequent basis that once per 
month should be considered to be charter service. Transit providers 
should report these services to the charter registration Web site.
    Transit providers reporting to the NTD must specifically exclude 
from their reports on revenue service any service that meets the 
definition of ``charter service'' under the charter rule, and thus, 
must be reported to the charter registration Web site. This exclusion 
includes charter service legally provided to a Qualified Human Services 
Organization (QHSO), as provided for by the charter rule.
    To implement this policy, FTA proposes to require transit providers 
reporting to the NTD to report their regular unlinked passenger trips 
and their sponsored unlinked passenger trips separately for demand 
response service. Reporters would not have to make this distinction for 
any other modes of service. Regular unlinked passenger trips would 
refer to those demand response trips that are arranged and paid for by 
individuals, even when those individuals pay the fare with user-side 
subsidies, such as coupons or passes provided a QHSO. Regular unlinked 
passenger trips would include all demand response trips provided 
pursuant to the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 
1990. Sponsored unlinked passenger trips would include all trips where 
the transit provider is directly reimbursed in whole or in part by some 
third party that has helped arrange for the trips. This distinction 
would make reporting of these services for urbanized area transit 
agencies consistent with the reporting of these services for transit 
agencies in rural areas. Since this proposal is being announced late in 
the 2008 Report Year, FTA will grant a waiver from reporting separately 
regular and sponsored unlinked passenger trips for the 2008 Report Year 
to any NTD Reporter that requests such a waiver.

    Issued in Washington, DC, this 1st day of August 2008.
James S. Simpson,
Administrator.
 [FR Doc. E8-18388 Filed 8-11-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-M