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AMENDMENT NO. ONE TO CONTRACT K-1920-30: BY AND BETWEEN THE CITY OF NORMAN, OKLAHOMA, AND THE CENTRAL OKLAHOMA TRANSPORTATION AND PARKING AUTHORITY (COTPA) D/B/A EMBARK PROVIDING AN EXTENSION OF THE TRANSITIONAL FREE FARE PERIOD FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2019.
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BACKGROUND: On July 30, 2019, City Council approved Contract No. K-1920-30, an Interlocal Agreement with the Central Oklahoma Transportation and Parking Authority ("COTPA") d/b/a EMBARK, public trust, for the provision of public transportation services. That agreement provided that Embark would not charge Norman citizens fare from August 5, 2019, through October 31, 2019. This amendment would extend that free fare period until December 31, 2019.
DISCUSSION: Embark began operation of the City's fixed route bus transportation system on August 5, 2019, and then took over the City's paratransit operations on October 1, 2019. Contract No. K-1920-30 provided that Embark would not charge fare from August 5, 2019, through October 31, 2019. This agreement also provided that the City and Embark would begin the planning process of undertaking to change the fares in the City of Norman service area to those charged by Embark for other service areas.
The most recent transit fare increase (when the University of Oklahoma's Cleveland Area Rapid Transit or "CART" was operating the public transportation system) was in 2014 when fixed-route single trip fares were raised from $.50 to $.75, Sooner Express single trip fares from $2.25 to $3.00, monthly passes from $20 to $25, Paratransit Zone 1 fares from $1 to $1.50, Paratransit Zone 2 fares from $2.50 to $3.50, and Paratransit Same-Day Urgent fares from $2.50 to $3.50.
The City Council Community Planning and Transportation Committee (CPTC) discussed the City's public transportation fares at its September 26, 2019, meeting. The CPTC discussed the comparison of the Norman area fares CART had been charging versus the higher fares Embark...
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