New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 17 - DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION › Chapter VI - Transportation Regulations › Subchapter G - Mass Transportation Operating Assistance › Part 975 - Statewide Mass Transportation Operating Assistance Program › Section 975.2 - Basic eligibility requirements

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
In order to receive funds under the Statewide Mass
					 Transportation Operating Assistance Program (STOA) for mass transportation
					 services, all participants must be public transportation systems as defined in
					 this Part. Only those public transportation systems eligible under the rules
					 and regulations established for the section 18-b program are authorized to
					 receive supplemental or special operating assistance under section 88-a of the
					 Finance Law. The quarterly applications of unspecified bus systems under the
					 formula portion of the program must meet the definition of bus system and
					 contain only revenue passengers and revenue vehicle miles in accordance with
					 the provisions of this Part.
(a)
				  Public transportation system shall mean any public benefit corporation
				  constituting a transportation authority, or subsidiary thereof, which provides
				  or contracts for the provision, under joint support arrangements, of mass
				  transportation services; any Indian tribe which provides or any county or city
				  which provides or contracts for the provision, pursuant to section 119-r  of the General Municipal Law, of
				  mass transportation services that directly serve or primarily benefit its
				  residents, or any intercity bus company which contracts with the commissioner
				  to provide mass transportation services in exchange for State transit operating
				  assistance.
(b) Mass transportation
				  services eligible for State transportation operating assistance shall mean
				  commuter rail, subway, rapid transit, bus and commuter ferry revenue services,
				  available to the public on a regular and continuing basis, having predetermined
				  and publicly posted fares and service hours. Fixed route or route deviation
				  services (not demand responsive) shall also have printed schedules.
				  Demand-responsive services must have published service areas, hours of
				  operation, fares and the phone number to arrange for service. Such services
				  shall be between an origin and destination, both of which are within the
				  boundaries of New York State. Services that, due to geographic locations or
				  routing, operate in a state other than New York in providing services to
				  passengers that have origins and destinations in New York State, are eligible
				  for state operating assistance provided that the primary reason for operating
				  outside New York State is to transport New York State passengers to and from
				  their New York State origins and destinations. However, the commissioner may
				  review such services under the provisions of section
				  975.9(a) 
				  of this Part to ensure that the assistance will be used exclusively for the
				  benefit of New York State riders. The public transportation system must also
				  meet the requirements of section
				  975.20 
				  of this Part if the organization providing the service receives 50 percent or
				  more of its revenue from human services agency contracts or if the organization
				  previously or currently provides substantial services for clients of human
				  service agency(ies). While eligible services must be available to the general
				  public, some portion(s) of a public system's services may be oriented to
				  address the needs of the transit disabled (as defined in section
				  975.4[k] 
				  of this Part). The transit disabled services must also satisfy the provisions
				  of section
				  975.19 
				  of this Part. School tripper services consistent with the criteria contained in
				  section
				  975.4(v) 
				  of this Part are also eligible to receive STOA. If yellow school buses are to
				  be used for STOA eligible services, prior approval must be obtained from the
				  department before such services are to be considered eligible for STOA.
				  Exceptions for the use of yellow school buses may be granted if the system
				  demonstrates that:
(1) no other vehicles are
				  available to provide the service on an interim basis;
(2) that it would be a financial hardship to
				  obtain non-yellow buses even for an interim period; and
(3) no State Education Department funding is
				  available for the services in question. Also, the yellow school buses to be
				  used must satisfy minimum adult seating/standing requirements as identified by
				  the Department's Traffic and Safety Division's Regulations 921.7 and 921.8. Any
				  yellow buses utilized for STOA-eligible services are not permitted to either
				  display school bus" signs or use "flashing red lights," or they will be
				  considered to be providing exclusive school bus services.
Services defined as ineligible for state transportation
					 operating assistance include: exclusive airport services (as defined by Section
					 975.4(s)), special charter operations, exclusive school bus operations (including
					 services provided by school district owned transportation systems, services
					 provided under contract with private school bus operators and school service
					 provided by regular transit operators under purchase of service contracts),
					 transportation services provided by client agencies that are designed only to
					 meet the specific needs of their clients, sightseeing services, deadheading (as
					 defined by Section
					 975.4(u);
					 hotel contract services, van services (as defined in subdivision 35 of Section 2  of the Transportation Law), services which
					 are held out to be, are designed to be, or become transportation services
					 primarily to serve gambling casinos or bingo parlors or services commonly known
					 as "invalid coach service" or "ambulette services" or services on routes or
					 trips not available to the general public except as defined above. Also defined
					 as ineligible services are any services authorized by the Interstate Commerce
					 Commission after November 19, 1982 without corresponding intrastate authority
					 issued by the New York State Department of Transportation, if NYSDOT determines
					 that intrastate authority should have been sought pursuant to the New York
					 State Bus Regulatory Reform Act (Chapter 635 of the Laws of 1983).