QUESTION
What factors influence the timeframe for fixing ticket meters, and how does staffing impact these projects?
2:32:48
·
160 sec
Michael DeMarco explains that retrofitting meter projects and staffing issues contribute to prolonging the time necessary to repair ticket meters, with projects potentially taking up to four years to complete due to staffing shortages.
- Projects include retrofitting meters to current standards and retiming projects, which are significantly delayed due to over 15,000 units in the system.
- Retrofitting and retiming efforts are aimed at making the meters more efficient but are prolonged by staffing shortages.
- Under optimal staffing, these projects could take two years to start, but current levels extend this to four years.
- Council Member Restler expresses a desire to work together to improve response times for fixing meters and updating rate policies.
- The discussion also touches on the need for better data to prioritize hiring for positions like DeMarco's, which help generate revenue and ensure safety.
Lincoln Restler
2:32:48
And do you are you able to track or offer any insight into the time frames worsening or lengthening ticket meter is fixed?
Michael DeMarco
2:32:58
Well, the problem part of the problem is, you know, there are projects out there.
2:33:02
Retro fitting meet the muting meter.
2:33:03
They're in the system a long time.
2:33:05
So there's over 15,000 of of the other room in the system now, replacing over 73,000 single space meters.
2:33:11
So they're all fully mini meters.
2:33:13
But, you know, there's retrofit in the meters to come up to the standards that they should be today, and there's also a retiming projects which is for argument's sake, if you're putting a quarter reign for 20 minutes, now the retiming and that might not show in dollars and cents on the city's end.
2:33:31
But if you're not doing the retiming with the people, instead of, you know, what they wanna retiming from 25¢ to 20 minutes to 25¢ to 10 minutes, as revenue.
2:33:39
There's not right people, and it takes longer to
Lincoln Restler
2:33:42
do.
2:33:42
Interesting.
Michael DeMarco
2:33:43
Besides the retrofit project, which if we were full staffed and meter maintenance, which is one of the divisions.
2:33:51
From what I understand, the project, if we were fully staffed, would take 2 years when it begins.
2:33:56
We're behind already with the staffing levels we have now 4 years.
2:34:01
So which means to bring total up and over time.
2:34:04
So there's a there's a there's a big difference in what we could do,
Lincoln Restler
2:34:08
crap,
Michael DeMarco
2:34:08
with this staffing, and that's just the meter end.
Lincoln Restler
2:34:12
It's I think that if we can think about it in creative ways together to quantify what, you know, the response times to get things fixed or to update policies on new rates that are being charged.
2:34:27
We can then go back to OMB on pushing into Decast to push to say we have to move this faster.
2:34:34
We've gotta move this up the list.
2:34:36
And One of the agencies that's under the purview of the governmental operations committee is Decast.
2:34:42
We've been here with them on Tuesday.
2:34:43
So this is definitely something that we can dig in on further and really wanna help across the board and really appreciate Susan being here as well.
2:34:50
We wanna be focused we are focused across the board on working with Decast to improve the speed at which we are hiring more folks.
2:35:00
But especially for titles like yours that generate revenue and save lives, we're really interested in in figuring out how we can work together to provide better data to the agencies, to make the case that they've gotta move 1455 up the list.
2:35:15
And so if there's any additional information that you can share with us, both on the revenue side, but also on if it's take you know, I I've seen anecdotally in my district.