Briefs: RTA

By Katherine Nettles and Mark Reaman

Name change…goodbye rural, hello regional

In reviewing bylaw changes, it came up that the RTA is now actually called the Regional Transportation Authority, per state statute. In fact, RTA executive director Scott Truex said the legal name is Gunnison Valley Transportation Authority (GVTA), but due to its similarity to the originally named Tourism Association (TA), it has been nicknamed RTA ever since the two special districts were established.

Accelerating business bus stop in CB South

The RTA board agreed to accelerate the development of a flag stop in Crested Butte South by the POA offices. The intent is to honor a request by businesses to provide the stop making it easier for passengers to get to the prime business area in CB South. The RTA five-year plan calls for such a bus stop being constructed in 2029 but that will be moved up to the summer of 2027 to help coordinate it with some other RTA projects. Some RTA board members want to see more support from the general public for the move and not just from the business community but the board generally agreed to accommodate the move.

Recordings over minutes?

The board is considering moving from meeting minutes to posted meeting recordings, a move the city of Gunnison did recently as well. The board and RTA attorney Kathy Fogo discussed using brief meeting summaries with time stamps for related discussions. Fogo said the move would reduce the chance for bias to creep into minutes, and recordings are easy to post online almost immediately after. 

The board is taking input and will consider the decision after the new website is up. 

Misc.

— The board informally approved of updates to its bylaws that have been underway for the last few months. The IGA must be approved by the four local jurisdictions. 

—The board approved of contracting Fireside Creative to design its new website. The redesign is expected to take five to six weeks, and no website interruptions should be necessary.