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Mountain Line Receives Grant to Combat Human Trafficking

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (February 4, 2020) – Mountain Line was one of 24 organizations across the country to receive grant funding through the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Human Trafficking Awareness and Public Safety Initiative.

The grant funding is for projects to help prevent human trafficking and other crimes on public transportation. Mountain Line received more than $87,000 to conduct a human trafficking awareness and public safety campaign, procure an app that allows bus drivers and riders to report suspicious behavior, and provide transit passes for human trafficking survivors involved in workforce training programs.

Mountain Line will partner with Northland Family Help Center (NFHC) to leverage existing efforts of the Flagstaff Initiative Against Trafficking (FIAT), which currently provides trainings, conducts data collection, and supports anti-trafficking efforts with law enforcement.

Flagstaff’s proximity to major interstates and easy travel to and from several large cities makes it a prime spot for human trafficking, and public transit has been identified nationwide as one of the industries most susceptible to transporting victims. This partnership between Mountain Line and FIAT will bring new resources to the community to educate the general public and transit operators on how to identify and report suspicious behavior.

“Human trafficking and the public transit industry continue to have significant crossover and Flagstaff is not immune to these issues,” said Flagstaff City Councilmember and NAIPTA Board Chair Jamie Whelan. “The incredible work that Northland Family Help Center has already done in this arena combined with Mountain Line’s expertise and new funding will be an incredible resource for our community.”

“Human Trafficking has been identified as a pervasive issue in the Flagstaff area, as 297 adults and 40 youth reporting being victims of this horrific crime type since September of 2017,” said NFHC Director of Human Trafficking Services Kate Wyatt. “Northland Family Help Center and Flagstaff Initiative Against Trafficking believe that working with Mountain Line is vital to ending human trafficking in our area.”

Mountain Line is the transit agency in northern Arizona operating fixed route bus service on nine routes, paratransit service, vanpool, and seasonal Mountain Express service to Arizona Snowbowl.

Mountain Line secures $17.3 million in grant funding for transit projects

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (November 25, 2019) – The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced today that Mountain Line will receive $17.3 million through the Section 5339 (b) Bus and Bus Facilities grant for construction of a new Downtown Connection Center and the purchase of zero-emissions vehicles.

Transit systems across the country compete for these funds, regardless of size or ridership, meaning that Mountain Line was up against systems in communities like Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. The $17.3 million represents one of the highest award given during this grant cycle.

Mountain Line already received a competitive grant through FTA, awarded by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), for the planning and development of a new Downtown Connection Center. Since the current facility was built in 2008 Mountain Line’s ridership has increased 150 percent and the number of buses accessing the facility daily has increased by 125 percent. The new funds will make these plans a reality, allowing for construction of the actual facility. The new Downtown Connection Center is slated to remain in the same location (Phoenix Ave. between Beaver St. and Milton Rd.), and will be built to accommodate current and future service levels, provide customer service amenities, and enable partnership opportunities.

“A grant award of this magnitude will impact not only Mountain Line, but this entire community for many years to come,” said Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority Chair and Flagstaff City Councilmember Jamie Whelan. “We appreciate [Sens.] Martha McSally and Kyrsten Sinema, Rep. Tom O’Halleran, and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey for their leadership and support of Mountain Line’s grant application.”

The Bus and Bus Facilities grant award also includes funding to purchase zero-emissions vehicles as the current fleet retires. Mountain Line currently operates a 100 percent hybrid-electric fleet and is conducting a planning study to determine the most efficient and cost-effective fleet option to pursue in the future.

“Building a new Downtown Connection Center and taking the first steps to establishing a zero-emission fleet are critical components to a more sustainable future for Mountain Line and the Flagstaff community,” said Mountain Line CEO and General Manager Erika Mazza. “Partnerships will be paramount to accomplishing these ambitious projects, and we look forward to working with our community partners to move transit forward.”

This grant award comes on the heels of a separate award from the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) for the design of a new bus storage facility on the Northern Arizona University (NAU) campus and a Facility Master Plan for Mountain Line’s headquarters on Kaspar Dr. The projects funded through all of these grants are complementary and will ultimately create a more cohesive and efficient transit system.

Mountain Line is the transit system in Flagstaff, Ariz., serving more than 2.5 million riders a year on nine routes.

NAIPTA Board Names Interim CEO And General Manager

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (February 19, 2020) – The Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority (NAIPTA) Board of Directors named Heather Dalmolin the Interim CEO and General Manager of Mountain Line at a meeting today.

Current CEO and General Manager Erika Mazza announced that she was stepping down from the position earlier this month. Dalmolin currently serves as Mountain Line’s Administrative Director, overseeing Budget, Finance, Information Technology, Human Resources, and Customer Service. She has been with the agency for more than 18 years.

As part of the interim management structure, Mountain Line Development Director Kate Morley will take on the Interim Deputy General Manager role. Morley has been with the agency for more than four years and oversees Planning, Development, and Mobility Management.

The NAIPTA Board will pursue the recruitment of a permanent candidate for the position while Dalmolin and Morley lead the organization during the transition.

“The NAIPTA Board is pleased to have such a qualified internal candidate to lead this agency on an interim basis and keep the strong work of the Mountain Line team moving forward,” said Flagstaff City Councilmember and NAIPTA Board Chair Jamie Whelan. “From keeping the internal operations running smoothly to maintaining positive relationships with external stakeholders, we are confident that Heather and Kate will make this a seamless transition.”

Mountain Line is the transit agency in northern Arizona operating fixed route bus service on nine routes, paratransit service, vanpool, and seasonal Mountain Express service to Arizona Snowbowl.

Mountain Line Makes Getting to School Easy, Convenient, And Safe

It’s officially back-to-school season, and Mountain Line student semester and annual transit passes are an essential part of the school supply checklist.

Mountain Line offers a safe and reliable transportation option for students to get to and from school and other activities. There are eight routes traversing Flagstaff, stopping within walking distance of most Flagstaff schools. Mountain Line continues to offer route deviations on Routes 2 and 3 to better serve BASIS School and Northland Preparatory Academy (NPA) during the school year. Flagstaff Arts & Leadership Academy (FALA) students can also take advantage of supplemental morning and afternoon service on Route 5, which offers more options to get to and from school.

Flagstaff students enrolled in a K-12 school can purchase a Mountain Line semester pass for $49. Fall semester passes are valid Aug. 1 – Dec. 31 and spring semester passes are valid Jan. 1 – Jun. 15. An annual pass, valid for the entire calendar year from the date of purchase, is available for $119. Both passes are valid on the entire Mountain Line system for the duration of the pass.

Mountain Line has made several recent upgrades to the safety and security of the transit system, including the addition of new exterior and interior cameras that can be viewed in real time from the main office. Mountain Line also added a Safety Supervisor position to the team. This position is responsible for riding Mountain Line routes during peak times, and working with passengers to offer assistance and enforcement of policies. The Safety Supervisor supports Mountain Line’s ability to be an efficient and safe transit system and adds a level of support to both drivers and riders.

Student passes are available for purchase at the NAIPTA office at 3773 N. Kaspar Dr. between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday-Friday. To purchase the pass, all students must show proof of enrollment and bring a student ID, if applicable. Passes can also be purchased at https://mountainline.az.gov/product-category/student-passes/ and will be mailed to students.

The NAIPTA front desk staff is happy to answer any questions about routes and the best way for students to access their individual schools. Call 928.779.6624 or visit
https://mountainline.az.gov/students/ for additional information.

NAIPTA is the transit agency in northern Arizona operating the Mountain Line, Mountain Lift and Mountain Link systems in Flagstaff. NAIPTA also coordinates services with Campus Shuttle Service at Northern Arizona University.

Mountain Line Service Changes Go into Effect on August 4

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (July 31, 2019) – Mountain Line is implementing service changes effective August 4, 2019 to improve efficiency and expand service. These include:

Route 2
The morning and afternoon deviations to Gemini Rd. (BASIS) will be consolidated to better coincide with school timing and improve on-time performance. The following deviations will remain in place:

Downtown-bound buses (Stop 23a): 7:07 a.m., 3:47 p.m.
Flagstaff Mall-bound buses (Stop 6a): 7:14 a.m., 3:54 p.m.

Route 3
A stop will be added at Route 66 and Country Club, between the existing Stops 15 and 16. This is a shared stop with Route 66.

Route 5
Weekday evening service on Route 5 will extend by one hour. The last bus will depart the Downtown Connection Center at 9:15 p.m. and go out of service at Flagstaff Medical Center at 9:46 p.m.

Route 7
The existing Route 7 will be split, creating a new Route 8. Route 7 details include:

Starts and ends at the Downtown Connection Center and includes the existing Route 7 stops 10-32 (Butler/Huntington corridor and Sunnyside area).
20-minute weekday and 60-minute evening/weekend frequency

Route 8
This is a new route that starts and ends at the Downtown Connection Center and includes the existing Route 7 Stops 1-9 (West Route 66 and Woodlands Village). Details include:

30-minute weekday and 60-minute evening/weekend frequency
The current Route 7, Stop 2 at Barnes & Noble will move slightly to the west, near the intersection of W. Route 66 and Riordan Rd.

Route 66

The time point currently associated with Stop 4 at Route 66 and Ponderosa Pkwy. will move to Stop 3 at Route 66 and Switzer Canyon Dr. The actual timing of the route will not change.
The time point currently associated with Stop 7 at Route 66 and Steves Blvd. will move to Stop 6 at Route 66 and Fourth St. The actual timing of the route will not change.

Visit www.mountainline.az.gov/servicechanges for full details on the service changes

Highway 180 Partnership Wins Statewide Transit Award

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (April 10, 2019) – Several northern Arizona organizations were recognized as the “Partnership of the Year” for their joint efforts to mitigate winter congestion on Highway 180 at the 2019 Arizona Transit Association (AzTA) and Arizona Department of Transportation’s (ADOT) Excellence Awards.

The award ceremony took place on Wednesday, April 10 during the AzTA / ADOT Annual Transit Conference in Mesa, AZ.

The Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority (NAIPTA) received a grant from ADOT to develop an implementation plan for the Highway 180 corridor, with a goal of taking things past the discussion phase, and into developing a roadmap for putting real solutions into action. Simultaneously, Coconino County Supervisor Art Babbott formed a U.S. 180 Citizens Task Force and a separate Agency Task Force to brainstorm and implement tangible solutions to winter congestion.

These groups, along with Arizona Snowbowl, Coconino County, City of Flagstaff, U.S. Forest Service, and ADOT worked together to gather data and make informed decisions about the potential solutions that have been discussed for decades. By mapping and generating cost estimates for the often-discussed alternate access routes to Interstate 40 and using historic cell phone data to accurately assess traffic delays in the corridor, the group determined the costs of developing alternate access would not provide enough of a benefit to be worth the investment.

Other solutions like increased transit service rose to the top in their ability to get cars off the road without building new infrastructure. Arizona Snowbowl invested in a significant increase to the annual Mountain Express bus service between downtown and the resort, and Flagstaff Unified School District (FUSD) joined the partnership by providing access to the Flagstaff High School parking lot as a free park and ride. This strategy paid off, with Mountain Express seeing its highest ridership ever (165 percent increase over the previous year), and according to the Citizens Task Force, a noticeable decrease in the congestion along the corridor.

NAIPTA Board Selects Erika Mazza As Next CEO & General Manager

The Northern Arizona Intergovernmental Public Transportation Authority (NAIPTA) Board of Directors announced today their selection of NAIPTA Deputy General Manager Erika Mazza to serve as the organization’s next CEO and General Manager.

Mazza will succeed Jeff Meilbeck, who has served as the head of Flagstaff’s transit agency for more than 20 years. He started with Coconino County’s Pine Country Transit and led the evolution to what is now the Mountain Line Transit system serving nearly 2.5 million riders a year.

Prior to joining NAIPTA nearly seven years ago, Mazza was the Human Services Planning & Policy Manager for the City of Boulder and the Housing Planning & Policy Manager for the City of Flagstaff. She also served as a Lecturer in Northern Arizona University’s Planning Department. Mazza is currently on the Board of Directors for the Flagstaff Metropolitan Planning Organization (FMPO), American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and Flagstaff Leadership Program. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Planning from Northern Vermont University and a Master of Science in Economics and Public Policy from the University of Wyoming.

“The NAIPTA Board of Directors engaged in a thorough nationwide search for a new CEO, and we are thrilled to announce that NAIPTA Deputy General Manager Erika Mazza has accepted the position,” said Flagstaff City Councilman and NAIPTA Board Chair Scott Overton. “Erika exemplifies NAIPTA’s strong history, and through her expertise and leadership, the organization is well-positioned for the future.”

“I would like to thank the NAIPTA Board of Directors and recognize current NAIPTA CEO Jeff Meilbeck for his more than 20 years of transit leadership in Flagstaff,” said incoming NAIPTA CEO & General Manager Erika Mazza. “I look forward to leading Mountain Line through enhancing transit opportunities within the NAIPTA region, and I am especially pleased to continue working with an incredible team.”

The NAIPTA Board is scheduled to consider the contract at their September meeting with an anticipated start date on October 1, 2018.

Mountain Line Marks 18th Straight Year of Ridership Growth

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (August 7, 2018) – Mountain Line is bucking the nationwide trend of declining bus ridership, registering another year of record ridership and surpassing Fiscal Year 2017 ridership by more than 17 percent.

The official ridership tally for July 1, 2017 – June 30, 2018 was 2,440,338. When Mountain Line started in 2001, the annual ridership was just shy of 200,000, and the agency hit the 1 million rider mark in 2009 and the 2 million rider mark in 2017. While Mountain Line’s ridership has been on the rise, many bus systems across the country have been experiencing multi-year ridership declines. According to the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) ridership report, bus ridership is down 4.27 percent through the end of 2017.

One factor for the ridership increase was the addition of new buses to better serve busy routes. After experiencing overcrowding and crush loads on Route 10 (free for NAU students and connects the Woodlands Village area and downtown Flagstaff via the NAU campus), Mountain Line applied for and received grant funding to purchase five 60-foot, hybrid-electric articulated buses, to make a total of six in the entire fleet. The articulated buses allow Mountain Line to move twice as many riders (as compared to a standard bus) with only one driver, creating operational efficiencies and increased capacity. With the addition of the articulated buses, Route 10 ridership increased 48 percent over the previous year.

“Mountain Line is committed to finding innovative solutions to issues and seeking out grant funding to leverage the local tax dollars,” said Flagstaff City Councilmember and NAIPTA Board Chair Scott Overton.

In addition to serving more people than ever before Mountain Line is also experiencing an uptick in rider satisfaction levels. The biennial Rider Satisfaction Survey, last conducted in April 2018, revealed an overall satisfaction level of 4.5, on a five-point scale. Bus driver courtesy and safety and security both onboard the bus and at stops were two areas that grew significantly since the last survey.

Mountain Line Receives National Recognition for Marketing Program

FLAGSTAFF, AZ (October 19, 2017) – The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) presented Mountain Line with an AdWheel Grand Award at its annual meeting in Atlanta, GA last week, recognizing the agency’s marketing and communications efforts around the Proposition 411 Transit Tax Renewal educational campaign.

The awards recognize APTA member public transportation systems and business members for their outstanding marketing and communications campaigns. Nearly 350 entries were evaluated by more than 100 industry experts and awards were presented in three categories: efforts to increase ridership or sales, efforts to highlight transit needs and funding, and educational efforts. Honors were awarded in four groups, based on system size. Mountain Line’s winning entry was in the efforts to highlight transit needs and funding category for systems with 4 million or less annual riders.

The Proposition 411 educational campaign was aimed at keeping Mountain Line top of mind on a crowded November 2016 ballot, reinforcing the message that it was a continuation of an existing tax, and reminding voters that Mountain Line delivered on all promises made in the 2008 election. Proposition 411 passed with a 71 percent approval rating, allowing Mountain Line to keep serving the Flagstaff community through 2030.

“We are fortunate to maintain an extremely positive relationship with the Flagstaff community, but the nature of the 2016 election cycle meant that we couldn’t make any assumptions,” said NAIPTA CEO & General Manager Jeff Meilbeck. “Conducting an effective and informative public education campaign was paramount, and I am thrilled that our efforts have been recognized by our national transit association.”