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Executive Director's Report

Report to the Commission: September 23, 2026

Personnel

Retirements

  • Helise Cohn – Helise started in March 2019 as an Associate Program Coordinator. Her last day is Sept. 30 as a Program Coordinator III in the Clipper section.
  • Raymond Jocson – Raymond started in May 2006 as an Information Systems Specialist III. His last day is Sept. 30 as a Technology Analyst in the Capital Delivery, Asset Management and Roadside Tolling section.

New Appointments

  • Marcus Dominguez – Marcus started Sept. 14 as the Principal Program Coordinator in the Procurement, Risk and Property Management section.
  • Gladys Martinez Guzman – Gladys started Sept. 14 as the Program Coordinator III in the Capital Delivery, Asset Management and Roadside Tolling section.
  • Anthony DeVito – Anthony starts on Sept. 28 as the Assistant Director in the Tolling Services and Revenue section.

Updates

Next Gen Clipper System (C2)

As I reported last month, the Next Gen Clipper system continues to mature. MTC, Cubic and transit operator staff remain focused on maintaining system stability, resolving customer account issues and enhancing customer service tools. Customer Service Center performance continues to provide timely support and achieved an average speed of answer of less than two minutes and an average call handling time of under 10 minutes in August.

Adoption of the C2 system continues to grow. To date, more than 3.4 million Clipper cards have migrated to the new system. As of early September, 65% of Clipper trips are paid with C2 methods, including 50% with account-based Clipper cards and 15% with contactless credit or debit cards.

With both plastic and mobile card migration now performing successfully, account migration activity has been ramping up to support ongoing operational needs. This includes management of institutional and transit benefit programs, like Clipper BayPass, and discount programs, like Clipper START and Clipper Access, Youth and Senior.

The program is continuing with these operational migrations as Cubic continues to address the outstanding issues. The next major milestone will be migration of the remaining existing Clipper customers to C2. Additional details on Next Gen Clipper’s progress and status will be available in the staff report to the joint Regional Network Management and Clipper Executive Board for their Sept. 28 meeting, which will be posted here.

BAHFA Secures New State Funding

The legislature's "budget bill junior" (the identical Assembly Bill 113/Senate Bill 113) contains a $6.75 million appropriation for BAHFA. While not the full $15 million we originally requested, this appropriation represents a significant win in what was a challenging budget year. The success was due in large part to advocacy from ABAG and the Commission. Thank you for all your support.

We are sending "thank you" notes to Assemblymember Buffy Wicks and Senators Jesse Arreguín and Josh Becker, whose combined district asks resulted in the $6.75 million for BAHFA.

Throughout the month of September, MTC-ABAG staff continued to engage local government leaders to seek feedback on potential changes to BAHFA’s enabling legislation to lead up to a regional housing revenue measure as soon as 2028.

To date, staff have presented to elected officials in Sonoma, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. Presentations will be held in the remaining counties by the end of October. To supplement the presentations, all local elected officials in the Bay Area have received an invitation to complete a survey and attend a webinar, scheduled for 11 a.m. on Sept. 30.

Commissioners Travel for Transit & Housing Solutions

Vice Chair Stephanie Moulton-Peters, Commissioner Alicia John-Baptiste, Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) Board Member Nikki Fortunato Bas, ABAG Alternate Cassandra James, Chief Deputy Executive Director Alix Bockelman and Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) Assistant Director Sara Amaral traveled to Vienna, Austria, this month for a social housing field study.

Organized by the Global Policy Leadership Academy (GPLA), the Vienna field study includes meetings and site visits with public and private housing developers and local officials to share the key features of Vienna’s successful social housing model for potential adaptation to California.

Commissioner Noelia Corzo, Mobility Deputy Executive Director Lisa Klein, and other MTC-ABAG staff members attended the Mpact Transit + Community Conference (formerly Rail-Volution) in Toronto, Canada, from Sept. 14-17. The conference focused on transit, mobility, land use and development.

Vice Chair Moulton-Peters is currently in the Netherlands with the Smart City Mobile Council. Program participants meet with national and local officials, researchers and transit operators to learn about optimal practices that have made the Netherlands a leader in reliable transit, safer streets and lower operating costs.

I look forward to hearing from commissioners and staff on their travels and what lessons learned can be applied to the Bay Area.

MTC Takes Glydways Tour

Chair Sue Noack, Vice Chair Moulton-Peters, Alix Bockelman and I, along with several commissioners and staff, took a tour of the new Glydways facility in Richmond on Aug. 31.

Glydways is a transit technology company that develops automated public transportation systems using electric, autonomous vehicles on dedicated guideways. We learned about Glydways' mission to provide equitable and sustainable transportation solutions, saw a demo of the vehicles, and spoke with Glydways executives and project partners from the Contra Consta Transportation Authority, Tri Delta Transit and City of San José.

Move Bay Area WEST Summit Held at Bay Area Metro Center (BAMC)

Commissioner and San Mateo County District 2 Supervisor Noelia Corzo, as well as Commissioner and Bay Area Council CEO Libby Schaaf, were featured panelists at Move Bay Area's WEST Summit on Aug. 28. The summit took place at the Bay Area Metro Center.

Alix Bockelman gave welcoming remarks alongside San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, and Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi gave the keynote address in the afternoon.

Commissioner Pat Burt also attended the summit, which was an opportunity for transit riders, community and business leaders, transportation advocates, and local partners to network and discuss public transportation improvements and funding strategies.

Transit Month Events

I attended the annual "All Aboard Ride-along with Transit CEOs" on Friday, Sept. 11. As part of Transit Month, this event invites the public to ride with and interact with regional transit leaders while riding multiple modes of transit together.

MTC-ABAG also hosted an opening night event on Sept. 8 for “Community in Transit,” a photography exhibit that highlighted the transit infrastructure that weaves the Bay Area together and the people forging connections on public transit. The exhibit will be open in the Bay Area Metro Center's first-floor cafe through Sept. 30, and I invite you to stop by and see the photos.

For a calendar of Transit Month events, visit the Bay Area California Transit Month calendar.

SB 1087 (Cabaldon) Update

MTC-ABAG’s co-sponsored bill, SB 1087 (Cabaldon), passed its final legislative hurdle on Aug. 31, with an overwhelming and bipartisan vote of support in the California Senate. The bill is now at the Governor’s desk, where he has 30 days to sign or veto it.

SB 1087 is the first comprehensive update to California’s regional long-range planning law since 2008, when SB 375 (Steinberg) established the requirement for regions to develop sustainable communities strategies (SCS) to achieve state climate goals through integrated transportation, housing and land use planning.

Nearly two decades later, the challenge has shifted from creating those plans to implementing them. SB 1087 rightsizes the planning process to better reflect that reality, most notably by moving the SCS from a four-year to an eight-year cycle, beginning with Plan Bay Area 2060. The bill also modernizes California’s public participation requirements for regional planning and makes several other important changes.

Another Banner Year for Bikeshare

Lyft Bike, formerly known as Bay Wheels, has seen almost 150% growth in ridership since MTC’s 2023 investment and has already set all-time daily, weekly and monthly ridership records this year. The program is on course for a record of over six million rides in 2026. Bikeshare gets more people on bikes and supports transit, as many of the highest-ridership bikeshare stations are located near regional transit hubs.

The bikeshare station with the highest ridership is next to the 4th and King Caltrain station, where an electrified charging station was recently installed to improve e-bike availability.

The Regional Network Management Committee approved a five-year extension with Lyft in March, ensuring the popular program will continue through 2032. This fall, the system will begin implementing stronger operational standards, installing new stations and expanding to Treasure Island. The City of Alameda will also pilot an expansion in spring 2027.

In July, Lyft exercised its rights to become the title sponsor for the bikeshare program, changing the name to Lyft Bike from Bay Wheels. Lyft also announced an expansion of its low-income Bikeshare for All program, which has supported over 1.7 million rides.

Judge Rules Against Transit Measure Challenge

A Santa Clara County Superior Court judge on Aug. 27 ruled against a group that had challenged portions of the ballot question adopted by the Public Transit Revenue Measure District for the Nov. 2026 sales tax measure. The measure was authorized by SB 63 for consideration by voters in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

New Agenda Management Software

Beginning Oct. 1, MTC-ABAG will transition away from its legacy meeting agenda and management software to a modern, reliable system designed and customized for ease of access. Meeting agendas will have a new look while still providing the same valuable information that the public, board members and commissioners rely on.

Meeting materials will continue to be available on the MTC, ABAG and Plan Bay Area websites but will no longer be updated on the legacy Legistar site.

Presentations and Key Meetings

This month, I presented on a panel in Sacramento related to federal surface transportation reauthorization at the national conference of the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations. I also attended meetings on several projects and initiatives, including State Route 37 with Vice Chair Moulton-Peters, the Highway 580 HOV project and SB 63 implementation.

I met with California Transportation Commission Executive Director Tanisha Taylor and Caltrans Chief Deputy Director Cory Binns, and I also had a joint meeting with California State Transportation Agency Undersecretary James Hacker and Deputy Secretary for Rail and Transit Anthony Serna. These meetings were held to maintain and strengthen key agency relationships.

Looking Ahead/Save the Date

  • Commission Workshop: October 28-29