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2009 SESSION

099222336
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 31
Offered February 25, 2009
Commending the Alexandria Transit Company.
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Patron-- Ticer
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WHEREAS, March 11, 2009, marks the 25th anniversary of the Alexandria Transit Company’s (ATC) operation of the City’s DASH bus system; and

WHEREAS, Mayor Charles “Chuck” Beatley was the champion and father of DASH, and had a vision over 25 years ago of a bus system that would serve the local transit needs of the community and provide high quality transit service to the residents, workers, and visitors of the City of Alexandria; and

WHEREAS, ATC Chairman of 22 years, William B. “Bill” Hurd shared the mayor’s vision and helped to create the organization that became so successful under his reign and fostered a back-to-basics approach of operating safe and reliable service with clean buses and friendly, courteous drivers; and

WHEREAS, DASH plays a vital role in the City of Alexandria by providing clean, safe, affordable, and reliable transportation service every day to thousands of commuters, city residents, and visitors; and

WHEREAS, total ridership over the past 25 years has increased by 330 percent, with a total annual ridership of over four million, an average of 14,000 passengers riding DASH every weekday and 10,000 passengers riding on the weekends; and expanded service from 582,000 service miles in the first full year of service in 1985 to over 1.5 million service miles per year today; and

WHEREAS, DASH contributes to the quality of life and preserving the livability of Alexandria by mitigating traffic impacts, improving circulation and mobility throughout the city, and providing easier access to local businesses, retail and employment centers, residential developments, and the regional Metrorail and the Virginia Railway Express commuter rail systems; and

WHEREAS, transit, notably DASH, plays a key role within the implementation of the Alexandria City Council’s newly adopted City Transportation Master Plan; and

WHEREAS, DASH contributes to the city’s Eco-City efforts and provides an environmentally friendly alternative to the single occupant vehicle; and

WHEREAS, DASH is building a new Silver LEED-certified operating and maintenance facility that will provide opportunities for significant service expansion of new routes and service level improvements on current routes that will meet the growing transportation needs of the community and will make transit even more accessible, convenient, and attractive in the years to come; and

WHEREAS, ATC is recognized nationally and throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia for the service it provides and has won many outstanding achievement awards over the years, including the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) System Safety Award for five consecutive years, the APTA Public Transportation System Outstanding Achievement Award, the Governor’s Transportation Safety Award, and the APTA first place AdWheels Marketing Award for innovative and creative marketing efforts for four years; and

WHEREAS, ATC has also won the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (VDRPT) Outstanding Urban Public Transportation System Award, the VDRPT Innovative Program Award for six years, and the Virginia Transit Association Outstanding Public Transportation Marketing award for the DASH About service and DASHing Around Alexandria campaign, and ATC has been recognized three years in a row by the Alexandria community as one of the top five city services for quality; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, That the Alexandria Transit Company hereby be commended on the occasion of its 25th anniversary of operating the City’s DASH bus system; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Alexandria Transit Company as an expression of the Senate’s recognition of the operators of the DASH bus system, its employees, and the board of directors for their contributions and efforts to improve public transportation service throughout the city, for their achievements that have been recognized both nationally and by the Commonwealth, and for their efforts to provide the highest quality of service.