Santa Rosa to San Rafael round-trip on SMART train? $19

Struggling to find a “sweet spot” for ticket prices that will attract riders but also produce sufficient revenue to keep trains rolling, directors of Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit on Wednesday approved a fare structure that was still too steep for some Sonoma County officials.

The fares will include a $9.50 one-way, or $19 round-trip ticket from downtown Santa Rosa to San Rafael when the commuter trains debut at the end of the year. SMART directors approved them on a 9-2 vote.

SMART board member and Sonoma County Supervisor Shirlee Zane said the fares are too high. “A lot of people cannot afford a train for $20 to their work site,” she said. “The initial goal is to generate ridership, not maximize income.”

She and Sonoma County Supervisor David Rabbit both voted against the new fares, saying they should be lower.

Zane argued for a lower introductory fare affordable to everyone, which can be adjusted after six months.

But other directors said that could turn off train riders even more if they face a steep fare increase too soon.

“If we start too low, we're as good as a cable company. The rate doubles in six months. It makes people angry,” said SMART Director and Windsor Town Councilwoman Deb Fudge.

She said SMART has a brand new system and rail cars.

“We need to pay for this. We are not an old green bus. We have to operate this responsibly and fiscally,” Fudge said.

By comparison, Golden Gate Transit buses charge $8 one-way or $16 round-trip to go from Santa Rosa to San Rafael.

SMART Director and Rohnert Park City Councilman Jake Mackenzie said the passenger trains will have enticing creature comforts. Not only will commuters avoid driving Highway 101, but they can walk back and forth on the train car, access Wi-Fi, or have a snack or beverage, including beer and wine.

And they will likely reach their destination sooner.

The rail agency estimates it will take 49 minutes to travel from Railroad Square in Santa Rosa to the Marin Civic Center during commute hours, versus 60 to 90 minutes by car.

In the course of the three-hour meeting Wednesday, SMART directors wrestled with trying to pinpoint the appropriate fares, eventually coming down midway among about 20 fare options presented by rail agency staff.

“This is very difficult, because frankly I don't know what it costs to run this railroad and run it efficiently,” said SMART board member Carol Russell, a Cloverdale city councilwoman. “We have a lot of people who want to ride this railroad. I'm not sure how many will ride to work.”

“I think we're going to have full trains,” said SMART Director Eric Lucan.

But Zane said the district has no idea what ridership will be or what the commuter patterns will be, calling the estimate of average weekday ridership of 3,070 riders and about 300 on each weekend day “a shot in the dark.”

General Manager Farhad Mansourian said that estimating ridership has been a moving target, with variables ranging from the economy to freeway congestion, land use assumptions and changes to the rail plans, including adding more stops such as Larkspur in Marin and north Santa Rosa near the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport.

Other sample fares approved Wednesday include $5.50 to go one way from Santa Rosa to Rohnert Park, Petaluma and Cotati; or $7.50 one-way from Santa Rosa to Novato.

Supervisor Rabbitt said the fares should be even lower because people in many cases will have to take a shuttle to the train and a shuttle from the train to work.

“The first and last mile will probably keep people in their cars,” he said.

Trains by the end of this year are scheduled to be running the 43-mile route from north Santa Rosa to downtown San Rafael.

Plans calls for extending the train to Larkspur by 2018 and to Cloverdale at a future date.

Some members of the group Friends of SMART urged lower fares, saying it's not just about breaking even, but motivating people to ride the train and in the process reduce greenhouse gases, urban sprawl and vehicle miles traveled. Some rail transit systems, they noted, have much lower fares.

Sprinter, a rail system that started operating on a 22-mile route across Northern San Diego County in 2008, for example, charges a flat $2 one-way rate for adults. The system was funded by a voter-approved quarter-cent sales tax, like SMART, and it cost $484 million. Sprinter carries 8,300 passengers on an average weekday.

SMART's strategic plan identified an annual fare revenue target of $5 million over the next two decades as a goal for operating revenues. The fare revenue target, combined with voter-approved Measure Q sales tax revenues and planned state transit assistance revenues, are the only sources anticipated to be available for operations.

Other transit systems may or may not have additional income streams from parking, property taxes and general fund revenues that can influence fare pricing, according to Mansourian.

He said there is approximately $18 million in SMART reserve funds to cover operational costs.

He cautioned that healthy reserves are needed to deal with unforeseen circumstances, whether a bridge falls down, a tunnel needs repair, or an economic downturn cuts into sales tax and other revenues SMART relies on.

“I'm concerned if there's a shortfall,” said SMART Director Mackenzie, saying it could cut into the train's ability to operate.

SMART will offer 50 percent discounts to seniors, students and the disabled.

The agency will offer two types of passes at the debut of the service, including one allowing riders to travel for free once they've maxed out on a daily travel rate of $23.

SMART will only accept fare payment using the all-in-one card known as the Clipper card, which is used on Petaluma Transit, Santa Rosa CityBus and Sonoma County Transit, as well as on Golden Gate Transit buses and ferries.

The Clipper service automatically calculates the cost of a fare, including discounts and transfers. Riders use the card by pressing it against scanners on buses and eventually at vending machines on SMART train station platforms.

Riders who use Clipper-enabled North Bay Transit systems to get to the train would get a break of between 75 cents and $1.50.

The SMART EcoPass, geared toward employers, schools, social service providers and other institutions, will offer significant discounts for an up-front annual fee.

Staff Writer Guy Kovner contributed to this story. You can reach Staff Writer Clark Mason at 521-5214 or clark.mason@pressdemocrat.com.