2019 Regular Session

BySenators Palumbo, Zeiger, Wilson, C., and Hobbs

AN ACT Relating to shared employer shuttles; and amending RCW 35.58.250 and 47.04.290.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 35.58.250 and 1965 c 7 s 35.58.250 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Except in accordance with an agreement made as provided herein, upon the effective date on which the metropolitan municipal corporation commences to perform the metropolitan transportation function, no person or private corporation shall operate a local public passenger transportation service within the metropolitan area with the exception of taxis, buses owned or operated by a school district or private school, buses, vans, or other employer transportation service vehicles owned or operated by any corporation or organization for use as a shared employee shuttle, and buses, vans, or other employer transportation service vehicles owned or operated by any corporation or organization solely for the purposes of the corporation or organization and for the use of which no fee or fare is charged.

(2) An agreement may be entered into between the metropolitan municipal corporation and any person or corporation legally operating a local public passenger transportation service wholly within or partly within and partly without the metropolitan area and on said effective date under which such person or corporation may continue to operate such service or any part thereof for such time and upon such terms and conditions as provided in such agreement. Where any such local public passenger transportation service will be required to cease to operate within the metropolitan area, the commission may agree with the owner of such service to purchase the assets used in providing such service, or if no agreement can be reached, the commission shall condemn such assets in the manner provided herein for the condemnation of other properties.

(3) Wherever a privately owned public carrier operates wholly or partly within a metropolitan municipal corporation, the Washington utilities and transportation commission shall continue to exercise jurisdiction over such operation as provided by law.

Sec. 2. RCW 47.04.290 and 2011 c 379 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Any local transit agency that has received state funding for a park and ride lot shall make reasonable accommodation for use of that lot by: Auto transportation companies regulated under chapter 81.68 RCW; passenger charter carriers regulated under chapter 81.70 RCW, except marked or unmarked stretch limousines and stretch sport utility vehicles as defined under department of licensing rules; private, nonprofit transportation providers regulated under chapter 81.66 RCW; and private employer transportation service vehicles, provided that such use does not interfere with the efficiency, reliability, and safety of public transportation operations. The accommodation must be in the form of an agreement between the applicable local transit agency and the private transportation provider. The transit agency may require that the agreement include provisions to recover actual costs and fair market value for the use of the lot and its related facilities and to provide adequate insurance and indemnification of the transit agency, and other reasonable provisions to ensure that the private transportation provider's use does not unduly burden the transit agency. The transit agency may consider benefits to its public transportation system when establishing an amount to charge for the use of the park and ride lot and its related facilities. If the agreement includes provisions to recover actual costs, the private transportation provider is responsible to remit the full actual costs of park and ride lot use to the appropriate transit agency. No accommodation is required, and any agreement may be terminated, if the park and ride lot is at or exceeds ninety percent capacity between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday for two consecutive months, except in the case of private employer transportation service vehicles. Private employer transportation service vehicles must be allowed to use a park and ride lot regardless of the capacity of the lot. ((Additionally,))Any agreement may be terminated if the private transportation provider violates any policies guiding the terms of use of the park and ride lot. The transit agency may reserve the authority to designate which pick-up and drop-off zones of the park and ride lot may be used by the private transportation provider.

(2) A local transit agency described under subsection (1) of this section may enter into a cooperative agreement with a taxicab company regulated under chapter 81.72 RCW in order to accommodate the taxicab company at the agency's park and ride lot, provided the taxicab company must agree to provide service with reasonable availability, subject to schedule coordination provisions as agreed to by the parties.

(3) For the purposes of this section, "private employer transportation service" means regularly scheduled, fixed-route transportation service that is similarly marked or identified to display the business name or logo on the driver and passenger sides of the vehicle, meets the annual certification requirements of the department, and is offered by an employer for the benefit of its employees.

(4) For the purposes of this section, "private transportation provider" means:

(a) A company regulated under chapter 81.68 RCW; chapter 81.70 RCW, except marked or unmarked stretch limousines and stretch sport utility vehicles as defined under department of licensing rules; and chapter 81.66 RCW; and

(b) An entity providing private employer transportation service.

(5)(a) Local authorities are encouraged to establish a process for private transportation providers, described under subsections (1) and (4) of this section, to apply for the use of park and ride facilities.

(b) The process must provide a list of facilities that the local authority determines to be unavailable for use by the private transportation provider and must provide the criteria used to reach that determination.

(c) The application and review processes must be uniform and should provide for an expeditious response by the authority.

(6) The department must convene a stakeholder process that includes interested public and private transportation providers, which must develop standard permit forms, clear explanations of permit rate calculations, and standard indemnification provisions that may be used by all local authorities.