M.J. Maynard
Sunday, Aug. 14, 2022 | 2 a.m.
MJ Maynard
Editor’s note: As he traditionally does around this time every year, Brian Greenspun is turning over his Where I Stand column to others. Today’s guest is MJ Maynard, CEO of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada.
For nearly 60 years, the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC) has guided the development of Southern Nevada’s transportation network. During that time, the region has undergone staggering growth in population, visitor volume, business and commercial development, housing and transportation — not to mention the countless times Southern Nevada has revitalized its image to attract new residents and visitors.
Fittingly, in a region that is constantly evolving to suit the needs of its community, the RTC’s mission is to elevate the quality of life for Southern Nevadans by redefining and providing transformative mobility solutions. Our agency is a unique multijurisdictional public planning agency that serves as the region’s Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), transit operator and traffic manager. Everything from transit routes and roadway funding to bikeshare operations falls within our purview. Our role is integral to Southern Nevada’s growing prosperity, and we focus on developing innovative, 21st-century approaches to complex regional challenges — with input from those we serve: residents, businesses and community stakeholders.
Since 2017, with your help, we’ve developed On Board, our community’s mobility plan. Through surveys and public events, we’ve collected more than 40,000 comments through nearly 100,000 interactions with individuals, businesses, and partner organizations. We left no stone unturned to ensure representation from all demographic segments of our population. Additional research helped support and solidify the initiatives outlined in the On Board mobility plan.
These initiatives include building light rail or bus rapid transit; expanding service for students, seniors, veterans and people with disabilities; improving connections to major destinations and professional sporting events with services like our Game Day Express that provides fans with direct access to Raiders and Golden Knights home games; providing reliable transit for Resort Corridor employees to get to their jobs on time; and leveraging new technologies and connections, like on-demand transit, rideshare and potential connections to the Boring Company and Las Vegas Monorail, to improve mobility.
Our community also wants to feel safe and secure while traveling, so we have prioritized enhanced transit security, pedestrian and roadway improvements, such as working with our local jurisdictions to design and construct complete streets, making it safe, convenient and comfortable for all road users including drivers, transit riders, cyclists and pedestrians. Working with our local jurisdiction partners, the RTC designs and constructs complete streets, which can include wider sidewalks, dedicated bus and bike lanes, enhanced pedestrian crossings and trees for shade. These improvements help make streets safer, more convenient and more comfortable for all road users including drivers, transit riders, cyclists and pedestrians.
Climate change is also a very real concern that has many residents anxious about the future. In addition to promoting alternative modes of transportation that reduce the number of cars on the road, the RTC is transitioning our entire transit fleet to zero-emission vehicles with available funding.
Despite the explosion in growth, our community has not invested in transit in more than 20 years, when voters passed a 2002 ballot question that increased the sales tax by one-quarter of 1% to be dedicated to public transit. Prior to COVID-19, the RTC was already coping with financial strain that worsened during the pandemic, forcing us to scale back transit service. If not for the federal stimulus package and bipartisan infrastructure bill, we would again be cutting transit service today. Luckily, the infusion of one-time funding has enabled us to restore some service and even add a new rideshare option, RTC-OnDemand, in parts of the valley that lacked transit access. But this funding will only carry us through the next couple of years.
To ensure our region remains economically viable, we need a transportation network offering various mobility options that are connected, convenient, safe and accessible, supporting people who walk, bike, drive and ride transit, while allowing traffic to flow as freely as possible. History has shown us that our community will continue to grow as we attract new businesses, tourists and residents. Growth, and its related challenges like congestion and lack of mobility options, will always require fresh thinking.
History has also shown us that the RTC hasn’t done this alone. We’ve relied on the help of elected officials, local jurisdictions, business, government partners, nonprofits and you — our residents — to pass ballot measures and legislation to build a transportation network that Southern Nevadans need and deserve. As we now move forward to turn the community’s vision into a reality, we will need your help just as we have in the past.
While the RTC has helped drive and shape the transportation network in Southern Nevada, there are many other players and participants in the game. It will take everyone in our community and all modes of transportation working in tandem to create a sustainable, efficient and effective mobility network that caters to residents and visitors alike.
On behalf of the RTC, I would like to thank every individual who has participated thus far in this process. While we are excited and inspired to continue working with our community to make the On Board vision a reality, the truth is that we cannot succeed without sufficient funding. Securing that financial commitment is one of the greatest hurdles our region now faces as we look to the future.
We look forward to working with you as we continue developing a transportation system that grows with our community, giving it new momentum for the future. With the help of the entire region, we’re confident that we can make our shared vision a reality.
