I. TITLE VI PROGRAM INTRODUCTION

Title VI is a section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in the participation of programs and activities receiving Federal ﬁnancial assistance.

Speciﬁcally, Title VI provides that “no person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the beneﬁts of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal ﬁnancial assistance”. (42 U.S.C. Section 2000d)

Recipients of public transportation funding from the Federal Transit Authority such as Ulster County Area Transit (UCAT) are required to develop policies, programs, and practices that ensure that Federal funding is used in a manner that is nondiscriminatory as required under Title VI.

UCAT fully supports the objectives of Title VI, and seeks to:

Ensure that the level and quality of transportation service is provided in a nondiscriminatory manner.
Provide stakeholders with an opportunity for full and fair participation in the decision-making process without regard to race, color, or national origin; and
Ensure meaningful transit system access to persons of Limited English Proficiency (LEP).

This document details how UCAT incorporates nondiscrimination policies and practices in providing transit services to the public. UCAT’s Title VI policies and procedures are documented in this plan and its appendices. This plan will be updated periodically as necessary, and at least every three years to incorporate changes and additional responsibilities that arise, in accordance with guidance from the Federal Transit Authority. The service policies contained within this program are adopted by the Ulster County Executive at the time the Title VI program is adopted.

II. OVERVIEW OF ULSTER COUNTY TRANSIT SERVICES

Ulster County Area Transit (UCAT) is a regional public transportation agency, and as such, provides a variety of transportation services. These include Fixed-Route, Paratransit, and Dial-A-Ride services to the public throughout Ulster County.

Fixed-Route transit services provide the riding public with routes speciﬁcally serving populations in the City of Kingston, the Towns and Villages of New Paltz, Saugerties, Ellenville, Rosendale, Woodstock, Phoenicia, Wallkill, and Gardiner as well as providing links outside of Ulster County to the cities of Poughkeepsie and Newburgh. UCAT serves area colleges, major medical centers, commercial districts, and senior housing complexes, linking people, jobs, and services throughout the service area. In providing transit services to these locations, it is important to mention that UCAT is a ﬂag-stop system serving the entirety of its ﬁxed-routes with service at any location along the route where it is safe to board and alight passengers.

Paratransit service is operated by UCAT for people who qualify under the eligibility requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Paratransit is provided within a deﬁned service area, during the daytime hours and days as a compliment to ﬁxed route service and in compliance with applicable state and federal laws for service to people whose disability prevents them from using ﬁxed route bus service.

UCAT’s Dial-A-Ride service, covers all of Ulster County providing pre-scheduled rides for residents that pre-schedule a trip for shopping or medical services, serving those not along the ﬁxed route network.

III. POLICY STATEMENT AND AUTHORITIES

Title VI Policy Statement

Ulster County Area Transit is committed to ensuring that no person shall, on the grounds of race, color, national origin, as provided by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended; the Federal Register;

U.S. Department of Transportation 23; Code of Federal Regulation (CFR), Part 200.9 and 49 CFR, Parts 21, 26 and 27, Part V dated December 6, 2000; and,

Whereas the UCAT administers programs of the U.S. DOT, and abides by U.S. DOT 23 and 49 CFR Parts

200.9 and 21, 26 and 27, respectively; and, in the event UCAT distributes federal aid funds to another government entity, UCAT will include Title VI language in all written agreements and will monitor for compliance; and

The Director of the UCAT or his/her designee shall implement the UCAT Title VI Policy Document for the UCAT Transportation Area as documented by the U.S. Bureau of the Census through the following methods:

The UCAT Title VI Manager, Toni Roser, is responsible for initiating and monitoring Title VI activities, preparing required reports, and other responsibilities as required by Title 23 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 200, and Title 49 CFR Part 21.

Toni Roser, Director of Public Transit February 2024

Authorities

Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act provides that no person in the United States shall, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the beneﬁts of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal ﬁnancial assistance (refer to 49 CFR Part 21). The Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 broadened the scope of Title VI coverage by expanding the deﬁnition of the terms “programs or activities” to include all programs or activities of Federal Aid recipients, sub recipients, and contractors, whether such programs and activities are federally assisted or not.

The UCAT Director and her/his designee shall be responsible for monitoring the implementation of UCAT’s Title VI Plan, but is not necessarily limited to the following:

Receiving and, if necessary, assisting with the writing of discrimination complaints which are ﬁled by users of UCAT plans, programs, or services.
Upon request, providing UCAT users with copies of the UCAT’s Title VI Plan.

IV. GENERAL PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Notiﬁcation to Beneﬁciaries of Protection under Title VI

The following statement is posted in the following locations in both English and Spanish, providing the public with ample access to a notiﬁcation of their rights under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Posted on the UCAT Website (https://ucat.ulstercountyny.gov/)
Posted in the reception area of UCAT’s Golden Hill Transportation Facility at 1 Danny Circle in Kingston, NY.
Posted on every UCAT passenger transit vehicle.
Printed on UCAT’s printed route schedules, available on UCAT transit buses.

Pursuant to UCAT’s commitment to engagement with members of the community with Limited English Proﬁciency (LEP), UCAT’s Title VI Notice can be made available in languages other than English and Spanish, as needed upon request, by contacting UCAT Staﬀ at: 845-384-6269.

UCAT Title VI Complaint and Investigative Procedures

The Ulster County Area Transit (UCAT) has in eﬀect the complaint process which incorporates the elements of due process. These procedures cover all complaints regarding UCAT programs or activities ﬁled under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or 49 CFR 21, “Nondiscrimination in the Federally Assisted Programs of the United States Department of Transportation.” The process follows the steps identiﬁed below:

The following measures will be taken to resolve Title VI complaints:

A formal complaint must be ﬁled within 180 days of the alleged occurrence. Complaints shall be in writing and signed by the individual and/or their representative, and will include the following details: complainant’s name, address, and telephone number; name of alleged discriminating oﬃcial, basis of complaint (race, color, national origin), and the date of alleged act(s). A statement detailing the facts and circumstances of the alleged discrimination must accompany all complaints.

The County strongly encourages the use of the attached Ulster County Area Transit, Title VI Complaint Form when ﬁling oﬃcial complaints, found in the appendices of this document.

The preferred method is to ﬁle your complaint in writing using the Ulster County Area Transit, Title VI Complaint Form, and send it to:

Title VI Coordinator

Ulster County Area Transit 1 Danny Circle

Kingston, NY 12401

In the case where a complainant is unable or incapable of providing a written statement, a verbal complaint of discrimination may be made to Ulster County Area Transit’s Title VI Coordinator. Under these circumstances, the complainant will be interviewed, and the County’s Title VI Coordinator will assist the Complainant in converting the verbal allegations to writing.
When a complaint is received, the Title VI Coordinator will provide written acknowledgment to the Complainant, within ten (10) days by registered mail.
If a complaint is deemed incomplete, additional information will be requested, and the Complainant will be provided 60 business days to submit the required information. Failure to do so may be considered good cause for a determination of no investigative merit.

A complaint may be dismissed for the following reasons:

The Complainant requests the withdrawal of the complaint.
1. The Complainant fails to respond to repeated requests for additional information needed to process the complaint.
1. The Complainant cannot be located after reasonable attempts.

Within 15 business days from receipt of a complete complaint, Ulster County Area Transit will determine its jurisdiction in pursuing the matter and whether the complaint has suﬃcient merit to warrant investigation. Within ﬁve (5) days of this decision, the Title VI Coordinator or his/her authorized designee will notify the Complainant and Respondent, by registered mail, informing them of the disposition.
- If the decision is not to investigate the complaint, the notiﬁcation shall speciﬁcally state the reason for the decision.
- If the complaint is to be investigated, the notiﬁcation shall state the grounds of Ulster County Area Transit’s jurisdiction, while informing the parties that their full cooperation will be required in gathering additional information and assisting the investigator.
When Ulster County Area Transit does not have suﬃcient jurisdiction, the Title VI Coordinator or his/ her authorized designee will refer the complaint to the appropriate State or Federal agency holding such jurisdiction.
If the complaint has investigative merit, the Title VI Coordinator or his/her authorized designee will fully investigate the complaint. A complete investigation will be conducted, and an investigative report will be submitted within 60 days from receipt of the complaint. The report will include a narrative description of the incident, summaries of all persons interviewed, and a ﬁnding with recommendations and conciliatory measures where appropriate. If the investigation is delayed for any reason, the Title VI Coordinator will notify the appropriate authorities, and an extension will be requested.
The Title VI Coordinator or his/her authorized designee will issue letters of ﬁnding to the Complainant and Respondent within 90 days from receipt of the complaint.
If the Complainant is dissatisﬁed with Ulster County Area Transit’s resolution of the complaint, he/ she has the right to ﬁle a complaint with Federal Transit Administrations, Oﬃce of Civil Rights by contacting them at:

1. Oﬃce of Civil Rights

Federal Transit Administra· on

A· en· on: Title VI Program Coordinator East Building, 5th Floor- TCR 1200 New Jersey Ave

SE Washington DC 20590

Additionally, FTA complaint procedures can also be found on the FTA website at the following address: https://www.ft.a.dot.gov/. These procedures are outlined in FTA Circular 4702.1A, Chapter IX.

Title VI Complaint- Supporting Documents List

Appendices 1 – Title VI Complaint Procedures in Spanish Appendices 2 – Title VI Complaint Form English Appendices 3 – Title VI Complaint Form Spanish

List of Title VI Investigations, Complaints and Lawsuits Tracking Log

Ulster County Transit Maintains a log of all Title VI investigations, complaints, and lawsuits, pertaining to its transit related activities. There have been no Title VI investigations, complaints, or lawsuits since the of the submittal of 2020-23 Ulster County Area Transit – Title VI Program in 2021.

See Appendix 9. UCAT Title VI Investigation, Complaint, Lawsuit Log

V. TITLE VI ORGANIZATIONAL ROLES AND PROGAM RESPONSIBILITIES

The UCAT Director of Public Transportation is responsible for ensuring implementation of the agency’s Title VI program. Title VI program elements are interrelated, and responsibilities may overlap. The speciﬁc areas of responsibility have been delineated below for purposes of clarity.

Overall Organization for Title VI

The Title VI Manager and staﬀ are responsible for coordinating the overall administration of the Title VI program, plan, and assurances, including complaint handling, data collection and reporting, annual review and updates, and internal education. See Appendix 9. UCAT Title VI Investigation, Complaint, Lawsuit Log

Detailed Responsibilities of the Title VI Manager

The Title VI Manager is charged with the responsibility for implementing, monitoring, and ensuring compliance with Title VI regulations. Title VI responsibilities are as follows:

Process the disposition of Title VI complaints received.
1. Collect statistical data (race, color or national origin) of participants in and beneﬁciaries of agency programs, (e.g., aﬀected citizens, and impacted communities).
1. Conduct Title VI reviews of construction contractors, consultant contractors, suppliers, and other recipients of federal-aid fund contracts administered through the agency.
1. Conduct training programs on Title VI and other related statutes for agency employees.
1. Develop Title VI information for dissemination to the general public and, where appropriate, in languages other than English.
1. Identify and eliminate discrimination.
1. Establish procedures for promptly resolving deﬁciency status and writing the remedial action necessary, all within a period not to exceed 90 days.

General Title VI Responsibilities of the Agency

To ensure that Title VI reporting requirements are met, UCAT will maintain:

A database or log of Title VI complaints received. The investigation of and response to each complaint is tracked within the database or log. See Appendix 9. UCAT Title VI Investigation, Complaint, Lawsuit Log
- A log of the public outreach and involvement activities undertaken to ensure that minority and low-income people had a meaningful access to planning and participation activities. See Appendix 4. Ulster County Area Transit Outreach Events (March 2021 to February 2024)

VI. Public Outreach, Involvement, and Participation

UCAT’s Public Participation and Involvement Goals and Objectives Statement

It is the policy of Ulster County Area Transit and Ulster County to have a proactive public involvement process that provides complete information, timely public notice, and full public access to UCAT planning activities at all key stages in the decision-making process, where public participation is a key necessity. It is UCAT’s policy to involve the public from the early stages of the planning process, and to actively seek out the involvement of communities most aﬀected by plans or projects in development. Furthermore, it is a goal of the community involvement policy that the Region’s transportation plans and programs are developed in a manner that assures that the public and aﬀected communities, are aﬀorded ample opportunity to participate in the development of such plans.

UCAT’s Public Participation Plan also provides a framework for focused eﬀorts to identify, seek out and engage populations that have traditionally been underserved by existing transportation systems, including, but not limited to, the following groups: minority populations, seniors, people with disabilities, low-income populations, and those with no or limited English Proﬁciency. older persons and persons with disabilities.

The foundation for these eﬀorts is stated in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964:

“…No person in the United States shall, on the basis of race, color, or national origin be excluded from participation in, be denied the beneﬁts of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program receiving Federal ﬁnancial assistance…”

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000)

Further reinforcement was established by the President’s 1994 Executive Order on Environmental Justice, which states:

“…Each Federal agency shall make achieving environmental justice part of its mission by identifying and addressing, as appropriate, disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental eﬀects of its programs, policies, and activities on minority populations and low- income populations…”

Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 1994

UCAT Public Meetings Guidance

Accessibility

Except for those meetings that are appropriate for executive sessions, all meetings Ulster County Area Transit shall be open to the public.
Assistance for the sight and/or hearing-impaired, those with limited English proﬁciency or non- English speakers shall be provided with advanced notice. When possible, written materials will be made available in languages other than English that are relevant to local populations. Interpretation is available at meetings if 7 days’ notice is given to UCAT in advance.
UCAT Staﬀ will provide contact information for assistance to individuals in need of auxiliary aids and services in the below mentioned meeting notice. In addition, the UCAT Staﬀ will provide information regarding the status of the building’s accessibility.
With consideration to the geographical area and diverse topics of concern to the public, Ulster County Area Transit shall schedule meetings at convenient and accessible facilities, locations, and times which will encourage attendance by the public, and that are accessible and accommodating to persons with disabilities, older persons, and the sight and/or hearing-impaired. Where possible, meeting places will be accessible by public transportation. Meeting locations shall be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Notice

Advertising shall be display advertising or equivalent or superior editorial form. Display advertisements need not be duplicated by legal advertisements.
In an eﬀort to actively engage minority and low-income populations, non-English speakers and those with limited English proﬁciency, older persons and persons with disabilities, and other populations traditionally underserved by the existing transportation system, announcements of meetings will be distributed to newspapers or other media that speciﬁcally target these groups as appropriate including social media of CBOs ( community-based organizations), emails of organizations, faith- based organizations, and cultural centers. Transportation is provided upon request.
Meeting announcements shall be provided on UCAT’s web site (www.co.ulster.ny.us/ucat), where they are translated into Spanish.
All additional or rescheduled meetings, or special meetings of the public, shall be announced on the agency’s web site (www.co.ulster.ny.us/ucat) no less than 72 hours prior to the meeting time.
Any special MPO meetings that may be necessary for emergency action shall be advertised in a newspaper of general circulation within the region no less than 72 hours prior to the meeting time and shall be announced on the agency’s web site (www.co.ulster.ny.us/planning) no less than 72 hours prior to the meeting time.
If a major decision, as deﬁned in this document, is to be considered for action at a meeting of the MPO, the MPO shall provide notice in a newspaper of general circulation within the region at least 30 days prior to said meeting summarizing the major decision, which is subject to action, indicating where copies of any document for review can be obtained and where to send comments.

Activities Subject to Public Involvement

Ulster County Area Transit shall provide early and continuing public involvement opportunities throughout the transportation planning and programming process.

Planning Activities: Special emphasis shall be given to engaging the public in planning studies that form the basis for later programming decisions. Planning activities include corridor studies and special regional studies, environmental assessment studies, and development of the Long-Range Transportation Plan. These activities offer the public the earliest opportunity to participate in the development of project proposals that might eventually be programmed for funding. Thus, UCAT shall make an extra effort to involve the affected community through methods such as local advisory committees, public information meetings, and newsletters. Cross reference B #2 describing other methods we seek to involve the community.

Deﬁnition of Public and Stakeholders

Ulster County Area Transit shall make significant efforts to inform and engage both the public and stakeholders as appropriate.

General Program: As part of its general planning and programming process, Ulster County Area Transit will try to involve the following: citizens, member municipalities, aﬀected public agencies, representatives of transportation agency employees or unions, public and private providers of transportation, representatives from disability groups, and other parties who have expressed an interest in the process.
1. Outreach to Special Groups – Environmental Justice (EJ): In partnership with the Ulster County Chief Diversity Oﬃcer, Ulster County Area Transit shall also make a special effort to seek out and consider the needs of groups or communities traditionally not well served by existing transportation systems. These include but are not limited to low- income households and minority households.

Ulster County Area Transit will conduct outreach efforts to EJ communities. Ulster County Area Transit shall identify groups that it needs to involve, add them to the appropriate mailing lists, and define methods for engaging them in relevant programs or projects. This requirement for special outreach efforts shall apply to both sections A and B above.

Ulster County Area Transit efforts in this regard shall be consistent with the Environmental Justice Executive Order (EO 12898) dated February 11, 1994, and other related guidance from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA).

Appendix 4. A list of UCAT Community Outreach Events, Sessions, and Meetings since the previous Title VI submittal.

Adequate Time for Public Comment

Ulster County Area Transit shall allow reasonable time for public review and comment at key decision points. These include, but are not limited to, action on the Long-Range Transportation Plan and the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Minimum notiﬁcation periods shall be as follows:

Reduction in services or rate changes – 30 days.
- Adoption of the TIP & major TIP amendments – 30 days.
- Adoption of the Long-Range Transportation Plan & major amendments – 30 days.

Methods of Notifying the Public

Ulster County Area Transit shall use appropriate methods to notify the public of its activities and of opportunities for public involvement. Determination of which methods to use must be done for each individual planning project or study. However, the minimum requirements state that a notice of each meeting shall be ﬁled with every municipality oﬃce. To actively engage minority and low-income populations, non-English speakers and those with limited English proﬁciency, older persons and persons with disabilities, and other populations traditionally underserved by the existing transportation system, announcements of regularly scheduled meetings will be distributed to newspapers, social media postings, the Ulster County Website, and the UCAT Website.

VII. Language Assistance Plan for Persons with Limited English Proﬁciency (LEP)

In accordance with FTA Requirements, Ulster County Area Transit has prepared a Limited English Proﬁciency Plan to help identify reasonable steps for providing language assistance to persons with limited English proﬁciency (LEP) who wish to access services provided by UCAT. As deﬁned by Executive Order 13166, LEP persons are those who do not speak English as their primary language and have limited ability to read, speak, write, or understand English. This plan outlines how to identify a person who many need language assistance, the ways in which assistance may be provided, staﬀ training that may be required, and notiﬁcation to LEP persons regarding the availability of assistance.

LEP- APPLYING THE FOUR-FACTOR FRAMEWORK

LEP- Factor 1.

The number and proportion of LEP persons in the service area who may be served.

Ulster County Area Transit assessed the number and proportion of LEP persons served or encountered in the eligible service population from the 2018 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for New York State, Ulster County, and determined that:

178,599 individuals live in the Ulster County Area Transit service area.
11.6 % of the population speak a language other than English.
Of those, 5,292 individuals, or 3% of the service area population, have limited English proficiency, which means they speak English less than “very well” or “not at all.”
In the UCAT service area, of those persons with limited English proﬁciency:
- 88.4% speak English only.
- 5.7% speak Spanish.
- 4.2% speak other European languages.
- 1.2% speak Asian and Paciﬁc Islander languages.
- 0.4% speak other languages.

LEP- Factor 2.

The frequency with which LEP individuals encounters an Ulster County Area Transit program, activity, or service.

UCAT reviewed the frequency with which their staﬀ have, or potentially have, contact with LEP persons. This includes phone inquiries or oﬃce visits.

To date, UCAT has had 0 requests for interpreters and 0 request for translated program documents.
- UCAT staﬀ has had very little contact with LEP persons.

Per the 2018 American Community Survey, Ulster County does not have a large LEP population.

LEP- Factor 3.

The nature and importance of the program, activity, or service provided by Ulster County to the LEP Community.

There is no large geographic concentration of any type of LEP individuals in the service area for UCAT. The overwhelming majority of the population, 88.7%, speaks only English. As a result, there are few social, service, or professional and leadership organizations within the UCAT service area that focuses on outreach to LEP individuals. The Ulster County Area Transit staﬀ is most likely to encounter LEP individuals through oﬃce visits, phone conversations, notiﬁcations from department staﬀ regarding the results of service delivery. Examples of transit service destinations provided include, shopping, work, medical, school, attendance, and participation at public meetings.

LEP- Factor 4.

The resources/interpretation services available to Ulster County Area Transit

Ulster County Area Transit contacted other departments within Ulster County who are willing to provide voluntary language translation and interpretation services if needed within a reasonable time. Other language translation options could be provided by bilingual staﬀ or by telephone from a professional interpretation service (Lingualinx, Inc.) for which UCAT would pay a fee. The UCAT website is also available in many languages using web browser translation services.

LEP- UCAT LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE PLAN

Language Assistance Measures

When an in-person interpreter is needed, it should be determined what language is required. Notice of translation services will also be displayed in English and Spanish, the two most spoken languages among the LEP populations in Ulster County. Once the LEP person’s language is determined, UCAT staﬀ will contact a translator on staﬀ or contact the translating service under contract (Lingualinx, Inc.) for assistance to understand the customer’s needs.

UCAT Staﬀ Training:

The LEP Plan will be available for all employees in a hard copy format. This information will also be part of the UCAT staﬀ orientation process for new hires. Training topics include:

Understanding the Title VI LEP program responsibilities
What language assistance UCAT oﬀers
How to access an interpreter
Documentation of language assistance requests
The importance of educating UCAT staﬀ on its LEP program responsibilities and their obligation to provide language assistance.
Providing Notice of Available Language Service to LEP Person

Ulster County Area Transit oﬀers Spanish-speaking dispatch services upon request for all information regarding transit service including Fixed Route, para transit and to oﬀ-route requests. UCAT has eight Spanish-speaking employees for translation.
The electronic telephone message oﬀers English or Spanish.
Dispatchers will take the name and telephone number of the client and have a Spanish- speaking dispatcher call back, if one is not available at the time of the call. If a Spanish speaking dispatcher is not available, we patch the customer through the radio to a Spanish speaking driver for interpretation.
UCAT also has employees who speak Romanian, Spanish and Italian. These employees can also be called upon to interpret, as needed.
Title VI information is posted in English and Spanish on all of our buses and is monitored by the maintenance department during the monthly PM inspections to assure they are posted in the bus and in good order.
Ulster County has a contract with an interpreting contractor, Lingualinx Inc., which will provide dispatch services in other languages, as needed.
Ulster County’s website is available in Spanish.
UCAT has translated its System-wide schedule which encompasses all our schedules into Spanish.
UCAT has a website with information about programs, policies, and contacts for public transit access in Spanish. The website is promoted on all rate schedules dispersed to the community and mentions both the English and Spanish site addresses.
UCAT distributes and collects surveys to determine passenger needs in English and Spanish.
UCAT works with the Department of Social Services, the Department of Labor, Gateway Community Industries, The Resource Center for Accessible Living, the Hispanic Outreach Advisory Board, the Oﬃce for Aging, and Ulster-Greene ARC to ensure that all people who public transit access need get it.
The Hispanic Outreach Advisory Board includes UCAT in all mailings, seminars and activities related to the Hispanic Community. UCAT attends all the above. Hispanic Outreach Advisory Board is a nonproﬁt

organization that provides access to and information about critically needed services such as transportation to residents in Ulster County. HOAB’s mission is to improve the quality of life for residents in the community through programs that promote education, health, economic development, ﬁnancial literacy, and the cultural arts.

LAP refresher training is given on an annual basis to all employees during our safety and sensitivity training day in September/October.
Assistance for the sight and/or hearing-impaired, those with limited English proﬁciency or non- English speakers shall be provided with advanced notice. When possible, written materials will be made available in languages other than English that are relevant to local populations. Interpretation is available at meetings if 7 days’ notice is given to UCAT in advance.
UCAT translates the following vital documents:
1. Title Vi
1. UCAT Website
1. Rider Surveys
1. All Rider Schedules

The LAP plan is reviewed, updated, and trained annually with all UCAT staﬀ.

VIII. REQUIREMENTS OF FIXED ROUTE TRANSIT PROVIDERS

Service Policy

UCAT operates fixed-route bus and Paratransit services throughout Ulster County, and to the neighboring cities of Poughkeepsie and Newburgh, respectively, in Dutchess and Orange Counties. UCAT’s fleet is housed primarily at the UCAT Facility located at 1 Danny Circle, Kingston, NY 12401. Buses are also housed at the City of Kingston’s Public Works facility, 464 Hasbrouck Ave., Kingston, NY 12401, and at the Town of Ellenville’s Public Works Facility located at: 10 Berme Road, Ellenville, NY 12428.

The UCAT fleet of 38 vehicles are all low floor accessible vehicles. Bus assignment considers the operating characteristics of our fleet, which are matched to the operating characteristics of the route. Routes with lower ridership may be assigned cutaways or 30 ft. buses rather than the 35- or 40-foot buses, reserved for our higher ridership routes.

Full service of fixed route, and paratransit services for seniors are available Monday through Friday, 4:45

a.m. until 11 p.m. Saturday service is limited to approximately 70% of all routes between 7 a.m. and 8

p.m. and paratransit service. Sunday service is limited to two fixed routes.

Service Availability

50% of Ulster County residents live within half a mile of all fixed route services.
37% of Ulster County residents live within a quarter mile buffer of all fixed route services.
ADA Paratransit is available to residents within a 1.5-mile radius of the fixed route service, serving an additional percent of the population (provided they are eligible).

Service Amenities

All UCAT buses are equipped with air conditioners, free public Wi-Fi, ramps, and bike racks.
Service schedules are available on all buses, at the UCAT transit center, the UCAT website, and on the UCAT rider app.
Bus shelters are located along UCAT Transit Routes in the UCAT Service Area. These shelters are

maintained by the municipalities and/or the contractor that installed some of the shelters.

IX. Service Standards and System Wide Service Design and Operations

On Time performance

On time performance is measured using speciﬁc time points along the route as noted on the schedule. Fixed route buses are prohibited from running early. On time performance is measured using a 5-minute late window.

Ninety percent of UCAT transit vehicle will complete their established runs no more than 5 minutes late. On time performance is monitored by using our routing, scheduling, and dispatching soft.ware, TripSpark for reporting.

See appendix 6, for a table of route on-time performance and route headways.

Bus Assignment

UCAT bus assignments are made based on route characteristics including average numbers of riders, bus model performance, fuel type (electric/diesel/gas), range, specific route characteristics, road conditions, and factors unrelated to rider characteristics.

Service Characteristics

All buses are air-conditioned and low floor accessible vehicles. Vehicle headway ranges from ½ hour to 2 hours on most fixed routes depending on the route, day of week and trip distance. Service hours are Mondays through Fridays from 5:20 AM to 10:30 PM. Saturdays and Sundays from 8:00 AM to 6:30PM.

Service Area Demographic Analysis

Ulster County Area Transit operates less than 50 fixed route vehicles in peak service but does evaluate the demographics of Ulster County to ensure that our system meets the needs of all our riders, particularly those who are from underserved and underrepresented communities.

Maps Reﬂecting the Ulster County Transit Service Area and its Population Demographics

The Ulster County Transportation Council has generated a set of maps reﬂecting the demographics of the Ulster County Area Transit Service Area. It is through these that we develop an understanding of our unique communities across Ulster County which allows us to better serve their unique needs.

Full Sized Maps Can Found in Appendix 8 Detailing Our Areas Unique Demographics

The Ulster County Planning Department finalized a long-term transportation plan addressing Title VI and Environmental Justice. It can be accessed at the following website: https://uctc.ulstercountyny.gov/.

Monitoring Language Needs and Implementation

On an ongoing basis, Ulster County Area Transit will assess changes in demographics, types of services or other needs that may require reevaluation of this policy and its procedures. In addition, Ulster County Area Transit will regularly assess the eﬃcacy of these procedures, including but not limited to, mechanisms for securing interpreter services, equipment used for the delivery of language assistance, complaints ﬁled by LEP persons, feedback from patrons and community organizations, etc. UCAT works with the Department of Social Services, the Department of Labor, Gateway Community Industries, the Resource Center for Accessible Living, the Hispanic Outreach Advisory Board, the Oﬃce for Aging, and Ulster-Greene ARC.

Facility Site Equity Analysis

Ulster County Area Transit has not identiﬁed a site or location for a new facility or constructed a facility during this period.

Subrecipients

Ulster County Area Transit does not oversee any sub-recipients.

Board Selection

Ulster County Area Transit does not have any non-elected planning boards, advisory councils, or committees.

Recipient Construction Facilities/Site Analysis

UCAT has not constructed any storage facilities, maintenance facilities or operations centers in the last three years.