Council approves 6‑month Circuit microtransit pilot, with conditions and metrics
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Summary
The council voted to authorize a six‑month on‑demand microtransit pilot with Circuit Transit, using up to $540,626 in Proposition A funds; the pilot includes negotiated conditions on hours, senior fare reductions, metrics reporting, and a temporary restriction on onboard advertising pending review.
The Manhattan Beach City Council approved a six‑month on‑demand microtransit pilot with Circuit Transit on April 7, authorizing staff to execute an agreement and appropriate Proposition A local return funds up to $540,626 for the trial.
Staff described the proposed service as an app‑based, point‑to‑point EV microtransit system intended to provide first/last‑mile trips inside city limits and to the Douglas light‑rail station. Traffic Engineer Eric Grama said the recommended pilot (staff’s preferred alternative) would operate with five vehicles, seven days a week during targeted hours; staff estimated a net six‑month pilot cost in the low‑to‑mid‑$400,000 range depending on fares and revenue credits.
Circuit Transit representative Daniel Kramer explained operational details and data access: the vendor collects user zip code, basic account info and pick‑up/drop‑off coordinates and provides a dashboard and raw data exports to the city for evaluation. Kramer said the fare revenue and ad revenue reduce the city’s monthly invoice; the staff estimate for Alternative 2 shows a gross/month figure reduced by fare revenue and a 50/50 ad split in the model presented.
Council questions and public comment flagged multiple tradeoffs: Mayor Pro Tem Franklin and others expressed safety and liability concerns about under‑age users, noting the app requires account holders to be 16 or older and that under‑16 riders must be accompanied by an adult; staff and Circuit said drivers are employees who receive sensitivity and accessible‑vehicle training and that the contractor would share usage and demographic data. Finance staff clarified Prop A funds must be used or returned within statutory windows and that the city could exchange Prop A for general fund dollars in some scenarios but with a less‑than‑one‑to‑one swap rate.
Councilmember Charnay moved a hybrid pilot (staff alternatives combined) with conditions including a reduced senior fare, targeted hours to capture peak demand, monthly metrics and checkpoints, staff exploration of sponsorships/charging at city facilities to reduce operating costs, and deferral or limitation of onboard advertising during the 6‑month pilot. The motion, as recorded in the transcript, passed with a recorded result of 3‑1‑1.
Next steps: staff will finalize a contract with Circuit, implement required onboarding and outreach, set pickup zones and operational details with the vendor, monitor usage, fares and demographics via vendor dashboards, and report monthly metrics back to council for evaluation and potential continuation, scaling or termination of the service after the pilot.
