TIDES Governance ¶

Governance of the TIDES Project is achieved through the definition and filling of the following roles as defined here and fulfilled by the following individuals as noted:

Definitions ¶

TIDES Project ¶

The TIDES Project is made up of:

• The specification itself
• Documentation of the specification
• The structure and templates for sample data and scripts
• Validation/CI/documentation scripts
• The GitHub Organization “TIDES-transit”
• Contents of the GitHub repositories owned by the TIDES-transit organization
• Documentation and records for the governance and management of TIDES
• Other documentation of the TIDES Project overall

Roles ¶

TIDES Owner ¶

TIDES is collectively owned and governed by a Board of Directors.

TIDES Board of Directors ¶

TIDES is governed by a Board of Directors. The Board meets roughly one a month and has a public agenda and minutes.

Board Membership ¶

• Members of the Board decide the number of positions on the Board.
• Members of the Board select individuals to fill open positions on the Board.
• Members of the Board may remove any individual from the Board.
• Members of the Board will each be assigned as an “Owner” of the GitHub Organization for TIDES-transit.

Board Coordinator ¶

• The TIDES Board will select a member to serve as the Board Coordinator.
• The Board Coordinator will schedule and arrange for Board meetings.
• The Board Coordinator will conduct votes by the Board and document results.
• The Board Coordinator will communicate with the TIDES Manager / TIDES Program Manager as needed.

Board Decisions ¶

• Unless otherwise stated, decisions of the TIDES Board are subject to approval by two thirds of the non-abstaining membership of the entire board at the time of the vote (not just those voting).
• Board members may abstain from any vote.
• Decisions of the Board will be documented in writing and saved within the TIDES GitHub repository.
• The primary decisions that Board members are expected to make include:
  • Selection of new Board members, and removal of Board members if needed.
  • Selection of the TIDES Manager.
  • Approval of the MOU with the TIDES Manager.
  • Approve list of proposed changes for each development cycle.
  • Review and approve each new release of TIDES.
  • Manage Urgent Changes to the standard in collaboration with the TIDES Manager.
  • Resolve issues that arise during the Change Management process that cannot be addressed by the TIDES Manager.

Board Member Role and Term ¶

• Board members serve as individuals, not as representatives of an organization.
• Board members who change organizations, leave the transit industry, or otherwise have a major change in their professional affiliation will be expected to offer their resignation so that the Board can continue to broadly represent the interest of TIDES stakeholders.
• Board members will have staggered terms of three years.

Board Makeup ¶

• Majority of board members should be from transit agencies.
• The Board will seek geographic, demographic (race, gender, and other categories), organizational (transit agency, ITS vendor, DOT, etc.) diversity of members in offering positions.

TIDES Manager ¶

• The Board may select an individual or organization to serve as the TIDES Manager to handle the day-to-day management of the TIDES specification and other elements.
• The Board will execute a Memorandum of Understanding with the TIDES Manager that outlines the roles, responsibilities, and limitations of the management role.
• The Board may change the management of TIDES at any time for any reason.
• When there is no TIDES Manager assigned, the Board will take over management in the interim.

TIDES Program Manager ¶

• The TIDES Manager will assign an individual as the Program Manager.
• The TIDES Manager will communicate the name of the Program Manager to the Board in writing and notify the Board of any change in this assignment in writing.
• The TIDES Program Manager will be the primary point of contact between the TIDES Board and the TIDES Manager.

Management Implementation and Principles ¶

• The TIDES Program Manager will be assigned as an Owner of the GitHub Organization for TIDES (along with each member of the Board).
• The TIDES Manager will solicit, review, approve, and manage requests by individuals to be assigned as a TIDES Contributor.
• The TIDES Manager will remove Contributors at their discretion, including situations when the Contributor violates the Contributor agreement.
• The TIDES Manager will, with the input and concurrence of the Board of Directors, establish and manage the process for modifying the TIDES spec over time.

TIDES Contributor ¶

• Individuals will request to be a Contributor by completing an online form that includes acknowledgement of the Contributor Agreement and TIDES Code of Conduct.
• A TIDES Contributor has rights to create issues, discussions, and pull requests in the TIDES repository.
• A TIDES Contributor has rights to vote in decisions on changes to the TIDES spec and other aspects of TIDES.

TIDES Stakeholder ¶

• Anyone who has an interest in or could be directly affected by the TIDES specification and tools.

Document History ¶

2023-12-04 ¶

• Updated board composition per 2023-11-29 board action.

2024-01-04 ¶

• Updated Board Coordinator and TIDES Manager role assignment per 2023-12-06 board actions.

Initial Version ¶

• Initial release of the TIDES Governance document.
• Establishment of governance principles, roles, policies, and procedures.