Community Transit Listens: 2013 Rider Survey

Starting Tuesday, Oct. 15, Community Transit will be administering a system-wide onboard rider survey on local and commuter buses. We conduct these surveys every three years to collect anonymous demographic information about our riders to meet federal requirements, and to learn how riders use our bus service.

Aside from demographic information, the survey asks about the trip you are currently taking. We want to know, in general terms, where you are coming and where you are going to, as well as how you got to your bus (walk, car, bike, etc) and how you will get to your destination after leaving the bus.

There are also a few questions asking your opinion about the service.

This is the first onboard survey we’ve done since our bus network restructuring in February 2012, so these answers will help us to figure out how rider habits may have changed, and how riders are using the system.

The survey takes about 3-4 minutes to complete. Surveyors will be on local buses (100s and 200s and Swift) Tuesday through Saturday handing out and collecting the surveys. These surveyors are temporary workers and will be wearing appropriate ID.

The survey will also be available on commuter routes to UW and downtown Seattle on Wednesday. On those buses, riders will fill out the surveys and place them in return folders near exit doors when completed. Riders can also take the survey home and send it via mail postage-paid. Riders are encouraged to take the survey each time they ride the bus.

Help us reach our goal of 10,000 completed surveys by the end of the week. Thanks for your participation!

Community Transit and United Way: Strength In Community

Earlier this month, Community Transit kicked off our 2013 United Way campaign, Strength In Community, by participating in the United Way of Snohomish County Day of Caring on September 14 at H3 Horses Healing Heroes in Monroe. 

Some of the Community Transit volunteers 

stop a moment to pose for a picture.

H3 Horses Healing Heroes is a non-profit organization for wounded military personnel, past and present.  Through equine assisted psychotherapy, horses are used as a tool to facilitate healing from:

• Combat Trauma

• Post-Traumatic Stress Injury

• Traumatic Brain Injury

• Military Sexual Trauma

Over 25 Community Transit staff and family volunteers assisted with repairs and general maintenance including cleaning, repairing the barn roof, fencing maintenance and moving drain pipe.

Community Transit employees, Michael Shea, Tony Smith and Pete 

Juozapaitis, clean up a pasture at the H3 farm in Monroe

“We felt that the wounded warrior project was not only an opportunity for us to lend our skills and effort, but also a chance to honor our veterans for their selfless service,” said Sue Masel, Co-Chair of the Community Transit’s United Way Team. “Pairing horses in the healing process was especially appealing to us.” (Monroe Monitor)

The team met some new friends at the Day of Caring event!

Arlene Gibson, owner of H3, said “the day was exciting, awesome and humbling. I was a little scared but everything went beautifully.  If you ever need your faith in humanity restored, just witness the volunteers from Community Transit who signed up for United Way’s Day of Caring, helping H3 with our numerous projects. They came with their hands and hearts.” (Monroe Monitor)

.

Community Transit volunteers, Pete Juozapaitis, Steve Winecoff 

and son Andrew Winecoff mending a broken fence.

Check out this article in the Monroe Monitor to learn more about the event and the work H3 does in the community.

All the hard work really paid off!

Gov. Inslee Makes Pitch for Snohomish County Transportation Investment

Gov. Jay Inslee was at Lynnwood Transit Center yesterday making the case for new investment in transportation projects. He said that Snohomish County is a key for transportation investment because of Boeing and other manufacturing jobs that rely on roads and transit to move goods and people.

With a backdrop of a Swift bus and speaking to an audience of about 100 people, including many elected officials, business owners and community leaders, Inslee said the state has a role in transportation and he called upon legislators to work with him to get a funding package approved as soon as possible.

Asked if there would be a special session of the Legislature later this year to approve a transportation funding package, Inslee said, "We need to have a package fully baked, and the votes fully identified before calling a special session." Inslee said he did not want
to bring lawmakers together to simply "sit around talking."

Following the speech, about 60 people took a tour of county projects identified in a funding proposal on a Community Transit bus. For its part, Community Transit is seeking funding to add service after several years of cuts. The agency also is studying routing for a new Swift line and is seeking state funding to help that become a reality.

Thanks to Economic Alliance Snohomish County, which sponsored this event, and is leading the effort in Snohomish County to get transportation projects funded.

Next Bus Signs Live on Swift!

Community Transit’s first real-time bus information feature was officially turned on this week when the next bus signs at Swift stations went live.

These signs count down to the arrival of the next Swift bus, e.g., 12 minutes, 6 minutes, etc. When the bus is 1 minute away from the station, there is an audible chime and the signs say “Due.” After the bus departs, the signs start counting down to the arrival of the next Swift bus.

Because this is new technology, there will be a period of adjustment. The signs may not display correctly all the time. We already know that the audio chime at 1 minute may have some volume issues. That is something we are working to correct. Also, the timing of the chime has not always been exact in testing. We will continue to monitor that as well.

If you notice an error such as the bus not arriving at the displayed time, or the chime not working, you can help us improve the system by calling (425) 353-RIDE (7433) or sending a note to riders@commtrans.org.

Within a few weeks, next bus signs will be operational at the three largest transit centers: Ash Way, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace. This fall we will be launching a real-time bus departures feature that riders can access by phone, desktop computer and mobile devices.

Employees Host Picnic for Foster Children

By Nancy Lamus, Customer Relations Marketing Assistant

This year, as part of our United Way employee fundraising campaign, Community Transit “adopted” an organization for the first time. This meant that employees were given the opportunity to do additional fundraising and participate in additional events with this particular group.

The organization we chose was Hand in Hand. Hand in Hand is a volunteer organization whose sole mission is to help children who are removed from dangerous or unhealthy homes during a crisis. Children are brought to Safe Place, a shelter where they are cared for until a more permanent placement can be found. They provide food, clothing, health care and a safe, loving environment for these children in need.

After learning more about the group, I personally started to volunteer with Hand in Hand. It has been one of the most rewarding “jobs” of my life. I find I look forward to each and every shift, to care for these children and to spend time with the wonderful people who run this organization.

The employees of Community Transit partnered with Hand in Hand for two events this year -- a Christmas party and an old-fashioned family picnic. The picnic was held last Saturday (July 27). It was amazing! With the money raised from an employee waffle feed, we were able to have games, prizes and even a bouncy house for the kids at the picnic. They were all sent home with a personalized frisbee commemorating the event.

Several Community Transit employees volunteered at the picnic. Games sponsored by Community Transit included a duck pond, a bubble pool, a fishing game, potato sack race, a bean bag toss and many more. Every try won a prize! The joy on the faces of the children when they walked on to the field was priceless.

Community Transit’s own Oxy Gene, Defender of Truth Justice and Really Clean Air, made a special appearance. The kids love Oxy and enjoyed his superhero stories.

I am always amazed by the generosity of the employees from Community Transit. Thanks to our CEO Joyce Eleanor, our work with Hand in Hand has created many memorable moments for all of us here at Community Transit. We have managers, directors, office workers, dispatchers, bus drivers and mechanics all sharing in the work to bring joy to these kids. I guess I would ask: Who had more fun? The kids or those of us who were able to participate.

Thanks to the employees of Community Transit who gave this wonderful gift to the children of Snohomish County!

"Can You Bag My ORCA Card?"

This spring local retail stores began selling ORCA cards. Since ORCA started in 2009, retailers have been able to load fare value on existing cards, but this is the first time they started selling cards.

That was a huge step for the ORCA program as it quadrupled the number of locations where you could buy an ORCA card if you didn’t already have one.

People who qualify for reduced fare, such as seniors, disabled or youth, still must buy their ORCA card in person at a transit agency customer service center because proof of eligibility is required. But the vast majority of transit riders use the standard “adult” ORCA card and that can now be bought at Safeways, QFCs, Roger’s MarketPlace and other convenient locations.

When you visit one of these retailers, there is often an ORCA sign, usually at the Customer Service desk. A new ORCA card costs $5, plus the cost of a monthly pass or whatever E-purse fare you want to put on the card. The hope is that expanding the locations where you can buy an ORCA card will encourage more people to use transit.

At community fairs this summer, we've been asked a lot of questions about ORCA, and many people don't know how convenient it is for paying fares. Now we can point down the street and say, "You can get one there!"

Where did you get your first ORCA card?

We'd Like Your Answers to Four Questions About Service

Help us understand our service priorities by taking our short online survey!

Community Transit is not cutting service, but we will be adding service hours with some system fixes this fall. To best meet the needs of the communities we serve, we need to get in front of (and talk to) our customers—  this is where our outreach comes into play.

This summer, in addition to our traditional appearances at community events where we can talk one-on-one with folks, we are also taking advantage of online surveys and polls to engage with riders and non-riders alike. This combination of outreach tactics help to get feedback from a larger pool of the population who care about Community Transit and what we do.

On July 1, we started posting polls on the Community Transit Facebook page, keeping the questions light, but related to

riding the bus, such as “Would you ride the bus on holidays?” So far, our most active poll to date asked, “Which do you consider the worst bus behavior?

Last week, we posted a Service Priorities Survey on our website. We are asking the same questions to visitors who come by our booth at various community events this summer. Would you take a few minutes to share your input to help us understand priorities for service? Each person who completes the survey (including their name and email address) will be entered into a monthly drawing to win a $50 ORCA card.