From Reimagining to Implementation Select Challenges and Opportunities Christof Spieler METRO Board of Directors Kurt Luhrsen Vice President, Service Planning & Transit System Reimagining Jim Archer Director, Service Planning
Why Reimagining?
The bus is infrequent. Transit Center Park & Ride Red: Frequent Network Blue: 16 to 30 minute headways Green: 31+ minute headways
The bus is confusing. Route 40
The bus is indirect.
The bus doesn t work weekends. Transit Center Park & Ride
The bus doesn t go where people are.
The bus doesn t go where people are. Energy Corridor 2% transit use Uptown 7% transit use Downtown 37% transit use Westchase 7% transit use Greenway 5% transit use Medical Center 28% transit use
Why did we end up with this? 9
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We know how to do this better
Create an integrated network and we have a great opportunity.
How Did We Do It? It s supposed to be hard. If it wasn t hard everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great. - A League of Their Own (1992)
It s a Marathon, Not a Sprint Date September 2012 January 2013 November 2013 May 2014 September 2014 February 2015 February 2015 June 2015 August 16, 2015 June Milestones Strategic Planning Board committee formed; System Reimagining process begins Board approves contract for consultants to assist with project Board adopts System Reimagining guideline allocating 80% of service to ridership and 20% to coverage Board reviews draft plan, directs staff to meet with community through formal/informal public meetings Board approves System Reimagining in principle Board approves System Reimagining map, directs staff to begin implementation process Development of schedules, marketing materials, bus stop signs, staff training, etc. Public hearings: Board approves First Year Implementation of Five Year New Bus Network Implementation
Educate Your Board Don t assume they know what quality transit looks like This takes time and patience They must buy into the process In the end, they have to be prepared to be yelled at, cried at, and pleaded with
Take the Time to Set Your Own Goals There is no right network design Your Board and Stakeholders need to be supportive and part of the process Workshops and exercises can help frame the tradeoffs
Interactive Workshops Involve Board members and Stakeholders Challenging to understand the trade-offs Utilized handhelds for real-time voting
Think about Your Own Planning Process How do you mesh consultants and staff Day-to-day duties don t disappear How do you keep the rest of your team involved Starting with a blank sheet is easy and incredibly hard Remind everyone why you re doing this
Don t be Afraid to be Radical Need to be able to focus during the Core Team Planning process Need to re-think internal training How to deal with bus stop signage Make changes all at once or in phases
METRO s Current Network Red = Frequent, 15 minute or better headways 22
METRO s New Bus Network Red = Frequent, 15 minute or better headways 23
METRO s New Bus Network Maps of Day 1 Core Team Planning and Five Year New Bus Network Minimal changes between original frequent network and final frequent network 24
Outreach, Outreach, Outreach Customers Community members Non-profits and other agencies Other transit agency staff Elected officials
CASE STUDY: CONCEPT VERSUS REAL WORLD TIME FRAME Core Team Planning January 2013 May 2014 Draft Plan to Approved Five Year Plan May 2014 February 2015 Approved Five Year Plan to First Year Implementation February 2015 August 2015 DISTANCE FROM AN EXISTING BUS STOP A CUSTOMER COULD WALK AND STILL BE CONSIDERED COVERED 0.50 or ½ mile 0.25 or ¼ mile Less than 0.25 mile if: no sidewalks, elderly, disabled, children 26
CASE STUDY: PROPOSED SERVICE TO THOMAS STREET HEALTH CENTER Connections at Main and Hogan: 0.3 miles Core Team Planning More than acceptable Draft Plan to Approved Plan Acceptable Approved Five Year Plan to First Year Implementation Unacceptable; additional service required 27
Case Study Take-Aways Surviving and Persevering Amid Changes Anticipate paradigm / parameter shifts in process Develop prompt response mechanisms Accept changes beyond your control Provide options the sooner the better Try to maintain your composure / perspective 28
NOTHING IS FINAL It ain t over til the fat lady sings TIME FRAME May 2014 Sep. 2014 Sep. 2014 Feb. 2015 Feb. 2015 May 2015 May 2015 June 2015 July 2015 Aug. 2015 PART OF PROCESS Draft map presented to Board; schedule process begins Concept approved in principle % OF ROUTES CHANGED Ready to Go If We Make Zero Changes 95% February Ready to Go With No Changes Needed 75% May Ready to Go With No More Changes Needed 10% Board Approved Ready to Go 10% But At least 5% Change of route number, name, frequency, span of service, and / or alignment 29
A GOOD WORD IS HARD TO FIND What You Hear As Staff TIME FRAME BLOG / ELECTRONIC MAIL / FACEBOOK / TELEPHONE CALL / TWITTER # March 2015 July 2015 (five months) July 6 10, 2015 (one week, low complaint total) Compliments (not followed with but you need to change or you need to add ) Complaints / Demanded or Requested Changes Ratio of Complaints to Compliments 1 15 330:1 30
A GOOD WORD IS HARD TO FIND A Few Gems From Along The Way You re reinstituting slavery Whoever designed this should have his head examined What idiotic moron planned this? DO YOU REALIZE (fill in the blank)? You probably didn t consider (fill in the blank) 31
REMEMBER THE GOOD GUYS What You Need To Convey To Your Staff YOU RE Going to get there Responding despite pressure Enhancing our customer s service Adding value to the process Taking care of customers 32
Putting It All in Perspective This plan expects to increase daily ridership by 20% after two years or 40,000 boardings per day This is more than most New Starts projects and for a fraction of the cost 33
Jobs Within 1/2 Mile People Within 1/2 Mile Was It All Worth It? The Reimagined Network Plan connects a million people to a million jobs on the frequent network Existing Sept 2014 Recommended +117% Increase Existing Sept 2014 Recommended +56% Increase 36
Contact Information Christof Spieler Christof.Spieler@ridemetro.org Kurt Luhrsen Kurt.Luhrsen@ridemetro.org Jim Archer James.Archer@ridemetro.org