general manager’s report - ac transit · general manager’s report january 11, 2017 page 2 ac...
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GeneralManager’sReport
January11,2017 Page1
Newark Flex Presentation ‐ On December 6, 2016, Estee Sepulveda, External Affairs Representative, and John Urgo, Transportation Planner, hosted an informational table and gave a presentation on the Newark Flex service to seniors at the Clark W. Redeker Newark Senior Center. A representative from the Mobility & Transportation Services Department was also in attendance to sign up seniors to travel training sessions, which teaches them how to use Flex. We are also grateful for the support of Newark Mayor Alan Nagy who attended the information session.
Meeting with Assemblymember Bill Quirk and Chabot College ‐ On December 14, 2016, Vice President Elsa Ortiz, General Manager Michael Hursh, and AC Transit staff met with Assemblymember Bill Quirk and representatives from Chabot College to discuss current and future service to the Chabot campus. AC Go, which will increase service by approximately 14% in the district and is funded through Measure BB, will roll out in central Alameda County later this year. More frequent service will be provided on Line 97 and new Line 60, which will connect the Chabot campus to the Hayward Bart Station and California State University, East Bay. We are very excited for opportunities to engage with the community and help promote AC Transit bus service!
Alameda Line 19 Ribbon Cutting ‐ Neither rain nor gloom of night could stop a celebration for the launch of the new Line 19 in Alameda! On January 3, Directors and Ortiz joined the entire Alameda City Council, Alameda’s Northern Waterfront developers, city staffers and Island residents for a photo op and ribbon cutting.
Line 19 began operating December 18 and represents the second phase of AC Go. Alameda riders now have direct access to the 12th Street/Oakland City Center and Fruitvale BART stations. Along the way, Line 19 riders will enjoy the added convenience of frequent service to:
Fruitvale Avenue
Bridgeside Center and Nob Hill Market
Downtown Alameda and Park Street
Atlantic Avenue and Marina Village
Webster Street and College of AlamedaBoard of DirectorsJanuary 11, 2017Agenda Item 10Staff Report 17-061
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AC Transit’s 2016 Highlights and Milestones ‐In his end‐of‐year letter to all staff, GM Hursh acknowledged the hard work and dedication of everyone who helped to make 2016 a remarkable year for AC Transit. As a result of these achievements, AC Transit is well‐positioned for continued success in 2017. Highlights of our accomplishments include:
Reached labor agreement with ATU. This contract reflects labor and management’s shared commitment to ensuring AC Transit maintains a highly‐qualified and fairly‐compensated workforce that delivers exceptional service to our riders.
Passed Measure C1 with 82% voter support. The $30 million generated annually from this parcel tax guarantees funding for basic bus maintenance and operations over the next 20 years.
Broke ground on the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). President Obama’s Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaff, San Leandro Mayor Pauline Cutter and many other dignitaries joined us for this occasion.
Launched AC Go. When fully implemented by 2018, AC Transit will have increased service by 14% across the district.
Completed construction on Richmond Division 3 Yard. The Yard will begin operations in early 2017.
Hosted the California Transit Association Annual Conference. AC Transit staff provided a memorable convention experience for nearly 700 attendees, participated in several panels and technical tours, and were exceptional ambassadors of our agency and the East Bay.
These are just some of the many accomplishments we achieved this year in support of the District’s key goals. By far the single biggest accomplishment is the hard work and dedication each and every AC Transit employee displayed in transporting the millions of riders to school, jobs, places of worship, shopping and everywhere else! BRT Utility Relocation and Restoration Work Continues ‐Over the holiday week, PG&E's contractor, MCE, performed restoration work in several locations in San Leandro as part of the utility relocation work that took place last year in preparation for the new BRT infrastructure. The BRT Outreach team worked closely with merchants to ensure issues were addressed in a timely manner and access to businesses was maintained.
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Transit Performance Initiative ‐ We have just been recommended for a $5M Transit Performance Initiative – Investment grant by MTC for the “San Pablo and Telegraph Rapid Bus Upgrades” project. The total project total cost is $10M and will upgrade Transit Signal Priority equipment and optimize bus stop locations on both routes, and add one mile of red transit lanes in Berkeley for the Telegraph Corridor. We applied to ACTC for the remaining $5M, and should find out in the next few months about that funding. Depending on the total funding we get, we will prioritize what corridors and improvements to make.
Holiday Bus ‐ This holiday season, as in years past, AC Transit designated a “holiday bus” to be festively wrapped and run
various routes throughout the district offering free rides to anyone who boards. The bus went into service on December 1,
beginning at D2. On December 11 it transferred to D4, and finally on December 21 it began service at D6. The holiday bus was
promoted on the web site and social media, featuring the social media tag #actjoy, and a contest was run for customers who
spotted the holiday bus in service. Winners received a special AC Transit t‐shirt.
Charity Drives ‐ In the spirit of the season, AC Transit employees at the GO and divisions participated in holiday drives for the
Alameda County Food Bank, and various charities that provide toys to families in need. In addition to several all‐staff emails
from the GM, posters were hung throughout the GO and sent to the divisions promoting the drives. Marketing also hosted an
event that provided donuts and coffee to employees who brought a food or toy item on the designated day. All in all the drives
were a success with employees filling the equivalent of five bins for the food bank and a van full of toys for needy children.
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December Service Change Education ‐ December’s system‐wide schedule changes impacted the majority of AC Transit riders,
and the majority of our rider information. In an effort to make the transition to the new schedules as seamless as possible,
Communications staff updated 118 of our 134 existing timetables. The new timetables were posted to the district website as
well as distributed to approximately 115 locations throughout our service area. With the help of the Pole Crew, we updated
1,116 pole schedules and 416 shelter inserts. Electronic messages were sent to more than 14,000 riders via our eNews system.
We took advantage of our social media network by posting messages on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Those messages
reached 17,200 followers across those three channels.
AC Go Marketing ‐ As part of AC Go, several major service additions and changes were rolled out to riders on December 18.
Particularly exciting was the addition of the line 19 and extension of the line 14. To get riders excited about the service, AC
Transit marketing staff created a campaign and tactics to reach current riders and residents who now have convenient bus
service. The campaign included street team outreach on three separate occasions, two during rush hour in downtown Oakland
and one in Alameda at the Mayor’s Christmas tree lighting. Door hangers were also hung on every home on the new line 19.
An ad placed in the Alameda Sun, bus shelters ads and ad cards inside buses will also be in play through February. A mailer will
also be sent to residents as well.
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American Public Transportation Association (APTA) ‐ On December 1st and 2nd, Beverly Greene, Director of the Legislative Affairs & Community Relations Department, and Estee Sepulveda, External Affairs Representative, traveled to Washington D.C. to attend the APTA 2016 committee meetings. Additionally, they met with Representative Eric Swalwell and Mark DeSaulnier and staff from the Offices of Representative Barbara Lee and Senator Dianne Feinstein. They discussed several of AC Transit’s projects like the Flex Service pilot in Fremont / Newark and Castro Valley, the reopening of AC Transit's Division 3 located in Richmond, and the progress made on the East Bay Bus Rapid Transit project. We are appreciative of their continued support.
Double‐Deck Bus Design ‐ The Marketing department finalized the exterior paint and decal design for the new double‐deck
buses on order from Alexander Dennis. The paint scheme mirrors the look of the current Gillig Transbay fleet, and is designed
to accommodate exterior advertising to generate revenue for the District.
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Social Media Report ‐ The attached social media report reflects the District’s focus on engaging customers through digital channels. This monthly report prepared by the Marketing & Communications department, demonstrates a higher level of monitoring, content generation, responsiveness and analysis as our customer interaction of these channels increases.
STAY CONNECTED WITH US!
FACEBOOK facebook.com/rideact
TWITTER twitter.com/rideact
YOUTUBE youtube.com/rideact
instagram.com/rideact
LINKEDINlinkedin.com/company/ac-transit
Reach: How many social media followers did AC Transit gain in November?
Direct Engagement: How we engaged with our riders
Improvements and Commendations: Consider this feedback on our service
Twitter7, 213 followers
GROWTH: 77
LinkedIn 3,479 followers
GROWTH: 12
Facebook6,507 followers
GROWTH: 25
YouTube340 Subscribers
GROWTH: 7
Instagram249 followers
GROWTH: 11
TWITTER: AC Transit @rideact
Come and join us--fresh employment opportunities: http://ow.ly/A0oH307gIDj
FACEBOOK:
We couldn’t resist getting #TeamAC
together to do a #transit
#MannequinChallenge. How about
yours, SFMTA | San Francisco
Municipal Transportation Agency?
…
.
LINKEDIN: Free rides & 2017 calendars on AC
Transit's Holiday Bus from December 1st through
31st! Post a picture onboard or outside the
wrapped bus, and tag @rideact to win a limited
edition T-shirt by Oaklandish. Details:
http://ow.ly/uR23306IznC
12/19/16
Careers at AC Transit5,017 Impressions, 7 Retweets
11/11/16 #MannequinChallenge Video
4,443 People Reached2, 382 Views
12/01/16 Holiday Bus Promotion
2,300 Impressions, 16 Likes
DECEMBER 2016SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT
FACEBOOK: Edie Godiva
Buses aren't on time, fares are too high, if you lose something they won't do anything to help you and totally out of touch with the population that uses their buses..
TWITTER: Scott Fuller @scottdfuller
@rideact The new #47 schedule doesn't work if the buses can't make it to their stops on time. Please fix this.
TWITTER: Jinhee Ha @j1nheeha
Thank you @rideact for a festive, holiday ride on the 18 this morning! 🎉🌲🙏
December 21 December 20 December 28
FROM FROM FROM
653* 250 33
Strategic Outcomes: How did social media communications benefit AC Transit?
Sentiment: What are people saying about AC Transit on social media?
Network Referrals: Which social networks sent the most visitors to actransit.org?
TWITTER FACEBOOK
Werner Strydom @bloudraak 12/16/16I really wish there was an app that accurately predicts when a @rideact bus will arrive or tell me it's not coming.
DECEMBER 2016
Community: Our Presence and Involvement
AC Go and SEP Service Changes communications were boosted by
scheduled digital advertising on social media.
Tom Bayens 12/19/16
Why is the SB stopped at the bay bridge tool plaza? It was already 30' late leaving transbay terminal.
Looking to reach even more riders with timely alerts and digital
communications in 2017.
Terrific growth and stabilization of our social media channels in 2016!
Happy Holidays!Go, #TeamAC: The holiday bus was a hit all month long, and the annual toy
and food drive was flooded with donations. Thank you to all who put
in time, toys and food. Happy New Year!
Rob Bonta @RobBonta 12/19/16
.@rideact Service changes on Dec. 18, means more buses on streets, faster service! More info: https://m.actransit.org/index.html?RedirUri=/ac-go-main/#Article … #eastbay #oakland
*Digital Advertising