Karl M. Kindt III: The loud almost constant announcements being made on the train by the engineer about what buses are connections, about having a ticket, etc. are very annoying and it is hard to read or talk because the volume is way too loud. Can't you have a lot of this put in writing and posted - I know that the stops need to be announced by why all the connections - post those in the trains so people know by reading not by hearing what the stops are - that way it is a lot quieter. They don't make all these announcements in NY City subways or Chicago - just a simple - "next stop is..." is all that is really needed.

Todd Plesko: Karl: I will discuss the volume on the train public address system with the Metrolink maintenance staff. To comply with ADA regulations, we are required to announce both the name of the train, next stop and major cross routes. I will see if we can shorten the announcements to just the route number.

West County: Who determines the route and time changes? Will there ever be a true express bus for west county? It currently takes 45-60 minutes to get from Manchester to Downtown? Not what I call an express bus.

Todd Plesko: West County: The route and schedules are determined by the Planning and Scheduling staff, based upon customer and driver feedback, surveys, and budget constraints. On August 25th, Metro will modify the routing on the 58X Twin Oaks to create an outer routing and in inner routing. The new outer routing which operates along Manchester, New Ballwin, and Big Bend will use 141 to I-44 rather than operate on Big Bend to Webster Groves. The new routing should save approximately 20 minutes. We will continue to operate the inner 58X Twin Oaks to cover the route east of 141. When I-64 reopens, we will operate a new express route from Wildwood, Chesterfield Valley, and Chesterfield Mall and the Ballas Transit Center to Clayton where people can switch to the train. This will operate every 15 minutes from Chesterfield Mall. These new routes will be faster if you live near or can park ride near these routes.

WS: In response to an earlier question, another benefit of the Metro system is that it slightly reduces demand for gasoline, but marginal changes in demand in a tight market have large impacts on prices. Thoughtful drivers should recognize that they would pay even more for gas if the bus were not stopping in front of them. This and a cascade of related effects on pollution, roads, trade balance, etc, should offset some of the tax burden for supporting Metro.

I endorse the previously submitted observations about frequency of bus service. When I relied on connecting between two buses, my on time record was nothing like the buses' reported on-time record. The train has been great. I am reassured to see that your models seem to anticipate that reduced frequency of bus service causes a net loss of riders.

I have provided fairly detailed critiques of the bus service privately, and made some suggestions for changes. I would like to ask for a public reaction to two ideas.

1. Bus drivers can make or break a rider's experience, in innumerable ways. If a driver is less than pleasant, I suspect that you lose future passengers, especially if the driver is serving a first time customer. Many drivers behave as if they expect penalties for being late, and certainly it is helpful for them to be on time, but I think that the real mission is to move passengers (not buses) on time. Does Metro provide incentives for drivers to carry passengers? I have suggested pay reductions that drivers could more than recover by receiving part of the fare for paid passengers, the amounts depending on the amount of traffic on the bus route. That specific suggestion may or may not be practical, but working on commission would encourage meticulous attention to customer service by the front line employees in a challenging situation.

Does Metro provide incentives for bus drivers to carry passengers?

2. This question is regarding those nearly empty buses at off hours. I would drag my family of four onto those buses to go to dinner or go shopping if it were less expensive than hopping into the car, in spite of my family's qualms about the time that this would devour. Any chance of offering a family fare, or discounted off-peak fares? A family fare could let 1-2 adults and 1-? minor children board and depart as a group during off-peak hours, possibly for the price of 1 adult and 1 child. These rules could also work for church groups, scouts, small class outings, etc. Even if Metro expected off peak discounts to divert full fare customers to off peak travel, and therefore avoids a general off-peak discount, it is hard to imagine a family fare diverting peak traffic.

Off-peak empty seats are an irrecoverably lost revenue opportunity, so why are they not offered at a discount, at least to families?

Thanks,

WS

Todd Plesko: WS: While individuals drivers do not receive a specific incentive to carry more passengers, Metro's entire organization would not exist without passengers. A growing passenger base brings with it critical revenue to support all of the Agency's wages and benefits. I started many years ago a bus operator. I like the job because of the people I carried and not the "hours" I drove. Must Metro drivers probably feel the same way.

We don't have an easy method of issuing a family pass today. Metro will be purchasing a new fare box system that will permit us to issue smart cards. This technology would more easily permit that type of fare media.

Robyn Anderson: Morning. I just have a very basis question for you. I ride the #95 Kingshighway metrobus to and from work everyday. A few months ago the bus stop sign & bench were removed at Kingshighway and Farlin (southbound lane)after being hit by a car. The problem is that the sign has yet to be replaced and there are 3 large city blocks in between the two existing stops. There are a lot of elders in the neighborhood who have trouble making it such a long distance to the bus stop since the original sign & bench were removed. I have contacted customer service on three separate occasions over the past 2 months, I have even emailed Maureen Williams directly and I still have not received a response. I would like to know what I need to do to have at least the signed replaced at either Kingshighway and Margaretta or Kingshighway and Farlin.
Thank You for your time

Todd Plesko: Robyn: It is my understanding that there is a bus stop at Kingshighway and Brown. We actually removed the stop at Farlin in October 2007 according to our records. The bus stop at Farlin was not ADA accessible and the stop at Brown which is a block away, is ADA accessible. Metro has over 8,000 bus stops but only around 2100 meet the ADA standards. Shifting stops from a non accessible stop to an accessible stop is a common method of providing the mandated accessibility. Bus stop spacing is always controversial. Some people want fewer stops to speed up buses. Other individuals want more stops to reduce walk distance. A three block walk is generally within the normal standard for walk distance to most bus routes.

westpine: I have been riding MetroLink regularly as of late, and I must say that I have been quite dismayed by the lack of security on the trains. Years ago, it seemed that security openly rode the trains, but now that never seems to happen. Just in the last month, I have seen two men smoking cigarettes on the train, one smoking a cigar, one family eating their three-course Chinese dinner, and numerous people playing loud music. When I report bad behavior to the station guards, they say that there is nothing that they can do---and that it is MY job to report it to the driver. I find this suggestion to be ludicrous, since I often see Metro employees riding the trains who take no action against the violators. If it's not the job of every Metro employee to notify the driver of problems, then why should it be the job of your customers? Also, in light of these frequent problems, wouldn't it be wise to have some undercover security still randomly riding the trains in order to prevent the obvious rule-breaking behavior? I think that if you want the public to support a tax increase, then that public should feel safe and comfortable riding the trains. Thanks!

Todd Plesko: westpine. I agree. Security is an important element of the service we all want on public transit. Metro does use under cover police on the train and the bus system when we have been directed to defined criminal behavior. While this no excuse, there are over 4,000 daily bus and train trips so covering all of them is beyond the capability of our budget. Metro is today targeting police and red shirt Metro security to stations and trains where we have repeated issues. Metro also assigns fare enforcers to ride trains throughout the system which does have a positive impact on behavior. In St. Clair County, Metro's St. Clair County Sheriff details have been riding trains agressively in the late afternoon and evening is a core area of the system. This approach seems to be effective and we are evaluating special schedules to do the same in key areas of the Missouri operation. I want to mention that we do dependent upon the eyes and ears of our customers to alert us to issues that we need to focus on. If you can define times and locations, send us an email. This information is actively used to target security.