CEO Accents - SARTA - Stark Area Regional Transit Authority

From SARTA's Executive
Director/CEO, Charles Odimgbe...

Download PDF version here: CEOAccents2008.pdf

Over the years, the Stark Area Regional Transit Authority has proven to be a trendsetter and an agency that has set the benchmark for excellence in the transportation industry. This is evidenced in our ability to always rebound during tough situations in an ever changing financial climate and to focus on what is important at all times—namely, maintaining public transportation service for Stark County residents. With a hardworking staff that is always willing to adapt to change, it is no wonder why the agency was recognized as the most Outstanding Transit System in 2006 for the 2007 year. It is with this foundation that I provide you with an update that outlines what has been going on at SARTA since that time.

As we wind down the 2008 year and prepare for 2009, it is important to provide our riders with some of the recent challenges the agency has faced and how we have been able to deal with those challenges with only a minimum impact to service on the street.

SARTA, like the average household, was faced with the impact of rising crude oil prices. This caused our fuel budget to double by the end of the first quarter of this fiscal year. Correspondingly, the Board and Staff responded immediately by making adjustments to our budget that were designed to absolve the impact of this phenomenon. We opted to use more preventive maintenance monies and adjust some of our budget line items - including eliminating our advertising budget and reducing pay raises for administrative staff. This helped the agency move some monies from these line items to our diesel fuel budget, minimizing any potential for cutting service on the street.

Next, we reviewed our modes of operation to determine if any activities contributed to a waste of resources at SARTA. This review led to a number of internal initiatives all aimed at reducing energy consumption. This included, but was not limited to the following:

a. Requiring bus operators to turn off their buses during layovers lasting more than five minutes.

b. Adjusting some of our routing to minimize miles travelled on each route.

c. Adjusting some routes to eliminate incidental or overlapping segments of our bus routes.

d. Realigning of our bus stops to incorporate “three-block spacing” in order to reduce the amount of stop-and-go bus traffic on each route.

So, in response to the pressures of rising diesel fuel prices, we are happy to announce that these activities were instrumental in allowing SARTA to keep its current level of service and maintain optimal staffing levels so as to not eliminate entire routes.

As part of adjusting for these unforeseen challenges, SARTA was forced to raise fares for rides on the system. It is worthy to note that SARTA has not raised fares in its 11 years of operation since going countywide in 1997. In making these adjustments, SARTA staff took the time and care to publicly discuss these initiatives with our riders, stakeholders, the community at large and with civic leaders within the communities we serve. The result was a seamless deployment of the negotiated outcome of these initiatives. We do extend our profound gratitude to our riders who undoubtedly understood our position with regard to maintaining our current level of service to accommodate increases in ridership.

With our contentious contract negotiations behind us, and the agency poised to end the year within revenue budget, we should not forget how we came to this position in the first place. To that end, I am calling for a new focus on Back to Basics.

With this new mantra of “Back to Basics” we will begin a comprehensive review of SARTA’s internal processes starting with our “Five Bold Steps.”

1.) Operate Within Budget – With all the pressures facing the agency, the question remained: Are we operating within our budgetary constraints? Our review indicated we are. In fact, SARTA has not operated outside our budgetary parameters or exceeded our revenue stream since the agency revamped its services in 2002. This mandate by our Board has been one of the major reasons that this agency has become a cradle for creativity, continuous improvement, and challenging our own established norms. To date, we continue to make necessary adjustments to ensure we never spend more money than what was projected to be available to the agency through various grants and funding sources.

2.) Build High Quality Staff and Board – This is another area in which we have remained consistent and true to the directives of the SARTA Board. To meet the challenges of recent times, including living up to the concept of doing more with less, we must strive to improve the skills of both the SARTA Staff and Board. To this end, SARTA has consistently provided opportunities for all employees to improve their skills through training. For the agency’s Board of Trustees, they have continually planned and attended strategic sessions that provide them with better insight of the latest developments in public transportation and governance. These sessions have tremendously improved their oversight and ownership of the agency’s activities. One area of concern that must be monitored closely would be the outcome of any contract talks between SARTA and the Union. The delay in reaching an agreement not only affects the agency’s ability to manage costs, but impacts our ability to build quality staff especially among Coach Operators. Since personnel represents our largest expenditure and Union Members are our largest pool of employees, the outcome of contract negotiations will be critical in determining the agency’s next steps in light of increasing costs.

3.) Grow Ridership – The years 2005 and 2006 brought with them unprecedented ridership increases (39% & 15%) respectively. In 2007, ridership flat lined. This slowing of ridership did not give us any cause for concern given that the agency picked up almost 300,000 additional rides in the preceding two years. It is our intent, however, to use this opportunity to develop creative adjustments that will ensure we continue to live within the Board mandated Five Bold Steps. For 2008, ridership has been increasing at a steady 8.5%

4.) Maximize Financial Flexibility – Our review of this area generated some adjustments for the agency. Some of the adjustments include changing the way we accrue vacations, adopting self-insurance for our healthcare benefits, and some minor items that have both direct and indirect financial implications.

5.) Build Public Support – With the elimination of SARTA’s advertising budget to comply with our first Bold Step, this has become increasingly challenging. However, our staff continues to receive positive feedback both through press commentaries and compliments from riders and Stark County Citizens as a whole. During the months of July and August of 2008, SARTA received the highest number of customer compliments since July of 2004. Additionally, we have intensified our participation in events including representation at community, family, and business fairs.

Despite all efforts at containing costs and maintaining our effectiveness, there is no doubt that the continuing increases in the cost of diesel fuel and other operating costs such as healthcare and liability insurance, will continue to be center stage and the precursor for new programs adopted by the agency. Let me assure you that SARTA’s staff and board are poised and ready to take on this challenge of minimizing any negative impact on our effectiveness and ability to provide excellent service for our riders and Stark County tax payers.

Our way forward through the trials ahead may seem difficult; however, we are up to the task and challenges. Being voted the Most Outstanding Public Transit system in America is a testament to the quality and professionalism of the SARTA Board and employees. These qualities will surely get us through any difficult and challenging times ahead.

We are SARTA and you are invited to… Come Ride with Us!