ADMINISTRATION:

Record Breaking Monthly Ridership:  Congratulations CyRide employees for carrying the highest monthly ridership ever in CyRide history at 666,890 riders in October 2009!  The previous record was held in October 2004 with 630,737 riders.  In fact, 10 of the past 12 months have attained record monthly ridership with November looking to be another record breaker!  Take a look at the highlighted months below that show your “record producing” accomplishments over the past year! 

This is verification that more and more Ames’ residents are choosing CyRide and then keeping with CyRide due to the exceptional service that our employees provide.  What’s even more remarkable is that these records occurred after the $4 high gas prices of 2008.  Thank you to all our employees for putting safety first each day to ensure a quality professional service that our passengers believe in riding with an overwhelming confidence.  Each day our employees educate the public on the ease of taking transit throughout the community.  For many it’s their first time riding a transit bus.  For others, it is their umpteenth trip.  Regardless, our drivers make it a safe and pleasant ride for the newbie to the well established rider.  The numbers clearly illustrate your success so be proud CyRide employees!  " Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of an intelligent effort.”   John Ruskin  (Sheri K.)

Hybrid Bus Design:  Staff will be soliciting a consultant to design a new look for CyRide’s hybrid bus fleet over the next few months.  Since we’ll have a large hybrid fleet of 10-12 vehicles, we want a distinctive look so that the public knows they’re riding an environmentally friendly hybrid bus.  CyRide staff hopes to have 5-8 design possibilities by the second week of January.  At that point, we hope to get the opinion of CyRide employees and our customers to help us decide which design is preferred.  The design needs to be selected by the end of January as the first 9 hybrid Gillig buses will be delivered by July 2010! (Sheri K. & Barb)

Intermodal Facility Update:  The TIGER grant requesting the construction of an Ames Intermodal Facility within the campustown district was submitted by CyRide staff on September 10, 2009 for approximately $39 million.  Staff is currently working with the City of Ames and ISU partners towards additional efforts that need to occur in the case that TIGER funding is awarded by February 2010, construction can proceed according to the schedule submitted within the grant application.  Specific activities transpiring over the next few months include attaining: Architectural Services (contingent upon TIGER award), Construction Management Services (contingent upon TIGER award), environmental approval through the Federal Transit Administration, possibly a flood plain map revision request as it was deemed inaccurate on contingent properties, site survey and land appraisals.  In addition, CyRide and ISU will develop project management/construction agreements in anticipation of the facility being built as well as operational agreements thereafter.  (Sheri K. & Shari A.)

Grants Update:  In August 2009 Signals, we updated you on the grants submitted and awarded thus far this year.  Since that time, CyRide received $1.6 million in TIGGER funding to upgrade 8-10 diesel buses currently on order to hybrid.  The articulated bus request through TIGGER for $2.4 million was denied as well as a Reduce Iowa’s Diesel Emissions (RIDE) grant submitted to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).  The RIDE grant for $424,667 would have provided two additional hybrid upgrades as well as a higher biodiesel concentration of B20 instead of B5.  Explanations for these denied projects were not communicated.  Staff also submitted a highly competitive TIGER grant for $39,299,850 in September 2009 to the US Department of Transportation for an Intermodal Facility to be constructed in campustown.  To learn more about this extensive project or view the grant application, go to www.cyride.com and click on Ames Intermodal Facility under the “Planning” link.  A copy of the grant is also located in CyRide’s breakroom.  In addition, staff requested state public transit infrastructure grant (PTIG) funding in October for $880,000 from the IDOT for a portion of the transit elements within the Intermodal Facility project.  Several state projects listed in the August 2009 Signals are still pending. (Shari A.)

OPERATIONS:

Holiday Time Off:  With the approaching holidays we will be working with many requests for time off.  Please be sure to check carefully if your requests have been covered before you leave.  Talk to Jen Strohm or Seth Pace if you have any questions about a shift being covered.  Simply submitting a request does not mean it is automatically covered.

Sign up sheets will be posted for the holiday break schedule.  If you are interested in working extra hours, you can sign up on those sheets and you will be assigned some extra hours according to your seniority.

Also, be sure that you know your schedule for the Holidays.  A memo will be posted explaining the Holiday schedule.  If you have any questions about when you work talk to Jen or Seth.

Lane 8 Garage Door Cold Weather Procedure:  Colder weather is on its way and garage doors should be closed to help keep the building warm.  If the garage door for lane 8 is closed, drivers should carefully center themselves in front of the door and slowly drive over the door activation hose thus allowing door 8 to open.  Once the garage door is fully open and stopped, drivers should bring their bus into the garage until they are even with the 3 M.P.H. speed limit sign (this distance ensures that your bus will not be struck by the door closing).  Drivers should close the garage door unless there is another bus immediately behind them.  Pulling on the red and white “jump-rope” closes the door.  The driver of the last bus through the garage door should make sure that the door is closed before parking in the garage.  (Rob and Jenny)

Tis the Season:  CyRide’s annual Holiday Open House will be December 11, 2009 from 9:30am to 6:00pm.  CyRide will provide lunch.  Please bring a side dish or dessert to share.  Family and friends are welcome.  A flyer with additional details will be distributed to all CyRide employees this week.  (Rob and Jenny)

Parking Buses Outside in Cold Weather:  As a reminder, when the outside temperature is 20 degrees F or colder, keep your bus idling when parking it on the curb or in the employee lot.  You should shut off the 4-ways and auxiliary heater (webasto), but keep the heater and the front windshield defrosters on to prevent window fogging.  This procedure will prevent diesel fuel from gelling and clogging fuel lines and fuel filters.  (Rob and Jenny)

Winter Driving Tips:  We’ve all heard the saying "there are two seasons in Iowa – road construction and winter."  Most years it seems that way.  Iowa’s snow season typically runs from November through early March.

The following tips will help in reducing the chances of becoming involved in a weather-related accident.

¯ Report for work rested and alert.

¯ Do a thorough pre-trip inspection.  Make sure you have de-icing fluid, an ice scraper, and window cleaner.

¯ Slow down.  The posted speed limit may not be a safe speed to travel at during inclement weather.  Remember safety before schedule.

¯ Give yourself more stopping distance, about 15-20 feet before where you would usually stop.  Bridges and shady spots can be icy when other areas are not.  Avoid sudden stops and quick direction changes.

¯ Turn off the transmission retarder if the bus is equipped with one.

Snow and ice create hazards for our passengers as well.  The following tips can help reduce the chances of our passengers having an accident.

¯ Turn your four ways on early so the passenger knows you see them at the stop.

¯ Approach the stop cautiously and allow extra clearance on the right side, if necessary.

¯ Choose the boarding and deboarding area carefully.  If there is snow at the bus stop, select another area such as a sidewalk or driveway.  If the sidewalk is icy or snow covered, give the passengers warning of the condition before they exit.  If there is not a clear location keep a clearance of three to five feet from the snow bank so that passengers can use the street for boarding and deboarding.  Do not move the bus until all people are safely away from the bus.  Check your mirrors carefully to make sure the area is clear.

¯ If your bus steps are snow or ice covered, scrape/brush the snow/ice off these steps.

¯ Monitor the interior temperature of the bus for the comfort of the passengers.  (Rob and Jenny)

CyRide Implements ACD Technology – Within the next month, CyRide will be implementing automated call distribution (ACD) technology to its main number 292-1100.  What will this mean to customers that call CyRide?  If staff is not currently helping other customers over the phone, then the call will be answered immediately similarly to how it is answered today.  However if staff is already helping other customers over the phone and no other staff is available to answer, callers can expect to hear an automated voice recording followed by on-hold music putting the call in queue.  Callers will be asked to hold and wait for the next available staff person that can help them.  ACD will help eliminate frustrated callers that may currently receive busy signals when calling CyRide during busy times of the day (e.g Moonlight Express).  In addition, staff will be able to monitor the amount of calls and length of time passengers are waiting in queue to determine when additional phone staff is needed throughout the day.  CyRide hopes ACD will allow CyRide staff to handle the larger volumes of calls more efficiently from the 5+ million passengers we transport each year! 

HIRING AND TRAINING:

Spring 2009 Run Pick:  We will hold Spring Run Pick December 7-9 (after students have had a chance to pick their spring classes.)  This is for drivers who will have conflicts with their current work schedule due to spring semester classes.  Runs from drivers that have conflicts as well as all runs that are currently open will be made available in the run pick.  You will be able to choose new runs from these available runs.  You can only drop runs that conflict with new spring classes.  Drivers will choose their new runs based on seniority as of October 31, 2009.  Look for run pick times to be posted near the Training Office door.  (Tom B and George)

Winter Safety Reminder:  Drivers, if you should run over an object that could or has caused harm or damage to your bus, please stop your bus immediately and inspect it for damage. Stopping your bus immediately will prevent further damage from occurring.  As always, keep the dispatcher informed of your condition and status.  (Tom B and George)

FLEET AND FACILITIES

Used Bus Purchase Update:  Within the October 2009 Signals, we discussed the possibility of receiving used buses from Fresno, California they plan to retire.  CyRide has been offered the ability to purchase these vehicles.  Maintenance staff will be leaving the first week of December to inspect 11-13 buses.  CyRide anticipates getting two of these buses into service by the first part of January 2010 in time for the spring semester with the remainder as quickly as possible.  It will be a busy spring for the shop as they work to make these diesel buses ready for CyRide service.  (Rich L.)

Garage Height Issues:  With CyRide expecting 10-12 hybrids to its fleet next year, height limitations within the garage is a concern.  When built in the 1980’s, a lower ceiling was incorporated to reduce the costs of heating the facility.  Now, utility piping is too low for hybrid buses to drive through much of the facility and circulation of these buses through the building and in/out of maintenance will be problematic.  In addition, any future 2010 buses will have new emission standards that result in taller buses.  In an effort to curtail this issue, CyRide has requested that pipes in lanes 3-4 be raised from remaining ARRA funding from the steam cleaning grant which came in under budget.  This grant was funded at 100% and is regulated by the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT).  If the IDOT approves, this will allow circulation of hybrid buses through the bus wash (lane 13), maintenance shop, lanes 1-4 and the steam cleaning lane only. (Rich L.)