OPERATIONS:

Gate Cards in Windows: Drivers, please do not stow your gate card between the two panes of the driver’s window. When the window is inadvertently closed on the card, it causes internal damage (crimping of the card) rendering the gate card useless. (George)

Interior Temperature of Your Bus: All buses heat differently and weather conditions will affect the interior temperature of your bus. Drivers should frequently walk through the bus to monitor the temperature of the passenger seating area as well as referring to the interior thermometer. During winter, drivers will maintain their passenger compartment temperatures between 65-68 degrees F. This insures that passengers in winter clothing do not become uncomfortable. If the heater does not raise the temperature to this comfort range, the dispatcher should be notified. (George)

Auxiliary Vehicle Heaters: The auxiliary heater augments the vehicle’s regular heating system by heating and circulating water that is used to heat the engine, the driver’s area, and the passenger compartment. Drivers should use the auxiliary heater only when the engine is cold, or when the regular engine heater is unable to maintain a comfortable passenger temperature. When a comfortable passenger temperature is reached, the auxiliary heater should be turned off. The only vehicles equipped with auxiliary vehicle heaters are: 926, 927, 933, 934, 944-947, and 953-958. (George)

Tough Snow Warning: When curbing your bus, be on the lookout for the piles of accumulated snow that will exist at the edges of the street. The freeze-thaw cycle and road chemicals will turn this once fluffy material into something akin to concrete. Adequately survey the situation when stopping and ensure there is enough room between your bus and any snow. Hitting a frozen snow berm is a preventable accident. Striking this glacier-like substance damaged several mini-bus step wells last year. (George)

Extra Moonlight Express Session: During Spring Break (March 18-22), CyRide will operate Moonlight Express (MLX) on Saturday, March 23^rd. During this period, the NCAA Women’s Regional Basketball Tournament will take place in Ames. Those drivers interested in driving this extra MLX shift, please contact the dispatchers. (George)

High Lights: Units 909-912 have additional amber (LED style) warning lights mounted at the upper corners of their rear windows. Identical to the high mounted lights on the Lowfloors and Orion Vs, these warning lights will increase overall safety when buses are stopped at service stops. (George)

Uniforms: Now that we may be experiencing some colder, more unpleasant weather, I want to remind you that you can get some extra uniform items to keep you warm. If you would like a stocking hat or sweater, talk to Barb or George. If we do not have one on hand we can order one for you. You should always be wearing CyRide issued items. No other jackets, caps, hats, etc. should be worn when driving. (Karen)

Wheelchair Lifts For Strollers: I want to encourage drivers to offer the use of the wheelchair lift when you encounter a passenger with a stroller or cart that may be heavy to lift or just difficult for the passenger to board with. If you are concerned about lifting a heavy stroller with children or packages in it, this is a quick, easy way to board the passenger and be on your way. Passengers won’t necessarily know to ask for this service so please offer. (Karen)

Extra Hours: Thank you to the part time drivers for the extra hours you have signed up for throughout the year. I would like to ask you to help us in one more way. Please remember to check the hours rules when you sign up for extra hours. If you sign up for more than 6 hours you must have a lunch break and the Dispatcher may not be aware of this unless you tell them. Also watch that you do not work more than 10.0 hours in a day, more than 39.9 in a week, or more than 6 days a week. When working a split shift, the start of your day to the end of the day should not be more than 16 hours. We want to make sure that you have breaks and rest when necessary. (Karen)

HIRING AND TRAINING:

Slide Practice: We finally got the ideal weather conditions to have everyone who was hired since last winter out to the parking lot to complete slide practice. This helps to learn the skills needed to control your bus on slick roads. Thanks to everyone who enjoyed this practice. (Brent)

Referral Incentive Program: The referral incentive program, which was started in February 2000 to help recruit new drivers, has been suspended at this time. We have had good luck with our recruitment tests and interviews and feel we can place this program on hold for a while. (Brent)

CyRide celebrated its 50 millionth passenger on Tuesday, January 29, at the Storm and Welch bus stop. Thanks for everyone who helped with this momentous event. We handed out hundreds of door prizes and several great prizes to our 49,999,999th through 50,000,004th passengers. Our winners were as follows. The 49,999,999th passenger was Stefani Smith. Stefani won a color ink jet printer. The 50,000,000th passenger was Samantha Sorrentino, a freshman from Illinois. Samantha received a $500 gift certificate to Target. The next four passengers (50,000,001 – 50,000,004) were Brent Popadych, Janna Welch, Joe Brown, and Joe Krueger - winners of $50 gift certificates from Target. (Barb)

Next Year: The Transit Board approved a budget for next year that includes fare free service. ISU students ride free on any service with a valid fee card. We will be adding several services next year and will run extras on existing schedules where needed to accommodate the increased ridership. (Bob)

Changes for next year (summer or fall schedule) include: 40 minute interval on Green and Blue in the evening during summer; airport service everyday during Christmas break except Christmas Eve and Christmas Day; evening service on Gold route; new Cardinal route between Fredericksen Court (Hawthorn Court) and the Towers; and fare free for everyone (students, faculty, staff, visitors) boarding on campus. Our web site will be updated with these changes. (Bob)

Video Camera For Sale: The old CyRide video camera is for sale. Sealed bids will be taken until February 12. See Joanne if you are interested. (Bob)

SHOP: