Ten Hup!

In the Army & Air Force they have 3 General Orders for their troops.

In the Marine Corps & Navy they have 11 General Orders.

These General Orders are like basic instructions for each and every troop, governing their actions in various situations.

Here at RTD we have our Ten Commandments.

Please keep the uproar to a low murmur.

I'm not being blasphemous, I'm simply making a light hearted joke.

I have the utmost respect for our Lord/God's Ten Commandments.

Apologies to the overly sensitive aside, back to our Ten Commandments!

Like the Military's General Orders, our Ten Commandments govern our actions in various situations.

Here they are:

 

1) Our Passengers:

Are the most important people in our business.

2) Our Passengers:
Are not dependent upon us, we are dependent upon them.

3) Our Passengers:
Are not an interruption of our work, they are the purpose of it.

4) Our Passengers:
Do us a favor by giving us the opportunity to serve them.

5) Our Passengers:
Are not outsiders to our business, they are our business.

6) Our Passengers:
Are not cold statistics, they are human beings with feelings and emotions just like you and me.

7) Our Passengers:
Have particular needs, it is our job to satisfy those needs.

8) Our Passengers:
Are not persons to argue or match wits with, NO ONE ever won an argument with a customer.

9) Our Passengers:
Should always be treated with courtesy.

10) Our Passengers:
Are so satisfied with how we do our jobs pleasantly & helpfully that they will take The Ride again and again.

LOL - keep in mind that these are OUR Ten Commandments (RTD) - I can't and won't speak for the private companies!

Out on the "Parade Deck" you can find hundreds of Drivers each morning marching around with window squeegees in one hand and ticket punches in the other.
Shouting Cadence & our Ten Commandments:

"Route Fifteen ELL rolling down the street,
Picking up Passengers and filling up the seats...."

As Always, "Welcome aboard, Find your seats, At Ease Privates - Let's Roll!"

Safety First

I was checking out the Federal Statistics portal and reading through the Dept. of Transportation's Bus numbers.

Did you know that in the last 20 years (1990-2010) while the number of buses and commercial trucks almost doubled from 6.8 million to 11.6 million, the number of crashes & numbers of trucks and buses involved in crashes & people injured in those crashes in 2010 have fallen to better than half from 1990?

AND a huge portion of those injuries are a result of movement during the accident, not because of the accident.
I was reading here that because public transportation has no seat belts, that because folks are walking around, changing seats, not paying attention, standing up, etc - that these behaviours contribute to injury during accidents.

Ever ridden the Mall Shuttle?
We have to hit our brakes, heck we have to stand on our brakes at least once per round trip.
And y'all in the back know what that's like even when you are paying attention, holding onto a rail and already packed in like sardines in a can.
You suddenly get to know your fellow passengers much more intimately!

The news loves to sensationalize all the accidents involving RTD vehicles.
But the facts are that those numbers are falling.
And the number of times RTD is hit far far outweighs those in which RTD hits.

Yes, every accident is a tragedy but c'mon...there are fewer tragedies these days than there were just two decades ago.
Heck, there are buses out there that old!
And many of you aren't even that old to begin with.

Anywho, I was just noticing that it's getting pretty danged safe on our roads.

As Always, "Welcome aboard, Find your seats, Buckle Up for safety - Let's Roll!"

Transfers Part Two - 2013 Version!

Many of you already know but it would seems that even more of you don't understand ... yet.

In January we introduced that SmartCard reader for folks with ECO, NECO and College Passes.

Eventually we're told the SmartCard will migrate to the monthly passes to include stuff like coupons and discount cards.
We've heard that should happen by the end of Summer 2013.
We'll see.

But in the mean time, with this new vote, new year and new Card Reader system, the transfers have been modified.

We used to be taught that we tear the transfers to expire one hour after the last stop on our routes.
Now the new rule is to tear them three hours after the starting point.

For the majority of you that gives you way more time.

For example:
If I'm driving the 44 and I leave Applewood/Walmart at 2:06pm, then I'm going to set my transfers to expire at 5:20pm.
A whole bunch of you get off downtown when I hit the 16th Street Mall around 2:45pm.
That means you still have about two and a half hours to go!

Even if you don't get off until the Airport/40th PnR, you'll still have an hour on your transfer.
No time lost and really no different than the previous rule of one hour after my last stop.

On shorter routes, let's say I'm doing a 0L.
I'd leave the I-25/Broadway Station at 6:00am and get you to the Civic Centre Station by 6:15am!
Now you walk away with a transfer that still good until at least 9am.
Heck, you could take local buses all the way up into Boulder and still have time left on your transfer with that one.

Again, most of you are making out like bandits with this new system.
Those few of you who tell me you're losing time have to first explain how you're losing something you didn't have in the first place.
Then do the math and tell me again how much you believe you're losing.

Once we go fully digital, once the SmartCard is system wide, then you'll appreciate the new transfer policy all the more.
Heck, you may even long for the paper transfers back.

I won't but you may.
LOL
But seriously.

As of January 2013, the new rule is three hours from the starting point.
If it's 2:00pm then your transfers will expire no earlier than 5:00pm.

And you KNOW some of us break the rules and give you "extra" time anyway, so HUSH y'all.

As Always, "Welcome aboard, Find your seats, Ask for a Transfer- Let's Roll!"