SporTran will use feedback for transit system improvements

SporTran will take feedback it has received during several recent public forums to try and make improvements, CEO Dinero Washington said.

The transit system held nine public meetings during the past week to hear from riders who have been adjusting to new bus routes and bus stops over the past 90 days.

Some user complaints include increased waiting times for buses and increased distance that riders have to walk to reach a bus stop.

SporTran opened its new intermodal terminal Nov. 12 at the corner of Murphy Street and Texas Avenue, leaving its long-time, tent-covered terminal in the downtown city center.

Washington said the new location of the terminal, in addition to the results of efficiency studies, resulted in changing all SporTran bus routes. The routes also now average bus stops every three blocks instead of every two blocks.

“The national average for bus stops is every four blocks,” he said. “The goal was to make it quicker, and be friendlier to the cars that are behind us.”

Prior to the changes made to the system this past fall, there had been no real service or route changes in 20 to 25 years, Washington said.

Major changes made after such a long period will understandably result in unfamiliarity and discontent among some riders, Washington said.

“From the complaints we had the very first week we started, to the level we’re at now, it’s manageable,” Washington said. “I see a lot more positivity coming from our some of our riders than what we saw at first.”

Washington said it was always his goal to go back to the community 90 days after the system changes were instituted to get a wider range of feedback and go from there.

The week of public meetings, which were held all around the community, concluded Friday at the intermodal terminal, where Washington and other SporTran staff passed out informational items and spoke one-on-one with riders.

SporTran users are encouraged to utilize several tools to navigate their bus routes, including:

Google transit maps: Users can visit www.sportran.org, click “Plan Your Trip” and enter in their departure address and destination. Google will display exact directions on how to get to the nearest bus stop, which bus to take, where to transfer buses and an estimate on how long the trip will take.

Live bus maps: Riders can also visit www.sportran.org and select “Track Your Bus,” which will bring them to live bus maps and a list of expected arrival times.

Customer service line: For those who cannot access the online resources, a customer service center can be reached for assistance at (318) 221-RIDE (7433).