New transit changes set to take effect on Aug. 4 include several that were designed with help from residents at Homeward Bound of Marin in a pilot project that has created ongoing job opportunities.
The project grew from the selection of Marin County as one of seven communities around the country to participate in this year’s Job Mobility Access Institute by the Joblinks Employment Transportation Center.
“There will be more late-night transit service and that was one thing that we identified as a major need for workers on late shifts,” says Robert Betts, senior planner with Marin Transit, which operates buses on local routes within the county.
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“We are trying to use a higher level of smaller buses with service that’s not assuming riders have a 9 to 5 schedule – in fact, many people who want to use our services might get off at 10 p.m. or start at 8 p.m.,” he says.
A community working group formed early this year as part of the Joblinks study that included Marin Transit, Marin Employment Connection, the Workforce Investment Board, Homeward Bound of Marin and other agencies interested in improving transportation options for people going to work.
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To survey low-income workers who use the bus frequently, the group hired four Homeward Bound residents to distribute questionnaires to riders. Rather than the 200 responses that were expected, the crew managed to collect more than 1,200 in less than three weeks.
“We were blown away by the level of feedback they were able to obtain,” Betts says. “They knew the community, they knew the services and they knew the riders.”
Such surveys are a standard practice for transit agencies. They’re often done by companies with trained surveyors but less detailed knowledge of a community, Betts adds.
As the service changes move forward, Marin Transit has signed a six-month contract with Homeward Bound to continue using selected residents for survey work. They will form a Community Outreach and Survey Team that could continue indefinitely.
“We have ongoing needs for survey and data collection,” Betts says. “We’re excited about being able to use our own riders to communicate our services. We want the team members to become experts on our services and then help educate the community.”
Homeward Bound Development Associate Colleen McDermott, who was part of the Joblinks study group, says increased collaboration between various agencies with a stake in better transit also was a big positive result from the effort.
“We were able to fix some issues that came up simply by talking to each other,” she says.
For more on the Joblinks Employment Transportation Center, see www.solutionstogetthere.org.
