Transit Briefs: NYMTA, TriMet, Valley Metro

(NYMTA photo)

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) launches subway station manager office hours. Also, TriMet will begin testing its newest trains on the MAX Red Line this month; and Valley Metro’s new fare system launches this summer.

NYMTA

The New York MTA on June 4 celebrated the launch of the Group Station Manager (GSM) Office Hours program at the 34^th Street-Hudson Yards 7 Station in Midtown Manhattan.

The GSM Office Hours program, MTA says, “was designed as a forum for New York City Transit (NYCT) subway riders to provide in-person recommendations, comments, and concerns on safety, cleanliness, customer service, maintenance, station signage, wayfinding and the overall station environment.”

Each GSM will hold office hours twice a month at select stations in their zones between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., and 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Office hours will be held at each subway station on a rotational basis to ensure all customers have an opportunity to engage with their designated GSM. The program follows 15 months of MTA station agents stepping out of booths and assisting riders with core customer service functions throughout their respective stations.

GSMs will have a table set up with literature promoting OMNY tap-and-go, Fair Fares, and the permanent Reduced-Fare program, among other MTA deals, discounts and offerings. The New York Police Department (NYPD), New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS), and New York City Department of Social Services (DSS) will be invited to participate in the program and distribute information to customers.

GSM Office Hours will be promoted via digital screens and physical marketing signage that will be posted for customer viewing within the designated fare array areas at a station a day prior to the event. Customers looking to engage with their GSM can look for this marketing material to know when to stop by.

“After over a year of station agents stepping out of their booths to help customers, we are now able to celebrate group station managers stepping further into a customer service role,” said MTA Chief Customer Officer Shanifah Rieara. “GSMs will be available on select days and at select stations each month to listen to customers, speak with them about their concerns and work alongside riders to achieve an even better transit experience for everyone.”

“Group station managers now have the opportunity to interact with transit customers in a more intimate setting,” said New York City Transit Department of Subways Senior Vice President Demetrius Crichlow. “These interactions will help us at the MTA better understand how customers feel while they navigate the transit system and help us make adjustments where necessary. I want to thank all of the GSMs who are participating in this groundbreaking program.”

TriMet

TriMet will begin testing its new Type 6 trains on the MAX Red Line this month before they enter regular service. The testing will take place this June over six consecutive nights.

To provide dedicated space for testing, the Red Line will experience nightly disruptions from Sunday, June 16, through Friday, June 21, between the Gateway/NE 99th Ave Transit Center and Portland International Airport.

To lessen the impact on riders, TriMet says it is limiting the disruption to evenings and the overnight hours when ridership is lower. Shuttle buses will replace MAX Red Line trains starting at 7:30 p.m. and last until the end of service, stopping at all closed stations between the Gateway Transit Center and PDX. Red Line service will then resume each morning on its regular schedule.

MAX Red Line service will be fully restored after testing is completed on Saturday, June 22.

The disruption is necessary, TriMet says, to give its newest light rail vehicles—the “Type 6” MAX trains—dedicated track space to conduct electromagnetic compatibility tests. Electromagnetic fields are common. It’s how radio, TV and cellular signals are transmitted. During testing, crews will need to clear an area to set up equipment to measure the train’s electromagnetic characteristics to “ensure the trains do not create excessive emissions and that emissions don’t interfere with safe train operation.” These tests are required before any new light rail vehicle enters regular service, “ensuring that it’s compatible with industry standards, as well as TriMet’s existing rail system.”

In total, the agency is introducing 30 new vehicles, and has been putting them through a series of tests these past several months to prepare them for service. Two trains have already entered the final operational testing phase, what TriMet calls the “burn-in,” where the agency runs them out of service for 5,000 miles. The rest of the trains will go through a 1,500-mile burn-in.

TriMet expects to start introducing the new vehicles beginning this summer. Similar to all but its oldest trains, which were introduced in 1986, these are manufactured by Siemens Mobility. They feature operator cabs on both ends and space on board for 168 riders.

Once the trains are in service, TriMet says riders will be greeted by a “top-of-the-line vehicle that’s comfortable and efficient, with improved technology, better lighting, updated digital displays and improved temperature controls.” They will also feature upgraded diagnostics, making it easier to predict when maintenance is needed.

More information is available here.

Valley Metro

Valley Metro will be launching its new fare system this summer making paper passes a thing of the past and no longer accepted on its system.

In 2024, riders will be able to purchase fare on their mobile device or through a reloadable fare card and scan or tap that fare on new fare readers throughout the system. Both options will be an account-based system where riders can add funds, track transaction history, view account balances and more.

A look at future updates for the fare system is available here.

The agency is also encouraging companies that buy fares to distribute to employees, students or clients, to take advantage of its new Group Fares Program.

The program is self-administered by the organization using the Valley Metro fares portal. Organizations may be set up with multiple accounts depending on the passes and/or Copper media required.

• Passes can be loaded to Copper cards assigned to specific individuals, or can be provided as limited-use (i.e., non-reloadable) cards.
• Organizations can sell fares at cost or subsidize and pay all (or a portion) of the cost, while the recipient pays the balance.
• The 1-Day, 7-Day and 31-Day pass products available are good for unlimited rides on local routes and light rail for consecutive days beginning on the first day of use.