| JTA Wants to Hear from You |
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| Thursday, 26 April 2007 | |
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The Jacksonville Transportation Authority is attempting to collect information about how they can improve their service. Let them know what you think! The survey only takes a few minutes.
JTA LAUNCHES CITYWIDE TRANSIT SURVEY
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April 30, 2007, 3:11 pm
a limited survey
Be aware that the survey is primarily intended for use by people who rarely take the bus. So its not meant for people like me who actually use JTA more than once in a blue moon
May 3, 2007, 5:31 pm
JTA surveyed its riders last year. They want to hear specifically from non-riders according to this article.
"The data being gathered via the survey will help determine planning for new bus routes and services but with future rider preferences and opinions taken into account. JTA has already conducted extensive surveys of current riders..."
May 3, 2007, 6:39 pm
address the route of the problem first
Unfortunately, many of the questions have little to do with why people don't ride the buses and the multiple choice answers offered don't give survey takers the option to select "none of the above." Nevertheless, it really doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why a large percentage of the local population will never catch a city bus. JTA should solve these three issues, then worry about a survey on attracting bus ridership.
1. Bus shelters - This isn't Vermont, it gets hot in this city. Half the streets also don't have sidewalks. Put up some bus shelters for crying out loud. Btw, the private sector will pay for this is you let them place their advertisements on them. I say go ahead, it can't be anymore visually unappealing than the buses rolling around with Pierson Toyota and Hooters Ads tatooed all over them.
2. Route Information - While this may be on the website, not everyone has a laptop that they can take to the bus stop. Bus routes need to be easily understandable. To make this happen, each stop should also have a route map, timing schedule and rate information in place.
3. Transfer coordination - JTA may think that people hate transfers, but that's not true. Transfers are a part of any decent mass transit system. The problem is locally, you get dropped of at a spot and the next bus doesn't arrive until another 30 minutes or so, if you're lucky. Combine that with stops with no shelters and route information (you don't even know if the second bus is coming or when it's going to come), and that equals up to an unpleasant experience.
Solve those issues then come to the table with questions like "Will you ride the bus if gas goes to $4.00 per gallon?" Until those answers are solved and a 10 drive in a car to the St. Johns Town Center from Borders Books on Southside Blvd doesn't take 2 hours by bus, then maybe so. If not, most will struggle with the extra gas prices or move to a place that's a little more compact.
May 4, 2007, 4:31 pm
bus shelters
i.e. - 1. Bus shelters - This isn't Vermont, it gets hot in this city. Half the streets also don't have sidewalks. Put up some bus shelters for crying out loud. Btw, the private sector will pay for this is you let them place their advertisements on them. I say go ahead, it can't be anymore visually unappealing than the buses rolling around with Pierson Toyota and Hooters Ads tatooed all over them.
I believe it was Councilman Art Shad who introduced a bus shelter advertising bill last year, but the sign ordinance lobby shut it down. Maybe the new council will take a serious look at this issue.
Most medium-large-sized cities in the U.S. have shelter advertising. Council needs to think about the people who don't have a choice but mass transit and consider what its like for them to wait at a bus stop without a shelter in the Florida heat and afternoon rain. My understanding is the sign companies pay to palce the shleters, acquire the advertising and maintain the shelter property (which in the long term can be quite costly on a regular basis). Taxpayers pay nothing but get more potentially hundreds more bus shelters. Seems like very little to pay (the visual of the ads) for what is gained for the citizens. The problems is - councilman don't ride the bus, so it doesn't affect them.
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