TO: AC Transit Board of Directors
FROM: Michael A. Hursh, General Manager/Chief Executive Officer
SUBJECT: Operations Quarterly Performance Report
BRIEFING ITEM
AGENDA PLANNING REQUEST: ☐
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Title
Consider receiving the Quarterly Operations Performance Report for AC Transit Fixed Route Services during the First Quarter of Fiscal Year 23-24.
Staff Contact:
Salvador Llamas, Chief Operating Officer
Body
STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE:
Goal - Safe and Secure Operations
Initiative - Service Quality
The Quarterly Operations Performance Report provides Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and other District activities which support and are aligned with the following Strategic Plan Goals and Initiatives: Safe & Secure Operations, Convenient & Reliable Service, High Performing Workforce, Service Quality, Employee Recruitment, Training & Retention.
BUDGETARY/FISCAL IMPACT:
There are no budgetary or fiscal impacts related to this report.
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE:
Data Reporting
The data presented in this report was extracted on October 17, 2023, and may differ from the “live” District KPIs. The Quarterly Operations Performance Report provides information on programs within the District designed to improve the performance, reliability, cleanliness, and safety of the District’s bus service. The FY2024 Q1 Attachment provides graphical representations of the performance of the programs that include the benchmarking goal.
Employee Recognition
To continually recognize outstanding employees who are an essential part of achieving Division goals and objectives, the following employees were recognized as Employees of the Month during this quarter:
|
Transportation |
Jul-23 |
Aug-23 |
Sep-23 |
|
Road Supervision/OCC |
Carmen Sanchez |
Quanta Barnes |
James Harrison |
|
Division 2: Emeryville |
Gurjeet Singh |
Jacqueline Bailey |
April Horton |
|
Division 3: Richmond |
Ivonne Maldonado |
Tamiko Williams |
Kevin Reed |
|
Division 4: East Oakland |
Leslie White |
Francisco Lizardo |
Braffer Brown |
|
Division 6: Hayward |
Carlos Reyes Ruiz |
Jasmeen Dyous |
Constance Amaku |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Maintenance |
Jul-23 |
Aug-23 |
Sep-23 |
|
Central Maintenance |
Michael Johnson |
Alfredo Vega |
Rafael Otero |
|
Division 2: Emeryville |
Richard McMillan |
Kevin Ashford |
Kyle Gelow |
|
Division 3: Richmond |
Joseph Borrero |
David Gonzalez |
Jose Guillen |
|
Division 4: East Oakland |
Emerson Gomez |
Philip Pertinaud |
Ricky Teneza |
|
Division 6: Hayward |
Arlington Johnson |
Ingrid Cardona |
Keith Jones |
On-Time Performance
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 1: On-Time Performance)
On-Time Performance (OTP) is a District Key Performance Indicator (KPI) to achieve 72% or higher. Systemwide OTP average in Q1 was 74.93% versus 74.30% in the prior quarter. The District met or exceeded the goal during each month: July (76.52%), August (74.53%) and September (73.74%). The average OTP for Transbay routes was 71.85% versus 70.98% in the prior quarter.
Operations Control Center (OCC) staff utilized line management methods to monitor and track on-time performance. Each controller is responsible for reviewing and monitoring the performance of a specified Division and collaborating with various departments to address in- service delays. This allows staff the ability to identify issues and mitigate them where possible. Line management teams focus on low-performing routes to improve the District’s on-time performance. Before developing a service sign-up, the Planning and Scheduling Department analyzes the lowest-performing lines to determine which lines may need schedule adjustments that will help improve on-time performance. This included various District departments and ATU
Local 192 Driver’s Committee collaboration efforts that align and maximize efficient use of available resources to enhance the quality of service.
Ridership
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 2: Ridership)
System-wide weekday Ridership in Q1 averaged 117,206 versus 115,964 in the prior quarter. Weekday ridership throughout the quarter: July (94,135), August (113,810) and September (143,673). Weekday ridership on Transbay lines during Q1 averaged 6,804 versus 6,678 in the prior quarter. Transbay ridership accounted for 5.81% of system-wide weekday ridership vs 5.76% in the prior quarter.
In general, the District continues to observe a positive trend in system wide ridership. During the last month of the Q1 (September), the District experienced its highest ridership post pandemic by recording 143,673 daily average passengers. This ridership increase is due to Schools starting again from the summer break coupled with more customers riding our service.
Service Operated Percentage
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 3: Service Operated)
System-wide percentage of Service Operated in Q1 was 97.52% versus 96.93% in the prior quarter. The Service Operated KPI goal is 99.5%. The District did not meet this goal during any one month in the quarter: July (97.64%), August (97.52%) or September (97.39%). Even though the District did not meet the goal, the District did sustain improvements towards the goal.
This KPI was impacted by operator unavailability. During this quarter operator absenteeism and vacancies continued to challenge daily service delivery. Even though we did not achieve the goal, we continue to observe positive movement towards the goal. This positive trend is due to the higher number of applicants being brought in by the Human Resource Department and the higher number of New Bus Operators (NBOs) graduating from the Training and Education Center (TEC).
Operator Log-On Rate
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 4: Operator Log-On Rate)
Operator Log-On Rate is a District KPI to achieve 95.0% or higher. The system-wide average rate in Q1 was 97.74% versus 97.38% in the prior quarter. The District met or exceeded this goal each month of the quarter: July (97.96%), August (97.70%) and September (97.57%).
Line Management groups in the Operations Control Center track and monitor log-on performance, address systematic issues, log-on operators if needed, and help operators with reminders to log on before they depart the yard. District Supervisors utilize mobile tablets in the field that tracks Operator log on activity. This combined effort resulted in sustained improvement and performance of the log-on percentage KPI. The District continues testing bilateral integration of data between our Clever Devices computer aided dispatching and automatic vehicle location (CAD/AVL) system and HASTUS scheduling software which will facilitate activation of single point log-on. In Q2 of FY 23/24 the District is scheduled to activate this integration in phases starting with Hayward Division 6. Once fully implemented, this advancement in technology deployment will make a significant improvement with operator log-on rate performance.
Operator Unavailability
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 5 & 6: Scheduled/Unscheduled Unavailability)
Total Operator Unavailability is a District KPI to remain below a combined total of 22.50%: (1) Scheduled (8.50%) and (2) Unscheduled (14.00%). The system-wide average for Total Operator Unavailability in Q1 was 30.53% versus 31.37% in the prior quarter.
System-wide average Scheduled Operator Unavailability in Q1 was 9.37% versus 8.65% in the prior quarter. Scheduled Operator Unavailability was at or below the 8.50% threshold in August (8.09%) but above the threshold in July (10.19%) and September (9.82%).
System-wide average Unscheduled Operator Unavailability in Q1 was 21.17% versus 22.47% in the prior quarter. Unscheduled Operator Unavailability was not at or below the 14.00% threshold during any month in the quarter: July (21.76%), August (20.75%) or September (20.99%).
AC Transit remains committed to the Leave Management Committee (LMC) and the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Committee which are collaborative initiatives focused on assisting employees with the return-to-work process. District and ATU Local 192 leadership have been collaborating on identifying opportunities to improve the “Operators’ Quality of Life” at work with a goal of reducing fatigue, improving morale, and positive outlook towards work assignments. This is a significant step forward and an ongoing process that is starting to yield results.
Accident Rates
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 7 & 8: Passenger Falls/Vehicle Accidents)
The system-wide average rate of Passenger Falls per 100,000 Miles in Q1 was 1.58 versus 1.71 in the prior quarter. The District was at or below the KPI target of less than 3.25 per 100,000 miles in each month in the quarter: July (1.30), August (1.52) and September (1.91).
The system-wide average rate of Vehicle Collisions per 100,000 Miles in Q1 was 4.94 versus 3.94 in the prior quarter. The District was above the threshold of 4.0 during each month in the quarter: July (4.56), August (5.02) and September (5.24).
The Accident Reduction Taskforce meets monthly to analyze root causes of incidents and develop initiatives to minimize passenger falls and vehicle collisions. Accidents that occurred during the period were evaluated by this taskforce, which initiated new campaigns and updated others to focus on the highest accident types. One initiative is to engage with operators on all accident types, whether preventable or not, to get their feedback and raise awareness. Another initiative implemented was daily safety messages sent from the Operations Control Center (OCC) and broadcast to all buses. The safety messages are concise and diverse, each to emphasize pertinent personal and defensive driving safety reminders. Finally, traffic is beginning to increase on roadways which will require enhanced focus from this taskforce to support our operators.
Miles Between Chargeable Road Calls
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 9: Miles Between Chargeable Road Calls)
Miles Between Chargeable Road Calls (MBCRC) is a KPI to meet or exceed 7,500 miles between chargeable road calls. System-wide MBCRC in Q1 was 9,718 versus 9,890 in the prior quarter.
MBCRC exceeded the District’s goal each month of the quarter: July (9,760), August (9,283) and September (10,109).
The Road Call Reduction Taskforce (RCRT) meets monthly to analyze road calls to prevent repeat failures and develop initiatives to increase fleet reliability. OCC continues to utilize the Road Call Guideline Manual to address and resolve various vehicle performance issues on the bus fleet that could impact service. Divisions continue to work collaboratively to ensure maintenance tasks are completed on time and repaired correctly to continue achieving this KPI.
Bus Cleanliness Inspection-- Overall Rating
(Reference Attachment 1, Chart 10: Bus Cleanliness Inspection-- Overall Rating)
The system-wide average for Bus Cleanliness Inspection Overall Rating in Q1 was 8.11 versus 8.05 in the prior quarter. The District met or exceeded the KPI threshold of 8.00 in each of the quarter: July (8.22), August (8.10) and September (8.00).
The Bus Cleanliness Taskforce meets monthly to analyze, investigate, and solve issues regarding bus cleanliness. Continual focus resides in those areas receiving the lowest rating in the monthly Quality Assurance department inspections. Service Employees continue to provide enhanced cleaning and disinfecting of the fleet; the team has been able to stay focused and improve the cleaning process to help achieve this KPI.
Missed Trips
(Reference Attachment 2, Chart 1 & 2: Trips Not Operated by Service Type/Route)
Trips Not Operated for the quarter data is formatted in two views, one by service type (Chart 1) and the other by the route (Chart 2). A total of 461,259 Revenue Trips were Scheduled System-Wide during Q1: Local (426,936), Transbay (29,255), and School (5,068). The District did not operate 11,446 of these trips for a variety of cataloged reasons.
Operator availability and illness, accidents, safety incidents, road calls, and other service disruptions were responsible for trips not operated during the quarter. The District tracks service cancellations, service reinstatement, and missed trips that populate the total revenue trips that were not operated.
Bus Operator Recruitment
In Q1, the High-Volume Talent Acquisition Team (HVTAT) remained committed to hiring the best employees to fill the needs of the District. In the last three months, staff successfully hired 59 new Bus Operators. We continue to attend job fairs in the community focusing on areas we service. Further, HVTAT has partnered with Marketing and Communications to deploy a new Recruitment Campaign to attract qualified candidates. The new campaign is currently running now, and it is called “We Got You”. This campaign can be seen on District coaches, at DMV locations, and on freeway billboard signs.
Journey Level Mechanic Staffing
The High-Volume Talent Acquisition Team (HVTAT) is currently recruiting for Journey Level Mechanics (JLM). We have administered the written exam and currently scheduling hands-on testing and interviews for qualified candidates. Currently, there are 24 vacancies for the position of Journey Level Mechanic, with several candidates in various stages of the recruitment process. In the last three months, staff successfully hired one (1) Journey Level Mechanic for the Divisions. HVTAT started the next class of Mechanic Helpers in July 2023. The HVTAT is also currently in the process of recruiting new Apprentice Mechanics. In addition to regularly scheduled job fairs and community events, Talent Acquisition is partnering with Maintenance staff to attend events focusing on car enthusiast with hopes of potential employees joining the workforce. HVTAT continues to deploy a recruitment campaign to fill the remaining vacancies promptly with qualified applicants.
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES:
This report does not recommend a course of action with notable advantages or disadvantages.
ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS:
This report does not recommend an alternative analysis.
PRIOR RELEVANT BOARD ACTION/POLICIES:
There are no prior relevant Board action/polices.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Charts & Tables
2. Trips Not Operated
Prepared by:
Dwain Crawley, Director of Transportation
In Collaboration with:
Scott Arjun, Senior Management Analyst
Christy McCree, Human Resources Manager
Approved/Reviewed by:
Salvador Llamas, Chief Operating Officer
Cecil Blandon, Director of Maintenance
William Tonis, Director of Business Sciences
Janis Picket-Lacy, Director of Human Resources
Dwain Crawley, Director of Transportation