Paratransit Manager's Skills, Qualifications, and Needs (2007)

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In an effort to learn more about the paratransit managers who responded to the survey, several managers and/or their bosses were interviewed to gain a deeper understanding of their backgrounds, philosophies regarding paratransit manage- ment, and the types of skills that they feel are needed to be truly effective. The individuals selected for the profiles were also asked to identify training resources that they found to be most effective and, if applicable, to describe what “excites” them about a career in paratransit. An effort was made to in- terview managers who represented a range of perspectives. The following four individuals were profiled. • Jeff Simpson—A “new” paratransit manager with nearly three years of experience in the field. Came to paratransit from college, with his only prior position being in the social services field. Manages general pub- lic demand-responsive services in a 12-county area in rural Tennessee. In 2006, the Tennessee Public Transit Association recognized Jeff as the Rural Executive Manager of the Year. The Tennessee Department of Transportation (DOT) also selected Jeff to implement a major Intelligent Transportation System project. • Tom Groeninger—A “veteran” paratransit manager, he has worked exclusively in paratransit in Illinois since completing graduate school. Has worked for Pace Sub- urban Bus since 1987 and is currently responsible for all non-fixed-route transit services, including ADA- complementary, dial-a-ride, and vanpools in the city of Chicago and surrounding suburbs. Pace’s paratransit services have expanded rapidly and Tom is now re- sponsible for more than 900 paratransit vehicles and 10 private contractors, in addition to nearly 700 vehicles used to operate dial-a-rides in 65 local communities sur- rounding Chicago. • Richard DeRock—His career began in and has returned to general management of fixed-route transit systems; however, along the way he spent nearly 20 years designing and managing the ADA-complementary paratransit service in Los Angeles County, California. Today, he is employing some interesting techniques to increase the efficiency of his paratransit system and has definite ideas about the skills needed to manage para- transit services. • Vicki Shotland—Another “newcomer” to paratransit, but an experienced transportation manager, she started in the air freight business. Served as the Director of Operations for several fixed-route transit systems be- 24 fore taking on the role of Executive Director of the Greater Hartford Transit District, the operator of ADA- complementary paratransit within the Hartford, Con- necticut, region. The profiles of these managers follow. Jeff Simpson New paratransit manager. Currently, Transportation Director for the Regional Transit System of the Mid-Cumberland Human Resource Agency (MCHRA), Tennessee. Education: B.A. Public Administration—Univer- sity of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Prior positions: Began professional career as Lead Processing Specialist and later a pro- gram manager for Catholic Charities. Responsible for a human service pro- gram known as Families First. Joined current agency, MCHRA, in 2004, as a program coordinator to start up a Fam- ilies First program. Current position: Promoted to current position as Trans- portation Director for the MCHRA Regional Transit System in 2005. The Regional Transit System provides curb- to-curb, demand-responsive transit service to the general public in 12 upper middle Tennessee counties. Eighty-five vans are used to provide the service that operates Monday through Friday, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Recognized in 2006 as the Rural Executive Transit Manager of the Year by the Tennessee Public Transit Association. Philosophy: The most important thing about para- transit is that every day we make a dif- ference in people’s lives, allowing them access to doctors, shopping, and jobs. Paratransit is a lifeline to many who have no transportation alternatives. Imple- menting new technology (Intelligent Transportation Systems) in paratransit is CHAPTER FOUR PARATRANSIT MANAGER PROFILES

25 a challenge and an area of personal in- terest. He believes that managers should not focus exclusively on what other tran- sit systems are doing, rather they should focus on the needs of the customers, em- ployees, and the agency and be creative in meeting the needs of all three. Salaries are not the most important thing, but salaries and staffing should reflect the size and complexity of the operation. Skills desired: Managers should ideally have trans- portation or logistics experience. A col- lege degree is also needed to increase the ability to research and think through problems. New managers with limited paratransit experience need training in federal/state regulations, transporta- tion, scheduling, and finance. Managers must be able to understand the changing environment of paratransit and recog- nize that you never get “caught up” with your work. The job is stressful and peo- ple can get burned out easily. The man- ager has to want to “make a difference.” Resources/training: Highly recommends training; specifi- cally, a course taught at the Tennessee Transit Training Center at Middle Tennessee State University, called Financial Management for Rural and Small Urban Transit Systems (http:// www.mtsu.edu/ ~tttc/index.htm). Tom Groeninger Extensive and exclusive paratransit experience. Currently, Regional Manager Paratransit/Vanpool of Pace Suburban Bus, Arlington Heights, Illinois. Education: B.A. Economics and Political Science— Illinois State University. Masters Public Administration— Northern Illinois University. Prior positions: Began career in paratransit in 1977 as a planner at the United Way in Rockford, Illinois, designing specialized trans- portation for United Way clients. Next, worked as a planner for the Rockford Mass Transit District to develop a trans- portation program for older adults. He joined the nonprofit agency, Winnebago County (Rockford) Paratransit Program, serving as the Manager for two to three years. In 1980, he joined the Illinois DOT as a manager working with para- transit systems around the state. In 1987, he joined Pace Suburban Bus as Super- visor of Paratransit Operations. Current position: Regional Manager for Paratransit and Vanpool. Responsible for all non-fixed- route transit services, including ADA- complementary, dial-a-ride, and van- pools in the city of Chicago and surrounding suburbs. Responsible for the operation of more than 1,600 vehi- cles in a 3,500-square-mile service area of more than five million residents. Ten contractors operate the ADA service, and the dial-a-ride program consists of 65 programs operated by municipalities. Pace handles reservations and dispatch- ing for the dial-a-rides that include ADA only, general public, older adults, per- sons with disabilities, and individuals from human service programs. Pace em- ploys contract managers and supervi- sors to oversee various aspects of the contracted work. Philosophy: An effective paratransit program needs a CEO and general manager who un- derstands the dynamics of paratransit service and who will provide support to ensure that adequate resources are made available. A paratransit program also needs employees and supervisors who care about what they do. Has noticed some difficulty recruit- ing and attracting paratransit managers in the Chicago area. Believes that the increased recognition of the complexi- ties of the service and customer rela- tions issues by transit executives and policy makers across the country would result in paratransit manager positions being more highly ranked within their agencies and, therefore, more attractive as a career choice. Skills desired: A paratransit manager must understand paratransit operations; specifically, the functions of dispatching, scheduling, and driving. The manager should learn to perform each of these functions. A paratransit manager must also be able to work well with all levels of people (i.e., drivers, customers, boards of directors, etc.). The ability to multi-task is also critical, as are the abilities to adapt fre- quently and think on your feet. Resources/training: No specific courses are recommended. Believes that hands-on training is most successful. Prospective managers

should deal directly with operations and handle customer complaints to stay close to the operation. Feels that CTAA offers the most valuable training for paratransit managers. Richard DeRock Extensive large and small urban ADA paratransit experience. Currently, Transit General Manager of Link Transit in Wenatchee, Washington. Education: B.A. Environmental Geology—Uni- versity of California, Davis Certificates in Financial Manage- ment for Transit and Labor Relations for Transit—Indiana University. Prior positions: Began career in public transit in 1979 as a bus driver and later Director of Oper- ations while enrolled at the University of California at Davis. Upon graduation, he joined DAVE Systems as a contract general manager for three transit sys- tems in California. First became in- volved in paratransit in 1984 in Antioch, California. Next, he worked as a senior planner for the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission in the Para- transit Division. During his tenure in Los Angeles, paratransit grew rapidly. He participated in the U.S.DOT’s Federal Advisory Committee on the Implementation of ADA in 1991. He supported the effort to insert regional coordination language in the ADA reg- ulations to enable transit systems to uti- lize the extensive network of paratransit services already being provided by localities and nonprofits. He created Access Services, Inc., in Los Angeles and served as its first Executive Director from 1995 to 2002. In that capacity, he directed seven contractors operating nearly 900 paratransit vehicles through- out Los Angeles County. Current position: General Manager of Link Transit in We- natchee, Washington. Link Transit op- erates 12 fixed routes, 11 flex routes, 2 commuter routes, and 1 seasonal route. Paratransit service for ADA-eligible in- dividuals is known as LinkPlus and is operated with up to 28 paratransit vehicles. At Link Transit, all drivers (paratransit and fixed route) are paid the same and can “pick” between the two 26 services. Drivers are comfortable with passengers on both services. Philosophy: Integrating paratransit with fixed-route service is very important. One of the major goals of transit systems is to reduce paratransit operating costs by encouraging and sometimes forcing (by controlling eligibility) ADA paratransit riders to use fixed-route service. In the past five years, 35% of Link Transit’s ADA paratransit riders have voluntarily moved to fixed route. An incentive is free rides; however, surveys of riders revealed that the main reason for mov- ing is that the passengers are comfort- able that the fixed-route drivers will accommodate them at the same level as the paratransit drivers. With experi- enced drivers who can adapt, produc- tivity is high. In a rural service area of 480 square miles, Link Plus carries four passengers per hour, at a cost of ap- proximately $18 per trip. Skills desired: A college degree is not necessary, but is a good indicator of someone who can think through issues. Paratransit managers must be flexible and be able to think three-dimensionally. Because paratransit is so dynamic, a manager must be able to visualize the challenges in meeting the needs of paratransit cus- tomers. A retired army sergeant may be great at managing fixed-route service, but would not be a good paratransit manager because he or she might be too rigid. A manager should also be able to dispatch paratransit service to under- stand the complexities and should also be willing to drive or ride the paratran- sit service on a regular basis to under- stand the needs of the customers and the drivers. Common sense is perhaps the most important skill. Resources/training: Uses a spatial perception test (see Ap- pendix E) that was used by DAVE Systems in the early 1980s to hire dis- patchers. Believes that this test is also useful for paratransit managers because they must be able to solve problems that are often multidimensional. Recalls, but cannot verify, that the test is not culturally biased. Also highly recom- mends a series of ten courses offered by Willamette University and the Uni- versity of the Pacific (http://www.

27 pacific.edu/esb/westgate/transit/transit. html). The courses lead to a Transit and Paratransit Management Certificate. Vicki Shotland New to paratransit, extensive transportation background. Currently, Executive Director of the Greater Hartford Tran- sit District. Education: B.S. Degree—Adelphi University, Long Island, New York. Prior positions: Began professional career as a man- ager for the worldwide package ex- press carrier, DHL Airways, in New York. She held the position of Director of Facilities, Fleet, and Finance for DHL before leaving the company after 13 years. Began her career in public transportation in 1994 as the Director of Operations for the fixed-route tran- sit system in Springfield, Massachu- setts. Later she served as Assistant General Manager for Transit Services for CTTransit, with responsibility for managing more than 550 employees in this role. Current position: She joined the Greater Hartford Transit District (the “District”) as its Executive Director in July 2005. The District pro- vides ADA-complementary paratransit service under contract to the Connecti- cut DOT. A private contractor operates the ADA paratransit service, whereas the District staff oversees the contrac- tor’s performance. Approximately 100 vehicles are used to operate the consol- idated paratransit program. There are currently 16 member towns represented by appointees who collectively form the Board of Direc- tors, which is the policy-making body of the District. The District has broad powers to acquire, operate, finance, plan, develop, maintain, and otherwise provide all forms of land transportation and related services, including the de- velopment or renewal of transportation centers and parking facilities. The District also leases suburban coaches to privately owned bus compa- nies for use in state-supported commuter express service. It also manages the Union Station Transportation Center op- eration and parking facility and adminis- ters the Statewide Insurance and Drug and Alcohol Testing Consortiums. Philosophy: Believes that the focus on the passenger is absolutely critical in paratransit owing to the one-on-one nature of the business. In her opinion, ADA paratransit man- agers appear to be more transient than fixed-route managers. Seasoned para- transit professionals appear to occupy more of a middle rung in the “pecking order” of passenger transportation man- agement. A general overview of recruit- ing in the paratransit industry has provided her with an insight that it is more difficult to find experienced man- agers who are seasoned veterans when compared with fixed-route service. She also believes that getting to the point of running a model agency equates to lis- tening to the passengers, not being fear- ful of the challenges, and not allowing yourself to be satisfied with current lev- els of service when there is always room to improve. Putting out “fires” daily in this industry appears to be the norm at times, but finding a proactive approach to resolving these issues permanently is the long-term goal. Skills desired: A paratransit manager must have a strong transportation background and common sense. It is also imperative to have the natural ability to manage em- ployees and to be decisive when it comes to resolving operational issues. The ability of a manager and manage- ment staff to instill customer service skills in paratransit drivers is critical. Good managers must be able to moti- vate the drivers in a manner that allows the driver to feel “ownership” in the operation; however, rules of safety and conduct cannot be overlooked. A good paratransit manager must also ensure that the dispatchers, reservationists, schedulers, and drivers communicate effectively with each other on an ongo- ing and consistent basis. Resources/training: There are many good external courses offered by the Transportation Safety Institute and NTI that should not be overlooked for supervisors and/or man- agers. She believes that training oppor- tunities should be taken advantage of and that managers should network with other paratransit managers and visit var- ious systems to identify “best practices.”