Texas Transit Association

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority (the T) is dedicated to providing freedom, mobility, opportunity, and choice when it comes to public transportation. Recent initiatives have included introducing school children to the benefits and uses of their local bus system, partnering with other local and state agencies to promote the role public transportation plays in reducing ozone pollution levels in our own non-attainment area, and the introduction of numerous benefits programs targeting commuters.

In order to incorporate new perspectives and to evaluate current programs, the T utilizes the input from rider advocacy groups such as the Teen Advisory Board and Customer VIEW committee. These groups consist of a mix of everyday riders, administrative staff and operational personnel, with the emphasis being on “everyday rider”. These groups have proved invaluable as a resource for ideas contributed to enhance additions to T programs and services.

Recently the T has emphasized two programs dedicated to creating a generation of new riders. Both programs, focused on school-aged children, provide opportunities for the T to educate younger riders about public transportation. The Summer Fun Pass is a promotional three-month pass valid for the months of June, July and August. The special pass is available to middle school and high school students at the cost of a normal single-month student reduced fare –three months for the price of one! Using the pass is made more friendly by taking advantage of the T’s new magnetic-bar encoded fare media, itself a success in providing mobility and choice. To promote the Summer Fun Pass, the T has formed partnerships with the City of Fort Worth’s Parks and Recreation Department, the Boys and Girls Club and local libraries to make the Summer Fun Passes more accessible to students. The passes and their sales are also promoted on the Internet. A youth destination and route guide listing “cool” places to go and how to use the transit system to get there was created to reinforce the ease of use and versatility of using their public transportation options.

The T’s Road Scholar program takes an alternative approach to encouraging youth to use public transportation. Road Scholar allows student groups within member city limits to use the bus for student field trips. Field trip coordinators contact the T with their destination information and student and teacher head counts, and the T provides bus passes and assistance in creating an itinerary for using the bus. The class can then utilize regular off-peak bus routes to accommodate their travel needs. Due to the success of the Road Scholar program, it has been expanded to include other not-for-profit groups of twenty or fewer participants, replacing the previous more costly Community Group Trip program.

The T has recently taken part in an additional program to reach out to community youth called Safe Place. In support of the Bridge Emergency Youth Shelter, the T is marking our buses with Safe Place stickers so that children who need a safe retreat can easily identify them. For any reason, a child may now board a T bus and tell the operator that they need to go to a Safe Place. The driver will contact a supervisor, who will then pick up the child and take them to a police or fire station.

The T has always been a good environmental partner and has been an advocate and pioneer in the field of “clean” fuels with its Compressed Natural Gas alternative fueled vehicles. The Metroplex is located in the severe non-attainment area and has been given until 2007 to meet compliance standards. Ninety-seven percent of T buses are run on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), and the T also has the largest CNG station in the state of Texas. The T has participated in the North Texas Clean Air Coalition’s Clean Commute Month since its inception. The campaign, conducted during the heavy ozone month of August, includes a Try Transit Week, Carpool/Vanpool Week, Telecommuting Week and Alternative Work Hours Week. Each week’s theme demonstrates the freedom and choice that individuals possess when choosing alternative modes of transportation. Kicking off the ozone season at the end of April, a Clean Air Fair is held to inform citizens of their role in protecting and repairing our air quality and about certain lifestyle choices they can make. Partnerships with Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) for promoting Clean Commute Month make our reach even greater.

Commuters using public transportation contribute to clean commute efforts. Therefore, the T offers an Employer Pass (E-Pass) program to local employers. The T’s E-Pass is an annual transit pass that employers may purchase for their employees as an alternative transportation benefit. It provides one calendar year of unlimited Local, Premium, or Commuter bus service, trolley, Trinity Railway Express (TRE), and DART service. The program also qualifies participants to enroll in the Guaranteed Ride Home Program, which provides transportation service in the event of an emergency or unplanned overtime. The E-Pass offers a number of benefits to employers and employees. Employers may reduce parking problems and costs, create corporate goodwill by encouraging the use of public transportation and provide employees with an economical, environmentally friendly tax-free benefit. Employees receive unlimited ridership and save significantly on commuting costs while alleviating driving and parking problems.