Ripta Planning responds
Someone sent me this link and I feel compelled to address what you have said in your email for the sake of clarification.
First, RIPTA does not run dedicated school service for students, or ''Shea and Tolman buses'' as you call them. Federal Transit Administration regulations clearly state that local transit authorities are not permitted to run exclusive service for schools. RIPTA must build public routes, and if numerous high school students ride them, so much the better. We are restricted to putting in extra overload buses on our existing routes, but all buses are public, and not ''school service''. So, instead of being a monopoly, quite the opposite is true. Yellow buses are given the advantage in attracting school districts to use their services.
Secondly, the changes that were made at Shea were communicated ON THE BUS in writing to the students who used the bus that changed. This is an efficient and cost effective way to reach the people who need to know.
We do not ask schools for the names and addresses of parents. Furthermore, nor would every parent want to know what only affects approximately 40 students.
There were no intentional changes in service made to morning commute to Shea H.S. If there was any interuption to service, it was simply that of a new driver being assigned and/or the normal first day problems associated with new schedules.
It is true that the afternoon Shea service was changed. The change consisted of students from the west side of Pawtucket now having to transfer in downtown Pawtucket, instead of having a direct trip.
RIPTA staff rode the bus the last two days prior to the change giving out flyers explaining the change, and then posted someone at the school, and another person at the Pawtucket Transit Center on the first afternoon of the new service to help with people finding their way. So, there should have been no interuption to ''learning time'' as the only change was on the way home.
RIPTA does not run any service designed to attract students of these other schools that you have mentioned. In fact, I have never heard of ''Jackie Walsh'' or the ''Alternative Learning Program'' in Pawtucket although I would welcome the opportunity to be informed of their locations and start and end times, so that I could try and attract some of their students.
Tolman is within a few blocks of the transit center. All Pawtucket bus service goes to the Transit Center, and in my ten years here, RIPTA has never made any accomodations for Tolman because their proximity to the Transit Center gives the students excellent access to transit. This has never been reported to me as a problem in the past.
Some of the posted information outside at the Transit Center was incorrect and has since been changed. This may have caused some confusion. And I quite agree that everyone does not have access to the Internet or newspapers. We have work harder to find ways to communicate.
The outreach conducted for these changes was conducted for the most part on the buses. Our employees gave out new schedules to many of our existing riders which is absolutely the most cost effective way to get the information into the hands of those that need it.
I am not sure how RIPTA changes ''affect the business cycle of artists who work downtown'' so I don't know what to say about that.
I write all this to clarify that we did in fact make many attempts to have these changes go smoothly. What your communication failed to mention is that many who actually use the bus are very pleased with the changes because the changes were made to make the Pawtucket service more useful and more convenient.
Thanks for taking an interest, and I hope to see you on the bus.
Tim McCormick
Manager, Planning Department
RIPTA
Someone sent me this link and I feel compelled to address what you have said in your email for the sake of clarification.
First, RIPTA does not run dedicated school service for students, or ''Shea and Tolman buses'' as you call them. Federal Transit Administration regulations clearly state that local transit authorities are not permitted to run exclusive service for schools. RIPTA must build public routes, and if numerous high school students ride them, so much the better. We are restricted to putting in extra overload buses on our existing routes, but all buses are public, and not ''school service''. So, instead of being a monopoly, quite the opposite is true. Yellow buses are given the advantage in attracting school districts to use their services.
Secondly, the changes that were made at Shea were communicated ON THE BUS in writing to the students who used the bus that changed. This is an efficient and cost effective way to reach the people who need to know.
We do not ask schools for the names and addresses of parents. Furthermore, nor would every parent want to know what only affects approximately 40 students.
There were no intentional changes in service made to morning commute to Shea H.S. If there was any interuption to service, it was simply that of a new driver being assigned and/or the normal first day problems associated with new schedules.
It is true that the afternoon Shea service was changed. The change consisted of students from the west side of Pawtucket now having to transfer in downtown Pawtucket, instead of having a direct trip.
RIPTA staff rode the bus the last two days prior to the change giving out flyers explaining the change, and then posted someone at the school, and another person at the Pawtucket Transit Center on the first afternoon of the new service to help with people finding their way. So, there should have been no interuption to ''learning time'' as the only change was on the way home.
RIPTA does not run any service designed to attract students of these other schools that you have mentioned. In fact, I have never heard of ''Jackie Walsh'' or the ''Alternative Learning Program'' in Pawtucket although I would welcome the opportunity to be informed of their locations and start and end times, so that I could try and attract some of their students.
Tolman is within a few blocks of the transit center. All Pawtucket bus service goes to the Transit Center, and in my ten years here, RIPTA has never made any accomodations for Tolman because their proximity to the Transit Center gives the students excellent access to transit. This has never been reported to me as a problem in the past.
Some of the posted information outside at the Transit Center was incorrect and has since been changed. This may have caused some confusion. And I quite agree that everyone does not have access to the Internet or newspapers. We have work harder to find ways to communicate.
The outreach conducted for these changes was conducted for the most part on the buses. Our employees gave out new schedules to many of our existing riders which is absolutely the most cost effective way to get the information into the hands of those that need it.
I am not sure how RIPTA changes ''affect the business cycle of artists who work downtown'' so I don't know what to say about that.
I write all this to clarify that we did in fact make many attempts to have these changes go smoothly. What your communication failed to mention is that many who actually use the bus are very pleased with the changes because the changes were made to make the Pawtucket service more useful and more convenient.
Thanks for taking an interest, and I hope to see you on the bus.
Tim McCormick
Manager, Planning Department
RIPTA
