Intercity Transit cares what you think. They care so much, in fact, that they have a Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) that provides feedback to the Transit Authority Board on everything from the location of bus stops to the agency’s role in regional transportation. “They listen to people,” says CAC Chair Victor Vander Does. “I’ve been on multiple boards and this is the best organization I’ve ever been affiliated with. They don’t just give lip service to the community, they really dive into things that have meaning.”
Currently the 20-member CAC has four openings. Terms last for three years, with the exception of the youth position, which lasts for one. Members commit to attending one two-hour meeting per month. “We have a formal agenda and we send out packets about four days prior to the meeting for people to review,” says Staff Liaison Nancy Trail. “They’re always posted online and people can look at them there.”
The committee is intentionally diverse, including students, senior citizens, people with disabilities, member of the business and medical communities, neighborhood associations, Native Americans, environmentalists, and bicyclists, says Trail. “We want people who are interested in public transportation. We like service users because they can provide their personal feedback on their experiences.”
That diversity is part of the group’s strength, says CAC Vice Chair Jan Burt. “We have such a broad base of individuals on this committee and we’re kind of the eyes and ears of the community. If something happens, one of us will hear about it. It’s great for education purposes because we pass on what we learn to our friends and families.”
The group provides feedback on a variety of issues, and every meeting includes a consumer reports portion where members can bring up events or questions for discussion. Recently the Authority Board requested that the CAC discuss Intercity Transit’s role in regional transportation. “The committee debated that for about an hour and all that information has been sent to the authority,” says Trail.
CAC member Michael Van Gelder says the input often goes beyond issues that make it to the Transit Authority Board level. “We’re a large sounding board for the Authority and Transit staff. Sometimes we are tasked to take a particular issue and discuss it over numerous meetings or to provide vision when a strategic question comes up,” he explains.
Beyond the CAC, Intercity Transit is the only system in the state, if not the entire country, to have citizens on the Transit Authority Board with an equal vote. “I’ve been to national meetings and I’ve yet to hear from another transit system that does that,” says Transit Authority Board Chair and Lacey City Council member Jeff Gadman. “I’m very proud that Intercity Transit has embraced our citizen input.”
Trail maintains the perspective CAC members provide is invaluable. “They see and experience our service first hand,” she says. “Then they bring that personal information back to us. The Authority really enjoys hearing that and it’s very useful information.”
Over the years the committee has reported on transit amenities they would like to see, transit development plans, the budget process, and the relative merits of different types of buses. “They’ll tell us things like how we can make a change to a route to better serve people or if there’s a feature on the bus that’s missing,” says Gadman. “We had one bus stop that was hard to get to from a pedestrian standpoint and we ended up moving it, but we would never have known about something like that if we didn’t get their feedback.”
New members will have an orientation to help prepare. “We provide a lot of information on the front end to bring them up to speed so they know what to anticipate at a meeting,” says Trail. “If anyone wants to come and sit in on meeting, the public is welcome to attend. We try to adhere as closely as possible to the two-hour time frame because we want to respect people’s time. We have some Dial-A-Lift clients that have scheduled rides.”
All CAC members receive a free bus pass for the duration of their terms, and high school students also get volunteer hours that count toward their graduation requirement. But simply participating is rewarding, says VanderDoes. “You will get more out of it than you potentially put in. We need people to represent the community. It would be well worth your time to join the committee, especially if you’re a bus rider.”
Burt agrees. “It’s only once a month with a little bit of prep,” she says. “You get to meet all of the city commissioners and the people on staff at Intercity Transit. It’s educational and they’re a really fun group to be around.”
To learn more about Intercity Transit’s Citizens Advisory Committee, click here. To apply to be a member of the CAC, click here.
Sponsored
