10 Great Transit Systems to Work For

Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority - Dayton, Ohio

Posted October 2008

Despite severe economic challenges afflicting its service area, the RTA in Dayton has maintained a sense of mission and professionalism throughout its ranks.

In a "General Motors town" where traffic rarely stalls, parking is plentiful and residents love their cars, the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority (RTA) has struggled in recent years to maintain service at expected levels, fighting budget constraints and widespread economic decline. Major manufacturers have gone under or left town, and Dayton works hard to keep its downtown businesses from fleeing to the suburbs or out of Ohio entirely.

But the RTA has not let its external struggles impact its internal capabilities and accomplishments. Executive Director Mark Donaghy credits the system's 621 employees with maintaining their sense of mission and professionalism. "They care about our customers and each other and are driven to be the best transit system in North America by 2011," he says. "Daytonians, by nature, value innovative spirit, creativity and a desire to help others and the people I work with exemplify all those great qualities."

In the past few years, the RTA has embarked on a major reinvention of itself, including innovative rebranding accomplished on a shoestring budget. Meanwhile, Donaghy has implemented or enhanced numerous employee-friendly practices.

For example, Donaghy holds regular state-of-the-RTA employee meetings and practices a hands-on, employee-focused management style. He will show up in a department, often unannounced, on various shifts and spent numerous days in the maintenance department learning about the technical operations of electric trolleys, from propulsion systems to the catenary infrastructure.

RTA emphasizes solid communication throughout its structure. Employee focus groups help to establish jumping-off points toward developing solutions to agency problems. These have resulted in streamlining of routes and other important service modifications. Another communication tool is RTA's twice-monthly internal executive director newsletter.

Operator Involvement Group formalizes empowerment

Empowerment of employees is accomplished both through managerial encouragement and formalized process, such as the Operator Involvement Group, in which drivers meet with managers every month to express concerns and suggestions. A similar group proposed a new route that rolled out in 2007 and now serves an area heavily laced with restaurants, hotels and other major employers and points of customer interest.

The agency strongly supports its Employee Benefits Fund committee in morale-boosting activities throughout the year. Activities include health fairs, lunches and cook-outs, summer picnics, reduced ticket prices to recreational attractions and ballgames, holiday dinners and yearly recognition banquets.

Senior staff members, including directors and managers, receive ongoing leadership training. Donaghy makes himself available to meet and discuss matters of concern with both employees and customers on a daily basis. Other directors make it a daily practice to greet and engage riders and other customers.

Every operator (experienced or new) must participate in training conducted by Dayton's Access Center for Independent Living. Participants learn first-hand how it feels to live with mobility and other impairments, including speech and cognitive learning problems. The training has bridged a gap between drivers and customers. In addition, the agency employs persons with disabilities who train customers of all ages how to ride, whether they are mobility impaired or just need help orienting to transit use.

The agency supports yearly programs encouraging employees to donate to the local United Way Campaign and Dayton's Culture Works Campaign, a combined arts organization fund. In addition, the agency provides regular support of nonprofit organizations with in-kind services, token donations and event donations.

Despite its achievements, the RTA is focused on further improvements. "We must identify new methods to maintain effective two-way communication with our employees to insure that they have constant access to information and are confident that we are listening and acting on their ideas and concerns," Donaghy says.

For more information about Greater Dayton RTA, visit www.greaterdaytonrta.org.

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