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Industry Briefs

SFMTA History Online — The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has added historic photos from 1970-73 to its photo archive, which includes images dating back to 1903. Check out the archive here.

LANTA Honors Community College — The Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority (LANTA), Allentown, PA, recently presented Lehigh Carbon Community College with its second annual Lehigh Valley Transit Partner Award. Under a revenue agreement between the college and LANTA, the system provides increased service to the college’s main campus.

Delaware Launches Statewide Bus Fare Payment App — Delaware DOT and Delaware Transit Corporation have introduced DART Pass, a mobile fare payment system—part of the enhanced DelDOT app—that eliminates the need for either a paper ticket or cash. Users can choose from several options including one-way, daily, seven-day and 30-day passes.

The Rapid’s ‘The Wave’ Means Faster, Easier Fare Payment — The Rapid in Grand Rapids, MI, recently introduced The Wave, Michigan’s first e-fare payment system. The Wave card replaces paper tickets and cash; it’s a pay-as-you-go system that provides the savings of daily, weekly and monthly passes without the commitment or paying up front.

Paratransit App Launches in New Haven — The Greater New Haven (CT) Transit District recently launched a mobile app and web portal for riders to request and manage their ADA paratransit trips and see where their vehicles are. The app, provided by Routematch, also allows the agency to manage incoming call volume by lessening the number of reservation, cancellation and estimated time of arrival calls.

‘School Pool is Cool’ Promotes Ridesharing — The TMA Group’s Clean Air Partnership in Franklin, TN, has joined with the Franklin Special School District to introduce the School Pool is Cool program in four area schools. The program is a free interactive, online ridematching community that allows parents of children attending the participating schools to share driving duties to and from school, as well as other after-school activities.

Direct Connections in St. Louis — Metro Transit in St. Louis now provides a way for public transit customers to directly connect with customer service or public safety personnel through text messages and web chats. Customers can also reach the customer service office through the agency’s website.

VIA Recognized for Rider Programs — VIA Metropolitan Transit in San Antonio, TX, recently was honored by the South West Transit Association (SWTA) and the Hispanic Contractors Association de San Antonio (HCA). SWTA presented VIA with a Spotlight Award for its “VIVA Passport to Adventure” campaign, a partnership program that connects riders with businesses, tourist sites and other locations. HCA named VIA Corporate Sponsor of the Year for its help with “lunch-and-learn” events and monthly meetings to promote small business opportunities.

LA Metro Railcar Retires to Museum — A Los Angeles Metro light rail car—one of the first 54 in operation on the Metro Blue Line to Long Beach, entering service in 1990—is moving in retirement to the Orange Empire Railway Museum in Perris, CA. The railcar logged more than 1.8 million miles during its 28 years of service.

TransLink, Cubic Launch ‘Tap to Pay’ — Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) has joined with TransLink in Vancouver, BC, to introduce “Tap to Pay,” which allows passengers to pay for travel using their contactless credit cards and mobile wallets. The system works in the same way as Vancouver’s contactless Compass Card but does not need users to obtain the specialized card.

Enhanced Digital Tools in Pittsburgh — The Port Authority of Allegheny County has introduced new rider-focused technology for its customers. Riders can now access real-time vehicle information from any device that supports text messaging; get live and scheduled vehicle information by phone through an automated voice recognition system; and check estimated vehicle arrival times for ACCESS Paratransit riders.

Bears Fans Can Take Metra to Home Games — Chicago’s Metra commuter rail is again providing service to home games at Soldier Field, with information at www.metrarail.com. “Don’t worry about missing part of the game because you’re either trying to find parking or trying to beat everyone else out of the parking lot,” said Metra CEO/Executive Director Jim Derwinski. “Our train service makes it easy to get to Soldier Field in time for the kickoff and stay until the last down.”

LA Metro Accepts Multilingual Comments — Los Angeles Metro is working to enhance the customer experience via new multilingual comment forms to assist those with limited English proficiency. The forms are available in Chinese, Spanish, Korean, Vietnamese, Japanese, Russian, Armenian, Thai and Khmer as well as English.

Laketran Launches Campus Loop — Laketran in Lake County, OH, has introduced Campus Loop service to improve access for college students at Lakeland Community College. The college’s participation is a response to the Ohio Governor’s Task Force on Affordability and Efficiency, which requires state institutions of higher education to look for ways to continue offering a high-quality education while decreasing costs.

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