PROVIDENCE – Facing a budget shortfall of $18 million next fiscal year, decreased ridership and the sudden resignation of its CEO, R.I. Public Transit Authority’s interim leader, Christopher Durand, has his work cut out for him.
But Durand, who previously served as the bus agency’s finance chief for the last three years, said he’s up to the task.
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Learn More“This is kind of a fresh start for us,” he told RIPTA’s board of directors Thursday in his first board meeting since being named interim CEO on April 16. “In the past week I’ve been trying to ride and talk with as many people as possible to get a better feel for the things — and a lot of the issues, they’re not unknown to us.”
Among them are proposed cuts to 20 routes in Providence and Kent counties to make up for the agency’s ongoing driver shortage. The plan for service cuts was developed after the agency held four public hearings on the matter earlier in the month.
RIPTA’s board was scheduled to vote on the plan Thursday. Much to the delight and surprise of transit advocates, Durand announced those cuts might be unnecessary.
He told the board that while the agency currently does not have enough drivers to maintain service, he feels a 16.7% hike in starting pay for new drivers in late February is attracting applicants.
Since the wage increase went into effect, RIPTA has hired 12 new bus operators, with 16 additional offers pending, agency spokesperson Cristy Raposo Perry said via email. A total of 214 driver driver applications have been received since then, she added.
RIPTA now has 377 fixed route bus operators — which leaves a gap of around 47 positions to fill, Durand said in an interview after the meeting.
“If we capture 50 – 25% of those applications, all of our services are covered,” he told the board. “There’s an impact to this, but I believe we have an opportunity over the next four or five months to resolve this.”
That was welcome news to RIPTA Board Chairman Peter Alviti, who praised Durand’s preparation for Thursday’s meeting.
“I love that you’re setting goals and schedules,” Alviti said.
Of course, getting drivers onboarded presents its own set of challenges. Around 160 applicants do not have a commercial driver’s license necessary to operate a RIPTA bus — 25 of whom have not received necessary endorsements for a CDL, Raposo Perry said.
And training takes time, which RIPTA Head of Human Resources Kathy Nadeau said many applicants don’t have. That leaves many not following through on getting hired.
Nadeau suggested that the board allow potential drivers to earn a RIPTA wage while they train to get their CDL permit.
“They’ll learn the structure and instill some pride in what they do every day,” she said. “That will actually bring in more applicants.”
It was a welcome idea to Alviti, who said it’s a policy he uses to attract maintenance drivers for the R.I. Department of Transportation.
“And it’s been very successful in onboarding the people we need,” he said.
RI Transit Riders Co-Chair Patricia Raub told Rhode Island Current she was “delighted” to see RIPTA avert cuts to service.
“Thank God,” she said. “It’s really exciting that Chris and the staff are rethinking this instead of inconveniencing more riders.”
New drivers aren’t the only personnel RIPTA is looking to onboard, as the agency’s board Thursday also held its first discussion on how to attract and hire a permanent CEO.
Alviti said he would like to see the agency hire an outside firm to conduct a nationwide search “rather than kind of in our microcosm of Rhode Island.”
And it’s not just Alviti who would like to see an expansive search, saying legislative leadership and Gov. Dan McKee have each expressed a desire to “seek out a person with extensive knowledge and experience in transit agency administration.”
Board member Normand Benoit didn’t oppose the idea but warned it could be costly. Ultimately no decision was made.
Durand himself was noncommittal about if he wants the permanent role, telling Rhode Island Current after the meeting, “it’s a board decision.”
“I’m happy to serve whatever role — that’s it,” he said. “I just enjoy this agency, and I’m happy to be here, period.”
Christopher Shea is a writer for the Rhode Island Current.