NJ Transit rolls out rider communications initiative

New Jersey Transit on Wednesday announced it launched a communications initiative aimed at improving the rider experience.

The "Engage. Inform. Improve." initiative will focus on addressing customer needs, providing more timely information and improving all customer touchpoints, including announcements, station and facility conditions, and the onboard experience, agency officials said in a press release.

The initiative will roll out in the following three phases:
• Engage — actively engaging riders for their input and to determine their needs to identify areas needing improvement, including more surveys and greater social media engagement;
• Inform — providing more proactive and effective communications in real time during service disruptions, and easier access to critical information, and inform riders about efforts to improve operations; and
• Improve — continuing to implement new ideas to improve the customer experience as part of a continuous feedback loop, and developing and deploying new technologies to strengthen operations and improve service.

"These three ideals … will be the foundation upon which we continue to transform and improve," said NJ Transit Executive Director Kevin Corbett. "These will be the guiding principles to ensure that everything we do moving forward supports the customer at the forefront."

The agency has been aggressively taking actions to improve service and communications since January, when Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order examining its operations, NJ Transit officials said. Those efforts include an upgraded mobile app, the installation of new touch screen interactive information kiosks at several locations, and the upcoming creation of a customer experience unit that will be responsible for monitoring and assessing all facets of the rider experience.

NJ Transit also has made "remarkable progress" with positive train control implementation, agency officials said. Project completion has progressed from 12 percent in January to 95 percent near year's end, they said.