Split Shift with Kansas

The investigations into Envisurage, which has changed its handle to TransPro needs to be continued. September 13 at the Mayor's District 4 Community Meeting

Stephen Boyle asked the Mayor's administration to justify the lack of investigation into those hired through Envisurage to manage DDOT. He stated "The $2 million dollar contract could balloon to over $4.6 million dollars at completion".

In response COO Chris Brown stated, "The bonuses for Envisurage have not been paid, they will be at the end of the contract."

Getting to know Envisurage thoroughly hasn't been an easy investigation, but  additional findings are showing up. I've been looking for an accounting of exactly who are the "5 executive management" contractors assigned through the Envisurage work order brought into the Parsons Brinckerhoff contract.

Contracted To KDOT Too?

I suppose there was little wonder why Mark Aesch was looking over at Stephen Boyle during the Detroit Financial Advisory Board meeting in September with a bit of apprehension, considering Bill Nojay the COO assigned to DDOT was removed pending a Hatch Act investigation. It seems the slippery slope runs in multiple directions.

Ryan Gallivan is one of the people Envisurage brought in to manage maintenance for DDOT's services. I am just beginning to uncover stories that Mr Gallivan has also been working with Kansas Department of Transportation's investigation for Regional Transit Authority in Southeast Kansas, covering 23 counties. 

KDOT arranged a meeting February 14, 2012 bringing TeamTech's Kathleen Hornish-Doucet and Joel Wright, along with Ryan Gallivan to meet with Finney County Transit Board.

A subsequent meeting was held March 6, 2012 between KDOT with TeamTech/Envisurage staff was held to discuss serving the growing southeast KDOT RTA communities.

Ryan Gallivan with Florida-based Envisurage, LLC, which is being sub-contracted through Olathe-based TeamTech, Inc., to work on the regional transportation issue, shared some of the findings from the regional study.

Having experience with implementing regional public transportation in Rochester, N.Y., Gallivan said that there were some key differences between there and southwest Kansas. One key difference was that Rochester's area was united under a single transportation entity, while southwest Kansas involves entities that are all separate. He also said that there is a difference between the rural areas he worked with previously and the rural areas of Kansas currently being analyzed.

"One thing I discovered about traveling in Kansas is that there's rural and then there's frontier," Gallivan said.

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It seems Envisurage is getting more in the field experience as it places Mark Aesch's transportation team of affiliates through Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA). His staff have started with feeder system experience bringing commuters from locations outside the core of metropolitan cities in, but Detroit is the only interior serving metropolitan system they have worked with yet. One that is difficult because of the dispersed population of the area spanned. 

Measuring Performance for Detroit

Here are a few questions worth asking for measurement:

• How do you achieve ridership performance measures when riders are scattered around the city? 
• Are you truly serving the potential rider who would ride if the bus was easier to access? 
• Are the routes connecting to the feeder system(s) outside the city at significant times? (such as end of extended work hours, end of sporting events, early morning starting hours, airport & train commuting connections)
• How about measuring job retention and growth that results from bringing people to their desired destination? 
• Can you measure attendance at recreation events, and clarity for visitors to the city in using their preferred mode of transit - public transportation. 

Public transportation is provided for more than core-hour working commutes. People take care of tasks at all hours of the day, including medical visits, laundry, grocery shopping, and visiting friends & relatives across the city.