The MITS fixed-route transportation supervisor’s job is to ensure that MITS is providing the people of Muncie with a reliable public transportation system, and they do everything they can to make it so. Working with drivers, redoing old routes and managing the transportation section of the website are just a few examples.
The transportation team begins each day by entering information into a program which maps out the bus routes and their arrival/departure times for the website and app. This way, the riders can receive information about their daily routes as soon as possible.
A big part of the fixed route transportation supervisor’s job is handling various tasks involving the drivers. These include scheduling, disciplinary actions, hiring, background checks, and firing. They are also in charge in monitoring the drivers on their routes. This monitoring includes looking at idle time at bus stops and speed of the buses during routes to make sure the drivers are not rushing.
Although regulating the drivers is a big part of their job, another equally important one is making sure all the buses are safe. Banishing unsafe people from riding is another important way that MITS ensures that all people riding the buses are in a hospitable environment. Not to be taken lightly, the process of banning a possible unsafe rider is thorough and there are levels to each banishment, spanning from just a few days to a lifetime if necessary. Although this involves a lot of work, each minute spent keeping all riders safe is worth the extra paper work.
The transportation supervisor also works to make the bus rides simple as well as safe. In order to do so, they recently “revamped” two routes, numbers 14 and 16, which now makes it easier for Ball State students to ride with MITS. These buses now run through areas such as Best Buy and the many apartments on Baker Lane. Therefore, students living in that area can access campus simply by hopping on a bus right outside of their apartment and riding for free.
Having a job as a transportation supervisor means something very different now than it did a few years ago. Their primary job used to only be working with the drivers. Now, the app and website, especially the map and accurate arrival times, have become a huge part of their everyday schedule. Although some of these changes have added new tasks to their workload, these upgrades have improved the program and made the experience of riding a MITS bus simpler and easier. Thus, making all of the extra work worth it.
There is no telling what the transportation team will do next to better help MITS’s employees and customers.