For transit agencies that want to go the extra mile to provide a great customer experience, consider the "Hire for Heart" program at Long Beach Transit.

One way to systematically identify customer pain points is to do what's called Journey Mapping. This involves thinking about every stage of a transit's customer's journey from planning their trip to the "last mile" egress to their destination. For each stage we ask ourselves what do customers see, what do they hear, what do they smell, and what do they feel. This helps us identify the pain points we need to remedy to make it a great experience. We also think about the diverse

Even though violent crime on transit is fairly low, many transit riders across the country are worried about their personal safety when...

When someone goes to Google Maps to figure out how to get from A to B, they can see how long it would take to drive or to take transit....

It's not unusual for Cleanliness to pop up as a top pain point for transit riders. Cleanliness is an important aspect of the customer experience, and clean transit systems are more likely to keep and attract riders. Cleanliness, however, means different things to different people, so it is important to drill down to identify the aspects of cleanliness that most need improvement. Is it litter? is it stains? Is it spills? is it the hygiene of surfaces? Is it smell? Biohazards?

To improve experiences for transit customers often requires that transit agencies undergo change. Previous assumptions and practices may need to be reconsidered. Priorities may need to be adjusted. The agency may need to broach difficult issues. The problem is that few people like being told they need to change, especially if they are comfortable doing things the way they've always done them. And those with experience will know there is risk in change, especially if it impact

A systematic, agency-wide approach is needed to create an effective customer experience program. Here is a quick overview of key building blocks (along with links to more detailed blog posts): Identifying and Remedying Pain Points CX starts with understanding customer pain points using valid surveys and real time "live listening" through social media and call centers. Tip: The best source of information for CX is in-the-moment surveys to detect issues during the customer jour

A CX Plan cannot script customer-centric behaviors for every scenario. The situations are simply too numerous. As such, CX needs to become part of the organizational culture at every level to be successful. Every day, transit employees at all levels have opportunities to impact the customer experience. When employees are committed to serving the community and providing good experiences to riders, they are more likely to go the extra mile to make a difference. For example, an