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2022-2027 Customer Experience Action Plan

Our five-year Customer Experience Action Plan reimagines the customer journey and outlines a roadmap forward.

TransLink’s new Customer Experience Action Plan outlines how we will deliver transit that is faster and more reliable, easier to use, more personalized, safer and more comfortable, and helps make our communities better.

This is a plan for all of our diverse customers throughout the Metro Vancouver region. We know that each step along the customer journey is an opportunity for us to make a positive impression and improve the customer experience.

See the Customer Experience Action Plan:


View the interactive version

On this page

    Our Customer Promise

    To always put you first — your safety, your time, and your connection to the people and places that matter the most.


    A message from CEO Kevin Quinn

    An Open Letter to Customers: Introducing TransLink’s next Customer Experience Action Plan 

    Kevin Quinn

    An Open Letter to Customers: Introducing TransLink’s next Customer Experience Action Plan 

    At TransLink, our customers are at the heart of everything we do every day. It’s a responsibility that fills us with pride and is reflected in our customer promise: to always put you first: your safety, your time, and your connection to the people and places that matter most.

    We know the pandemic has forever changed the way you work, travel, and move throughout the region – and as we begin to move beyond the pandemic, the time is right to refocus our efforts and further improve and evolve how we deliver exceptional customer experiences. That’s why I’m so proud to let you know about TransLink’s new Customer Experience Action Plan, which outlines how we will deliver transit that is faster and more reliable, easier to use, more personalized, safer and more comfortable, and helps make our communities better. This is a plan for all of our diverse customers throughout the Metro Vancouver region.

    The Customer Experience Plan includes 40 major projects and initiatives. Here are some highlights I'm particularly excited about:

    • More contactless payment options and a modernized Compass system that allows more personalization

    • More real-time information on our system, our website and throughout our smartphone alerts, and more multi-lingual signage

    • Improving the speed and reliability of our buses by advancing bus stop balancing and introducing new RapidBus routes

    • Opening more washrooms on the system, and improving amenities at bus stops and exchanges, including additional lighting, all-weather shelters, seating, and accessibility

    • Offering special seasonal bus services to accommodate travel to regional parks, beaches, and destinations

    • Easier booking for HandyDART customers

    • Implementing our Climate Action Strategy to advance a zero-emission bus fleet

    Building off the foundation was set in our first Customer Experience Action Plan which was released in 2019, and off your important feedback as customers who use our transit system, this new Action Plan will guide us over the next five years. New to this plan is a customer journey map to help focus our work and ensure that we are putting our resources and investments into projects and initiatives that make an impact to the key moments that matter for you. We know that every time you take a journey with us, it is an opportunity for us to make a positive impression and continually improve your experience.

    We received more than 1,200 ideas from our customers and incorporated the ideas of our front-line transit workers. We undertook extensive research of other transit systems, and other sectors, to help us better understand our customers unique needs and preferences. Through our engagement, we’ve heard that there are five priority areas that matter to you most: making transit services more personalized, making transit use easier, making transit timelier and more reliable, creating a safer and more pleasant experience, and offering you better reasons to take transit over using a vehicle.

    As restrictions ease, we are excited to welcome you back to a transit service that is more than just getting you from point A to point B. It’s about collectively tackling climate change, delivering exceptional experiences, and continuing to evolve to your unique needs. We are committed to measuring the impact of our investments and will ensure that your feedback continues to help guide every decision we make.

    To our half a million customers across Metro Vancouver, we look forward to serving you even better moving forward.

    - Kevin Quinn

    An Update on the Customer Experience Action Plan

    Hi Metro Vancouver,

    I hope you’re all enjoying summer and getting out to explore by transit, walking, and cycling. Through our summer Ride and Shine campaign, we are encouraging Metro Vancouverites to get out of their cars and experience the best of their neighbourhoods on transit. There are many great offers to local attractions just by showing your Compass Card!

    After launching our Customer Experience Action Plan in March, I’m excited to share some updates with you on the great progress TransLink has made this past quarter to enhance the experience across the system.

    Bike Bus Summer Program

    With the goal of better serving the changing needs of our customers and after hearing extensive feedback, we launched an hourly summer Bike Bus service. This specialty pilot bus serves Bridgeport Station to and from the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal to better connect cyclists with summer ferry sailings – one of the most popular routes for our cycling customers.

    The Bike Bus is retrofitted with seven interior bicycle racks, bringing the total bike capacity aboard to nine, from the standard of two. The Bike Bus runs on Fridays, weekends, and holidays from July 1 (Canada Day) to Sept 5 (Labour Day), 2022 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. As a person who loves to get out and explore with my family, it’s exciting to be able to launch this kind of initiative. It’s also important for TransLink to continue looking at innovative ways to serve our diverse range of customers.

    If you get out this summer and board the Bike Bus, we would love to hear what you think. Please email cxideas@translink.ca or leave your feedback by scanning the QR code on the inside of the Bike Bus.

    Transit Volunteers

    Just over a month ago, we launched a call for our new Community Volunteer Program to help customers connect with communities and have the best possible experience using the transit system. In just a week of launching the call, we saw over 170 applications submitted, far outpacing our initial expectations.

    Trained volunteers will be stationed outside Fare Paid Zones at key transit hubs in their own communities. Look for the volunteers on the system beginning July 23. Transit volunteers will help enhance our customer experience by adding a welcoming presence to the transit system, answering questions, and helping direct riders during busy community events.

    Thank you to all our volunteers! Seeing the amount of transit riders who have volunteered their time to make the transit experience better for others is incredibly heartwarming.

    If you’re interested in getting involved, it isn’t too late to apply! Head to the Community Transit Volunteers page and submit your application today.

    Art Moves

    In mid-May, we launched a new performance residency program called Art Moves to bring more art and culture to our system while creating a safer and more pleasant system to travel on. This new program features 26 local musicians and artists performing at five different transit hubs across the region throughout the summer:

    • Waterfront SkyTrain Station

    • Londsdale Quay SeaBus Terminal

    • Surrey Central SkyTrain Station

    • Coquitlam Centre SkyTrain Station

    • Bridgeport Bus Exchange

    Our resident performer for the month of July is Della Kit and friends. She is a singer/songwriter and DJ who offers playful melodies over energetic rhythms with a magnetic presence. Head to the Art Moves page to find more information on the resident artists and performance schedule.

    Transit Alerts Enhancements

    In response to customer feedback, we’ve been working on enhancements to our transit alert subscription center. Within the next few weeks, we’ll be launching the ability to sign up for station alerts including elevator, escalator and walkway disruptions and outages. This will greatly benefit customers who rely on timely communication of alerts for trip planning and accessing transit stations. We’ll also be launching a new user interface design allowing customers to set delivery time and preferences, providing a more personalized and relevant experience for alert subscribers.

    It’s been a busy few months for us at TransLink, but we couldn’t be more excited to continue enhancing the experience for our customers. As I mentioned in my last quarterly customer update, we are committed to measuring the impact of our investments and want to hear from you so we can ensure that your feedback continues to help guide every decision we make. After all, you’re at the heart of everything we do, and you’re the reason we continue to find ways to serve you better. Please email cxideas@translink.ca with any feedback or suggestions you may have on how we can make your experience as a customer even better.

    All the best,
    Kevin Quinn


    Action Plan Highlights

    We’ve changed the way we think about customers.

    With market research, engagement with customers and employees, and a review of the best customer practices of other sectors we’ve identified five types of customers who use transit for different reasons.

    We’ve tailored our improvements based on these customer types to meet each of their needs.

    Building on customer research and a best practice review of trends across industries, we have developed five priority areas for the next five years to improve the customer experience. Read more about each priority and initiatives related to them below.


    Personal choices icon

    More Personalized

    Tailoring our services to meet customer needs and preferences.

    Transit Volunteer Program

    Q2 2022

    Provide a volunteer presence at transit hubs to assist customers

    Email Program

    Q2 2022

    Offer customers the option to sign up for tailored email, keeping them up to date on the things that affect them and their transit journey.

    Learn more about the email program

    Contactless Debit Payment

    Q4 2022

    Offer customers another payment choice by accepting contactless debit cards at Compass Card readers

    Compass for Kids

    Q4 2023

    Offer a Compass product to support free fares for kids 12 and under and offer tailored information to young customers about safety and services

    Incentive & Rewards Program

    2023

    Offer customers rewards for frequent transit use

    Compass Modernization

    2024

    An account-based Compass system will create opportunities for more personalized payment plans and offerings

    Improved Text Alerts

    2024

    Make more information available through text alerts, including elevator and escalator outages


    Pointer finger icon

    Easier to Use

    providing services that are effortless and convenient to use.

    SCOT (SkyVoice) & PA Replacement

    Ongoing

    Improve the quality of audio announcements on both platforms and trains, as well as radio systems, for two-way communication with customers

    Onboard Information Displays

    Q3 2022

    Consider how to integrate more advanced information displays on buses

    Special Seasonal Buses

    Q3 2022

    Offer bus trips that accommodate seasonal travellers to regional parks, beaches, and ski hills

    Online Booking for HandyDART

    Q4 2022

    Allow customers to book their trip online

    Vanpool Program

    2023

    Add 50 vans to existing vanpool program to serve industrial areas not well served by transit

    Multimodal Hubs

    Ongoing

    Expand facilities and programs for multimodal access to high-volume transit hubs

    Bus Passenger Information Display

    2025

    Expand real-time information displays at on-street bus stops

    Compass Modernization

    2025

    Offer integrated payments with other transportation modes

    Update Wayfinding Standards

    2023

    Update our current wayfinding standards to include multilingual signage and cultural recognition


    Checkmark icon

    Timely and Reliable

    Ensuring that our riders can rely on transit to get them where they need to go, on time and without hiccups.

    Bus Expansion

    Ongoing

    Add new buses to expand and upgrade our fleet

    Enterprise Asset Management System

    Q4 2022

    Implement an Enterprise Asset Management System to improve the life cycle management of our assets – including facilities, vehicles, and equipment

    Marpole Transit Centre

    2025

    Serve as a primarily battery-electric bus depot


    Smiley face icon

    Safe and Pleasant

    An environment where riders feel they will have an enjoyable and welcoming experience.

    Bus Facilities Customer Amenities Program

    2022 to 2025

    Improve amenities at bus exchanges, including shelters, seating, lighting, and information for customers

    Bus Shelter Improvement Program

    Q4 2022 and Ongoing

    Partner with local municipalities and private entities to increase and improve bus shelters across the region

    Cleaning and Maintenance Hotline

    2023

    Add a dedicated contact for customers to report areas of the system that need cleaning or maintenance attention

    Community Safety Officers

    2024

    Create a new tier of Transit Police employees to increase safety personnel visibility and engagement with customers, and improve response coverage for our growing transit system

    SkyTrain Fleet Upgrade

    2024 to 2028

    Refurbish mid-life trains, and replace 40 end-oflife trains, to increase standing capacity, add air conditioning, and provide a quieter ride for customers

    Community Policing Centres

    Q4 2023

    Expand the Transit Police Community Policing Centre program to cities outside of Vancouver, with trained volunteers who can deliver customer outreach, transit safety education, and incident reporting

    SkyTrain Station Upgrades

    Ongoing

    Renovate SkyTrain stations to increase capacity; reduce platform crowding; and improve accessibility, amenities, and integration with neighbourhoods

    Learn more about the SkyTrain Station upgrades


    Leaf icon

    A Better Reason to Ride

    Positioning transit as an opportunity to make a difference.

    Electrify the Bus Fleet

    Ongoing & next batch of buses to arrive in 2022

    Replace all retiring conventional diesel buses with battery-electric buses, providing a quieter, smoother, and more sustainable ride

    Climate Action Strategy

    Q1 2022

    Detail how TransLink is taking clear steps to become zero emissions in all its operations, and to enhance the resilience of the transit system in the face of climate change

    Learn more about the climate action strategy

    Indigenous Cultural Recognition Policy

    Q4 2022

    This policy will provide clarity on the delivery of Indigenous cultural recognition on our transit network and will be discussed with Indigenous Nations

    Carbon Footprint Calculator

    2023

    Develop a new tool for showing customers their carbon savings by choosing transit over a personal vehicle

    Low-Carbon Fleet Strategy

    Ongoing

    Lay out a path for meeting TransLink’s environmental targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% and use only renewable energy in all operations by 2050


    How We Got Here

    TransLink’s last Customer Experience Action Plan outlined improvements from 2019 to 2025. In two years, we:

    • Completed 51 out of the 62 – over three quarters of the projects we identified.

    • Improved reliability, expanded services, and introduced new amenities.

    We delivered new and convenient ways for customers to pay through Tap to Pay, along with improved access to real-time information, and new services such as RapidBus.

    In 2020, we had to rethink our strategy.

    The pandemic changed the way our customers work, travel, and move throughout our region. This plan follows on the success of our first Customer Experience Action Plan to better reflect the changing needs of our customers as a result of the pandemic.

    We surveyed customers, measured trends, and studied best practices during the pandemic to personalize the Action Plan to our customers’ changing needs.


    Ongoing Programs

    900 Bike Bus

    We’ve launched a new summer 2022 Bike Bus program to better connect our customers with one of the most popular Metro Vancouver routes for cycling. The retrofitted Bike Buses serving this route have seven interior bicycle racks, bringing the total bike capacity aboard to nine, from the standard two our conventional buses are equipped with.

    The extra room means more cyclists will be able to reliably reach the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal from Bridgeport Station via the Massey Tunnel by taking transit.

    Learn more about the 900 Bike Bus


    Next Steps

    We are committed to measuring the impact of the investments we are making for current and future customers and ensuring that we continue to listen to our customers in every decision we make.

    This Action Plan will be updated every two years as we know customer needs will continue to change and evolve.

    Your Ideas

    To share any ideas on how you think we can improve the customer experience, please email cxideas@translink.ca.


    TransLink

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