We here in Portland haven't a clue what our GM of our transit agency TriMet is doing! He goes on taxpayer funded trips to Australia and Copenhagen, and gives NO report to the public, the taxpayers, the very people who cut him a paycheck. He proposes changes that the Board willingly passes without a problem. The Board is NOT taking the riders concerns to heart, only Fred Hansens. Also TriMet has made it a difficult and costly process to obtain Board Meeting information unless you attend.
In Seattle, Sound Transits CEO Joni Earl publishes, and if you wish you can subscribe to have it sent to your email box, a weekly update known as the CEO Corner. Here Joni informs the public whats going on in Sound Transit land, everything from what occurred at the Board Meetings, to Financial Details on where money is going, to project updates. She also publishes the photo of the week in her notes, a photo from somewhere on the system usually about projects in progress. Take a look, also have a look at the Board of Directors page, where you can view archived videos, sign up for meeting materials to be sent to your inbox, meeting details and more.
Once again Sound Transit is showing that nothing is impossible, taking "Accountability to the public" seriously! They even have been using Twitter and Facebook for service update, alerts, and changes for close to a year now. TriMet is full of excuses and overpaid bureaucrats, while Sound Transit just to the north, is a model for transit. I know this is the second time I have praised ST over TriMet, but after a discussion with a fellow blogger about TriMets Board Meetings and the GM never being in the public eye, this shows it can be done, and its just excuses. Just my opinion.
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