Capital Area Transportation Authority (CATA): Operations Management (OPS-WEB)
Download PDF"What we can process electronically in one hour, previously took 10 fold as many hours to process by paper and pencil. Operators have enjoyed having more access to their own information. We even had one operator bid for work when he was on vacation in Mexico! That was unheard of prior to the implementation of the OPS WEB software. "
Jason Bidwell, Assistant Manager, Capital Area Transportation Authority
Background
When Capital Area Transportation Authority or CATA began in 1972, it operated 14 bus routes and gave 750,000 rides. The number of bus routes has doubled since then. In 2007, passengers took a record 10.7 million rides on CATA. Looking to enhance the management of its operations CATA was hoping to:
- Reduce the amount of time necessary to process a bid
- Reduce the amount of errors that occurred during this process
- Allow operators greater access to their own information
Challenges
As this was the first major project that involved having to train operators on computer usage and function, a smooth transition from paper to computer was a concern. As a result of this basic change in culture, a minimum of backlash was anticipated and had to be addressed proactively. Obviously, business goals were in mind, but those were secondary, if the operators did not buy in and willingly embrace the concept, the purpose of the install would be negated.
Solution
Trapeze OPS-WEB was the clear choice for CATA because it integrated seamlessly with their already existing Trapeze products -- OPS, COM, PASS and FX. There were no interfaces to build with third party products.
The comprehensive operational review gave CATA a significant amount of time to discuss business strategies and practices with a Trapeze product expert. They were able to look at those practices and help to configure the product to CATA’s needs. Having a test environment to learn on and train operators was the most significant success factor. Being able to train and learn on the actual software without having to worry about damaging live data or disrupting daily activities was very beneficial.
