Last month, BCRTC president & general manager, Fred Cummings spent the morning on the Millennium and Expo lines talking to customers and staff. TransLink, CEO Ian Jarvis, and COO, Doug Kelsey, did the same earlier this year.

The idea behind the project is to bring our senior leaders and our customers together on the system so that they can have face-to-face discussions about TransLink and the service we provide across the enterprise to our customers. Fred spoke to people along his travels, and TransLink staff sent and answered questions people tweeted for Fred.

Here’s a wrap-up note from his morning, drawn from the notes my colleagues provided about the trip!

Fred heard from a number of customers as well as SkyTrain staff like David Gross (see picture below). David is the same guy who returned a $200, 000 certified cheque he found on a SkyTrain!  Many people said they like the service and use it often. One gentleman said he only rides the newer trains (MKII) because they’re easier to maneuver in, and he’s got a scooter. There were also some comments on the need for better station and directional signage and better detailed station maps. Here’s a few items that came in online.

From Twitter:

Question: What has been your most memorable skytrain experience that has ever happened?:)

@translink Fred says that helping customers during the Olympics and keeping them safe during the riots is most memorable

@translink Fred with Debby and Rhonda at Production Station – these sisters have been with SkyTrain for 25 years http://ow.ly/i/dXMG.

Comment: @translink #Skytrain should run later on weekends and other days should have same hours as the Canada line.

@translink We need to do maintenance on the trains and tracks overnight and we’re currently running as often as funding allows.

@translink We had a Q about train maintenance: teams clean the train interiors nightly, so they’re ready for the morning commute.

@translink Strangest thing Fred’s seen on SkyTrain: 2 people carrying a couch and 2 people carrying a BBQ off a train at Stadium Station

There were about 29 tweets received about Fred’s ridealong: some were retweets or comments about the ridealong. And there were also questions about the Compass card, SkyTrain maintenance and more transit needed for Surrey.