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    1. Management

    Transit restoration efforts continue for Santa Clara VTA

    Feb. 9, 2022
    All bus and light-rail lines are running, front door boarding has resumed and two new bus routes recently launched.
    Related To: Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA)
    VTA
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    Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) has been rebounding from unprecedented challenges over the past two years due to COVID-19. 

    All bus and light-rail lines are running, front door boarding has resumed and two new bus routes recently launched. VTA notes the dedicated employees who keep the system moving have a lot to be proud of as service continues to recover with increasing travel demand. 

    Santa Clara VTA says it remains committed to the goal of providing fast, frequent and reliable transit service. Navigating the final stretch of service restoration will require that same determination and creative problem solving. 

    A Feb. 3 board presentation provided a look at how Santa Clara VTA can get service back into full gear. 

    Ramped-up operator recruitment and training 

    Expanding frequency and service hours requires a full roster of bus and light-rail operators.  Currently, Santa Clara VTA is experiencing a shortage of close to 80 bus operators and more than 30 light-rail operators. 

    To address this shortfall, Santa Clara VTA’s training department has doubled the rate at which new bus driver hires are trained and ready to hit the streets. Santa Clara VTA runs training classes for bus operators every nine weeks. For most of 2021, classes were nearly full (with a max capacity of 36 trainees), until November, when applicant numbers fell dramatically and have remained low ever since. 

    On average, in the nine weeks it takes to train a new class of drivers, VTA loses 18 bus operators to commonly experienced attrition (retirement, promotion to another position, job separation, etc.). Santa Clara VTA is currently conducting a bus operator recruitment campaign to continue attracting more applicants. 

    For light rail, whose operators must move into those positions from bus operator positions, staff train an average of eight candidates per month. 

    Service restoration progress report 

    The trajectory for bringing back transit service dates to the summer of 2020. 

    Bus schedules have been restored to 91 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Milestones toward achieving full recovery include: 

    • Restore all suspended routes – Completed (Aug 2020) 
    • Increase service on routes with the most pass-ups – Completed (Feb 2021) 
    • Restore suspended weekend service – Completed (June 2021) 
    • Restore school service for fall 2021 term – Completed (Aug 2021) 
    • Introduce Valley Medical Center Shuttle and Rapid 568 – Completed (Oct 2021) 
    • Restore 15-min weekday daytime frequent network – Completed (Oct 2021) 
    • Restore pre-pandemic levels of evening service – Pending (dependent on future operator counts) 
    • Restore weekend service frequencies – Pending (dependent on future operator counts) 

    Light rail schedules have been restored to 75 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Milestones toward achieving full recovery include: 

    • Restore weekday light rail service – Completed Apr 2020 
    • Restore weekend light rail service – Completed Jun 2020 
    • (Suspended light rail service for three months following May 2021 incident) 
    • Restored service following summer suspension – Completed Sept 2021 
    • Restore 15-min weekday daytime network – Pending (dependent on future operator counts) 
    • Restore evening hours of service – Pending (dependent on future operator counts) 
    • Restore weekend service frequencies – Pending (dependent on future operator counts) 

    To illustrate the remaining service yet to be restored, the Santa Clara VTA Service Planning team created a visualization of trips currently provided, and those that have yet to return to full operation. This can also be found in the Feb. 3 board of directors meeting agenda packet.  

    Future uncertainties 

    Three major factors will determine how quickly Santa Clara VTA can get more operators in the coming year, which makes it difficult to predict when full service restoration can be achieved. 

    Following the implementation of Santa Clara VTA’s new COVID-19 vaccine policy, it remains unclear how many employees will choose to leave the agency rather than comply with the new policy. 

    The state is also planning to offer another round of supplemental two-week paid sick leave to employees for COVID-related leave (to care for family members or themselves). This is good news for our workforce, and we anticipate that staff will rely on this aid as Omicron continues to spread. However, from a service planning perspective, long periods of time off work will dictate how many buses and light-rail vehicles can operate. 

    There is also the question of applicant numbers. Bus operator training class sizes have shrunk as the Omicron variant has taken hold, so staff remain hopeful that applications will increase as the current wave of infections subsides. 

    Santa Clara VTA says it knows riders are counting on it, and will continue to adapt to changing circumstances, making every effort to keep as much service running as possible.