In 2018, the Metro Board asked us to create a comprehensive customer experience plan in order to record, share, and address the frustrations and concerns our riders have told us about in surveys, community meetings, at our customer care centers, and on social media. The plan’s purpose was to take an honest look at these pain points, and to outline the specific actions we were taking to respond to your concerns.  

You had a lot to say. About the cleanliness of our stations, buses and trains, the reliability of our service, and what we were doing to keep the system safe. Some of your suggestions, like replacing our older cloth seats with vinyl ones, were relatively short-term fixes. Some, like establishing bus priority lanes, were complex challenges that will require more time to complete (although we’ve made some big strides!).  

We’ve just released our third plan, which you can read here. You’ll see a mix of projects –– including everything from expanding customer research, improving our communication efforts, advancing important capital improvements, and adopting operational changes. Some projects are carried over from the 2020 and 2022 plans –– this is to show you that we’re still chipping away at them. Other projects are brand-new.  

We’d love it if you gave it a read, and let us know what you think in the comments. We’ve worked very hard to put our thoughts into plain English, and to make the document as engaging and accessible as possible. 

A few projects included in the 2023 CX Plan are:  

• Restoring rail frequency to pre-COVID service levels  
• Improving our Spanish language communications  
• Continuing our camera bus lane enforcement pilot  
• Improving lighting and camera visibility on-board and in stations, as outlined in the Gender Action Plan (GAP)  
• Implementing the Bus Stop Improvements Program  
• Making it easier to enroll in our reduced fare programs  
• Improving wayfinding and updating signage at our largest and busiest stations  
• Increasing staffing to cover our maintenance HelpDesk 24/7  
• Improving our escalator and elevator infrastructure 
• Improving our operators’ safety through an improved incident reporting system, bus riding teams, defensive shields, and more  

We also want to level with you. We know that creating a “plan” to solve problems isn’t the same thing as eliminating the concerns that you’ve told us about on our system. But we also know that many of your biggest grievances aren’t simple fixes. They require resources and ongoing teamwork to solve. So while we’ve made a lot of progress since we shared last year’s plan, we know there’s still more to do. 

We want to be your ride, LA: your first choice for getting around. But in a region where driving is so ingrained in our culture, we know we have to earn that. That’s why we see this plan as more than a roadmap, but a promise to listen, learn, and improve for you. You’re central to what we do. And we’re looking forward to continuing the dialogue.  

We’ll be highlighting the progress of many of these projects throughout the year right here on The Source, on our new Customer Experience Hub website, across our social media channels, and in board meeting updates.  

Thanks for riding Metro.