Wed. Nov 27th, 2024

NJ Transit customer advocate Franck Beaumin held off on stating possible changes at the agency, saying he is still gathering information. (Fran Baltzer for New Jersey Monitor/NJ Transit)

NJ Transit’s new customer advocate, Franck Beaumin, promised a comprehensive review of the agency’s services but stopped short of detailing possible agency reforms while speaking to reporters Wednesday.

Beaumin, who came on as customer advocate in early October, said his early work will focus on learning about NJ Transit and the commuters who use the agency’s services.

“The goal here is to identify opportunities for improvement at the end, but in order to get there, I will look at the customer expectations and sentiments towards each stage of the journey,” he said.

That would include conversations with commuters and agency operation officials, including identifying hurdles across stages of a commute and engaging with communities that use NJ Transit services, he said.

He plans to gather information through direct conversations, a planned website that would send feedback directly to him, surveys, and undercover use of NJ Transit services, Beaumin said.

He also plans to restart listening forums NJ Transit held prior to the pandemic, adding the initial stage of information gathering would likely last between three and four months.

Beaumin provided few details about what changes he might seek at NJ Transit, warning it is still too early to issue recommendations, but said the agency’s communication with riders during service disruptions is an area in clear need of improvement.

“Obviously, the core of my job is about advocacy, but I couldn’t jump into advocacy without a method, without knowing a network, and that’s why before even drawing my vision of the role, I’m trying to follow a roadmap for my first three to four months in New Jersey,” he said.

He added he plans to launch social media accounts to collect rider feedback and encourage commuters to approach him with comments on public transit, which Beaumin said he rides daily.

Beaumin, a French man who consulted on a $500 million rapid bus transit project in Bangladesh before moving to Paris to handle customer service at transit operator Keolis, previously served as passenger communications manager for Boston’s transit agency.

His appointment followed surging delays and cancellations amid severe heat this summer.

He is the second to hold this position, which was vacant for roughly four years before NJ Transit’s board appointed Beaumin to the post.

Stewart Mader, his sole predecessor, left the agency in October 2020 after criticism that he had acted more like a spokesperson for the agency than an advocate for its customers.

Beaumin said he would operate with a greater degree of independence, something he hopes will restore riders’ trust in his office.

“I will share my suggestions and recommendations to the board directly,” he said. “I do not report to anybody at the operational level here at New Jersey Transit, and this independence will help me a lot.”

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