Santa Barbara, CA — CHK America President and CEO, Rick Wood has announced completion of the first tier of a three-tiered bus stop improvement project for the Greater Richmond Transit Company (GRTC) in Virginia. Tier One modernizes 300 stops along two of GRTC’s busiest routes with each stop receiving upgrades that include new flags with clearly visible route and bus stop numbers as well as eye-level, easy-to-use printed schedule and map information. Additionally, nine new, four-sided, information kiosks and 18 back-lit Schedule Information Solar Panels complete with a push button for night illumination, are being installed at high-density bus stops throughout the system. Both the kiosks and solar panels provide options for texting, QR codes and a mobile app for customers to further connect with GRTC.
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“GRTC has made a significant commitment with this project to ensure all of their signage clearly explains service options to their riders” said Rick Wood, President and CEO of CHK America. “It is definitely in keeping with their history of providing a world class transportation system with the best possible communication tools for their customers.”
“One of the most frequent requests our customers make is for better, more helpful information at bus stops, and I’m very excited to be to the point where we can finally implement this important project, said GRTC CEO, David Green. “Replacing every bus stop sign throughout our system is neither simple nor inexpensive, but it will be far worth the effort in the long run. Not only will it enhance the overall experience of our current riders, but it will make it easier for new riders to understand how transit works. Increasing ridership is our biggest priority and attracting new riders is part of that equation. Providing clear, easy to understand information at bus stops will help us achieve that goal.”
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CHK America’s best practice approach to customer information design was critical during the development of this wayfinding signage program. Tier One included busy hubs providing multiple routes and connections with the most complex information to communicate. Tiers Two and Three will provide at-stop information at the balance of GRTC’s bus stops. “When the final two tiers are complete there will be new, upgraded and redesigned signage at all 2,000 stops throughout the GRTC system,” continued Wood.
CHK America - Established in 1999, CHK America is the premier best practice provider of customer information solutions for the US public transportation industry. The company’s 8 Second Rule, has set the standard for communicating complex public transit information to customers, after their research identified that customers allow only eight seconds in which to interpret travel information before becoming frustrated – resulting in customer dissatisfaction. Under the leadership of CEO Rick Wood, a recognized speaker of and the foremost authority in wayfinding strategies, CHK America now reaches over 2 billion, fully 20%, of public transportation customers in the United States. Between customized information design and purpose-built hardware fabrications, CHK America is providing solutions for many of the largest multi-modal transit agencies in the US from WMATA in Washington DC to DART in Dallas Texas, to LA Metro in Los Angeles, California.