AC TRANSIT CELEBRATES THE EMPLOYEES BEHIND EVERY RIDE THIS LABOR DAY

AC TRANSIT CELEBRATES THE EMPLOYEES BEHIND EVERY RIDE THIS LABOR DAY

Despite a year of challenges, our workforce delivered 3 million+ trips a month

OAKLAND, Calif. - For the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit), this Labor Day marks more than a three-day weekend or the unofficial end of summer. It is an opportunity to recognize our workers, especially during what has been an exceptionally challenging year for the transit industry.

"The work our employees do every day may not always feel like a milestone in the moment. But that is how milestones are made: one task completed, one challenge solved, and one shift at a time," said Board of Directors President Diane Shaw. "Over the course of a year, those individual efforts become something much bigger."

Those efforts can be seen across every corner of AC Transit: cleaning and fueling a fleet of more than 500 buses overnight, driving congested streets while looking out for students and riders with disabilities, troubleshooting mechanical problems in the middle of service, building smarter digital tools, turning hours worked into accurate paychecks, and taking on countless other responsibilities most riders will never see.

Since last Labor Day, those individual efforts have added up to something much bigger. Our employees have helped deliver more than 3 million rides each month to work, medical appointments, and other essential destinations, along with 30,000 daily school trips.

"Together, our employees helped propel AC Transit to its first three consecutive months of year-over-year ridership growth in the post-pandemic era. All while our transit district adjusted to internal cost-cutting and a projected $200 million structural deficit over the next four years," said General Manager-CEO Salvador Llamas. "Despite the financial pressures facing our transit district, our employees are working hard to keep East Bay communities connected."

This Labor Day, we wanted to introduce you to just some of AC Transit's team of talent, including Journey Level Mechanic John J., whose mother built a career with AC Transit and encouraged her mechanically curious son to apply. Thirty-four years later, John is still solving complex mechanical problems and enjoying the variety that first drew him to AC Transit.

"You never know what needs to be fixed. You never know what happened to a bus. So, the change every day was best for me because it never became repetitive."

Senior Transportation Supervisor Alexandria P. grew up riding AC Transit, relying on supplementary bus service and the many other lines that crisscrossed East Oakland. She has turned those same roads into a 12-year career of service that began behind the wheel as a Bus Operator. And although her uniform has changed, her smile has not.

"We have a lot of people who are going through so much in life. And you and your smile uplift them out of a situation. I have people tell me all the time, 'You don't know that you just made my day.'"

Training Instructor Brenda N. began her career 36 years ago. Since then, technology has changed, the buses have changed, and the world has changed, but her commitment to riders never did. Through it all, she says one thing has remained constant: AC Transit is family.

"The operators, the dispatchers, and the superintendents…are just one big happy family. I always felt like no matter what was happening in my personal life, I always had an outlet when it came to my job."

Andrei P. is one of AC Transit's newer hires, but his connection goes back much further. An East Bay native who grew up riding AC Transit, Andrei left the advertising agency world to bring his creative experience home to AC Transit. Today, he leads our graphic design team. So, when you step aboard a bus, you're stepping into some of their work.

"All the signs and printed materials you see onboard our buses… our team created them, along with digital graphics that appear in stadiums."

This Labor Day and throughout September, we invite you to join AC Transit to show a little extra appreciation. When you encounter one of our employees, take a moment to offer a heartfelt "thank you" for the work they do each day to keep you and the East Bay moving.