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Turning the RIPTA Bus Around: A Reliability & Restoration Plan
Transit PolicyPublic-Private Partnership
A management plan analyzing Rhode Island's public transit crisis, a $32.6 million structural deficit that forced the largest service cuts in RIPTA's history, and proposing a four-part reform strategy funded entirely through existing federal formula funds and a private-sector partnership, without new state appropriation. Developed with a team of four for Brown's Watson School, grounded in original survey research (158 respondents) and a full pre-mortem risk and uncertainty analysis.
The plan proposes a Community-Based Safety Ambassador program run in partnership with the RI Department of Corrections, redesigned driver schedules, microtransit expansion to address first- and last-mile gaps, and an employer bulk-pass partnership modeled on CVS Health's workforce goals, all sequenced across a 12-month phased rollout with a defined governance structure.
My contributions: co-authored the problem statement and logic model; led the plan's How-To Dimensions section (financial resources, legal authority under Title 39, managerial oversight, staffing, and cross-sector collaboration) and its conclusion; authored the risk and uncertainty analysis in the process-flow assessment; built the project's cost model and budget justification.
Management Plan
Download the complete reliability and restoration plan.
Funding Strategy
Download the funding and budget justification.
Logic Model
| Resources | Activities | Outputs | Outcomes | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workforce Stability HR staff, scheduling systems, educational partnerships | Redesign operator schedules; form a partnership commission | Revised schedules implemented; # institutional partnerships | Higher job satisfaction; higher retention | Long-term operational stability |
| Safety Safety ambassadors, training, funding | Launch Safety Ambassador Program with RIDOC | # ambassadors trained and deployed | Increased rider trust and safety perception | Systemic transformation into a trusted transit network |
| Access Planning staff, GIS software, microtransit vehicles, municipal partnerships | Deploy microtransit for first/last-mile gaps; build mobility hubs | # new service areas; # micro-vehicles deployed | Increased access for underserved communities | Improved statewide connectivity |
| Infrastructure Infrastructure funding, engineering staff | Upgrade rest areas and passenger amenities | # stations upgraded | Improved working and riding conditions | Modernized, durable infrastructure |
"If RIPTA leverages state funds, targeted grants, and inter-agency partnerships to redesign driver schedules, launch a Community-Based Safety Ambassador program, deploy microtransit, and upgrade infrastructure, the result is a measurably safer, more reliable transit system, and over time, a network that reliably meets Rhode Island's economic and community needs."