City of Columbia discusses how to add staff for Go COMO
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The City of Columbia met for a work session Monday inside the City Council chambers at city hall. The council discussed staffing within the city's transit system.
After seeing staffing shortages over a long period of time, the city is considering condensing its Go COMO bus routes.
Go COMO says to keep up with demand, bus operators have been required to complete mandatory overtime. Go COMO says they need a minimum of 45 operators to not require overtime from their workers.
Currently, the city service says it has 26 full-time operators and two part-time operators. Go COMO needs 17 additional drivers to no longer require mandatory overtime.
Based on provided data, Go COMO hasn't had the minimum number of staff members it needs in the past five years. Its highest number of staff was recorded in 2018 with 36.
Go COMO says bus loops will now be 90-minute intervals instead of 45 minutes due to condensing their weekly six routes into three.
Douglas Kirk has been a rider with Go COMO for a year now says the service is fantastic and relies on the gold route to do daily errands because he does't have a car but he says less routes and a longer wait time would be hectic.
"For me there are some places that only take me 15 minutes but waiting a hour and a half I would be waiting there for a long time especially in the cold." Kirk said, "That would be very difficult for me because I am old."
The 90-minute routes will combine the red route with green, gold route with the blue, and the orange route with the black.
If there were fewer routes to choose from, Kirk says, "it would make it much more difficult to get around and to take care of my business."
After using the Go COMO for a year now, Kirk says all the drivers are fantastic but having to work mandatory overtime puts more stress on them.
"That's difficult for the drivers, I mean it works for us passengers but that difficult for the drivers when they have to do this, they are in a bad situation." Kirk said, " I wouldn't know what to think, I'm glad I am not a bus driver."
Go COMO says current stops within the routes won't be removed. The new 90-minute route will be the same service Go COMO currently operates on Saturdays, but during existing weekday hours of operation according to the department.
During the Monday work session, the council brought up factors contributing to the shortage, including pay, safety while on the job, child care for young drivers and the working environment. The city says the goal is to make overtime voluntary instead of mandatory.
Improving retention is also a goal. During the discussion, the council said drivers are burned out for having to work 52 hours a week for the past 18 months.
Recruitment is also a goal the council wants to accomplish. It believes the mandatory overtime is discouraging towards potential employees.
Current Saturday services also won't be affected. If the consideration by the city is finalized, the city anticipates the changes taking place in mid-February
Go COMO also says they aren't the only ones facing staffing shortages. It cited a study from the American Public Transit Association in 2022. The association says in 96% of agencies surveyed are experiencing a workforce shortage, with 84% percent saying the shortage is affecting their ability to provide service.
