GCRTA CX Department Marks One Year of Growth

Over the past year, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority’s Customer Experience (CX) & Performance Management (PM) Department has worked across divisions to strengthen rider engagement, support employees, and improve customer experience across the system.

Since its creation in 2025, the department has focused on strengthening a customer-first culture through frontline feedback, operational improvements, and cross-department collaboration.

“The value of customer experience initiatives like GEMBA walks and site compliance closeouts cannot be underestimated. The fact that our team has elected to reengage its commitment in these critical areas of the business is game changing for our customer experience model,” said India Birdsong Terry, CEO and General Manager. “Solid public service means leading with empathy and transparency — the future of our ridership in the Greater Cleveland community depends on it. Our ability to communicate that we care, every day, without exception is the goal.”

Listening to Employees and Riders Through Gemba

One of the CX department’s largest initiatives has been the expansion of the Gemba feedback process. Derived from a Japanese business philosophy meaning “the real place,” Gemba encourages employees and leadership to experience service firsthand and identify opportunities for improvement directly in the field.

At GCRTA, employees and leadership teams across the Authority are encouraged to ride service regularly and submit a Gemba form documenting observations, opportunities, and feedback from the customer journey perspective. The initiative helps employees better understand the rider experience while identifying opportunities to improve service, communication, safety, infrastructure, and technology across the system.

As of May 2026, GCRTA has received nearly 3,000 Gemba submissions from employees across the Authority.

Feedback submitted through Gemba is categorized into two areas:
•    Tactical improvements addressed through daily operations
•    Strategic improvements requiring long-term planning or cross-functional collaboration

Over the last year, Gemba feedback has contributed to several operational improvements across the system, including:
•    Identifying a broken stanchion pole that ultimately revealed a larger fleet-wide defect through a root cause analysis
•    Repainting directional markings and bus lanes at the Windermere parking lot to improve traffic flow and safety
•    Addressing operator safety concerns at a bus stop through tree trimming and new lighting installation
•    Correcting a stop relocation that was not accurately reflected in Transit App
•    Repairing a vandalized bus shelter within 12 hours of the incident
 

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The process has also helped identify recurring customer concerns around real-time transit information, helping support future technological improvements.

“Regularly walking in our customers’ shoes ensures that we have direct, first-hand knowledge of our customers’ experiences on GCRTA,” said Nicholas Biggar, Sr. Director of Customer Experience and Performance Management. “It drives our ability to make informed and impactful improvements to our service offerings.

Bringing Departments Together Through Site Visits

In addition to Gemba submissions, the CX team launched recurring site visits across the rail and bus system to identify customer-facing opportunities and operational improvements.

Since the program began, more than 600 action items have been collected through these visits. An average of 20 employees participate in each site visit, representing departments from across the Authority, including Transit Police, Rail Facilities, Central Facilities, Marketing, Service Management, Programming and Planning, Office of Equal Opportunity, and more.

The initiative has become a strong example of cross-department collaboration, with teams revisiting locations to evaluate progress and support continual improvement.

According to the CX team, one of the biggest successes has been the response from frontline employees and operators. Operators and frontline staff regularly express appreciation for the increased visibility and support in the field.

“When employees and leadership take time to experience our service through the eyes of our riders, it changes the way we approach problem solving,” said Dr. Floun’say Caver, Chief Operating Officer. “These initiatives help build a culture where collaboration, accountability and customer experience are a part of everyone’s responsibility.”

Engaging Riders Through Listening Posts

To better understand the rider experience, the CX Department also launched Customer Listening Posts at stations across the system.

These events are held at locations that serve both rail and bus riders to encourage broad participation and feedback. Since late 2025, Listening Posts have been held at stations including Stokes-Windermere, Cedar-University, Triskett, W. 117th–Madison, and Tower City.

The team has documented dozens of rider conversations and nearly 200 rider impressions, identifying several recurring themes, including:
•    Safety and security
•    Cleanliness and station conditions
•    Real-time transit information and technology improvements
•    Service frequency and rider communication

Feedback gathered through these conversations continues to help shape customer communication, station conditions, and future technological improvements.
 

Employees Helping Shape the Rider Experience

Another major milestone for the department has been the continued growth of the Employee Riders Council (ERC), a volunteer group made up of GCRTA employees who regularly ride transit themselves.

The ERC currently includes employees from more than a dozen departments across the Authority, including Operations, Legal, Procurement, Engineering, Payroll, MIS, Internal Audit, Service Planning, and more.

The group has worked collaboratively on several customer-focused initiatives over the past year, including:

• Reviewing the “Riding GCRTA” section of rideRTA.com
• Conducting an Employee Ridership Survey
• Improving the customer complaint process
• Encouraging employee ridership across the system

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Supporting a Unified Customer-First Approach

Over the past year, the CX Department has continued expanding its role across the organization, including integrating in Customer Care and ADA Registration functions to support a more unified customer experience.

The department has also partnered closely with GCRTA Transit Police and other operational teams to identify opportunities for improvement through firsthand service experience and customer feedback.

“Transit Police has partnered with the CX team and regularly utilizes GEMBA when riding buses, trains, and checking stations as a tool to experience the transit system through the eyes of our riders and other GCRTA employees,” said Chief Deirdre Jones.

Several future initiatives are also underway, including:
•    Continued improvements to the customer complaint process
•    Development of enhanced customer service training for employees
•    Implementation of Swiftly, a cloud-based transit data system designed to support more accurate real-time rider information and operational efficiency
 

Looking Ahead

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As the department enters its second year, the focus remains on continual improvement, collaboration, and strengthening connections between employees, leadership, and the communities GCRTA serves.

The department’s first year has demonstrated how feedback, visibility, and cross-functional teamwork can help drive meaningful improvements across the transit system. The department’s goal remains to enhance the customer experience at GCRTA — one conversation, site visit, and ride at a time.