Platform 08

for your news and views

18.3M STARLIGHT EXPRESS Issue 8 | February 2017

Award winners | Auckland records

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Message from the MD michel.ladrak@transdev.co.nz

Welcome to the latest issue of Platform magazine, my first as Managing Director. Having joined the rail industry over 22 years ago in The Netherlands it feels like I’ve come a long way. Martin and I have worked well together and thanks to him I was offered the chance to join the team in 2014; a decision I never regretted. Taking on a new role is always exciting and the MD role is not something I take for granted. Many of you have wished me well and I am grateful for the support I have received.

The year ahead promises to be an exciting and challenging one for us, including a new timetable being implemented in March to help improve run times and free up units for our ever-growing customers. This will place added pressure on us to deliver the record levels of performance that saw us start 2017 with our first-ever midweek 100/100 day.

Punctuality

100%

50%

10% DEC 13

Patronage

APR 15

JAN 17

Our customers are clearly enjoying the service we provide as highlighted

by Auckland Transport’s (AT) latest customer satisfaction survey. Train satisfaction increased for the fourth successive quarter to 89.6% and is now only 0.3% behind Ferry, which is a great achievement (more on this on page 4) while customer complaints were down to their lowest-ever rate in November.

And best of all, we are also receiving a steady stream of compliments.

Complaints

Reliability

10

50%

30

PER 100K JOURNEYS

100%

MILLIONS

20

10%

0

15

0 DEC 13

APR 15

JAN 17

DEC 13

APR 15

JAN 17

DEC 13

APR 15

JAN 17

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Satisfaction

make Transdev Auckland a Zero Harm workplace; something we can only achieve together.

100%

We made great strides in rail safety last year with SPADs reaching Auckland’s lowest-ever level, seeing us win national and global awards in 2016. However, we will need to increase our collective efforts to get the downward SPAD trend back on track following incidents in the past few months.

50%

10% APR 15

JAN 17

A record-breaking year was capped by our performance at the 2016 Transdev Australasia (TDA) Golden Star Awards.

Having submitted significantly more nominations than any other business, our very own Joseph Gomes was selected as one of the eight winners, with Joel O’Dea and Maninder Singh also making the shortlist. All of our All Star Award nominees were submitted for Golden Star Awards and feature on the cover of this issue.

While the earthquakes that hit Wellington and the South Island in November were a reminder that some events are out of our hands, I cannot stress enough the need to manage the safety risks that we can control. Not only the operational side; your own personal health and safety is equally important, as well as that of your families, colleagues and our customers.

I hope you are all contributing to help

SPADs

6 PER MILLION TRAIN KM

DEC 13

3

to customers as well as staff. René also confirmed that the group was performing well financially, and that he has identified 20 projects for Transdev to be achieved by 2020. A key objective is to encourage innovation and creative thinking. I have been asked to drive innovation for Australasia and I am keen to unleash the many ideas that exist within our ranks. I am willing to listen and give your ideas a go.

0 DEC 13

APR 15

JAN 17

Since joining TDA as CEO, René Lalande (above right, with myself and Martin) has been keen to make every member of staff feel that, while local comes first for each business, we are part of a bigger company with collective knowledge and experience that can benefit us all. In the first of a new monthly update to managers from each TDA business, René announced his plan to focus on injuries

I am hopeful of being able to share more news of our contract with AT in the coming weeks.

Michel Ladrak MANAGING DIRECTOR

3

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y

Off to a great start The New Year couldn’t have started better, with the first day after the block of line proving to be our best-performing day to date; all 530 services on time for our first 100% Punctuality and Reliability day on a full midweek timetable.

This is an achievement we should be proud of and is a just reward for everyone’s hard work across the business in 2016.

Performance will be challenged once more in March with the implementation of a new timetable, so let’s keep focused on continually improving our services each day for our customers.

2017

Record highs Customer satisfaction hit another record high in December as AT published its latest quarterly survey results. Train increased to 89.6% and is now only slightly behind Ferry at 89.9%. Train customer satisfaction has now increased by over 13% in the past three years.

Every single service attribute increased from the previous survey, the first time this has ever happened, while the ‘Net Promoter Score’ (likelihood of passengers recommending a trip to others) has gone from -22% in 2013 to +26% in 2016 – a huge increase of nearly 50%.

Thanks to your hard work in 2016 we have made some significant gains in the customer service attributes that we collectively targeted for improvement last year:

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION DEC 2013 SEPT 2016 DEC 2016 FREQUENCY

68.2%

73.9%

74.2%

SERVICES ARRIVING AND DEPARTING ON TIME

67.7%

83.4%

86.7%

TIME TAKEN FOR JOURNEY

78.8%

85.0%

86.5%

PERSONAL SAFETY

88.8%

93.1%

93.7%

STAFF FRIENDLINESS/HELPFULNESS

86.3%

91.4%

92.4%

COMPLAINT HANDLING

70.2%

74.2%

74.7%

EASE OF GETTING INFO ON DELAYS/DISRUPTIONS

54.6%

69.6%

71.9%

Help boost performance! Send ideas to communications@transdev.co.nz 4

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Net Promoter

30%

0%

-25% DEC 13

MAY 15

JAN 17

+48% 2013 to 2016

Net Promoter Score

While ‘Ease of getting information about delays/ disruptions’ has improved it still attracts the lowest performance score overall at 71.9% and remains a key focus area for 2017.

Sharing is caring We achieved an overall engagement score of 58% in the 2016 employee opinion survey, a fantastic 9% improvement from 2015 (49%).

Detailed results will be shared in February and March.

+9%

from 2015

Engagement means capturing the ‘hearts and minds’ of our people here at Transdev. It can be seen in the behaviours we present, speaking positively, showing a desire to be an active member of the organisation and contributing to the success of our business.

helped raise $2,160 for our Spirit partner, Starship Children’s Hospital.

Wendy Scott, Jon Baxter, Rommel Pereira and Hoani Muller visited Starship on 26 January to present our cheque to the Foundation’s CEO, Brad Clark and Community Fundraising Executive, Krissy Garnham (pictured above) and see how your support will help Starship’s young patients.

Support Starship and other Spirit partners through the Transdev Auckland Payroll Giving Programme.

Thanks to the 430 members of staff who took part in the 2016 survey and Sign up for Payroll Giving at communications@transdev.co.nz 5

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Joseph Gomes TRA IN MAN AGE R

WINNER

Maninder Singh ONB OAR D SUP ERV ISOR

Amjad Khan

CE PLA NNIN G AND PER FOR MAN COO RDIN ATO R

Starstudded cast 6

The incredible achievements of our All Star Award winners and staff shortlisted for TDA’s Golden Star Awards were celebrated at our inaugural All Star Lunch.

All Stars Amjad Khan, Joseph Gomes, Haile Homboy, Sasha Hemana and

D

SHORTLISTE

Denise Banks were joined by SMT members Martin Kearney, Kelly Tang, Michel Ladrak and Jon Baxter for the celebration. Train Crew Manager, Sally Husband attended on Waka Morgan’s behalf as he was on leave, along with Philip Varghese and Steven Avery who were also recognised.

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Sasha Hemana CUS TOM ER SERVICE OFF ICER

Joel O’Dea

EET AC TI N G FL LI ST E SP E C IA C N A M R P E R FO

Denise Banks

SHOR

CUSTOMER SERV ICE OFFIC ER

TLIS

TED

Hailee Homboy TICK ET INSP ECTOR

All Star Award winners receive a $250 Prezzy card and are invited to the end-of-year celebratory lunch. Every nominee is also automatically submitted to the Golden Star Awards, with a chance of winning a $1,000 travel voucher and invitation to Melbourne.

Thank you for taking the time to recognise your colleagues’ great work in 2016!

Send your All Star nominations to allstars@transdev.co.nz 7

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Good as gold The fifth annual Golden Star Awards ceremony took place at the TDA Head Office in Melbourne on 8 December, and was attended by the winners and family members, along with the TDA Head Office team. A record 408 nominations were submitted for the 2016 awards including 124 from Auckland.

The nominations for the eight categories were of a very high calibre and selecting the winners took the awards committee several hours of deliberation.

Transdev Auckland’s Joseph Gomes, Joel O’Dea and Maninder Singh had deservedly made the awards shortlist, with Joseph receiving the Passion Award from René Lalande – and a $1,000 travel voucher – for his positive attitude and dedication to his role. After the official awards ceremony the winners enjoyed lunch with the executive team and a tour of North Fitzroy operations.

Helen Whiteman TRANSDEV MELBOURNE

Congratulations to the 2016 Golden Star Award winners from across TDA (pictured right, with Joseph) and the many hundreds of nominees who excelled in 2016!

Malin Svantesson TRANSDEV SYDNEY

T

6,000

employees 8

Send your 2017 nominations to communications@transdev.co.nz

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Gary Lam TRANSDEV SYDNEY

Fa Fa’aita

Barry Thompson

TRANSDEV WELLINGTON

TRANSDEV PERTH

Joseph Gomes

TRANSDEV AUCKLAND

Elizabeth Satherley TRANSDEV WELLINGTON

408

nominees

Jodie Potter (representing for Glenn Downing)

Ajenta Conrad TRANSDEV SYDNEY

TRANSDEV PERTH

29

shortlisted

9

winners 9

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Shining stars

OCTOBER October’s All Star Award winner was Customer Service Officer, Denise Banks (pictured with Stations Manager, Sally Fepuleai). While at New Lynn Station Denise noticed the cleaning lady showed symptoms of a stroke, Denise took her straight to A&E where she was immediately referred to hospital. As the cleaner found ambulances very stressful, Denise drove her to Middlemore and did not leave her side. Well done Denise and the New Lynn team on their second All Star of 2016!

10

NOVEMBER Train Manager Michael Tauti ‘cleaned up’ November’s All Star Award. A customer on board Michael’s service was unwell and vomited. Without hesitation Michael cleaned up the mess and, when arriving at Papakura, contacted the crew who brought disinfectant from the platform cleaners. This enabled the unit to remain in service to Britomart, where Control Room had arranged cleaners to meet it upon arrival. A great team effort instigated by Michael’s initiative and commitment to his customers focus. Great job!

DECEMBER The final All Star of 2016 was Trainee Train Manager Paul Jones, who won December’s award for managing a potentially disruptive situation on board his train. A regular customer became severely agitated at Avondale, which in turn made other customers feel uncomfortable.

Rather than removing him from the train, Paul sat with the customer between stations to keep everyone calm and the situation under control.

Paul’s patience and customer service rightly drew compliments from customers when the train stopped at Newmarket. Way to go, Paul!

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Buddy up

Ray of light Ray Gosai’s 50 years in the rail industry were celebrated at a special ceremony on 19 January, with colleagues from the past and present day paying tribute to Ray. From a junior porter in 1966 to his current role as a Tutor Train Manager, Ray has worked his way up through the industry, including periods signalling and as a shunter in Wellington during the 1970s.

One of Ray’s highlights of his time at Transdev was as part of a delegation visiting CAF’s factory in Beasain, Spain during the electrification project to get an insight into Auckland rail’s future.

Ray’s dedication to the industry is a shining example to the rest of us.

Good on you, Ray!

As part of our Women in Rail project, we are seeking volunteers to become buddies for new female staff members joining the rail industry, which has traditionally been a predominantly-male environment.

This is a voluntary, unpaid position to help our new staff get to know into Transdev. Every single role is important and we need buddies from across the business that are willing to help new starters. Thank you!

Volunteer at jobs@transdev.co.nz

11

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Moe’s safety show

12

Moe is a friendly, furry monster who lives with his friends in their treehouse on top of Mt Moehau in the Coromandel.

The Moe Show follows Moe as he explores New Zealand, meeting new friends and making interesting discoveries about the places he goes to.

During last year’s Rail Safety Week, Moe was joined by pupils from Newmarket School to film a special episode on trains and staying safe around the rail corridor.

If you missed the episode on 19 January, you can check it out on Moe’s YouTube channel. www.youtube.com/themoeshow

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Pukekohe progress Work to upgrade Pukekohe Station to a fully-integrated bus and train interchange began on 23 November, when Transport Minister Simon Bridges and Auckland Mayor Phil Goff took part in the formal sod-turning ceremony.

Once completed in late 2017, the new station will provide better connectivity between buses and rail.

Features will include:

6-bay bus stop New overbridge with lifts connecting bus and train station Park-and-ride facility for 87 vehicles Additional ticket machines Passenger waiting area Cycle parking facilities 24-hour CCTV security Toilets.

“If we make catching public transport as easy as possible, then people will take it up and that will help with congestion on our roads. I am pleased we have started work on this interchange which will provide much needed public transport solutions for Pukekohe and the surrounding areas.”

Phil Goff CNZM, Mayor of Auckland

For station upgrade information visit at.govt.nz/projects-roadworks/train-station-improvements

13

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

News from here & there Pulling together Five male employees from our Sydney bus operations took a stand against domestic violence on White Ribbon Day (25 November) by competing in the annual Canterbury Bankstown Tug O’War Cup. Out of 26 teams competing, the Transdev ‘Get a Grip’ team valiantly won two rounds before being knocked out in the third, cheered on the whole way by staff on the sidelines, while 20 buses were wrapped with White Ribbon Day posters to further raise awareness of the campaign.

Capital investment TDA’s Business Development team submitted the Wellington Bus tender 14

Safe Harbour The future of ferry travel in Sydney is in safe hands after TDA assumed full control and ownership of Harbour City Ferries in December. Having operated the Sydney Ferries franchise contract with Transport for NSW

since 2012 as a 50/50 joint venture with Broadspectrum, the acquisition reaffirms TDA’s position as the largest multi-modal provider of public transport services in the region.

on 24 November 2016. The tender is a challenging one that involves the mobilisation of a new business in Wellington including a bus fleet, workforce and depots. Transdev’s extensive transition experience, including previous mobilising

projects such as Buslink VIVO in Darwin and the new depots for Transdev Melbourne, will stand us in good stead. Greater Wellington Regional Council will announce the contract recipient in May 2017.

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Happy glow lucky

Strand social The Strand Social Club celebrated 2016 in style with a shared Christmas lunch.

The Strand team counts former pastry chefs, hospitality workers and sworn foodies in their ranks and they pulled out all the stops.

The Social Club contributed the meat and condiments while book-

on crew were invited to bring a plate. Those who attended – including some who were on their RDOs – were treated to a feast to remember.

After a great afternoon, the festive spirit continued the following day as the team took some tasty food to the Auckland City Mission to help those less fortunate.

Congratulations to Planning and Performance Coordinator Amjad Khan and his wife Hanan who celebrated the arrival of daughter Hana – their second child – in October.

Hana means ‘happiness’ in Arabic and ‘to shine/glow’ in Te Reo Māori and it looks like she was living up to her name from day one.

Firewall fired-up The IT team has recently completed the firewall change in Auckland and further performance enhancements on the IT networks. This important change means that our operations in Auckland are now aligned with the rest of the TDA group as it is now centrally managed, and has more resources available to ensure better network performance.

For online tools and resources check out our new IT guide coming soon!

15

T R A N S D E V F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 7

Good tidings Transdev Auckland staff helped make Christmas a reality for the less fortunate members of our community, with over 250 gifts donated to Auckland City Mission’s annual Christmas Appeal. Special mention goes to staff at Manukau who donated the most gifts of all book-ons and Head Office.

Waitapu Moka and Josie Evans (left) and the Manukau team were among those who ‘decked the halls’ to have their stations looking festive for our customers. ‘Twas the season to be jolly, after all!

Festive feast After 2015’s successful Christmas lunch at Britomart, the 2016 festivities took place across Auckland to make sure even more staff could be involved. A total of 422 gourmet Christmas lunches were delivered to staff at 10 facilities on 20 December.

Thank you to everyone who worked over the Christmas and New Year period.

16

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

Elf & Safety Santa and his Elf & Safety Team took the early train from the North Pole to Auckland on 27 November to oversee the safe arrival of nearly 20,000 customers for the 2016 Santa Parade.

The team, led by Train Manager James ‘Santa’ Williams and Station Team Leader Moira ‘Head Elf’ Allen, remained on hand at Britomart after the parade to ensure customers stayed in the festive spirit on the journey ho-ho-home.

17

T R A N S D E V FEBRUARY 2017

Event-full calendar Quick March The traditionally busy month of March – affectionately known as ‘March Madness’ when students return from their extended holidays – will be even busier in 2017, with the introduction of a new-look network and timetable on 12 March.

Key benefits: 1

Faster, more accurate run times

2

More 6-car services during peaks

3

Parnell station opens

4

Reduced turnaround times

5

More evening services to Puhinui.

Implementing the new timetable will be a big challenge for us all. However, with patronage continuing to grow, the improved services will help us keep delivering the high standards our customers rely on.

18

It was a busy end to 2016 for our Special Events team, with Santa Parade (19,891), Coldplay’s Mt. Smart concert (19,994) and Christmas in the Park (8,417) taking our customer count to nearly 310,000 for the calendar year.

While the biggest event was the All Blacks clash with Wales at Eden Park in June (38,188), a third of 2016’s Special Events customers (98,912) were moved in February 2016 alone, making it the busiest month by far.

2017 SPECIAL EVENTS 4 FEB James Taylor & His All-Star Band VECTOR ARENA 4 FEB Guns N’ Roses WESTERN SPRINGS STADIUM 4-5 FEB

NRL 9s

9-12 FEB

Lantern Festival

17 FEB

Blackcaps v South Africa T20

AUCKLAND DOMAIN EDEN PARK

25 FEB Bruce Springsteen MT SMART STADIUM 4 MAR Blackcaps v South Africa ODI EDEN PARK 11 MAR

Blues v Highlanders EDEN PARK

15-18 MAR *Polyfest

MANUKAU 18 MAR

Justin Bieber

23 MAR

Don Henley

23, 25 & 26 MAR

Adele

This year is no exception, with the coming months chock-full with sporting, music and cultural events and additional services helping get hoards of Aucklanders safely to – and back home from – venues across the city.

EDEN PARK

MT SMART STADIUM VECTOR ARENA MT SMART STADIUM

25 MAR Blues v Bulls EDEN PARK 25-26 MAR

*Pasifika Festival

WESTERN SPRINGS * Regular TT

Advanced thanks to those of you helping to manage the crowds on the day and to our Special Events team for the months of planning that’ve gone into making it all happen!

Please remember to report any anti-social groups to the Control Room. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way: STOP, STEP AWAY, ASSESS.

I S S U E 8 P L AT F O R M

FAM

N U F Y A D

I LY

D N U O R

5 MAR

CH

17 0 2 S Y A B T HE REGISTRATIONS

OPEN SOON! Register at events@transdev.co.nz

19

PLATFORM FEBRUARY 2017 ISSUE 8 MANAGING EDITOR

Mary Zefirelli EDITOR

James Gillson CONTRIBUTOR

Hoani Muller DESIGN

MakeReady

Transdev Auckland Level 7, Citigroup Centre 23 Customs Street East Auckland 1010 ― www.transdev.co.nz @TransdevAustNZ company/transdev-auckland