You can’t miss them. And that’s the whole point. The freshly painted Everett Transit buses and vehicles with red tops and white and gray sides won’t be mistaken for Community Transit and Sound Transit buses.
For those familiar with the tension between Community Transit and Everett Transit, the symbolism of the new design is hard to overlook. For years, the two agencies have been in a battle over whether to merge their services. Last session the Legislature got into the mix, directing most its frustration at the city of Everett. The two sides had been meeting on the issue, but so far there has been no resolution.
This summer the city hired Donna Ambrose as its governmental affairs and informational manager for the city’s transportation services. Ambrose’s wealth of experience in the transportation industry suggests Everett is serious about maintaining its own agency and strengthening its identity.
"It’s so important the citizens are aware of what they have and how valuable it is," Ambrose said. A growing city with inadequate transportation services can end up choking on its own traffic, she said. Used properly, a city system could be a tool for a healthy environment and for both local and regional economic development.
She has started meeting with neighborhood groups — eventually she’ll talk to all 19 — to find out what their specific needs are. As those needs evolve, so will the agency’s service, she said.
The timing of the new look couldn’t be better with the recent opening of the Pacific Avenue overpass and the soon to be completed Everett Station. And that fact that the new design costs less to paint than the old one, with the stripes down the sides, is definitely in the city’s favor. Taxpayers can’t argue with that.
Ambrose has some exciting projects in the works including a comprehensive Web site with trip planning capabilities. Such features may succeed in drawing a wider clientele to the city’s transit system.
All these projects are worthwhile, but they likely won’t eliminate the merger issue entirely. The Legislature has plenty to keep itself busy this upcoming session. That should buy Everett Transit some time. But eventually, the matter may surface again.
Part of Everett Transit’s efforts to establish its own identity in regional transportation must include efforts to work better than ever with other agencies, such as Community Transit, on issues such as scheduling, consolidation of maintenance services and elimination of duplicate routes.
Some aspects of cooperation are clearly difficult, but Ambrose’s efforts suggest that fresh insight and perspective could be helpful.
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