On Wednesday, NJ Transit executive director James Weinstein unveiled the agency’s new “Scorecard” initiative and asked for the help of its customers in providing the public with a measurement of how the corporation is performing.

The “Scorecard” initiative will use metrics to set corporate-wide standards of accountability and create transparency for the public, helping NJ Transit make strategic decisions to maximize its resources as well as illustrating how the agency is managing its commitment to excellence. In addition, the Scorecard will show the agency’s strengths and weaknesses, providing clear insight into where NJ Transit needs to improve to provide a greater return to the taxpayer.

“By committing to this effort, we will hold up the Scorecard as the standard by which we get measured by the people who use our system every day,” said Weinstein. 

A system of metrics is currently in development to provide a baseline for measuring NJ Transit’s performance in the areas of customer service, safety and security, financial health and service accountability. The baseline also will incorporate information gathered from quarterly customer surveys, marking the first time in NJ Transit’s history that the agency will conduct systemwide customer satisfaction surveys on an ongoing basis.

“We intend for the Scorecard to be a living, breathing document, one that requires customer input to feed it and make it work,” said Weinstein. “To that end, we encourage our customers to get involved and let us know about their experiences riding our system.”

Customers may pre-register at njtransit.com for the first customer survey, which will be conducted in April.

NJ Transit will launch the Scorecard in July to coincide with the corporation’s new Fiscal Year 2012. Scorecard results will be reported and updated quarterly on njtransit.com.

While the system of metrics is still being finalized, NJ Transit’s performance measures will include:

• Customer Service: Customer satisfaction ratings for NJ Transit services and other measures such as the average time it takes to process a customer inquiry and on-time performance for the system’s bus, rail, light rail and Access Link service.

• Safety and Security: Data provided by Operations and the NJ Transit Police Department quantifying the safety and security of customers and our system.

• Financial Health: Data on budget variance, pension liability coverage, farebox recovery and operating subsidy per customer.

• Service and Accountability: Revenue per hour, ridership, fare stability and Disadvantaged and Small Business Enterprise goals.

To support the Scorecard effort, NJ Transit will also measure performance by department using Key Operating Measures or Department Performance Indicators to provide essential information to department heads on a daily, monthly and quarterly basis. These measures are intended to provide a comprehensive picture of how NJ Transit is functioning, as well as give employees of each department a clear sense of how they can individually succeed and support the agency’s broader goals.