Meeting community transportation needs, with Track Star
Challenge
Unconnected processes and paperwork overload were hinderingPortland-Oregon-based Ride Connection’s ability to help older adults, people with disabilities and low-income individuals get to work, school and doctors’ appointments. The organization needed a streamlined way to manage their fleet—and a means to monitor each vehicle to assure safe operation and verify driver certification. Ride Connection was also challenged to comply with federal reporting requirements.
Solution
The Oregon Department of Transportation, which administersRide Connection, turned to Track Star in 2016 for the automation needed to address challenges head on. Track Star’s easy-to-use solution was selected to procure, track and maintain its hundreds of vehicles. The solution also enables the organization to more efficiently manage grants and budgets, meet transit asset management (TAM) requirements—and achieve high standards across the board.
Results
A network comprised of more than 50 agencies in a three-county area, Ride Connection today provides more than 500,000 rides to more than 2,000 individuals each year—each with varying levels of access. TrackStar is helping Ride Connection be more efficient, stay in compliance—and offer a safer, more satisfying transportation experience to more people than ever before.
RIDE CONNECTION is the non-profit responsible for hundreds of vehicles operated by more than 50 agencies that provide transportation services to seniors, those with disabilities, and others in need.
THE OREGON DOT facilitates the service delivery, responsible for vehicle procurement, maintenance and capital planning.
TRACK STAR is the transit asset management solution providing automated processes, predictive analytics and reporting needed to optimize operations.
From paper-based processes to full automation
Fifteen unconnected systems. Reams of paper. Lots of Excel spreadsheets. These were tools used to operate Ride Connection up until four years ago. Administration of the community transit service was disjointed, time-consuming and distracting.
The Ride Connection’s Dean Orr was on the committee that early on worked closely with the Oregon DOT, the department that manages the program to find a way to improve operations. Both organizations recognized the need to replace manual processes that bogged down the private, non-profit’s ability to serve.
“We understood just how beneficial it would be to access and analyze all transportation from a single source,” said Orr, service center supervisor at Ride Connection—and a passionate advocate of automation.
“Track Star was the answer we were looking for.”
Dean Orr, Ride Connection
A better way to serve
The Portland, Oregon community ride service replaced disconnected processes with Track Star’s transit asset management solution.Using the solution, the state DOT manages the vehicles for Ride Connection, a network that includes the Boys and Girls Clubs, the VFW, churches, and scores of other agencies.
The DOT uses Track Star for activities ranging from procurement of vehicles to reporting compliance. “Asset management, work order management, inspections, maintenance and incident/accident investigations, capital planning—even driver certification tracking: These important functions are all now handled in a coordinated way,” Orr said.
“It’s great to have all the data needed in one place to make sound operational decisions now. Track Star also gives us the insight we need to make sound decisions going forward.”
Dean Orr, Ride Connection
The predictable way to optimize assets
The real-time ability to command and control Ride Connection’s entire asset ecosystem is important to the agencies,” said Orr.“But the real beneficiaries are those who depend on the transportation we provide to stay independent, healthy and involved.”
From 15 Systems to One Solution: Streamlining Community Transit
Ride Connection's transformation from paper-based chaos to streamlined automation demonstrates the powerful impact of comprehensive transit asset management. By replacing 15 disconnected systems with ThingTech's integrated solution, the organization not only improved operational efficiency and regulatory compliance but fundamentally enhanced their ability to serve the community. Today, with real-time visibility into their entire fleet ecosystem and data-driven decision-making capabilities, Ride Connection delivers over 500,000 safe, reliable rides annually—proving that the right technology doesn't just optimize assets, it amplifies an organization's mission to keep vulnerable community members connected, independent, and thriving.
