NJ TRANSIT TITLE VI

LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY AND LOW-LITERACY

LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE PLAN

2014

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NJ TRANSIT’s TITLE VI LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY AND LOW-LITERACY LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE PLAN 2014

CONTENTS

About NJ TRANSIT (Page 2)

INTRODUCTION (Page 3)

FOUR FACTOR ANALYSIS

FACTOR #1: THE NUMBER OR PROPORTION OF LEP PERSONS SERVICED OR ENCOUNTERED IN THE ELIGIBLE SERVICE POPULATION (Page 4)

FACTOR #2: THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH LEP INDIVIDUALS COME IN CONTACT WITH THE PROGRAM, ACTIVITY, OR SERVICE (Page 22)

FACTOR #3: THE NATURE AND IMPORTANCE OF THE PROGRAM, ACTIVITY OR SERVICE PROVIDED BY THE PROGRAM (Page 23)

FACTOR #4: THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE AND THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PROVIDING LANGUAGE SERVICES (Page 25)

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ABOUT NJ TRANSIT NJ TRANSIT is New Jersey's public transportation corporation. Its mission is to provide safe, reliable, convenient and cost-effective transit service with a skilled team of employees, dedicated to our customers' needs and committed to excellence. Created by the Public Transportation Act of 1979, NJ TRANSIT was established to "acquire, operate and contract for transportation service in the public interest." In 1980, NJ TRANSIT purchased Transport of New Jersey, the State's largest private bus company at that time. Between 1981-85, the services of several other bus companies were incorporated into NJ TRANSIT Bus Operations, Inc. On January 1, 1983, a second subsidiary, NJ TRANSIT Rail Operations, Inc. was launched to assume operations of commuter rail in the State after Congress ordered Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) to cease its passenger operations. A third subsidiary, NJ TRANSIT Mercer, Inc., was established in 1984 when the agency assumed operation of bus service in the Trenton/Mercer County area. In 1992, following a full reorganization, all three subsidiaries were unified and operations were significantly streamlined. As stakeholders in NJ TRANSIT, State residents are represented by a seven member Board of Directors, appointed by the Governor. Four members are from the general public and three are State officials. The agency is structured to encourage broad public participation in the formation of transit policy for the State. NJ TRANSIT's board meets monthly at NJ TRANSIT headquarters in Newark. The Governor can override board actions by vetoing the board meeting's minutes. NJ TRANSIT Corporation's Board selects an Executive Director to administer the entire agency. The Executive Director serves as President of all three subsidiaries (NJ TRANSIT Bus Operations, NJ TRANSIT Rail Operations, Inc. and NJ TRANSIT Mercer, Inc.). Two transit advisory committees provide the agency with additional input from the public. The North Jersey Transit Advisory Committee and the South Jersey Transit Advisory Committee are each comprised of fourteen unsalaried members. Members of the North Jersey Transit Advisory Committee serve four-year terms. Members of the South Jersey Transit Advisory Committee serve three-year terms. Covering a service area of 5,325 square miles, NJ TRANSIT is the nation's third largest provider of bus, rail and light rail transit, linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia. The agency operates a fleet of 2,027 buses, 711 trains and 45 light rail vehicles. On 236 bus routes and 12 rail lines statewide, NJ TRANSIT provides nearly 223 million passenger trips each year. In addition, the agency provides support and equipment to privately-owned contract bus carriers. As the vehicle that connects New Jerseyans with employment, education, health care and recreational opportunities in and around the Garden State, NJ TRANSIT is vital to the state's economic and social well-being, as well as its quality of life.

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INTRODUCTION

Transit operations that receive federal funding are required to ensure that Limited English Proficient (LEP) persons have meaningful access to transit, programs and activities by developing and carrying out a language implementation plan pursuant to recommendations in Section VII of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) LEP Guidance. NJ TRANSIT has determined the extent of its obligation to meet the transportation needs of LEP individuals by employing the recommended four-factor analysis. This assessment includes:

1. The number and proportion of LEP persons served or encountered in the eligible NJ TRANSIT service area.

2. The frequency with which LEP individuals come into contact with NJ TRANSIT’s service.

3. The nature and importance of the service provided by NJ TRANSIT.

4. The resources available to NJ TRANSIT and cost associated with providing language services.

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FACTOR #1: THE NUMBER OR PROPORTION OF LEP PERSONS SERVICED OR ENCOUNTERED IN THE ELIGIBLE SERVICE POPULATION

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ON NJ TRANSIT SERVICE AREA

NJ TRANSIT is the nation’s largest statewide public transportation system providing more than 895,000 weekday trips on 261 bus routes, three light rail lines, 12 commuter rail lines and paratransit services. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 165 rail stations, 62 light rail stations and more than 19,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia. Demographic maps and charts referencing the 2008-2012 American Community Survey (ACS) 5 year averaged data have been prepared to delineate LEP concentrations within the NJ TRANSIT service area. For purposes of this analysis, the service area is defined as the State of New Jersey. According to the ACS survey, the statewide percentage of residents age five and older that speak English ”not well” or “not at all” is 6.38% while the percentage of residents age five and older that speak English “less than very well” is 12.38%. LEP Language Group maps have been prepared to display highlighted census tracts where two (2) conditions are met; 1) percentage of residents within the tract age five years and older that speak English ”not well” or “not at all” (6.38%); AND 2) residents within the tract speak a specific language from a language group other than English at home at greater than 6.38%. The language group categories include Spanish, Indo–European languages, and Asian and Pacific Island languages. Both statewide and regional LEP Language Group maps are included in this document. These maps display high concentrations of LEP Language Groups persons juxtaposed on the NJ TRANSIT commuter rail, light rail, and bus network. There are five (5) regional areas that include the following counties:

Region 1: Bergen, Hudson, and Passaic

Region 2: Essex, Morris, Union, Warren, and Sussex

Region 3: Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth, and Ocean

Region 4: Salem, Gloucester, Camden, and Burlington

Region 5: Atlantic, Cumberland, and Cape May

In addition to the Language Group Maps, an additional set of LEP maps with greater specificity have been prepared to highlight census tracts where specific language concentrations associated with each language group exist. The Specific Language Maps have been made available to NJ TRANSIT staff responsible for areas of public engagements to assist in the development of procedures based on the results of the Four Factor Analysis.

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In recent years, the estimated statewide percentage of persons indicating that they speak English less than “very well” increased slightly from 12.09 percent (2006-2010 ACS data) to 12.38 percent (2008-2012 ACS data). The following chart compares the levels of English proficiency in New Jersey between the 2000 decennial census and the most recent available data from the American Community Survey, the 2008-2012, 5-year estimates. While the overall population of persons 5 years and older has increased by 4.8 percent, the proportion of persons that speak English “not well” or “not at all” has increased by 24.4%.

Low English Proficiency, New Jersey 2000 and 2008-2012

2000

2008-2012

% Change '00 vs ’08-‘12

Total, 5 years and older 7,856,268 100.0% 8,255,899 100.0% 4.8%

Speak Spanish: Speak English"not well" 188,565 2.4% 239,370 2.9% 21.2% Speak English "not at all" 90,364 1.2% 118,222 1.4% 23.6% Speak other Indo-European languages: Speak English"not well" 76,016 1.0% 77,252 0.9% 1.6% Speak English "not at all" 17,742 0.2% 21,499 0.3% 17.5% Speak Asian and Pacific Island languages: Speak English"not well" 38,262 0.5% 68,179 0.8% 43.9% Speak English "not at all" 6,787 0.1% 27,786 0.3% 75.6% Speak other languages: Speak English"not well" 7,647 0.1% 8,886 0.1% 13.9% Speak English "not at all" 1,241 0.0% 1,874 0.0% 33.8% Total, Speak English "not well" 302,843 3.9% 384,801 4.7% 21.3% Total, Speak English "not at all" 114,893 1.5% 167,507 2.0% 31.4% Total, Speak English "not well" or "not at all" 417,736 5.3% 552,308 6.7% 24.4%

Source: Census 2000, Table P19 and American Community Survey Data, 2008-2012, 5-year estimates, Table B16004

Using ACS data, NJ TRANSIT has developed the following table, showing languages spoken in New Jersey and the number of speakers who speak English less than “very well.” The total estimated population of speakers included here is 1,022,845, or 12.4 percent of the New Jersey population 5 years of age and older, and includes some people who speak English “well” and are not LEP persons. However, this table can be used to determine which languages are most important for communicating with New Jersey LEP persons. “Spanish or Spanish Creole” remains the most common language other than English spoken in New Jersey. Approximately 7 percent of New Jersey residents speak English less than “very well” and speak Spanish at home.

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LEP Speakers in New Jersey

Source: American Community Survey Data, 2012, 5-year estimates, Table B16001

Total Population of NJ, Age 5+ 8,255,899 100.0% (Speak English less than "very well"

Spanish or Spanish Creole 588,162 7.1% Chinese 49,783 0.6% Korean 40,993 0.5% Portuguese or Portuguese Creole 39,499 0.5% Polish 29,090 0.4% Gujarati 28,725 0.3% Italian 24,520 0.3% Tagalog 21,879 0.3% Arabic 20,385 0.2% French Creole 19,462 0.2% Other Asian languages 19,429 0.2% Other Indic languages 19,285 0.2% Russian 18,630 0.2% Hindi 14,290 0.2% Vietnamese 12,297 0.1% French (incl. Patois, Cajun) 9,645 0.1% African languages 8,164 0.1% Other Slavic languages 8,010 0.1% Urdu 7,769 0.1% Other Indo-European languages 7,421 0.1% Japanese 6,001 0.1% Greek 5,646 0.1% German 4,625 0.1% Serbo-Croatian 3,309 0.0% Persian 3,028 0.0% Hungarian 2,107 0.0% Armenian 1,992 0.0% Other Pacific Island languages 1,833 0.0% Hebrew 1,805 0.0% Other and unspecified languages 1,559 0.0% Thai 1,439 0.0% Yiddish 617 0.0% Mon-Khmer, Cambodian 419 0.0% Other West Germanic languages 357 0.0% Other Native North American languages 230 0.0% Scandinavian languages 224 0.0% Laotian 216 0.0% Hmong 0 0.0% Navajo 0 0.0% Total 1,022,845 12.4%

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FACTOR #2: THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH LEP INDIVIDUALS COME IN CONTACT WITH THE PROGRAM, ACTIVITY, OR SERVICE

NJ TRANSIT used ACS data to determine the frequency with which LEP persons are likely to use transit service. The total population who travel to work in New Jersey is 3,866,738, of which 525,930 or 13.6 percent speak English less than “very well.” Public transportation users total 217,749, or 5.6 percent, of the people who travel to work in New Jersey. There are 65,552 public transportation users who speak English less than “very well.” This is 30.1 percent of total public transportation users. So, while 13.6 percent of the total population of people who travel to work speak English less than very well, 30.1 percent of public transportation users speak English less than very well, showing that LEP persons use public transit at a higher rate than the general population.

People Who Travel to Work by English Proficiency, 2008-2012 New Jersey

Population % of total Population

% within mode

Total: 3,866,738 100.0% Speak only English 2,691,979 69.6% Speak Spanish: 618,339 16.0% Speak English "very well" 292,701 7.6% Speak English less than "very well" 325,638 8.4% Speak other languages: 556,420 14.4% Speak English "very well" 356,128 9.2% Speak English less than "very well" 200,292 5.2% Total, Speak English less than "very well" 525,930 13.6%

Public transportation (excluding taxicab): 217,749 5.6% 100.0% Speak only English 104,669 2.7% 48.1% Speak Spanish: 77,160 2.0% 35.4% Speak English "very well" 26,212 0.7% 12.0% Speak English less than "very well" 50,948 1.3% 23.4% Speak other languages: 35,920 0.9% 16.5% Speak English "very well" 21,316 0.6% 9.8% Speak English less than "very well" 14,604 0.4% 6.7% Public transportation, Speak English less than "very well" 65,552 1.7% 30.1%

Source: American Community Survey Data, 2008-2012, 5-year estimates, Table B08513

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FACTOR #3: THE NATURE AND IMPORTANCE OF THE PROGRAM, ACTIVITY OR SERVICE PROVIDED BY THE PROGRAM

OUTREACH TO DETERMINE NJ TRANSIT’s MOST CRITICAL SERVICES

LEP persons are present on NJ TRANSIT’s bus, rail, and light rail services. All of NJ TRANSIT’s front-line personnel, including bus operators, train crew personnel, bus and rail ticket sellers and collectors, customer service representatives, and police personnel, are likely to encounter LEP individuals from time to time. NJ TRANSIT has conducted and continues community outreach to determine what communications tools are most important to LEP persons. NJ TRANSIT continues to interview representatives from groups who work with immigrant populations and LEP persons. As part of this continuing outreach, NJ TRANSIT is updating the comments and input previously received from various groups, including:

• Puertorriquenos Asociados for Community Organization (PACO), Jersey City

PACO provides social services to and advocacy for low income and Hispanic persons, in the areas of housing, education and job opportunities. PACO’s programs include provision of English as a Second Language classes. Ms. Iris Tirado, Office Manager/Social Worker was interviewed.

• La Casa de Don Pedro, Newark

La Casa is a non-profit, community based organization committed to providing families with a comprehensive network of culturally sensitive services. It offers more than 20 programs, which include counseling, child care, education, mentoring, job training and placement, homelessness prevention, energy conservation, leadership development, community economic development, and housing. Mr. Anibal Alvedo, Case Manager, Personal Development Office, was interviewed.

• Korean-American Association of New Jersey (KAANJ), Palisades Park

The Korean American Association of New Jersey (the “KAANJ”) is a non-profit, non-partisan, 501(c) 3 organization and is the largest and most active Korean American community development organization in the State of New Jersey. The focus and primary mission of the Association is the advancement and empowerment of the Korean American community in the state of New Jersey. Mr. Chris Lim, President, was interviewed.

• Ironbound Professional and Business Association (IPBA), Newark The Ironbound Professional & Business Organization was established to advance the business and community interests of Portuguese-American in the greater Newark area. Mr. Manny Lopes, Vice-President, was interviewed.

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Each group was asked the following questions:

1) Are there language barriers that prevent your constituents from using NJ TRANSIT?

2) What communication tools (schedules, brochures etc) do your constituents rely on the most?

3) Are there communication tools that your constituents would like to use but can’t because of a language barrier?

The groups representing Spanish speakers were also asked: Are you aware of the material we distribute about NJ TRANSIT that are in both English and Spanish? Previous interviews, now being updated, revealed the following:

• In general, language barriers were not identified as an issue that prevents people from using transit. The IPBA representative did mention that older riders typically don’t speak English and may experience some confusion until they get used to the system. However, the PACO representative offered that most older people who may have a language barrier are usually accompanied by someone else when they travel by transit.

• Primary information sources identified by the representatives included NJ TRANSIT schedules, brochures, website, word of mouth, and calls to customer service.

• The IPBA representative stated that the best way to help riders use transit would be to have more bus drivers who speak Portuguese or Spanish. The other representatives interviewed did not identify any specific communications tools that they felt their constituents would like to use but can’t because of a language barrier.

• The representatives of Spanish speakers were aware of NJ TRANSIT materials that are available in English and Spanish.

Meanwhile, NJ TRANSIT Government and Community Relations staff continues to reach out to develop partnerships with other potential LEP communities, including, for instance, Eastern and Western Asian populations and Caribbean populations. The current outreach effort is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2014. However, NJ TRANSIT and the Government and Community Relations Department will continue to include LEP outreach in its ongoing efforts with citizen groups and communities throughout New Jersey.

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FACTOR #4: THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE AND THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PROVIDING LANGUAGE SERVICES NJ TRANSIT has implemented a number of initiatives to address issues related to communicating with LEP persons who use transit service in New Jersey. For those initiatives under way, the costs associated with LEP are included in the program budget. Initiatives already under way are listed below, along with their costs when relevant. For new initiatives that NJ TRANSIT may undertake as a result of this plan, costs will be a consideration and the new initiative will be implemented as cost-effectively as possible.

NJ TRANSIT’S INITIATIVES TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO SERVICES AND PROGRAMS FOR LEP USER GROUPS

NJ TRANSIT examined the 2008-2012 ACS data and identified primary languages spoken within its service area. As stated earlier, Spanish is by far the most predominant language spoken in the service area by LEP persons. NJ TRANSIT has consistently provided important supplemental transit related information in Spanish. Following are examples of NJ TRANSIT initiatives to provide access to services and programs for LEP transit riders and customers.

Translation of Vital Documents

NJ TRANSIT’s Communications and Customer Service Department provides customers and the public with information on services, policies and initiatives using multiple vehicles such as press releases, customer notices, rider guides, posters, newspaper ads and many other sources. Based on the content of the information that needs to be communicated (i.e. major service disruptions, safety and security issues, emergency situations), materials are created in other languages for high LEP areas identified through American Community Survey (ACS) data as noted earlier. Highlights of initiatives related to translations by this unit is included in the Customer Service, Public Information, Corporate Communications, Marketing and Safety Education sections of this report. Specific information regarding this unit’s Standard Operating Procedures related to LEP communications is included along with this document.

Customer Service and Language Line

NJ TRANSIT provides customer assistance with service, schedules, fare and ticketing information, assists customers, and takes comments in person, by telephone, and via emails, letters, and the internet. NJ TRANSIT’s Customer Service Division has bilingual Customer Service representatives who are fluent in English, Spanish and other languages. NJ TRANSIT also subscribes to a Language Line service which provides verbal language interpretation in more than 170 languages. Customer Service field and telephone representatives are trained to use the Language Line, and the manual for customer service field personnel includes procedures for encountering LEP customers and using the Language Line. For written correspondence with customers, internal staff who are fluent in the other language as well as English provide translation. The Language Line service costs approximately $25,000-$35,000 per year, which is paid for from the Telecom budget.

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Customer Service also has a procedure in place that allows LEP individuals to file Title VI service-related complaints. NJ TRANSIT Title VI Notice to Beneficiaries, including information about how to file a Title VI complaint, is posted on www.njtransit.com. NJ TRANSIT’s experience with LEP individuals is reflected in the use of the Language Line service it employs. The data shows that approximately 94 percent of NJ TRANSIT customers who needed the use of Language Line interpretation during the past year were Spanish speakers. This is followed by French, Portuguese and Mandarin at nearly 1 percent of Language Line use each, with other languages using approximately one half of one percent or less of the Language Line services available.

NJ TRANSIT LANGUAGE LINE USE AND CHARGES

7/1/2013 - 6/30/2014

Total Total Avg Length % of Total Undiscounted

Language Minutes Calls of Call Minutes Charges

SPANISH 20447 2622 7.8 93.2% $32,715.20 FRENCH 234 25 9.6 1.1% $374.40 PORTUGUESE 143 22 6.5 0.6% $228.80 MANDARIN 230 19 12.8 1.0% $368.00 ARABIC 160 15 11.5 0.7% $256.00 KOREAN 167 15 9.6 0.8% $267.20 VIETNAMESE 73 10 7.5 0.3% $116.80 RUSSIAN 89 9 8.8 0.4% $142.40 HINDI 73 7 10.4 0.3% $116.80 ITALIAN 53 6 8.6 0.2% $84.80 TURKISH 41 6 7.2 0.1% $65.60 GERMAN 47 5 10.1 0.2% $75.20 JAPANESE 26 3 9.3 0.1% $41.60 POLISH 22 3 7.3 0.1% $35.20 THAI 34 2 17 0.1% $54.40 TAGALOG 9 2 4.5 0.0% $14.40 SLOVAK 24 1 24 0.1% $38.40 ALBANIAN 19 1 19 0.0% $30.40 TAIWANESE 14 1 14 0.0% $22.40 PUNJABI 10 1 10 0.0% $16.00 ROMANIAN 10 1 10 0.0% $16.00 GUJARATI 6 1 6 0.0% $9.60 BENGALI 5 1 5 0.0% $8.00 CZECH 5 1 5 0.0% $8.00 CAMBODIAN 4 1 4 0.0% $6.40 Languages: 25 21945 2780 9.8 $35,112.00

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Public Information & Corporate Communications NJ TRANSIT’s Public Information unit oversees and facilitates all agency-related communication with the news media, customers and employees, as well as with the general public. Staff is responsible for media relations, social media, special events, launch of new services, customer communications, internal communications, and information regarding service delivery through television, radio, website, mobile devices and print news services.

• The Press Office regularly issued press releases to media outlets in New Jersey, as well as the Philadelphia and New York metropolitan areas to keep the public aware of conditions that may have affected their service. These releases were sent to Spanish-language media outlets to broaden our reach to this population. In addition, upon request, NJ TRANSIT had a Spanish speaking Public Information Officer conduct on-camera and telephone interviews to disseminate information for broadcasts. Staff also assisted with Spanish translations for materials regarding Homeland Security, public hearings, Tap<Ride, bus tickets and many promotional materials.

• The Customer Communications unit developed several customer notices in other

languages to communicate critical service changes, construction impacts, elevator outages, and other issues that may have affected customers while traveling on our transit system.

Surveys Conducted in Spanish Fiscal Year Survey Survey Dates

2012

Interstate and Private Bus Study for Bus Routes: 63, 64, 67, 68, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 120, 121, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 151, 153, 154, 159, 161, 166, 167, 168, 177, 188, 198, 320 Fall 2011

2014 Intercity Bus Study: Routes 313, 135, 317, 319 Jan 17-25, 2014 2014 Bus Route 655 May 7, 2014 2014 Main/Bergen County & Pascack Valley Rail O&D Fall 2013

2014 Customer Satisfaction Survey Q1FY14 Aug 12-Aug 30, 2013

2014 Customer Satisfaction Survey Q2FY14 Nov 11-Dec 3, 2013

2014 Customer Satisfaction Survey Q3FY14 Feb 17-Mar 10, 2014

2014 Customer Satisfaction Survey Q4FY14 May 5-May 26, 2014 2015 Customer Satisfaction Survey Q1FY15 Aug 11-Sept 1, 2014

2015 Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast Line, Raritan Valley Rail O&D Fall 2014

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Scorecard Customer Satisfaction Survey

Launched in 2011, the quarterly Scorecard customer satisfaction survey is NJ TRANSIT’s innovative management and reporting tool, focusing on five strategic areas: Customer Experience, Financial Performance, Corporate Accountability, Safety & Security and Employee Excellence. The survey asks customers to rate NJ TRANSIT on a scale of 0 (unacceptable) to 10 (excellent) on various attributes of the system. As part of the survey, customers also are asked to identify the three most important aspects of NJ TRANSIT service among the items they rated. To participate, customers visit njtransit.com and complete a survey about their experience using NJ TRANSIT. The survey is available to users in English and Spanish. NJ TRANSIT uses the data collected in customer satisfaction surveys and internal reporting to drive its business decisions. NJ TRANSIT posts its survey results online to maintain transparency and help customers and taxpayers track Scorecard’s progress.

Focus Groups

NJ TRANSIT often uses focus groups as a way of understanding detailed opinions of our riders on a variety of issues. The use of focus groups enables complex concepts to be explained and opinions explored in depth. Issues we have researched in the past with focus groups include communications campaigns, seating options for vehicles, testing of the MyTix app, and many others. When appropriate, focus groups are conducted in Spanish. For example, in June 2014, a focus group project was conducted to document public engagement in the development of NJ TRANSIT’s major service change, disparate impact, and disproportionate burden policies as required by Title VI. One focus group for this project was conducted in Spanish.

“We Are Listening” Customer Forums

NJ TRANSIT regularly hosts “We Are Listening” forums, to give customers the opportunity to interact with senior management and operations personnel. The forums are held at major rail stations and bus terminals served by NJ TRANSIT. NJ TRANSIT conducts the forums to give customers the opportunity to speak directly to NJ TRANSIT general managers of operations and senior level staff. Customers are encouraged to stop by with any questions they may have and to offer any feedback about their commuting experiences. Customer feedback gathered through the forums, as well as through quarterly customer surveys, is an important part of NJ TRANSIT’s Scorecard initiative to provide the public with a clear measurement of how the corporation is performing. The feedback is used to target specific improvements to boost customer satisfaction.

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Marketing

NJ TRANSIT’s Marketing Division promotes transit services and company initiatives to increase awareness of NJ TRANSIT’s services and improve customer satisfaction and the overall travel experience for its customers. A number of campaigns contained bi-lingual communication materials to broaden the reach to audiences and supplement information that was available in English. Marketing staff determines the communities’ demographics based on LEP population reports and selects languages to use in the campaign. Many campaigns included brochures, equipment posters, newspaper and internet ads, radio spots, social media, digital displays and other materials. Audiences were directed to go to NJ TRANSIT’s website for more detailed information on the promotion and/or service. The website enabled visitors to translate copy in multiple languages. Some examples of campaigns that contained other languages include:

• The campaign for the Pennsauken Transit Center, which opened in fall 2013 and connects the Atlantic City Rail Line with the River LINE light rail system, included bi-lingual promotional materials that were distributed within the surrounding community. Outreach to local residents included an English/Spanish brochure and door hanger with a free trial ride offer.

• Technology advancements to improve communications with customers were regularly promoted. Three brochures – One Trip at a Time, Keeping You Mobile and Reaching Out – were created in English/Spanish to reach more customers. Materials included highlights on the benefits of using MyBus, MyLight Rail, My Transit Alerts, DepartureVision, Facebook, Twitter, WiFi and more.

• Bi-lingual promotional materials were developed to increase awareness of seasonal services such as Six Flags Great Adventure, Monmouth Park Racetrack, Mountain Creek Resort and New Jersey’s shore communities. Materials also promoted service to New York City to attend shows at Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Garden, the theater district, and other popular destinations in New York and New Jersey during the winter.

• Light Rail Guides were created in English/Spanish for the Newark Light Rail, Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and River LINE light rail systems to provide customers with information on their specific light rail service, common operational conditions, ticket purchases, safety and security, as well as courtesy tips. A Bus Rider Guide is in development and will include Spanish.

• Campaigns for Southern New Jersey bus and light rail services were designed to increase ridership on those services and included bi-lingual materials such as bus posters and informational brochures.

• Spanish Scorecard Surveys were introduced by Market Research staff during 2013 to enable more customers to take quarterly performance surveys. Flyers and business cards communicating its availability in Spanish were distributed to customers system-wide at the beginning of each survey period.

• On-going Homeland Security campaign materials were created in Spanish and included newspaper ads, radio spots, equipment posters, several brochures and flyers which were distributed by NJ TRANSIT’s Police Department in communities adjacent to our service areas.

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Public Hearings Whenever there are public hearings, public notices are placed in daily newspapers on a weekday in the areas affected.

• When there is a statewide fare increase or service change proposal, notices are published in approximately16 local and statewide newspapers that reach a geographically diverse population, including two Spanish and one Portuguese language newspapers in accordance with NJ TRANSIT’s LAP plan.

• When the proposal only affects part of the state, notices are published in newspapers in the areas affected and the surrounding areas, including one Spanish language newspaper.

The public hearing notice is posted on NJ TRANSIT's website, which has Google translate capability to facilitate translation into languages other than English. The public hearing notice is posted in all stations and terminals and on vehicles on affected routes. Additionally, in the future the Spanish versions will be posted in all stations and terminals. Staff considers the populations affected, vehicle notice space and cost considerations in determining whether additional Spanish language notices will be posted in the vehicles. The public hearing notice includes text that provides contact information if an individual needs a translator, sign language interpreter or other accommodation to participate in the public hearing.

Police Procedures

When NJ TRANSIT police personnel encounter an LEP individual, they can use the NJ TRANSIT Language Line service for translation if necessary. The Police Department also maintains a list of staff proficient in various languages, including Russian, Polish, Italian, Spanish, Creole, and Korean. These staff people are asked to provide translation when necessary. The Police Department also participates in a mutual aid database with other law enforcement agencies. Through this database, law enforcement agencies can become aware of the closest police officer with a particular language specialty/certification and exchange translation services. This service is used with regard to crime investigation.

Use of Bilingual Staff

NJ TRANSIT departments are aware of the language resources that exist within their staffs. Staff who are fluent in both English and another language are occasionally called upon to provide translation services when necessary and cost-effective. Many of these staff members are called upon to assist customers attending events where there could be a large LEP constituent.

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Bus and Rail Front Line Employee Training and Spanish Phrasebook

NJ TRANSIT’s customer service training programs for train crews and bus operators includes modules on interacting with LEP persons. In addition, rail and bus front line employees are provided with a booklet of Spanish translation of commonly used phrases to assist employees in communicating with Spanish-speaking riders.

Safety Education

NJ TRANSIT provides safety education presentations to students in Grades PreK-12 and community groups, and conducts community outreach to inform residents of safety concerns near rail and light rail tracks, as well as around buses. While school presentations were conducted in English, certain materials were created in English and Spanish to reach targeted audiences. Some examples include materials with bus safety tips and crossing gate safety.

Reducing the Use of the Written Word

The use of pictures and symbols in place of words are helpful in communicating with LEP persons. NJ TRANSIT has made efforts in recent years to reduce the use of words on many important communication pieces, including maps and timetables. Maps posted in stations now feature as few words as possible and many signs contain International symbols to guide customers. Directional signs include symbols after copy to help customers understand the message. For example, when directional signage reads “Stairs to Platform” a stair and train symbol is included after the copy. When directing customers to the Ticket Office, restrooms, ADA accessible spaces or other locations, the applicable symbol is included after each message. Much of the wording on bus timetables has been eliminated, with additional information provided through a rider guide. In this way, the timetable can be used to extract the important information (times and places) without the need for English proficiency. In moving toward a more iconic and less verbal form of communication, we launched several new initiatives. We developed many new icons for bus schedules that impart visual information to customers without the need of language and added a bicycle icon to our rail timetables to show which trains are accessible to customers traveling with bicycles. Additionally, we introduced a new fare gate access procedure at Newark Liberty International Airport Station using photographic images to illustrate the three-step process.

NJ TRANSIT Subrecipients and LEP Persons

All subrecipients are informed of federal LEP requirements and monitored on a regular basis to ensure that they are compliant. The extent of each subrecipients’ need to communicate with LEP individuals will be driven by the demographics in their service areas, or of their ridership (in the case of client-based services). NJ TRANSIT will provide appropriate technical assistance to subrecipients located in areas with LEP needs.

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SUMMARY

NJ TRANSIT is committed to ensuring that transit services and information can be accessed by all citizens of New Jersey, including those with Limited English Proficiency. NJ TRANSIT has a long-standing record of reaching out to communities in languages other than English, particularly Spanish but also other languages and developing communication tools to ensure that LEP customers are aware of services and information. This plan identifies areas in the State where populations of people with Low English Proficiency are concentrated. Using the maps in this plan, NJ TRANSIT will further refine its existing efforts to reach out to LEP populations to ensure that they have full access to the transit system. In this plan, NJ TRANSIT reviewed its current activities and programs to make transit service and transit information available to LEP persons. NJ TRANSIT also reached out to community groups to determine whether any specific gaps exist in this area. Other than suggesting more bilingual staff, the community groups did not identify any specific gaps in the area of communication with LEP persons. NJ TRANSIT is committed to refining and improving its communication and the accessibility of transit to LEP persons. This plan and analysis will be reviewed and updated every two years.