Staff Report #6
October 30, 2019
To All Commissioners
Re: 2019 Work Program – Fleet & Facilities – Third Quarter Update
Recommendation
The report be NOTED and FILED.
Background
The following report is provided as an update on major projects as set out in the 2019 Work Program that are ongoing in nature and were scheduled to commence and/or to be completed in the third quarter, with the lead on same being the primary responsibility of Fleet & Facilities.
Facility Upgrades – Highbury & Wonderland Facility
The upgrades included in the 2019 capital program relate to both facilities. Projects included in the facility upgrade capital program are intended to ensure the facilities are maintained in a state of good repair as well as to address any issues identified by the Occupational Health and Safety Committee.
Projects that were completed in the third quarter include:
- Concrete floor replacement in C Barn (Highbury)
- Lighting upgrades/replacement (Highbury)
- Painting at both facilities
- Stairs and railing replacement on roof top of A&B barn (Highbury)
- Painting of the ticket office
The remainder of the 2019 projects include:
- Column repairs through-out both barns at the Highbury facility
Remaining Capital Programs relating to Asset Management
Projects included in the Shop/Garage Equipment program which have been completed include:
- High temperature exhaust vent reels for 19 and 20 hoist
- Replacement of security cameras around the facility that were no longer functional
- Ongoing replacement of tools and specialty tools for changing bus applications
- Rolling stairs for each facility to aid with bus repair
Service Fleet Replacement:
- Bus Expansion/Replacement programs have commenced. The first seven buses have been received, one has been placed into service and the others are currently being outfitted. The remainder of the fleet will have a final delivery date of November. All buses are planned to be in service by the start of the first quarter in 2020.
Ministry of Transportation Regulatory Amendments
A standing item on the annual Work Program is the monitoring and compliance with all Ministry of Transportation (MTO) regulations and amendments. The MTO has changed their practice on required MTO inspection audits for all commercial sites. As of January 2019 the MTO maintains an ongoing updated list of vehicles in the London Transit fleet, broken down by each facility. Given there is no advance notice of audits, there was historically no way to know which facility the buses that were selected by MTO for audit would be. This list helps the MTO streamline the auditing process, and allows the officers to complete their audit with fewer disruptions to service. The Wonderland facility had an audit performed by MTO in September with no defects or safety violations reported.
Process Review Management – Night Shift Review
As part of the annual Process Review Management initiative included in every year’s work program, a review of the night shift operations at the Highbury facility was scheduled to be undertaken. The review was intended to assess the various tasks completed on the night shift in the Fleet and Facilities department relating to the preparation and maintenance of buses for next service day.
The review was undertaken in cooperation with the ATU Executive, and as a first step, each employee on the shift was interviewed by the Committee, with the focus of the questions being on the culture on the shift, whether the workload is manageable, suggestions for improvements on the shift, the perceived level of mutual respect between co-workers on the shift, work processes or rules that could be changed to result in improvements on the shift. A follow-up meeting with the shift was held with the Committee to provide a status update on the process, as well as to review the key themes and provide employees with the opportunity to provide additional feedback. In addition, a number of possible suggestions for improvements were discussed with the employee group and additional feedback was gathered.
The Committee is currently finalizing the summary report, which will include recommendations to address the concerns identified. It is anticipated the final recommendations, subject to approval of the General Manager, will be implemented by the end of December.
Recommended by:
Craig Morneau, Director of Fleet & Facilities
Concurred in by:
Kelly S. Paleczny, General Manager