Jim Puffalt, the new director of Saskatoon Transit, said he is excited to step into the role during months of change.
“We are going to change how we currently do business, one in which we funnel the neighbourhood routes into the BRT,” Puffalt said. “We will have spine routes that are on a very quick system and then the neighbourhood routes will funnel into that.”
Puffalt was the city manager of Moose Jaw for five years before taking on the new role in Saskatoon.
“As a city manager, you are bringing in that global view of things and that big picture thinking and so to enable a city to run over 200 services, you have to make sure there are effective systems in place. A normal person that worked up through transit may not have marketing, economic development and strategic planning. Those are all of the skill sets that I bring.”
Puffalt said as city staff work to get the new system up and running, they want to make sure it will be an enjoyable experience for the transit riders.
“We want to make sure we are on time, the bus stops are nice and clean, the buses are clean, we get you where you need to go.”
The group is working with an auditor’s report that was released highlighting the shortfalls of the city’s current system.
“We have not missed service since last October and that’s a long time,” Puffalt said. “It’s a great opportunity when you have some outside eyes looking in and saying ‘Try to look at how you are doing your business.'”
Puffalt said they are still addressing the auditor’s recommendations.
“It’s a roadmap that we have been given to correct and become better at what we do.”
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