Wichita Transit Advisory Board

Wichita Transit Advisory Board Meeting Minutes •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• June 17, 2026, at 10 a.m. Wichita Transit, Building 200 – Conference Room 777 E. Waterman St. Wichita, KS 67202 Attendance • Members present – Heather Schroeder, Justin Shore, John Oswald, Diana Edmiston, John Crane, Dominic Saiki, Chris Stanyer (remote), Susie Santo (remote), Michelle Gifford (remote), and Emily Martin (remote) • Members absent – Jason Jantz, Nick Hoheisel and Adam DeGraffenreid • Staff present – Penny Feist, Stephanie Friess, Steve Smart, Raven Alexander, Kason Lauber, Elgin Earl, and Kelly Broxterman (remote) • Public attendees – Eddie Ulloa, Francie Foster, Andrew Crane, Tim, and Harley Anderson (remote) Approval of Meeting Minutes • Vice Chair Schroeder motioned to approve the May Meeting Minutes and Member Saiki seconded the motion. The May Meeting Minutes were approved. Public Comments • Member Saiki shared the Public Comment shared from District 1, citizen Jessie Little: Good afternoon, I am very concerned about the change to Route 28. It barely serviced the Northeast area, and now it is changing to only run up Grove. It currently goes up Grove to 21st, turns on Minnesota and goes up to 25th street all the way to Hillside. Is the new schedule set in stone already? I think they should continue doing the turn onto 21st and then to Minnesota, they can then turn back onto Grove. Wichitatransit.org  Director Feist responded to the comment: We are reviewing all comments and adjusting where possible in August. It is important to remember the goal of the redesign was to be more widely accessible to all members of the community. Discussion Items • Transit Service Quality Performance Survey Questions/Comments: 1. Chair Shore – Are we differentiating between bus stops and routes? This will be updated. 2. Member Oswald – How will we share the survey? There will be a paper survey, posted on FB and the WT Website. 3. Member Crane – Use a QR code and post when riders get on the bus, they can take the survey. 4. Vice Chair – Ease of Ridership and how easy or difficult it is to pay. 5. Member Crane – Can we make it easier for families to ride by placing the stroller in the front of the bus? This is something we can look into although can be a challenge when we need to keep aisle clear. This will be reviewed on Safety Meeting Agenda this week. 6. Chair Shore – Ask how riders are utilizing the bus. Director Feist’s Report • Directors Report Questions/Comments: 1. Member Crane – Could the Customer Clerk position be a volunteer position? We would have to look into the requirements for having a volunteer position. 2. Chair Shore – Would like to know the back story of why the TC was moved to The Hub. The main idea of the move was to provide more accessibility to all members of community. 3. Vice Chair Schroeder – Is Greyhound still providing service at the TC? Yes, they are still at this location and will be moving in August to The Hub once the contract is completed. 4. Member Oswald – Would it be difficult to sell Greyhound tickets at The Hub. The model for Greyhound is to purchase tickets online. 5. Vice-Chair Schroeder – Are there signs indicating there are no public restrooms for Greyhound guests? There are not signs posted with this message. Wichitatransit.org  6. Vice-Chair Schroeder – Remind everyone how vital it is to have a transit service in the downtown area. 7. Member Santo – Amtrak is coming to the area; do we have a plan how to connect public transportation and Amtrack. 8. Member Edmiston – She has used Greyhound in the past and had an awful experience, she wants to remind people to be cautious of who we partner with and remember the issues that they have will come to us. 9. Member Crane – Think about how we will utilize transit services with Amtrak. 10. Member Crane – Is there any grants available for marketing, this would help with ridership. We will be meeting with marketing firms next week. 11. Vice Chair Schroeder – Could commit some of their marketing dollars to promote transit. 12. Vice Chair Schroeder – What is the local match? 13. Q-Line will end in August; we need to let riders know that they can use other buses to get to Douglas. Proposing that Rt. 24 will be fare-free. A cost recovery conversation will need to happen to assist with this. 14. Member Crane – All people need to experience a bus ride in this town from The Hub and around town. 15. Member Stanyer – He is excited about the circulator and appreciates all the work going into it. He has a question about the identity of the circulator. Would it be possible to get sponsorships to help pay for making the circulator something special? This is something that can be looked into. 16. Vice Chair Schroeder – look into sponsorship levels for the business community. Old/New Business No business to discuss. Announcements • Emily Martin shared that the brochures on the routes that pertain to the University were very helpful for the incoming students. Adjournment • Member Saiki motioned to adjourn. The next WTAB meeting will meet on July 15, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. at the current location. Wichitatransit.org