Transit ambassadors for IndyGo teach people how to ride the bus, answer their questions and represent IndyGo at community events. In return, these volunteers get a $60 monthly stipend and a free bus pass.
IndyGo is recruiting transit ambassadors, and will host a training 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 30, with dinner provided, at the Julia M. Carson Transit Center, 201 E. Washington St. To attend, first apply to become a transit ambassador with this form.
Volunteers are required to do at least six hours of outreach each month. That could mean staffing a table at an event, teaching people how to use public transit or riding the bus to answer questions and update people on detours and route changes. On the job, ambassadors wear IndyGo apparel, so riders know who to approach with questions.
The best transit ambassador is, “someone who’s interested in really building camaraderie and community with other transit riders,” said Kayla Bledsoe, an outreach specialist who recruits and trains volunteers.
Bledsoe became an outreach specialist in May, after volunteering as a transit ambassador for a year and a half. She will lead the July 30 training alongside other ambassadors. IndyGo has space for up to 20 transit ambassadors.
IndyGo is also looking for people who are comfortable talking to new people, are bilingual in Spanish or Haitian Creole and have experience riding the bus – or an interest in learning how to ride the bus.
Bledsoe was a transit ambassador for a year and a half. Earlier this year, she and an interpreter represented IndyGo at the Haitian Association of Indiana’s resource fair. She and the interpreter taught people who had recently arrived in the U.S., and didn’t have drivers’ licenses, how to ride the bus.
After the resource fair, Bledsoe said the volunteer interpreter decided to ride the bus regularly and train to become a transit ambassador.
If you have questions or concerns or need special accommodations at the July 30 training, contact Bledsoe at kayla.bledsoe@indygo.net.
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