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WEBVTT ATTENTION OF THE PUBLICTRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY.>> DES MOINES' PUBLIC TRANSITFOUND ITSELF A NEW RIDER, MEGANSAPON-AMOAH.>> I DECIDED, WELL HEY.I ONLY LIVE 3 IN A HALF MILESAWAY FROM WORK.WHY DON'T I TAKE THE BUS ANDEXPERIENCE IT FOR MYSELF? REPORTER: THE OAK PARKELEMENTARY TEACHER SAYS HERSTUDENTS AND THEIR PARENTS TELLHER ABOUT THE STRUGGLES OF USINGDART.SO SHE DECIDED TO CHECK IT OUTFOR HERSELF.AND SHE TOOK TO SNAPCHAT TODOCUMENT HER TRIP, STARTING INTHE 4700 BLOCK OF DOUGLASAVENUE.>> I ENDED UP WAITING ABOUT 20MINUTES, AND I JUST STARTED TO,YOU KNOW, REALIZE THEFRUSTRATIONS THAT I'VE HEARD ALOT OF PEOPLE EXPRESS.>> FROM THERE THERE WERE STOPS,TRANSFERS AND LOTS OF WALKINGALONG THE WAY.>> BY THE TIME I GOT TO OAK PARKELEMENTARY, IT TOOK ME ONE HOURAND 34 MINUTES TO GET THERE.>> HER 7 MILE ROUND TRIP, ENDEDUP TAKING JUST A LITTLE MORETHAN 3 HOURS.DART OFFICIALS HEARD ABOUTSAPON-AMOAH'S TRIP ON FACEBOOK,AND SAY THESE ARE CONCERNSTHEY'VE HEARD FROM OTHER RIDERS.>> AMANDA WANKE/DART CHIEF-- >> WE NEED MORE SERVICES INMORE PLACES, SO THAT MEANSSOMEONE NEEDS A STOP CLOSER TOTHEIR HOME OR THEIR WORK, THATTHEY NEED LONGER HOURS AND THEYNEED THE BUS TO COME MORE OFTEN.NOW DART AND SAPON-AMOAH ARE-- REPORTER: NOW DART ANDSAPON-AMOAH ARE TEAMING UP,MEETING NEXT WEEK TO TALK ABOUTSOLUTIONS.>> I AM ACTUALLY VERY EXCITEDTHAT AMANDA FROM DART REACHEDOUT TO ME.>> AND SHE IS HOPING HEREXPERIENCE, WILL HELP THOSE WITHLIMITED OPPORTUNITIES.>> I HAVE THE OPTION TO GO OUTAND RIDE THE BUS OR WALK ORDRIVE A CAR, BUT NOT EVERYBODYHAS THAT CHOICE.AND SO FOR SOME, THE ONLY CHOICE

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A Des Moines Public Schools teacher is riding a mile in her students’ shoes by taking public transportation to and from school to prove a point. Along the way, Megan Sapon-Amoah, a teacher at Oak Park Elementary School, documented the nearly three-hour round trip. She said she has heard concerns from her students and parents about Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority, or DART. So she decided to try it out for herself and caught the attention of the public transportation authority. "I decided, well, hey, I only live 3 1/2 miles away from work. Why don't I take the bus and experience it for myself?” Sapon-Amoah said. She said her students and their parents tell her about the struggles of using DART. So she decided to check it out for herself. And she took to the social media app Snapchat to document her trip, starting in the 4700 block of Douglas Avenue. "I ended up waiting about 20 minutes, and I just started to, you know, realize the frustrations that I've heard a lot of people express,” she said. There were stops, transfers and lots of walking along the way. "By the time I got to Oak Park Elementary (School), it took me one hour and 34 minutes to get there,” she said. Her 7-mile round trip ended up taking a little more than three hours. DART officials heard about Sapon-Amoah's trip on Facebook and said these are concerns they've heard from other riders. "We need more services in more places, so that means someone needs a stop closer to their home or their work, that they need longer hours and they need the bus to come more often,” said Amanda Wanke, DART chief communications officer. Now DART and Sapon-Amoah are teaming up and meeting next week to talk about solutions. "I am actually very excited that Amanda from DART reached out to me,” Sapon-Amoah said. She is hoping her experience will help those with limited opportunities. "I have the option to go out and ride the bus or walk or drive a car, but not everybody has that choice. And so for some, the only choice is to ride the bus,” Sapon-Amoah said. DART said it hears riders loud and clear but needs to find additional funding to increase services. Despite the challenges of her trip, Sapon-Amoah is encouraging others to ride the bus because more riders means more funding.