Why are all these photos and videos being taken and released by TTC Customers?
The answer to this question is simply customer frustration. Customers call and complain to the TTC Customer service, presuming it is open, and nothing happens. About three months ago I complained to both YRT and the TTC about the Route 107B near my workplace in Vaughan. The TTC is contracted by YRT to provide an extended TTC Route 107B north into York Region. I received a phone call from a "Sarah" from TTC who promised to look into it and get back to me with a solution. Three months later I haven't heard back from Sarah.
I've since complained back to both YRT, TTC and my Regional Councillor Aurora Mayor Phyllis Morris with no result. The TTC 107B 75% of the time will not come on its scheduled time. This despite the TTC and YRT both looking into it. YRT claims it is a TTC issue and there is nothing they can do about it as the TTC sets the schedule and they don't. Phyllis Morris has tried and doesn't seem to be getting very far with either YRT or the TTC. All I get in return is dumb answers like "the bus is considered to be on time if it arrives within 10 minutes of its scheduled arrival time". Um...so that means if the bus comes consistantly 10 minutes after it's scheduled time YRT and the TTC don't consider this to be an issue? So with that excellent example of "Customer Service" YRT and the TTC provided on this it is no surprise TTC customers are getting a little agitated. To make matters worse, the TTC just raised fares at the beginning of January.
Another issue of forwarding issues to Transit agencies is what the reply is back. That is presuming you get a reply back from the Transit agency. I've made a couple of complaints about YRT Drivers and YRT Transit inspectors, who follow up on customer complaints, either try and defend their driver or the reply is the transit driver denied it. This either ends in the YRT Customer thinking "why did I even bother reporting this?" to complete aggravation with steam coming from Customer's ears. I have experienced both of these. It seems transit agencies have very few people who have the wherewithal and energy to actually investigate the customers complaint instead of writing it off as frivolous. The "frivolous" attitude results in the transit customer being aggravated and not wanting to deal with idiotic customer service people at the transit agency again. Those that work and follow up the transit complaints actually ensure customers get reasonable action taken and a fully informed answer back.
However, there is a way customers can prove their point to the transit agency or at least ensure issues get attention. This is by taking photos or videos of offences like the ones referenced above. I've actually completed an example of this back in June 2007. This example provides all the possibilities that transit agencies use to wriggle themselves out of a driver issue:
On Saturday July 16th I boarded a northbound VIVA Blue Bus at Finch Station. At the station on the platform within a couple weeks of York Region Transit posting on their website no smoking is permitted at any YRT transit terminal (which Finch Subway station is a major one for YRT) was one of their drivers reading a newspaper and smoking. I did have my 10 megapixel digital camera with me and snapped a photo for evidence.
Once I returned home I forwarded the photo in an e-mail to a YRT Transit Inspector I had dealt with very positively in the past with. In the e-mail I also noted that two By-laws that were being contravened (York Region's and GO Transit's). Basically I provided YRT with a pretty open and shut case.
A few days later I received a response from the YRT Transit Inspector over the phone. He called to say that Veiolia, the YRT contractor that operates VIVA for York Region had followed up with the driver. The driver was pulled into a meeting with her supervisor.
The Veolia supervisor asked the driver if she was smoking at the Finch Station. The driver denied that she was. This is the typical "deny, deny, deny..." excuse that transit agencies give you when making a complaint. Note: This excuse is removed with photo or video evidence as it is tough to deny photo or video evidence that is contradictory.
The supervisor then opened the above photo and asked again if the driver was smoking a the transit agency terminal. Obviously there was no denying it a second time and an admission of guilt was provided.
The YRT Transit inspector also applauded me for providing such good detail in my original e-mail in terms of providing both GO Transit's By-law (Finch Station is a GO Transit Terminal) and York Region's No Smoking at YRT Terminals and Bus stops. All he had to do was forward the issue off to Veolia for follow up.
Obviously without the photo the above complaint would have been denied by the driver and Veolia and YRT would have provided the "this is a he said she said" type of scenario. This would have left me angry and wondering "why did I even bother reporting this?" But this was not the case all because a photo was taken.
In the case of the sleeping TTC Token Booth Collector and others, the TTC cannot deny these issues never happened and that customers are making this up because of the photo and video evidence.
But finally the worst about the customer service is the investigation and follow up. In the case of the TTC, they jjust bury the issue and hope it will go away eventually. This is proven in the case of the TTC Sleeping Token clerk:
TTC spokesman Brad Ross said officials will conduct an internal investigation and take appropriate action but the public will likely never know the outcome.
"It's not something that we would share publicly anyways, it's a personnel matter," Ross said. "I don't think the TTC is unusual in that."
So in other words the TTC is officially saying they will investigate the issue and might do something but the TTC will not release an answer as to what action may have been taken to discipline the worker in question (read: suspension or dismissal). So this leaves the TTC customers asking themselves: "how do we know the TTC has investigated and dealt with this issue if we never hear of any results from complaints like this?" This question only further leads to the usual "why do we bother", anger and the belief that all TTC complaints end up in the "TTC's black hole of Customer Service".
It is no wonder TTC Customers are taking photos of TTC Workers' trangressions on the job. TTC Customers are frustrated at the fare increase, service disruptions and, as TTC General Manager Gary Webster put it in a memo to employees: "The culture of complacency and malaise that has seeped into our organization...". Since the TTC has obviously failed their riders in terms of customer service, riders have begun to turn elsewhere. Thus, TTC Customers have turned to the ultimate customer service agency found in this era, the internet. So if the TTC Customer Service wishes to deny, dismiss and obfusticate their way through this mess, photos, videos and other such media will only appear more and more online. This will only lead the media, like the Toronto Star and the Toronto Sun to do what they do best. That is to hold public officials to account for what is going on by asking the hard questions. Sadly, it is only when agencies like the TTC are embarassed into action that they start moving to resolve issues.
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