Transit receives more complaints

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This article was published 04/10/2010 (5489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG – Complaints to Winnipeg Transit shot up by more than 50 per cent last year over the year before, while the number of calls praising Transit dropped over the same time frame.

But Transit officials say the increase is due to the city’s 311 contact centre, introduced at the start of last year, and say it shows the system is working.

Praise and pans from bus riders are tallied up annually by the city’s transit system. The vast majority of complaints and commendations relates to bus drivers, but they can also involve things such as bus routes, shelters or advertising, among other subjects.

Alhough the statistics fluctuate year to year, 2009 saw more than 5,700 complaints received, about 2,000 more than the year before. The number of reports ultimately dubbed “unfounded” or those deemed straightforward inquiries also rose. Reports of praise, meanwhile, dipped by about 300 over the same period.

“I think the bulk of the increases is probably, or more than likely, due to 311,” said Barry Strike, manager of customer service for Winnipeg Transit. “They’re open 24/7, so people have a lot more opportunity to give us feedback.”

The drop in commendations is “a bit of a concern,” said Strike, but he pointed out that figure jumped significantly a few years ago.

The introduction of 311 has also changed the way calls to Transit are dealt with, said Strike. In the past, some calls — say, a person reporting his or her bus arrived a couple of minutes early — might have been dealt with on the spot, with no report prepared. But all calls now go through 311’s call centre. That means every call results in a report, and every report is then dealt with by Transit.

 

lindsey.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca