Mackensen
Lead Service Attendant
Amtrak customer service takes a lot of criticism; some deserved and some not. I suspect most regulars would criticize it for being uneven. I think a related issue is that the nature of train travel, especially long-distance travel, requires more interaction with personnel than flying or taking the bus. Flying, you deal with the gate agent and the attendant. Personally, I've only had truly poor interactions with two groups of employees: station staff (I almost listed Chicago separately) and customer service agents. I've had mostly positive interactions with OBS personnel and entirely positive with SCAs. Is there one group that really needs improving or are there across the board issues?
Here's my beef about Chicago. Anyone who's even traveled in coach out of the south concourse knows what I'm talking about and doesn't need to read any further. It's a nightmare down there. Mid-afternoon there isn't enough space to hold all the people departing, and this is compounded by about one quarter of the concourse being reserved for staging the elderly, disabled, parents with children, and business class travelers. This area is never even close to capacity, and by the time the gate people actually announce a train (a) it's too crowded for people to reach the area and (b) it's impossible to hear announcements anyway. Well before boarding time a line will form for no purpose, which then stretches out beyond the bathrooms into the ticket area, causing even more traffic problems but serving no other purpose. I've never seen an employee try to restore order, though I've seen many stand around.
Second beef about Chicago, and I know I'm not alone in this experience. Last May, the wife and I were coming in on the Builder from Seattle. This was before the line closed permanently (obviously) but there were speed restrictions on the Devils Lake subdivision because of earlier flooding. That, freight interference around Minot and a medical emergency in Fargo caused a 4-hour delay and we missed the Wolverine back to Michigan. It was obvious for hours that we would be late and connections would be missed. A passenger service representative came aboard in Wisconsin to work out details and help people make plans. We were to be bused. This was all fine and orderly. On arriving in Chicago, late, you got the impression that the station personnel had never heard of such things as late trains and bus connections. It was very unclear where we were to go, and it was over an hour before the "bus" (a 12-passenger van) was ready to actually take us somewhere. From the time I got off the train in Chicago till the time I boarded the van I didn't feel like the personnel had control of the situation. I shouldn't ever get that feeling, especially when there was nothing sudden about our delay.
Here's my beef about Chicago. Anyone who's even traveled in coach out of the south concourse knows what I'm talking about and doesn't need to read any further. It's a nightmare down there. Mid-afternoon there isn't enough space to hold all the people departing, and this is compounded by about one quarter of the concourse being reserved for staging the elderly, disabled, parents with children, and business class travelers. This area is never even close to capacity, and by the time the gate people actually announce a train (a) it's too crowded for people to reach the area and (b) it's impossible to hear announcements anyway. Well before boarding time a line will form for no purpose, which then stretches out beyond the bathrooms into the ticket area, causing even more traffic problems but serving no other purpose. I've never seen an employee try to restore order, though I've seen many stand around.
Second beef about Chicago, and I know I'm not alone in this experience. Last May, the wife and I were coming in on the Builder from Seattle. This was before the line closed permanently (obviously) but there were speed restrictions on the Devils Lake subdivision because of earlier flooding. That, freight interference around Minot and a medical emergency in Fargo caused a 4-hour delay and we missed the Wolverine back to Michigan. It was obvious for hours that we would be late and connections would be missed. A passenger service representative came aboard in Wisconsin to work out details and help people make plans. We were to be bused. This was all fine and orderly. On arriving in Chicago, late, you got the impression that the station personnel had never heard of such things as late trains and bus connections. It was very unclear where we were to go, and it was over an hour before the "bus" (a 12-passenger van) was ready to actually take us somewhere. From the time I got off the train in Chicago till the time I boarded the van I didn't feel like the personnel had control of the situation. I shouldn't ever get that feeling, especially when there was nothing sudden about our delay.