Just an idea

[had8ley]

I guess if I were an OBS manager I would see e-mail as a double-edged sword. Sending an e-mail certainly requires less effort than typing and printing out a letter, addressing an envelope, applying a stamp and putting it in the mail. That scenario would seem to lessen the amount of concerns sent in. On the other hand, an e-mail can be quickly responded to with a reply e-mail. In theory (and I stress "theory") this could result in quicker replies and better customer service. Granted, the OBS managers might have to deal with more minor gripes than major issues, but that is the name of the game in the customer service sector.

BINGO !!! Dave, if you call Customer Relations they have absolutely little idea of what the operating practices are on many trains. If a person e-mails an OBS manager who determines that the pax has a legitimate beef/praise then the manager can forward the complaint to customer service for compensation or kudoos for an employee. It seems that those responsible for ensuring customer service have fallen out of the loop; it almost seems as if the train has left the station without an engine.

 

[Pastor Dave]

I guess if I were an OBS manager I would see e-mail as a double-edged sword. Sending an e-mail certainly requires less effort than typing and printing out a letter, addressing an envelope, applying a stamp and putting it in the mail. That scenario would seem to lessen the amount of concerns sent in. On the other hand, an e-mail can be quickly responded to with a reply e-mail. In theory (and I stress "theory") this could result in quicker replies and better customer service. Granted, the OBS managers might have to deal with more minor gripes than major issues, but that is the name of the game in the customer service sector.

BINGO !!! Dave, if you call Customer Relations they have absolutely little idea of what the operating practices are on many trains. If a person e-mails an OBS manager who determines that the pax has a legitimate beef/praise then the manager can forward the complaint to customer service for compensation or kudoos for an employee. It seems that those responsible for ensuring customer service have fallen out of the loop; it almost seems as if the train has left the station without an engine.

Thanks for raising the "kudos" part had8ley. I would suspect that OBS managers gain as much insight from hearing about the postives as they do dealing with the negatives. A compliment for good service can be encouraging to those who may be more prone to hearing only about their miscues.

 

[had8ley]

Members of Congress have offices and staff dedicated to communicating with constituents and never actually read your emails personally.

Amtrak already had a system in place to deal with passenger service issues and communications called Customer Relations.

I'm well aware of the Customer Relations Department. I wrote them a letter trying to get Slidell, La as a regular pax stop instead of a flag stop for a variety of reasons that I've outlined on this site before. What do I get back? A letter saying "Sorry we can't service Slidell but we will look into it." Makes a lot of sense to put somebody behind a desk that knows little or nothing of which they speak.Is it asking tooo much to get managers to ride and to be able to communicate with them? :help:

 

[haolerider]

Members of Congress have offices and staff dedicated to communicating with constituents and never actually read your emails personally.

Amtrak already had a system in place to deal with passenger service issues and communications called Customer Relations.

I'm well aware of the Customer Relations Department. I wrote them a letter trying to get Slidell, La as a regular pax stop instead of a flag stop for a variety of reasons that I've outlined on this site before. What do I get back? A letter saying "Sorry we can't service Slidell but we will look into it." Makes a lot of sense to put somebody behind a desk that knows little or nothing of which they speak.Is it asking tooo much to get managers to ride and to be able to communicate with them? :help:

I am going to make one last comment and then leave this issue to everyone else to debate. What you are asking for is a re-design of the Amtrak Customer Relations Department and the job description of the OBS Managers. The OBS managers are not equipped to handle direct complaints/comments from passengers and as I have said before, I am all for getting them out on the trains where their staff are working. Good Luck!

As far as Slidell is concerned, Hadley, if you know the OBS Managers in NOL, I would start with them, because their bosses are the ones that sit on the committee that determines schedule and station stop changes. Unfortunately Customer Relations does know little about the individual stations, but the Operations group has direct control over a station being a flag stop or a scheduled stop. Start with them and let them know your thinking.

 

[had8ley]

Members of Congress have offices and staff dedicated to communicating with constituents and never actually read your emails personally.

Amtrak already had a system in place to deal with passenger service issues and communications called Customer Relations.

I'm well aware of the Customer Relations Department. I wrote them a letter trying to get Slidell, La as a regular pax stop instead of a flag stop for a variety of reasons that I've outlined on this site before. What do I get back? A letter saying "Sorry we can't service Slidell but we will look into it." Makes a lot of sense to put somebody behind a desk that knows little or nothing of which they speak.Is it asking tooo much to get managers to ride and to be able to communicate with them? :help:

I am going to make one last comment and then leave this issue to everyone else to debate. What you are asking for is a re-design of the Amtrak Customer Relations Department and the job description of the OBS Managers. The OBS managers are not equipped to handle direct complaints/comments from passengers and as I have said before, I am all for getting them out on the trains where their staff are working. Good Luck!

As far as Slidell is concerned, Hadley, if you know the OBS Managers in NOL, I would start with them, because their bosses are the ones that sit on the committee that determines schedule and station stop changes. Unfortunately Customer Relations does know little about the individual stations, but the Operations group has direct control over a station being a flag stop or a scheduled stop. Start with them and let them know your thinking.

This will be my last comment to your comments...I promise. The last NOL manager I approached with the Slidell flag stop issue said, and I quote,"You need to write a letter to Customer Service". Need I say more ???

 

[haolerider]

Members of Congress have offices and staff dedicated to communicating with constituents and never actually read your emails personally.

Amtrak already had a system in place to deal with passenger service issues and communications called Customer Relations.

I'm well aware of the Customer Relations Department. I wrote them a letter trying to get Slidell, La as a regular pax stop instead of a flag stop for a variety of reasons that I've outlined on this site before. What do I get back? A letter saying "Sorry we can't service Slidell but we will look into it." Makes a lot of sense to put somebody behind a desk that knows little or nothing of which they speak.Is it asking tooo much to get managers to ride and to be able to communicate with them? :help:

I am going to make one last comment and then leave this issue to everyone else to debate. What you are asking for is a re-design of the Amtrak Customer Relations Department and the job description of the OBS Managers. The OBS managers are not equipped to handle direct complaints/comments from passengers and as I have said before, I am all for getting them out on the trains where their staff are working. Good Luck!

As far as Slidell is concerned, Hadley, if you know the OBS Managers in NOL, I would start with them, because their bosses are the ones that sit on the committee that determines schedule and station stop changes. Unfortunately Customer Relations does know little about the individual stations, but the Operations group has direct control over a station being a flag stop or a scheduled stop. Start with them and let them know your thinking.

This will be my last comment to your comments...I promise. The last NOL manager I approached with the Slidell flag stop issue said, and I quote,"You need to write a letter to Customer Service". Need I say more ???

I will make one more last comment: That NOL manager is absolutely not someone who you would want responding to passenger complaints or comments. They are either unaware of how the system works in their department or just lazy. Probably a combination of both.

I have a little more faith in Amtrak, especially since there has been a change in the leadership of the Southern Division. Gone are negative thinking management and hopefully there will be some positive changes as a result. Maybe even a regular stop in Slidell. Good luck.

 

[Tumbleweed]

Someone mentioned "Mystery shoppers....does AMTRAK utilize them? If so, I may know someone who may be interested in being an on-board one.... :giggle:

 

[AlanB]

They need to be out there on the trains and getting feedback from passengers, not a system! Jim

And they can't be out on the train all the time if they're spending all their time answering emails. And trust me, if we start publishing emails that's what'll be happening. Far too many people with a complaint won't just email the manager in charge of that particular route, they'll email everyone on the list. These guys and gals will be deluged with emails.

 

[AlanB]

We do have a FAQ section.

Ah, my bad. I was thinking of a single document though. A full spectrum first-timer's document that can be downloaded instead of requiring network access. Maybe it's time to start building one.

We generally refer them to this FAQ over at OTOL.

 

[AlanB]

Regarding a list of email addresses, we don't even allow members to post their email addresses in the clear as it's simply too easy for the spam bots to pick it up. Should and OBS wish to join, we'll be more than happy to have them, and they would then have the ability to communicate privately with anyone that they wish to do so.

This site was originally conceived by Anthony to be a place where people could get answers to questions about Amtrak. It was never intended to be a customer service facility or facilitator. I suppose that should Amtrak approach us with a desire to setup such a section, we'd be happy to accomodate them. But I frankly don't see that happening anytime soon. After all, Amtrak's website has come a long ways from where it was when Amtrak Unlimited was born to fill a big hole left by Amtrak on the net.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

As I was reading the updates to this thread I began to realize that the OP seems to be describing a ombudsman role. I think it's pretty cool idea actually and I don't think anyone is yet fulfilling this role. Amtrak has shown some interest in community involvement by requesting volunteers for some stations IIRC. But that's not quite at the level that's being discussed here. This sounds more like a magazine ombudsman that selectively serves as a mediator between Amtrak and a disgruntled customer that has a compelling complaint. Not everyone would be provided this service, perhaps only one person per week or month, but for those folks who sound reasonable in their complaint they might be selected for personal assistance that followed up with Amtrak and posted a summary of Amtrak's solution or denial in public. I'm not sure AU is willing to sanction that sort of service but that doesn't mean anyone with the time and resources couldn't volunteer to perform that service on their own.

We generally refer them to this FAQ over at OTOL.

Hmm. So what exactly is OTOL and how does it differ from AU?

 

[AlanB]

We generally refer them to this FAQ over at OTOL.

Hmm. So what exactly is OTOL and how does it differ from AU?

OTOL is yet another railfan forum, run by railfans including your's truly. In fact, while I didn't write the initial hints & tips, HaRRy Sutton did, I took his base and did the last major revision.

OTOL however has a much broader focus. Here while we have forums for other forms of rail transit, our primary focus is Amtrak, whereas OTOL deals with all forms of rail transit equally. OTOL also has a larger static site, where you can find the Amtrak roster and frequencies too, as well as other stuff.

 

[had8ley]

Regarding a list of email addresses, we don't even allow members to post their email addresses in the clear as it's simply too easy for the spam bots to pick it up. Should and OBS wish to join, we'll be more than happy to have them, and they would then have the ability to communicate privately with anyone that they wish to do so.

This site was originally conceived by Anthony to be a place where people could get answers to questions about Amtrak. It was never intended to be a customer service facility or facilitator. I suppose that should Amtrak approach us with a desire to setup such a section, we'd be happy to accomodate them. But I frankly don't see that happening anytime soon. After all, Amtrak's website has come a long ways from where it was when Amtrak Unlimited was born to fill a big hole left by Amtrak on the net.

Alan is correct...my only question to him would be; "Just how many Amtrak riders know who the OBS manager is supposed to be on the trains they ride?" I guess I'm comparing my posts to a hotel managers position; if a guest wants to find out just who the manager is all he has to do is ask. And usually you can even talk to the GM if you just ask. I don't think I'm asking for the moon~ just common professional courtesies that exist almost everywhere in the service industry. I wrote this post to discuss the lack of managerial presence and accessibilty; I seriously doubt Amtrak would approach AU for a report card for fear of what the grade may be.

 

[had8ley]

OK...how about this~ Amtrak creates a site to reach the OBS managers at the following; OBSManager(Train name and #) @ Amtrak.com. This way the individual isn't flooded with 4 a.m. phone calls; maintains his/her identity and can read all the incoming compliments/complaints at their leisure and act upon same. This has to be a win-win for both the pax and the OBS managers if it is used as a tool for better customer service.