bus customer service

punisher5112 · 08-12-2019 3:17am

I am absolutely drained with all the stupid questions, aggression and plain thickness towards me and others alike.....

db has inspectors, chief inspectors, super chief inspectors, admin staff, admin managers, depot managers, management over different sides of the Liffey, HR management, customer experience manager yes customer experience manager.... I kid you not and more managers and the CEO.....

I have absolutely nothing to do with the bus not turning up or it left you behind or it showed it was due and disappeared.....

There are all of the above that are paid an absolute fortune and why not contact them.....

I'm paid to drive from A to B and B to A safely and to the best of my ability.....

I'm not there to be abused, threatened, spat on, punched, spoken to like a fool etc etc....

We aren't even told if the bus ahead was off or not.

We can only see what is in front of us at any one given time....

punisher5112 · 08-12-2019 3:22am

Isambard wrote: »

could this be the scenario? Bus turns up at a terminus where the driver might expect a few minutes break and time to set up the vehicle for the return only to have irate passengers banging on his door and giving out to him that the previous bus didn't show. If so, I'd find that a bit annoying if I were him.

Regularly happens, people need to realise the journey we just had was a really bad one with all sorts that happen....

Abuse is on the rise imo and stupidity seems to be also.....

Traffic is a nightmare and not only that dealing with cyclists that have absolutely no respect for their own lives never mind others....

When I get to the end them 3 minutes to yourself are sometimes the only thing that can keep you going....

punisher5112 · 08-12-2019 3:27am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Bus driver..... Customer service.... Lol

Roll on the autonomous buses

Exactly and not a runner will be waited for.....

Buses run for those that wait not those that run.....

punisher5112 · 08-12-2019 3:36am

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

OP, what you expect would be delivered by most private operators that I'm aware of. (There are a couple of exceptions, running city-only services.)

But it's not delivered by the employees of most state-owned bus companies. Apparently these state-owned companies are a lot better to work for than the private operators - presumably because being rude to customers is allowed.

Watch you don't fall of that horse.....

The attitude towards drivers is shocking to say the least.....

If someone is nice to me I'll be exactly the same back.....

You come on all guns blazing well sorry I ain't going to be dealing with that....

Stress is huge in our roles and believe me it's only getting worse.

To be honest there should be no interaction with a driver at all.

If one gets on pays, sits down and gets off as any normal person would then 100% there would never be any issue or complaints etc....

So many complaints put in over the years of absolute madness...

Driver kidnapped me, driver smiled at me, driver wouldn't talk to me, took me against my will and I was afraid what he would do to me at the last stop etc etc etc......

If I were to actually take most stuff seriously I'd be 6 feet under a long time ago....

Isambard · 08-12-2019 10:24am

punisher5112 wrote: »

Regularly happens, people need to realise the journey we just had was a really bad one with all sorts that happen....

Abuse is on the rise imo and stupidity seems to be also.....

Traffic is a nightmare and not only that dealing with cyclists that have absolutely no respect for their own lives never mind others....

When I get to the end them 3 minutes to yourself are sometimes the only thing that can keep you going....

and what should be born in mind is that in a case where a bus is missing, the next driver will have had the scenario in this thread at every stop along the way. No wonder they get pissed off!

Midnight_EG · 09-12-2019 2:10am

suicide_circus wrote: »

when i worked in a retail environment and a customer had an issue or complaint it was not acceptable for me to respond with "not my f*cking problem". yet this is the response when i raised an issue with a bus driver today. I never said he caused the issue but he is driving a dublin bus vehicle and wearing a dublin bus jumper - he represents the company to some extent, no? It has to be said i was not in the least surprised at his attitude as it seems to be an industry standard from my experience. the most rudimentary customer service training would tell you to at least hear the customer out but no.

just a little rant i guess, i dont expect things to change.

You raised an issue with a driver that he had absolutely no clue about. Not his fault you didn't get a satisfactory answer, you should have asked the correct people i.e Customer Service.

Polar101 · 09-12-2019 1:43pm

I never really understand why people complain to the driver of the 'next bus' - it's not his fault the previous bus didn't show up, and it's unlikely he knows why it happened. Sure, I'm annoyed when I have to wait in the rain for 30 minutes for a 39a that is supposed to run every 10 minutes - and when five "sorry, not sorry" -buses pass by in the meanwhile. But I don't see that being the drivers' fault.

Midnight_EG · 09-12-2019 6:30pm

Polar101 wrote: »

I never really understand why people complain to the driver of the 'next bus' - it's not his fault the previous bus didn't show up, and it's unlikely he knows why it happened. Sure, I'm annoyed when I have to wait in the rain for 30 minutes for a 39a that is supposed to run every 10 minutes - and when five "sorry, not sorry" -buses pass by in the meanwhile. But I don't see that being the drivers' fault.

The gas thing is... It's literally never the drivers fault

Joker2019 · 09-12-2019 8:02pm

Why do people get annoyed when out of service buses go past when they're waiting for a bus that's literally like getting annoyed at the other passing traffic for not being your bus

TheChizler · 09-12-2019 8:08pm

Midnight_EG wrote: »

You raised an issue with a driver that he had absolutely no clue about. Not his fault you didn't get a satisfactory answer, you should have asked the correct people i.e Customer Service.

The driver could have explained that rather than swearing at the OP.

Midnight_EG · 09-12-2019 8:53pm

TheChizler wrote: »

The driver could have explained that rather than swearing at the OP.

One can imagine that the OP didn't direct his displeasure in a nice way, as no passenger ever does

punisher5112 · 09-12-2019 9:18pm

I've got to the point if you don't say hi or excuse me my answers will be just as short.

If one gets on and is respectful then I will do what I can.

Polar101 · 09-12-2019 9:47pm

Joker2019 wrote: »

Why do people get annoyed when out of service buses go past when they're waiting for a bus that's literally like getting annoyed at the other passing traffic for not being your bus

It is pretty annoying when you see a bus arrive from the city to the terminus, and then go out of service, while you are still waiting for the bus that was supposed to show up a while back.

punisher5112 · 09-12-2019 9:51pm

Polar101 wrote: »

It is pretty annoying when you see a bus arrive from the city to the terminus, and then go out of service, while you are still waiting for the bus that was supposed to show up a while back.

But it doesn't mean it is the bus, it could be the one ahead or behind.

Many duties have you go special to or from the terminus as to break, finish or start off at another point especially if running late.

Control will usually then move up the next bus to try and lower the gap time. Yes it's not ideal but there are so many variables such as a collision, huge delays, busy with more passenger then usual etc etc...

Joker2019 · 09-12-2019 10:01pm

Polar101 wrote: »

It is pretty annoying when you see a bus arrive from the city to the terminus, and then go out of service, while you are still waiting for the bus that was supposed to show up a while back.

Well then they should get annoyed at the fact a car might pull up and not pick you up. Maybe they should get annoyed with the air passing by as well that's no their bus either. The fact is a bus that pulls up and leaves OOS is not the bus they are supposed to be on and it was not scheduled to be either.

Better Than Christ · 09-12-2019 10:32pm

Polar101 wrote: »

It is pretty annoying when you see a bus arrive from the city to the terminus, and then go out of service, while you are still waiting for the bus that was supposed to show up a while back.

I can see how it's disappointing when a bus arrives and you think it's the one you're waiting for, but it turns out not to be. This is one of the reasons why I always switch the display to 'Out of Service' before arriving at the terminus - I don't want to give anyone false hope. The tantrums I've seen though, from grown adults, who think they're entitled to harangue me because I'm going home and therefore can't be at their beck and call. It's about as rational as seeing a shop that's just closed and banging on the shutters because someone's still inside and you want your cigarettes.

When it comes to public transport, there is a very entitled attitude in this country. Look at the rude arseholes who obsessively tweet Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann and Go Ahead, demanding answers from the unfortunate person operating the Twitter account. Those accounts should be for the purpose of providing assistance and information, but for the most part, they're little more than a convenient punch bag for spoilt brats.

Isambard · 10-12-2019 10:40am

TheChizler wrote: »

The driver could have explained that rather than swearing at the OP.

i'm afraid that the language used isn't really a factor to take into account in this day and age. Expletives are normal nowadays and many people don't even realise they are using them. Had he said "not my business you ****ing old cow", that would be a different matter. He didn't actually swear AT the person.

magicbastarder · 10-12-2019 10:49am

Isambard wrote: »

i'm afraid that the language used isn't really a factor to take into account in this day and age.

um, when talking to a customer, it is.

Tchaikovsky · 10-12-2019 11:31am

So representing the company you work for in a professional, not-swearing-at-the-customer-kinda-way gone out the window?

StreetLight · 10-12-2019 11:43am

Tchaikovsky wrote: »

So representing the company you work for in a professional, not-swearing-at-the-customer-kinda-way gone out the window?

That works both ways. It does not entitle a customer to abuse a member of staff who may not be in a position to give answers one wants to hear.

Tchaikovsky · 10-12-2019 11:59am

There's still a professional way of dealing with a difficult situation. I worked in customer service for a few years and if I had sworn at a customer I'd have been sacked there and then.

Isambard · 10-12-2019 1:24pm

Tchaikovsky wrote: »

There's still a professional way of dealing with a difficult situation. I worked in customer service for a few years and if I had sworn at a customer I'd have been sacked there and then.

as I pointed out, he didn't swear at her/him, he swore in their presence. Two different things.

Isambard · 10-12-2019 1:25pm

magicbastarder wrote: »

um, when talking to a customer, it is.

selective quoting

Nijmegen · 10-12-2019 4:00pm

To be honest I think a lot of people are missing the point here... In any service business, it's rarely the fault of the person at the coal face if something goes wrong. But in most service businesses, telling a customer to f-off would lose you your job. (And I've been on buses where the drivers have been incredibly rude and I think a lot of people have, and also buses where they're sound. It seems there's no reward or punishment for either.)

It's unacceptable to have companies that take that attitude towards their customers, and it's unacceptable for individual staff to take that line if it is against company policy. But in the case of most companies, they exist in a truly competitive marketplace where the customer can take their business elsewhere. Not so on individual bus routes. It feels like another public sector company where the customers are an annoyance and the customer is left feeling so, rather than provided the best service in the situation - even if that situation is apologising for something rather than telling someone to f-off.

Isambard · 10-12-2019 4:48pm

Nijmegen wrote: »

To be honest I think a lot of people are missing the point here... In any service business, it's rarely the fault of the person at the coal face if something goes wrong. But in most service businesses, telling a customer to f-off would lose you your job. (And I've been on buses where the drivers have been incredibly rude and I think a lot of people have, and also buses where they're sound. It seems there's no reward or punishment for either.)

It's unacceptable to have companies that take that attitude towards their customers, and it's unacceptable for individual staff to take that line if it is against company policy. But in the case of most companies, they exist in a truly competitive marketplace where the customer can take their business elsewhere. Not so on individual bus routes. It feels like another public sector company where the customers are an annoyance and the customer is left feeling so, rather than provided the best service in the situation - even if that situation is apologising for something rather than telling someone to f-off.

i think you miss the point actually. He did not tell her to **** off

punisher5112 · 10-12-2019 5:19pm

Oh dear lord.....

db does go at the driver believe me, they treat us like no matter what we are wrong.

Joker2019 · 10-12-2019 5:48pm

Nijmegen wrote: »

To be honest I think a lot of people are missing the point here... In any service business, it's rarely the fault of the person at the coal face if something goes wrong. But in most service businesses, telling a customer to f-off would lose you your job. (And I've been on buses where the drivers have been incredibly rude and I think a lot of people have, and also buses where they're sound. It seems there's no reward or punishment for either.)

It's unacceptable to have companies that take that attitude towards their customers, and it's unacceptable for individual staff to take that line if it is against company policy. But in the case of most companies, they exist in a truly competitive marketplace where the customer can take their business elsewhere. Not so on individual bus routes. It feels like another public sector company where the customers are an annoyance and the customer is left feeling so, rather than provided the best service in the situation - even if that situation is apologising for something rather than telling someone to f-off.

I don't agree with the driver using swear words myself. It sounds like he is probably saying what he and many other staff who deal with the public probably think myself included at times. Personally I prefer drivers to completely ignore passengers and just do their job you know drivers that just drive the bus don't get involved in conversations or arguments. Yeah it's nice if the driver is going to be friendly but they don't need to be.

Many cities I have been to the driver does not interact with passengers at all almost like the Luas. This benefits both the driver since they don't have to deal with passengers and passengers as they don't have to deal with the driver. Also there is competition now for DB in the form of Go-Ahead and customer service is one of the areas which the NTA is marking both operators.

I have come across certain retailers in the private sector where the staff are rude so it's not exclusive to semi state bodies. You mention that someone in the private sector would be sacked immediately but this would only be the case if a manager witnessed it and would be difficult to prove if the employee was on their own as it would literally be a case of the customers word against the employees word. Buses by their very nature are mobile so it is impossible for constant supervision of drivers.

Also I'm sure out of all the complaints DB receives there is a proportion that are bogus. People can say literally anything and while I'm not accusing this instance could also be bogus.

AlekSmart · 10-12-2019 8:59pm

suicide_circus wrote: »

issue was the previous bus never showed, got down to "Due" and never appeared so myself and the other passengers had to wait another 25 mins. Eventually this bus shows up, he lets passengers off (it was the terminus) and the driver closes the door at which point I and the 20 other people at the stop became a bit dismayed and i tried to explain the situation. he did end up opening the door again and let us all on but its the initial reaction and total indifference to the customer that isnt on imo.

Can you confirm that none of 20+ people,now waiting at a Terminus for over 25 minutes had any means of contacting the Customer Service or On-Line information points ?

With the doors of the arrived bus closed,where were you positioned whilst explaining the situation and how did that explanation process proceed ?

You suggest the Driver had a total indifference to "The Customer",however you also suggest that as he had allowed previous customers to disembark,which could suggest that this indifference may not quite as total as you claim,as he almost certainly had to allow these people on in the first place ?

As you state that you were not in the least surprised at this attitude,and further describe it as an Industry Standard can we accept a certain predetermination of the outcome here ?

You state that you don't expect things to change,which is fair enough,but also carries with it yet more predetermination,and failing to realise that things are changing all around you,even in the "industry".

Later you claim....

my issue wasnt that the last bus didnt show, it was that he was in service but had closed the door and was preparing to drive away.

Are you absolutely sure that the driver you complain of,was In-Service ?

Could there be,even a remote possibility,of the fellow being finished his duty and due to head back to the Garage empty ?

You do appear to be well sure of other posters strengths and weaknesses regarding this "customer service" issue,and well able to engage on a personal level with them...

well your attitude seems to be pretty standard. does customer service play any part in your training as a matter of interest?

...which again begs the question,why were you and the 20+ customers unable to engage on a corporate level with the Company in the 25+ minutes extra they were waiting ?

Yet,you appear very certain of the Drivers intent...

AGAIN my issue was that he was driving away without picking us up after the last bus failed to arrive. a decision he thought better of some moments later

... perhaps this Driver was scheduled to do exactly this,and was instead asked by a Controller to alter his duty to deal with your (and 20+ others) problem ?

As it appears you are familiar with the greater Customer Service ethos,I'm taking it that your assumptions about this particular Driver ARE in fact 100% correct,with no possibility of any other scenario being possible (or acceptable ) ?

With a bit of luck,your driver was able to get some added satisfaction from being able to fulfill the needs of the 20+ customers who otherwise might have been left in the lurch ?

Nijmegen · 10-12-2019 11:33pm

We seem to be pulling apart semantics in a situation where, to be honest, the driver shouldn’t have said something like “not my f-ing problem” to the customer. And many of us, myself included, have witnessed downright deplorable attitudes and behaviour from drivers over the years. Saying “yeah well the customers...” doesn’t really excuse it. Or “how would you prove it...” doesn’t really address the core underlying problem that there is a core of people working in a service business who do not have the right attitude towards their customers, which should at least be polite if not actually helpful.

There might be competition in the market now but it’s not on a route by route basis and to be honest no matter what happens you’re not going to be seeing redundancies from folks working in the semi state sector for a long period of time. There’s an immunity there that tends to breed a certain contempt towards the customer.

Again, plenty of sound DB drivers and plenty who just get on with their jobs. But there are people who are actively nasty at times and it really isn’t on. If nothing else they might consider that the travelling public is also the voting public in an era when changes to the old regime are starting to creep in and the monopoly ebbing away.

Joker2019 · 11-12-2019 12:26am

Nijmegen wrote: »

We seem to be pulling apart semantics in a situation where, to be honest, the driver shouldn’t have said something like “not my f-ing problem” to the customer. And many of us, myself included, have witnessed downright deplorable attitudes and behaviour from drivers over the years. Saying “yeah well the customers...” doesn’t really excuse it. Or “how would you prove it...” doesn’t really address the core underlying problem that there is a core of people working in a service business who do not have the right attitude towards their customers, which should at least be polite if not actually helpful.

I have yet to come across this deplorable attitude from drivers towards passengers... apologies valued customers. I have come across drivers who don't exactly have a happy face. Honestly I don't know what you expect from drivers but I think you may be expecting drivers to have an extremely fake have a nice day type fake American attitude. Most passengers do not acknowledge the driver espeicially first thing in the morning so I'm not sure what exactly you expect.

There might be competition in the market now but it’s not on a route by route basis and to be honest no matter what happens you’re not going to be seeing redundancies from folks working in the semi state sector for a long period of time. There’s an immunity there that tends to breed a certain contempt towards the customer.

So I'm guessing what you want is a late 80s/early 90s UK bus wars type scenario. I've travelled on the continent and have generally found that the employees of state public transport companies are not the most customer focused induviduals. I'm fine with it I'd rather my bus is on time than a driver that will kiss will wipe my arse.

Again, plenty of sound DB drivers and plenty who just get on with their jobs. But there are people who are actively nasty at times and it really isn’t on. If nothing else they might consider that the travelling public is also the voting public in an era when changes to the old regime are starting to creep in and the monopoly ebbing away.

Again I have yet to come across these induviduals. Despite using DB services nearly every day I have yet to have any real dealings good or bad with DB employees.

bus customer service

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