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[QUOTE]Originally posted by smitty195: [QB] Here is something that I posted on another railfan website. It is NOT real---it's something I did for April Fool's Day. Just thought I'd lay off Obama (at least for 5 minutes...heh heh...). Okay, here it is: Conde Nast: Thumbs-up to Amtrak Customer Service Plan (Conde Nast, Jim Shumaker, Washington) Today at Washington DC’s Union Station, Amtrak made a major announcement in launching their new customer satisfaction plan. The setting was festive, with balloons, a live band, and party streamers decorating the interior plaza of this beautiful and historic building. Cliff Black, Amtrak spokesman, praised the new plan, stating, “We have been listening to our customers, and this new plan is a direct result of that. We hired a specialty consulting firm with experts in the top of their field, and after three years of examining our system, our employees, our equipment, and carefully balancing it with the needs of our passengers, this new plan became a reality today”. Amtrak handed out the new plan to members of the media, and it is contained in a hardbound book with the Amtrak logo beautifully emblazoned on the cover. The foundation of the new customer satisfaction plan lies in the core value of providing the best possible service to Amtrak passengers. For example, there are varying levels of issues that could take place on-board an Amtrak long-distance passenger train, and Amtrak has divided these issues into three different categories. Level One is in the category of “Bad”, while Level 2 carries the term “Really Bad”. Should things go beyond Level 2, then the plan will get bumped up to Level 3 which has been termed, “Really Really Bad”. Mr. Black commented that it was ingenious of their consulting team to come up with the name for Level 3. “It conveys a sense of simplicity, while at the same time, goes directly to the heart of the issue”, Mr. Black said. According to the new policy, an example of a Level 2 issue would be something along the lines of the heating or air conditioning system failing. Should this occur, Amtrak on-board employees have been highly trained to immediately refer to the new customer satisfaction plan, which will be issued to every employee. When a Level 2 issue arises, the plan clearly states that all passengers effected by the issue will receive complimentary snack packs. Careful research has shown that when passengers are upset by things happening beyond Amtrak’s control (such as a failed HVAC system, dirty linens, broken toilets, smelly cars, etc), a snack pack will soothe the nerves of frazzled passengers. The research strongly indicates that a small bag of pretzels, a piece of hard candy, and a bottle of water have a strong calming effect. Said Black, “We paid a lot of money to our consulting firm, so it has to be true”. If issues arise on-board an Amtrak train that go beyond a Level 2 incident, then Amtrak employees will leap into action with a Level 3 incident. A Level 3 incident must include two or more incidents happening at the same time. Examples of a Level 3 incident include an on-board attendant who disappears for the entire trip and is nowhere to be found, combined with the toilets not working at the beginning of the trip while the train is still in the station. Mr. Black said, “These items that rise to a Level 3 incident should never occur, and this is why we take it very seriously”. Another example of a Level 3 incident would be the dining car running out of 2 entrée items on the menu, and the power going out to all cars due to a mechanical failure in one of the locomotives. Mr. Black commented, “These things should not happen on our trains, because the consultants said they shouldn’t. But fortunately, with our new plan, this will be resolved”. When pushed for a clearer explanation of what Amtrak will do when a Level 3 incident takes place, he said, “Passengers will be told by on-board employees to call our reservation center. After making the call and waiting on hold for 20 to 30 minutes, the passenger will then ask our agent to transfer them to our customer relations desk. Once they are transferred, they will only have to wait for 45 to 60 minutes on hold until they speak to one of our specialists. Once the passenger explains what took place, our agents are highly trained to determine the dollar amount that a travel voucher should be issued for. With this travel voucher that will be issued and mailed within 4 to 6 weeks, the passenger will then be able to re-book another Amtrak trip and give us a try again”. One member of the media asked Mr. Black what would happen if the passenger took another trip using the travel voucher, and the same set of circumstances happened again? Mr. Black said, “That’s a very good question, but unfortunately, due to budget constraints and Amtrak’s continuous lack of Congressional funding, we could not afford to hire another consulting group to answer that, but of course we always welcome input by calling our reservations center, waiting, then asking for customer relations, waiting again, and then informing our specialists of your concerns”. Mr. Black was then asked what a Level 1 issue is, since there does not seem to be a remedy for a Level 1 issue in the new plan. Mr. Black said that a Level 1 issue is not remedied because the level of “Bad” is something that every passenger should expect on Amtrak’s trains. Some examples of Level 1 issues include surly attendants, poor service, unkempt restrooms, and randomly running out of food and beverage items in Amtrak’s food service cars. Amtrak is really stepping up to the plate and taking responsibility for customer satisfaction, and we give them a big “thumbs up” for this new plan. April 1, 2009 [/QB][/QUOTE]
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