You may start
your day with a cup of coffee and a hearty breakfast. I start my day by reading complaints about
Metro-North: e-mails, tweets and social media posts by fellow commuters who
don’t know where to turn for help. Such
is the life of a “commuter advocate”.
The problem
is that every ride on Metro-North is controlled by many different agencies and
there’s no way for commuters to know who’s responsible. For years I offered a simple solution: a sign at every station explaining who was in
charge of parking, the station, the conditions on the trains, etc…. and names
and phone numbers of whom to contact.
Lacking this
simple signage, I suggest the following:
HOW TO COMPLAIN: You
must be specific: date, time, location
and names. Simply saying “my train is
always late” gives nobody any actionable information. But saying “train #634, the 7:31 out of
Westport has a standing-room-only condition on dates X and Y because it is operating
with six cars and used to have seven” gives folks a chance to analyze a problem
and maybe find a solution.
WHERE TO COMPLAIN: Here’s
where it gets tricky. You must direct
your complaint to the proper agency with operating authority.
STATION PARKING: In
most cases, station parking is run by the Town where the station is located, so
call Town Hall. (Stamford and Bridgeport
are notable exceptions as the CDOT manages both the stations and the adjacent
parking.)
THE TRAIN STATIONS: Though
owned by the CDOT, the stations are operated by the Towns. If your station waiting-room is locked,
leaving you standing on a freezing platform, call City Hall.
TIMETABLES: The
trains operate on a schedule jointly agree to by CDOT and Metro-North. But don’t waste your time appealing to either
because you don’t like the service.
Instead, got to the folks who control their budgets: your state elected officials. You’ll find a search engine for those pols on our Commuter Action Group website
(see below).
CONDITIONS ON THE TRAIN: In
this case, Metro-North is responsible.
Buried on their website you’ll find an e-complaint
template (there’s
also a direct link to it on our www.CommuterActionGroup.org website. Fill it out with specific information every
time you see a problem and ask for a follow-up.
Sadly, once acknowledged, we have no way of knowing if the railroad ever
does anything to address the issues.
TRAIN PERSONNEL: Unhappy
with a conductor or train engineer?
Complain to Metro-North with specific information, including names or
descriptions. Get the names and contact
info for other witnesses. If a complaint
actually escalates to disciplinary action, be prepared to attend a hearing.
GRAND CENTRAL: Don’t
like the fact that your train always arrives on the lower level? Unhappy that the bar carts are still missing
after three months. Complain
to Metro-North and cc
your elected officials.
FARES: Fares
in Connecticut are set by CDOT, not Metro-North. There’s always a public hearing process
before new fares go into effect, but it’s all just “political theater”:
cathartic but ineffective. The
people who really control fares are your elected officials in the legislature.
It shouldn’t
be so confusing as to where to complain.
Nor should we be so cynical about the lack of response. But we are dealing here with local and state
agencies running a monopoly, not a competitive, for-profit, customer-oriented
business.
Still, as Edmund Burke
once said: “all that is necessary for
the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”. So do something: complain!
Reposted with permission of Hearst CT Media
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