What does “customer service” mean?  It’s such a broad term – that public transportation agencies wanting to benefit their communities will need to define it first before they can make the most of their customer service operations.

The primary aim of public transportation customer service is to treat customers—in this case, the passengers—in such a way that they will want to return to their public transit system. In other words, that they will become repeat customers.  So while clean facilities and updated technologies are important, human interaction is at the core of good customer service.

Camille Keith, an original employee of Southwest Airlines, has said that the company’s policy is to sell an experience—and to treat each passenger as a guest. She shares several examples of truly personal service, ranging from a Southwest employee who changed a customer’s flat tire to one who helped a customer deal with breast cancer to many who provide baby gifts.

Keith also emphasized that developing team spirit among employees is the basis of good customer service. She cited humor, compassion, and an ability to say “I’m sorry” as important parts of the Southwest culture.

Southwest is an extremely successful business.  How, one might ask, can public transit agencies apply Southwest’s philosophy to their own efforts?

Recognize Excellence
As part of its effort to recognize the outstanding customer service efforts of public transit employees, the APTA Marketing & Communications Committee oversees the annual Customer Service Challenge competition at the APTA Bus & Paratransit Conference and the Call Center Challenge at the committee’s annual workshop. The competition for bus operators, co-hosted by the APTA International Bus Roadeo Committees, presents real-life scenarios that test drivers on their ability to resolve them. Specific challenges have included a passenger demanding change on board a vehicle where the driver does not make change; riders who board with unusual items (pets,or large pieces of furniture or lumber); and passengers who are running late and try to pressure the operator to make up lost time.

Bus operator Richie Bell of the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T), winner of the 2007 Customer Service Challenge, cited an agency-wide focus on customer service as one reason for his success.

“We went through a lot of scenarios similar to things you’d see on the bus,” Bell noted. “The program taught us about body language, tone of voice … Another thing I got out of it was to be consistent toward the customer. The customer picks up on everything you’re doing. We learned that we should show we’re confident and know what we’re doing, be clear, be funny, make people laugh, be energetic. Come to work happy, try to go back home happy. I think the customers pick up on that and it kind of makes their day.”

Al Syas, operations supervisor with The T, oversees The T’s program. He explained: “When we structured our training program, we looked at the perceptions customers had of our company and their expectations as customers. We did workshops, activities, videos—basically put together a program that would be viable so we could have a customer-friendly company.”

Syas noted that all new T employees participate in the 8-hour training course as well as refresher classes every other year.

Another example of an organized customer service effort comes from the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), which begins its skills assessment during the employee hiring process. It appears this training has paid off, with MARTA employees winning the Call Center Challenge in two consecutive years: Robin Jeoffroy in 2009 and Iris Bernard-Glover in 2010.

Donna DeJesus, manager of MARTA’s customer care center, said she usually will not accept resumes of potential [job] candidates unless they score an 80 or above on the MARTA customer service assessment. The important thing, she added, is “to know you’re getting a candidate who’s got some customer focus.” New hires at MARTA also attend a mandatory customer service course.

DeJesus noted that MARTA’s call center employees tend to stay in the job for more than 10 years, and that the system has hosted its own Call Center Challenge, modeled on the APTA event, for the past three years. The winner of the local event moves on to the national competition.

Reorganize the Process
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) changed the way its customer service office operates, leading to a productivity increase of more than 50 percent while reducing the size of the workforce by 20 percent. Specifically, the office now comprises an 11-person Customer Relations group and a 39-person Customer Information group. The first responds to customer commendations and complaints, including the lost and found items, and the other answers trip planning and schedule questions.

“I feel proud when I am able to speak with an initially angry customer and effectively address and resolve his or her issue, so that they are no longer upset about their Metro service,” said longtime WMATA employee Helen James. “Often, customers are calmed by simply knowing that you empathize with them and understand their experience.”

Added 18-year customer service professional Karen Goings: “I believe effective customer service is a skill just like other careers, and I enjoy sharing my knowledge with those new to the field.”

Here are a few ways that public transportation agencies can help make their customers feel welcome:

* Provide front-line employees with training that emphasizes the importance of friendliness and consideration. Employees at every point of customer contact must accept the importance of addressing the customer’s needs.

* Use a variety of methods to emphasize the expectation for high levels of customer service. For example, address the topic in internal agency publications and at staff meetings. Invite employees to generate company-specific suggestions—perhaps as a competition or contest. This will not only encourage bottom-up participation in the process, it will also motivate employees to be thinking about continual improvements to their customer service efforts.

* When filling public contact positions, look specifically for employees with a strong customer focus. Integrate customer service training into all new employee training programs: this will lead to greater importance of customer service in the agency’s culture.

* Give frontline staff the tools to deal with customer concerns. One approach: provide employees with mobile phones so they can contact a supervisor at the time an incident occurs.

Other Methods
A third way of examining whether public transit employees are giving proper service to their customers is with the help of “mystery shoppers” who may purchase a product, ask questions, register complaints when appropriate, and then provide detailed reports about their experiences. 

In Montreal, the Agence métropolitaine de transport has enlisted existing public transit customers to help with the evaluation process.
     
The Value of Training
Many public transportation employees deal with the public, whether from behind a steering wheel or while seated at a console. Efforts to improve customer service, experts note, must go beyond the customer service department to the entire agency.

To begin with, public transit agencies will benefit if they provide customer service training to any employee who has direct contact with customers. The system should stress the importance of maintaining a high standard of service at every point of customer contact while demonstrating a friendly, considerate attitude. Employee newsletters and staff meetings will provide additional opportunities to spread the word, and will allow the employees to make additional suggestions and assist with the process.

To ensure the participation of all system employees, public transit agencies can incorporate customer service training into all programs for new employees. Increased access to information, such as computer support technology, will also help employees provide both more accurate and more detailed help to customers.

A delegation of employees from The T in Fort Worth welcomed Richie Bell, center, at the airport after he won APTA's first Customer Service Challenge in 2007.	Contestants in the 2010 Call Center Challenge included, from left, Judy Mosley, Natarshal Miles, Sandy Evans, winner Iris Bernard-Glover, Sarah Farahani, Veronica Salas, and Michael Moran.