You Screw Up and I Get Punished?
Remember that ever-so-special failure of Dial-A-Ride on Wednesday? Well, as it develops, the driver DID go somewhere. He just didn't go to my house. He went to the library, instead. Apparently I spend so much time at the library that Dial-A-Ride thinks I live there.
The librarians tried to tell him that no, I hadn't been there, and that maybe he was supposed to pick me up at my house, do ya think? But he wouldn't hear of it, and went away mad.
And why am I still upset about this? Because today when I got home from the replacement trip to the library, I found a charming little form letter in my mail box, telling me all about Dial-A-Ride's Cancellation and No-Show Policy. As I do obey this policy--I've missed exactly ONE pick-up in a year and a half because I overslept, and I always give them fair warning on cancellations--I don't know what they're on about.
Here's the good bit at the end of the letter:
--If passenger shows a pattern of three (3) or more No Shows and/or Late Cancellations within one (1) month [I haven't.] the following will occur:
1) The GHTD [That's Greater Hartford Transit District] will notify you by mail that your service could be suspended. [I'm presuming this is the notification.]
2) The GHTD will give you an opportunity to explain the reason for your no-shows or late cancellations. [They haven't. And I can't get in touch with the person who sent it to find out what I'm accused of, either.]
3) GHTD will notify you by mail of any decision to suspend your ADA Paratransit Service. [Note that they don't inform you if you don't get suspended. Either they want you to stay worried and anxious, or the decision to suspend is pre-determined.]
(You may appeal this written decision.) [Translation: You can appeal, but there's no guarantee that it's going to do any good.]
4) The first time that your service is suspended [Because, since Dial-A-Ride and similar services are divvied up on a regional basis, there's no way that you can say, "Fuck you, bastards!" and transfer to another service], you will lose your riding privilege for thirty (30) days.
[Privilege?! I'm PAYING for this! Ninety bucks a month, every month, for four books of tickets! This is not a PRIVILEGE to be doled out by their generosity! I'm a paying customer!]
5) Failure to correct the problem and continuation to repeat the same pattern may lead to progressive suspension of service. [Which means that if the drivers continue to foul up, and they will because they are ill-trained and because many don't speak English, I will be the one who gets punished. Isn't that nice?] Minimum additional suspensions can run from sixty (60) days up to three hundred and sixty-five (365) days. PLEASE REMEMBER, THIS IS A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, OTHERS DEPENDS ON THE SERVICE THE SAME AS YOU.
[Well, others is very unhappy about a public transportation being a privilege that can be withdrawn anytime someones want it to be.]
Any ideas, people? I am in a mood to kick arse and take names.
***
ETA: Just heard from customer service at Dial-A-Ride. According to the woman I spoke to, they're sending these form letters to ALL their customers, not just me. They think such letters are just gentle reminders not to be late or to forget to call if you have to cancel. The woman appeared to be bewildered that other customers as well as myself were reading this charming opus of theirs as a threat of suspension. She literally did not get that at all.
IDIOTS.
The librarians tried to tell him that no, I hadn't been there, and that maybe he was supposed to pick me up at my house, do ya think? But he wouldn't hear of it, and went away mad.
And why am I still upset about this? Because today when I got home from the replacement trip to the library, I found a charming little form letter in my mail box, telling me all about Dial-A-Ride's Cancellation and No-Show Policy. As I do obey this policy--I've missed exactly ONE pick-up in a year and a half because I overslept, and I always give them fair warning on cancellations--I don't know what they're on about.
Here's the good bit at the end of the letter:
--If passenger shows a pattern of three (3) or more No Shows and/or Late Cancellations within one (1) month [I haven't.] the following will occur:
1) The GHTD [That's Greater Hartford Transit District] will notify you by mail that your service could be suspended. [I'm presuming this is the notification.]
2) The GHTD will give you an opportunity to explain the reason for your no-shows or late cancellations. [They haven't. And I can't get in touch with the person who sent it to find out what I'm accused of, either.]
3) GHTD will notify you by mail of any decision to suspend your ADA Paratransit Service. [Note that they don't inform you if you don't get suspended. Either they want you to stay worried and anxious, or the decision to suspend is pre-determined.]
(You may appeal this written decision.) [Translation: You can appeal, but there's no guarantee that it's going to do any good.]
4) The first time that your service is suspended [Because, since Dial-A-Ride and similar services are divvied up on a regional basis, there's no way that you can say, "Fuck you, bastards!" and transfer to another service], you will lose your riding privilege for thirty (30) days.
[Privilege?! I'm PAYING for this! Ninety bucks a month, every month, for four books of tickets! This is not a PRIVILEGE to be doled out by their generosity! I'm a paying customer!]
5) Failure to correct the problem and continuation to repeat the same pattern may lead to progressive suspension of service. [Which means that if the drivers continue to foul up, and they will because they are ill-trained and because many don't speak English, I will be the one who gets punished. Isn't that nice?] Minimum additional suspensions can run from sixty (60) days up to three hundred and sixty-five (365) days. PLEASE REMEMBER, THIS IS A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, OTHERS DEPENDS ON THE SERVICE THE SAME AS YOU.
[Well, others is very unhappy about a public transportation being a privilege that can be withdrawn anytime someones want it to be.]
Any ideas, people? I am in a mood to kick arse and take names.
***
ETA: Just heard from customer service at Dial-A-Ride. According to the woman I spoke to, they're sending these form letters to ALL their customers, not just me. They think such letters are just gentle reminders not to be late or to forget to call if you have to cancel. The woman appeared to be bewildered that other customers as well as myself were reading this charming opus of theirs as a threat of suspension. She literally did not get that at all.
IDIOTS.