Operator campaigns as well as route/stop

[crowbot]

Feedback from Stephen: I had a general problem relating to ticketing and the information on a bus company's website http://www.fixmytransport.com/problems/161

I had to relate it to a route I know they operate, as there is no apparent way to raise an issue to do with the company but not a specific route.

[crowbot]

Feedback from Ally:

I can imagine that some people may want to make a general
comment about the service provided by a service operator -
especially if their regular journey involves a combination of one
or more individual routes.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback from a user on 6th Sept 2011: Having heard of your new and most interesting website I thought I would try using it to report an inconsistency I have found in making train bookings with East Midlands Trains. However, since your website only appears to have the facility to report problems with specific journeys or services I thought I would just send this email.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Comment by email 6/9/11:

"what I do not see is how others can associate themselves with similar problems (lack of catering is a general issue not specific to one train journey)."

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback Sep 16

Is there a way to start a campaign via your site? I think this would benefit the whole bus network but I'm not sure how I'd go about it. Would it be best to ask for it on one route and go from there?

[dragondave]

+1, kinda: wanting to contact Network Rail regarding a specific stretch of track. +1, 6 Sep: "Unless I'm being thick, there's no easy way to report a problem with trains that is not related to a specific journey... In fact, my problem is really addressed to National Rail - who doesn't appear there at all."

[MyfanwyNixon]

Two more thoughts from me:

• Perhaps add the ability for the reporter to change their campaign from a single issue to the going across the operator as a whole, eg when other users start chiming in with 'this is a problem for me too'
• Also need the facility for 'across entire bus network' and 'across entire rail network' for issues like waiting rooms being locked at night. Presumably these kind of reports could go to the regulatory bodies.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback 31/10/11

how do we report more general problems, like the fact that most bus drivers positively hate their passengers, and have no interest in actually providing a service to the customers, they move off when you are running to get on the bus and slam the doors in your face, they slam on their brakes at stops when you are trying to hold heavy bags or move baby buggies so you are thrown around, they should be taught to drive in a safer way, not racing like a maniac between stops but pulling up to a smooth halt

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback via our Facebook beta users' page - discussion about the wrong data showing up on transportdirect.info:

It might be an idea to have a general campaign section for National Bodies like the government and Travelline. It would need to be moderated and checked before being sent to prevent it being trolled or made useless.

and from a 2nd user:

I'd think about offering an option for 'other' that simply sends a note to someone, somewhere, perhaps based on a dropdown list of categories. In this instance, it's either a problem with the source data (unlikely) or with the implementation of that data. The latter might be a retrieval of data from the wrong place (less likely), or it might be a presentation issue with the interface (more likely). So a dropdown list with an option to 'send a note to X about route data', and another option to 'send a note to Y about the interface' might suffice.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback 29/11/11:

Would it be possible in the future to be able to complain about things that don't fall into the category of station/stop or journey/route?

For example, I've had to cheat a bit to get my complaint about
Goldrider tickets' arbitrary pricing on here. (I did it by picking
a route on which it's a problem, but it's actually a problem on
dozens of other routes too.) I'd also like to complain about First
Great Western's refusal to respond through Fix My Transport.

I can see why issues are currently divided into those two
categories, and it's your decision about whether a misc/open
category creates more work than you can handle, but I wanted to
suggest it.

Other examples of issues which wouldn't fall into either of your
categories and therefore couldn't be reported through Fix My
Transport:

1. The issue whereby the First Great Western website bumps up
prices for people who've searched for a particular route before...
and bumps them right down again when you clear your browser's
cookies.

2. Various issues with pensioners' bus passes applying to all the
routes in a given area

3. Any issues to do with misleading train company websites, e.g.
the one described here:
http://www.kategriffin.info/post/train_vain_buying_tickets_first_great_western

[fmtdixon]

It would be great opportunity to get generic campaigns started

[MyfanwyNixon]

We might want to think about pointing Adwords to these pages where they are operator-specific. And maybe change the wording - eg "See what people are complaining about to Arriva. Join their campaigns or start your own."

[MyfanwyNixon]

And wider. Feedback 24/1/12:

I wanted to make the campaign about the saftey of passangers on trains, and the amount of people who have been injured in health and saftey breechments.

This does not really come under stop/station or route/journey.

What do I do?

[fmtdixon]

Hello

This did arise and I do share the concern.

We benefit from the geographical element (mapping and route) and we do have to be careful with any step towards allowing people to complain directly because there is a serious risk that people will just flood it with requests that could be easily put to a station or route.

Options

Raise it to a central point where we moderate and assign to operator.

Convert campaigns to general operator campaigns

Give people a token to launch a campaign

The problem is that these options require moderation, which takes time. I don't think people who have genuine issues will be bothered about a moderation delay.

Cheers

[crowbot]

I also have reservations about operator campaigns - and quite like these options for managing them.

[fmtdixon]

I was mulling this over during the weekend and I thought one option would be to offer a third button to below the stop/route button called General campaign then asking them to fill in the details, with a dropdown box offering all the operators and council like what it looks like in admin and also a box where they can outline any other people to send it on to.

Yes it needs moderating but I think it needs a eye kept on it.

[paulh8]

Another request for a generic campaigns for broad issues: http://www.fixmytransport.com/campaigns/erect-bus-shelters-correctly-so-peop "They have demolished the bus shelters in question as part of the planned redevelopment of London Bridge bus station - one way of solving the problem. However the same design of shelters are used across London - if you have problems with these I suggest that you report them as a new problem. As these are a generic design and reports on this web site are specific to routes or sites FixMyTransport need to give people more flexibility to report this sort of generic problem."

[Flupsy]

Perhaps a non-location-specific option could be constrained with a drop-list of possible problems to stop it getting too general. Something like

Customer services Call centre Advertising Mailshots etc.

and not offer an 'Other' option to discourage the less focused campaign.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback by email 21/6/12

I would like to contribute to this site but there doesnt appear to be any means of doing so.

I'm in a position where complaining to my local transport operator or subsidising body (Merseytravel) does not bring any satisfaction whatsoever as they are skilled in the Pontius Pilate art of passing the buck.

Local politicians are a complete waste of space because all they do is pose smiling for irrelevant gimmicks and do sweet FA for those who elect them.

There is no platform for exposing the inadequacies of Merseyside bus operators or Merseytravel.

[MyfanwyNixon]

Feedback 22/7/12:

Great site and excellent idea. But why no opportunity to register problems to do with transport information? I have been trying to register with TFL for email alerts, but the system will not accept the number of my freedom pass and keeps demanding an oyster number. Are seniors not supposed to use email? Could you please provide a method of flagging up these information issues.

[MyfanwyNixon]

+1 via feedback email:

"the only way I could initially report the problem was to say that the problem was on the 1b service operated by Yellow Buses here in Bournemouth...whereas the problem occurs across most of their fleet."