Traveling uncomfortably

[Yellowjack]

Mr. David Hughes

Acting President & CEO

60 Massachusetts Ave., NE

Washington, DC 20002

Dear Mr. David Hughes,

I have sent my letter of complaint to Amtrak’s customer service several times by email including to [email protected] and have not had been able to resolve these issues of my complaints. The following is my letter of complaint I have sent several times.

So far no one has replied to my first email.

Reservation number ----xxx---

I want to tell you about my experience while on an Amtrak Train

Form Byron, OH to Waterloo, IN there was Bill in the dining car was cold and uncaring as soon as he found out I was not going to eat in the dining car but was only there to ask a question he became uncaring as if I was just a non customer.

While riding in car #25121 there was water leaking from the lights and ceiling, my seat got all wet as did several other seats in the car. I got on in New York City. The train should have been cleaned before people boarded but my leg rest had syrup all over it. When did you stop handing out those white towels that go on the head rest of the chairs? Having those white towels helps from getting someone else's grease in your hair.

From Chicago to L.A. the guy in the snack car deserves an A.

Car #34090 from Chicago to Albuquerque seat #10 had very loose legs as there were not attached to the floor securely and properly and rocked all through the trip.

From Chicago to Los Angeles there were not enough pillows to go around.

Car# 34090 has no working Air Conditioner.

Dana from Chicago to L.A. in car #34090 told a group of boy scouts to take the trash can and to go around the 3 coach cars and collect trash from everyone. Isn't that her job? We stopped Raton, NM and there was a dog on the train for handicap person. The owner of the dog went far away from the train, buildings , walkways, track, and far from where anyone would be walking to allow her dog to do his business and Dana made the lady pick up the dog mess. The stop in Raton, N.M. is very desert, desolate and there was lots of dirt. I found it hard to believe that and Amtrak employee would make a handicap person pick up their dog mess when they were extremely far from any structure or where anyone would ever would walk. First of all it's a dog, second it's a handicap person and third it was wasteland also known as desert.

I found my trip uncomfortable and surrounded by rude and lazy employees.

 

[EmpireBuilderFan1976]

On a recent trip from CHI to CIN on train 51, we had the same problem in our car with the air conditioning. Water started pouring from the ceiling. Luckily we had a good crew and the car attendant quickly moved the passengers before they got drenched!

 

[cp]

You should send your letter to Amtrak's board of directors also, and to the US Secretary of Transporation. If you really want to get a reply from Amtrak, get your senator and house rep involved as well. Congress can elicit a reply from Hughes if he would not reply to you. Good luck.

 

[yarrow]

i hope someone from amtrak does respond to your satisfaction. i have had similar experiences. however, the overwhelming part of my amtrak travel has been very positive. amtrak workers are under much stress. they did some things wrong on your trip and hundereds of things right. it may be a managment problem causing your poor interactions with a few amtrak workers.

 

[EmpireBuilderFan1976]

There are certainly alot of situations that warrant complaints to Amtrak and the situations that Yellowjack mentioned were certainly worthy of complaining about! I would like to encourage people to also take the time to write emails to Amtrak when things go right! I've had instances on trips were some employees were rude but the majority were nice and seemed to be doing there best and I made sure to get their names and write emails to Amtrak complementing the employees for their friendly caring service. I've had car attendants that lacked in personality/people skills but kept the bathrooms spotless and the car clean. So just as it is important to report bad service it is even more important to report good service. If all they get is negative feedback, then that helps the Board of Directors and others build a case to squash passenger rail. However, if they get equal or greater amounts of praise it will be harder for the Board to build a case.

 

[AlanB]

Yellowjack,

First let me be perfectly clear, this site has no affiliation with Amtrak and we have no way to forward your letter to Amtrak. Next, while there are a few front lines Amtrak employee’s that are members here, to our knowledge no one from Amtrak management is a member here. We don’t even know if any Amtrak management even bothers to visit this site, much less post and participate in any discussions.

Now that said, I have a few comments and a few thoughts on your letter. First, you say that no one has resolved your issues, but I’m unclear as to what you consider a resolution? I see nothing in your letter that indicates what you might consider a satisfactory resolution.

Next you mention that you have sent several emails to Amtrak, but that no one has responded to your first email. What about the others? Did someone respond to them? If so, what was their response?

Now turning to some of your complaints, you mention entering the diner to speak with Bill. However you don’t mention what you wanted to ask Bill about. I will admit that Bill should have been more receptive and polite to you than what you’ve described, you should also know that unless your complaint had to do with the diner, Bill would not have been able to do anything to help you.

I’m not sure if Bill was a waiter or if he was what Amtrak calls the Lead Service Attendant, but either way his primary responsibility would be the dining car. If you caught him during meal time, then thanks to recent cuts in staffing by Amtrak management, he would have been extremely busy. And if you approached him about the dripping water, then there would have been nothing that Bill could have done for you.

The dripping water problem is usually a symptom of too much humidity and hot temperatures. It’s condensation from the air conditioning system and it happens in buildings, buses, airplanes, and just about any other place where hot humid air comes in contact with cooler air from an air conditioner. About the only thing that can be done, assuming that the car isn’t full is to reassign your seat. Turning off the A/C isn’t a viable alternative.

As for the syrup, yes it probably should have been caught by the cleaning crew. But they don’t always have time to check every chair, especially if the train was late getting into the yard from its last run. And the cleaning crew’s first responsibilities are to vacuum and clean the bathrooms, and then they are supposed to try and look at other things.

The little white towels went away when Congress started demanding that Amtrak cut its subsidies. So write and thank your Congressman for the loss of those towels, along with other things that they’ve forced Amtrak to cut.

Turning to Dana, I can’t begin to imagine or explain why she would have done what she did to the handicapped person. That would seem to defy logic. However, with regard to the scouts and the garbage consider the following. One, perhaps the scouts had made most of the mess in the cars. Two, on a recent trip that I just took, one of the scout masters offered to have his kids go around and collect up the garbage. I overheard him talking to the attendant in the lounge car and making the offer.

I hope that you did mention the loose seat to the attendant, so that they can write it up in their log such that it will get fixed. You also mention that car had no A/C, was there absolutely no A/C or just not enough?

I am sorry that you had an unpleasant trip; I always hate to hear when people are dissatisfied with Amtrak, as that potentially means the loss of one more paying customer. Something that Amtrak can ill afford. But I do think that you need to better clarify just what your problems were, as well as what you expect Amtrak to do about it.

 

[AlanB]

You should send your letter to Amtrak's board of directors also, and to the US Secretary of Transporation. If you really want to get a reply from Amtrak, get your senator and house rep involved as well. Congress can elicit a reply from Hughes if he would not reply to you. Good luck.

I would agree with sending the letter to the Secretary of Trans. and the Amtrak Board Chairman, but David Hughes doesn't work for Congress. And in my experience most Congressmen wouldn't take the time to do much more than have some staffer forward the letter over to Amtrak.

However, in the hands of the wrong Congressman, it might actually make things worse for the next person to ride Amtrak, as they might use the letter as a way of further decreasing Amtrak's funding. Something that won't help to improve service!

 

[cp]

I think AlanB has a good point. The reason I thought about Congress, is that Amtrak, as a quasi-government agency is responsible to Congressional oversight. If we have a problem with the IRS and cannot get it resolved directly with the agency, usually a congressperson can help. I think that the complaints brought up by Yellowjack are in general minor, except the one related to the handicaped passenger. I also think, however, that Amtrak's management should at least extend the courtesy of a reply. When a passenger, who is also a taxpayer (and hence indirectly an owner of the corporation) writes a letter to the manager (who, by the way works for the taxpayers!), s/he is entitled to a response. This is what concerns me the most, not the nature of the alledged irregularities observed during the trip. My idea about contacting congress was to say: look, I wrote a letter and they did not reply, and this is not right. But I can see how some could use it to pursue their anti-rail agenda. So I would like to revise my advice and suggest that you write to the Secretary of Transportation.

I also overwhelmingly agree with EmpireBuilderFan about sending positive comments as well, and I intend to send a positive feedback to Mr. Hughes after my trip to Chicago next week, assuming that the experience will be mostly positive.

 

[Trogdor]

You don't mention how long ago this trip occurred, nor how long ago you wrote Amtrak about the situation.

Whenever I have specific complaints, I often receive a response in a relatively short time (sometimes as quick as a day or two, including a callback from Amtrak Customer Service if I write a complaint using their web form).

However, you mention several issues in one letter, and it's possible that Amtrak is taking the time to investigate the issues in question before you get a response. That's just speculation, though.

 

[Guest]

First off, IMHO (caveat: my wife says I've NEVER had a humble opinion!), if I wanted to really get someone's attention, I think I would send a letter, not an email. Think of how much junk we all get every day on our home computers, then try to imagine how much stuff shows up on one's computer at work, particularly if one is getting interoffice emails, plus from the public. I just think a hard copy letter gets you more attention......someone has to actually take the time to hold it in their hands & read it.

My guess would be that the seat problem was the result of the swivel mechanism not being latched. I wonder if the TA was aware of the problem, as it's usually fairly easy to correct.

Those little white towels are called "head rest covers" & management 86'd them from most, if not all, long distance trains several years ago.

The deal with the scouts & the trash pickup......I wonder if Yellowjack overheard the TA telling the scouts to do this, or got the info 2nd or 3rdhand.

They wouldn't have taken a "trash can" around anyway, but rather a trash bag. As AlanB said, it's very common when there is a large group of kids (or adults) who haven't been particularly neat to have them assist with trash pickup shortly before they arrive at their stop. But that would only be in the area they occupied (including the lounge car), and they certainly couldn't be ordered to do this. Obviously, if the scouts found the chore objectionable, they would have conveyed this to their accompanying leaders & the adults could then deal with the situation.

The dog poop situation is pretty mind-boggling. I spent 19 years as a TA & never heard of such, but that of course doesn't mean it didn't happen. Once again, I wonder if that was witnessed first-hand.

My last comment would be, if you can get the names of the people you want to bash, how come you couldn't for "the guy in the snack car" who "deserves an A"? Just wondering.

 

[yellowjack]

My reservation number will tell them when I was on the train.

Writing Congres is a waste of time unless you have a God given epiphany that will change the world and the railroad did that 150 years ago.

AlanB, maybe you should go into management but you probably already are from all the questions you gave me. My letter was a one pager so it would get their attention, enough to where they will contact me and ask the same questions as you did.

Congress and the president are not going to shut down Amtrak but they may get some one else to bid on the contract if they keep getting rude complaints and about lack of pride in facility. I didn't mention the bathrooms in my letter and they are the most neglected of all amtrak duties. Most stations I have been to do not do a very good job at cleaning their restrooms.

I've been riding the train for about 6 years and as much as I like seeing the country instead of flying to get there sooner those Amtrak employees on the long distance trains have got to stop being so rude. On the commuters they are not so bad.

Did anybody notice that I thought the snack bar guy was a good employee?

The boyscouts were only in one car but the employe told them to goto all 3 coach cars to pick up trash. Being I was in the middle of them and conversing with them they didn't offer their service she did.

Saw the doggie incident first hand.

 

[yellowjack]

Snack Bar Guy was about 22 years old and never wore a name tag. He worked sun up to 11pm and beyond.

 

[AlanB]

My reservation number will tell them when I was on the train.

Not if your trip was more than 2 months ago. I believe that two months from date of travel, the computer purges that information. Regardless, I wouldn't expect David Hughes to know how to get that info out of the computer.

AlanB, maybe you should go into management but you probably already are from all the questions you gave me. My letter was a one pager so it would get their attention, enough to where they will contact me and ask the same questions as you did.

Actually I run my own company, that employs only me. And I note however, that you didn't bother to answer my questions.

Congress and the president are not going to shut down Amtrak but they may get some one else to bid on the contract if they keep getting rude complaints and about lack of pride in facility. I didn't mention the bathrooms in my letter and they are the most neglected of all amtrak duties. Most stations I have been to do not do a very good job at cleaning their restrooms.

There's no one standing in line to bid for running the trains. That's why we have Amtrak in the first place, because no one wanted to run them. Transportation is a money loosing business.

I would also point out that other than the big stations, Amtrak doesn't actually own most of the stations that it services.

I've been riding the train for about 6 years and as much as I like seeing the country instead of flying to get there sooner those Amtrak employees on the long distance trains have got to stop being so rude. On the commuters they are not so bad.

Maybe that's because the commuter RR's pay better and perhaps more importantly, they don't have to sit and wonder each year if they'll still have a job next year, like most Amtrak workers do.

That said, I won't deny that Amtrak doesn't have some bad apples, although so do most businesses. But there is certainly room for improvement. But having overworked employees in many cases, as well as routinely delayed trains which seem to make many a passenger into yelling maniacs doesn't help either.

Did anybody notice that I thought the snack bar guy was a good employee?

Yup, I noticed that as did the guest who asked you about his name.

The boyscouts were only in one car but the employe told them to goto all 3 coach cars to pick up trash. Being I was in the middle of them and conversing with them they didn't offer their service she did.

Well then I'd say that she over stepped her bounds if that is the case.

 

[yellowjack]

Actually I run my own company, that employs only me. And I note however, that you didn't bother to answer my questions.

Who are you that I must answer your questions?

 

[yellowjack]

Sounds like you have some doubts about my story.

 

[mrgreyfoot]

If Yellow jack does not want to tell you all the details of his events then he does not have to. We all know that many things happen on those trains. As for AlanB why are you on the defensive side for the accused when you know things do happen and this Yellow Jack may be in the right. Maybe those things did happen and maybe they didn't but how can you prove they did not?

I think Yellow JAck should do what ever he wants with his complaint if it helps him, great, if not, so what. No need to put him through an interigation.

 

[AlanB]

Who are you that I must answer your questions?

I'm no one of great importance at all and I make no presumptions to the contrary.

However most people who come here to post things are either looking for help, advice, or perhaps some comiseration with their problems. Without answers to at least some of my questions, then neither I nor anyone else here will be able to do anything further for you beyond what we've already done.

 

[AlanB]

Sounds like you have some doubts about my story.

Actually I accepted your story at face value and made no judgements about it. I simply tried to explain a few things and to try and advise you on others.

However, I wouldn't be surprised if your lack of details as well as the lack of answers doesn't give other members pause.

 

[AlanB]

If Yellow jack does not want to tell you all the details of his events then he does not have to. We all know that many things happen on those trains. As for AlanB why are you on the defensive side for the accused when you know things do happen and this Yellow Jack may be in the right. Maybe those things did happen and maybe they didn't but how can you prove they did not?
I think Yellow JAck should do what ever he wants with his complaint if it helps him, great, if not, so what. No need to put him through an interigation.

You are correct, he doesn't have to say anything more. But as I noted in my reply to him, if he wanted help and any advice from the membership here, then the lack of details will curtail that help and advice.

As for being on the defensive, I thought that I was rather even handed frankly. I'll be the first to admit that Amtrak isn't perfect and I even said that in my earlier replies. However, I also pointed out a few things that were beyond the control of Amtrak. I don't consider that being defensive, I consider that being informative.

 

[mrgreyfoot]

Well he said he wanted to get their attention and if they were willing to respond then they would get more details of events.

 

[yellowjack]

Wasn't looking for help, didn't ask for hrlp. Just want to post my letter.

 

[yellowjack]

Now that I did, I'm gone. What ever people make of it is what ever people make of it. And you made of it what you made of it.

 

[AlanB]

Well he said he wanted to get their attention and if they were willing to respond then they would get more details of events.

I'm not trying to be arugmentative or insulting here, but personally if I were in a management position and I received a letter without details and a letter that specifically mentions not receiving replies without further proof, I'd certainly be less than enthusiastic about such a letter and it definately wouldn't get my serious attention.

I want the facts all there in front of me so that I can deal with them at hand. I don't want to have to go looking all over for them. As it is I'd need to still contact all the employee's in question, their supervisors, and perhaps maintenance records, but I can't do that without the details. I don't want to have to go contacting the customer first for more details, just so that I can go and do the other work. The details have to come from the customer, so he/she might as well tell me up front, not via follow-up conversation.

That's a waste of his/her time, as well as mine IMHO. There is nothing to be gained by witholding the details from the letter, but much to loose. Remember that David Hughes is the acting President and as such is a busy man. I'm not suggesting the Yellowjack isn't a busy person either, but frankly wanting someone to call, just so he can reveal the details, so that the person can then go back and investigate and try to come up with a resolution, just makes busy work for everyone. Just tell him everything in one shot and get it over with. You're far more likely to get satisfaction that way.

Sorry, but that's my opinion.

 

[Guest]

Well he said he wanted to get their attention and if they were willing to respond then they would get more details of events.

Rest assured if one does not provide fairly detailed information in a complaint letter, date(s), time(s), name(s) if known, details of the incidents, the complaints are unlikely to be taken seriously or given much attention.

If one isn't willing to provide all this from the start, why waste one's time?

 

[mrgreyfoot]

So what. Give it a rest, man.