Commuter Connections

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because:
It was not *** that I spoke with firstI believe *** is the supervisor on duty and I requested to speak with herThe lady I have the complaint against would not reveal her name but she is always on duty after 3:00pm(she has a raspy, deep voice)My complaint was not regarding regulationsIt was regarding the dis-respectfulness and no customer serviceI ask that they listen ion on the recordings I explicitly stated in my compliantThis lady gives me a hard time each time I calledTheir response was in regards to callA cab can pick you up from your location if you are sick or your child is sickYou would have to go to a metro if you have unscheduled OT, etcI was denied service in a situation when I had an emergencyThis has been going on for almost years now and I signed up for this service in I do not think their response is sufficient because it is not tackling the issue at hand which is with the "No Customer Service ethic"Please listen to the recording to see how my calls was handled with the representative and not the supervisor
Regards,
*** ***

September 23, 2014Dear *** ***:Thank you for your letter regarding a complaint from *** *** *** on the Commuter Connections Guaranteed Ride Home programThe Commuter Connections Guaranteed Ride Home program allows those commuters, who are using alternative forms of
transportation other than driving by themselves to and from work, a free ride back to their vehicle in the event of an unexpected personal or family emergency, or unscheduled overtime.In investigating the complaint filed by *** *** on July 22, 2014, I have outlined information below that I would like to share with youThis information is based on interviews with our contractor that handles the program's dispatching services as well as internal operations staffRestrictions on how the program can be used, as well as participation guidelines, are sent to each registrant upon their accepted registration into the programI've enclosed a copy of the guidelines; they are also posted on our web site at www.commuterconnections.org*** *** works at *** ** *** *** in ***, VA, which is located a block away from the *** Metro stationShe resides in ***, VA*** *** called on July requesting a Guaranteed Ride Home trip due to unscheduled overtimeOur call center agent, Karen, answered the phone call and informed *** *** that her trip request was approvedKaren told *** *** that she would need to take MetroRail from *** for the first leg of her trip and then a cab would meet her at the *** MetroRail station to take her the rest of the way to her vehicleThis response was consistent with program guidelinesBecause we are publicly funded, we look for the most economical manner of getting commuters, who are in the program, home Guaranteed Ride Home program guideline (#10) states the following:
"All GRH trips must originate from the commuter's work locationDepending on the nature of the emergency, and home and work locations, a commuter using the GRH service may be required to use a taxi, car rental, transit, or any combination of these services to reach their destination pointCommuter Connections will determine the type of service used and will issue a valid GRH authorization number at that time."
When given this option, *** *** refused to take MetroRail, which is one block away from the building where she works, and emphatically stated that she needed to be picked up by a taxicab at her work site*** informed her that she would have to use MetroRail for unscheduled overtimeAt this point *** *** became very upset and angry, and refused to take MetroRailShe cancelled her trip requestShortly after that, several of her co-workers began calling in trip requests to see if they would be told the same information about taking MetroRail for the first leg of their tripSubsequently, *** *** called back stating that she was going to escalate this issue to Revdex.comThis is not the first issue we have had with *** *** regarding use of the program:• In earlier correspondence *** *** stated that she was harassed about registration, was almost denied a ride request, and was not given supervisor informationHowever, we were not able to verify her claim because she did not stipulate any specific date or time when this situation occurred*** ***, our contractor's call center Supervisor, spoke with ** ***She explained that we typically request that commuters take MetroRail for the 1st leg of their trip for unscheduled overtime situation• On April 8th, *** *** called requesting a Guaranteed Ride Home trip because of unscheduled overtime*** *** gave her the ride from work but informed her that it would be a one-time exception and for future unscheduled overtime trip requests she would have to take MetroRail*** *** seemed to accept that response• On July 22nd, *** *** stated that she had a problem taking MetroRail at p.mThis is surprising, because in July it is still daylight, *** is a safe and busy area, and, as previously noted, *** ***'s building is one block from the *** Metro stationSo we are not clear why she refused to take MetroRail*** *** told me that *** *** insisted that she be given an on-going exception to the ruleUnfortunately, we cannot accommodate that due to our limited program budget.Please know that *** *** has been with the program since She has been given rides between 2011; most recently, on September 17thOur call center agents are all trained in dealing with difficult situationsWe are interested in providing a satisfying experience to all of our Guaranteed Ride Home program usersWe take complaints very seriously, and will discipline agents that do not follow protocol and do not have an appropriate demeanor with program participants.We would like to obtain a copy of the recorded interaction between *** *** and our call center agent in order to determine whether disciplinary action is warrantedIf you have a copy of this recording, please forward it to my attentionWe appreciate your feedback and look forward to hearing from youI can be reached at ###-###-#### or at ***.Sincerely,Nicholas R Director, Alternative Commute Programs

Background: I am on my 7th year as a vanpool rider and have served as the vanpool coordinator for the last 3.5 years. I have all vanpool participants sign up for this program and being on my 7th year I have never called to utilize the FREE service.
The General Davis Building was running on generators and the boilers were increasing the heat in the building, some areas to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. This increased temperature was causing unexpected illness and the other vanpool riders could not leave (not all riders are in my division). I called and spoke to the representative who explained the heat in the building was not sufficient to provide a ride home. I then called back and the same person answered the phone and said, "Hello Mr.Hayden" and again denied my request. I asked for a supervisor and Tom Furlong came on the line. Not only did he deny my request he advised I should call 911 if I am having an unexpected illness; below are the exact reasons GRH provides free transportation: 5.The GRH program may only be used in cases of unexpected personal or family emergency, unexpected illness, or unscheduled overtime. Source: http://www.commuterconnections.org/commuters/guaranteed-ride-home/participation-...⇄ I then asked if this was a government funded operation and Tom Furlong advised it is funded by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCG). I then called the MWCG and asked the representative if I could speak to a manager. The representative asked the nature of the request, I explained the above and she advised Diamond Transportation is the subcontractor that handles Commuter Connections. After some time I was transferred to Nick Rampose, the Director of MWCG who had to call me back after he spoke with Tom Furlong and advised I would not be provided a Guaranteed Ride Home for FREE. He advised that heat in the building was not a sufficient reason. After hanging up Nick Rampose called my supervisor and my supervisor told him of the heat in the building. Does every person that calls for this Guaranteed Ride home for FREE receive the same amount of service, denial and harassment? (Source: http://www.commuterconnections.org/commuters/guaranteed-ride-home/) This being a federally funded contractor, they are not providing the service, therefore this is fraud, waste and abuse of government funding.
Respectfully,
Robert Hayden
Cost Analyst, USMC
Add: Notify your vanpool riders this government funded operation DOES NOT provide a "Guaranteed Ride home"