Friday, July 20, 2007

Moral Dilemma

Thankfully I wasn't on duty when this happened, but what would you have done:

A few days ago, a mobility impaired passenger arrived on a train with one of those electric buggy/scooters. Unfortunately they were unable to get off the train with the buggy due to the gap, and our staff were unable to lift them off. Police and Fire Brigade wouldn't lift them off either. The line controller decided to empty the train of every other passenger and try reversing the train into the adjacent platform and let them disembark there. The customer refused to try this. In the end they took the train out of customer service, took the empty train with the mobility impaired customer back to where they started and then LUL paid for a black cab to take them to their destination which I imagine cost a fair packet. Now I don't want to seem callous but shouldn't some of the onus be on the customer to check before they travel to ensure they are able to exit etc. All of the other passengers on the original train were delayed and inconvenienced. A perfectly good train was removed from customer service, and also the additional expense of paying the taxi fare.

8 comments:

Station Supervisor said...

When you do ATOR this is discussed, what should have happened was the customer goes to a station where they can alight properly, then LUL provide a taxi back to the original station.

Did the customer have anyone with them is another question i would ask.

Oh and we don't provide the taxi to get them back to the station that they can board again.

Tradey Bear said...

Why don't LU just have portable ramps like they do at the BR stations?

yorkshiregoth said...

Because not all the platforms are the same distance from the train doors etc.

Anonymous said...

If it wasn't for this:

The customer refused to try this.

...I'd be a lot more sympathetic towards the customer in question. As it was, clearly options were being explored and offered rather than it just being a case of "eh, what do you expect us to do about it?"

The Sween! said...

I think some of our "MIP'S/VIP's" take the piss due to the fact that they have a go at US when they cannot get their own way! Don't get me wrong, I go out of my way to help them the best I can but when they start to get sarky & have a go, that's when I stop helping.

Anonymous said...

I say bollocks to that. By not wanting to try an alternative this person caused unnessasary delays, causing havoc to everyone using the underground system.

Add to the fact that the cost comes out of the ever increasing cost of a travel card that I pay for and this person doesn't. I too am disabled, my disability caused by an assault on the tube, but I get neither of those.

Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks!

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry, but gadget was right. Positioning a 4'wide by 5'long length of aluminum ramp with reinforced sides at troubled stations would be an inexpensive fix. We use the same thing for very heavy "power" chairs in my area and have no problems.

And I agree, the passenger was off base, too. What a mess.

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