Toronto councillors on the TTC board say they're intrigued by changes the Philadelphia-area transit system implemented two years ago in response to complaints about customer service.

The Philadelphia transit system now has dedicated customer service kiosks at stations. (CBC)

For years, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, known as SEPTA, faced many of the same problems the TTC is now confronted with — rider frustration over a lack of accountability, rude staff and poor customer service.

"I think the perception was we did OK, but we could do better and we didn't really pay attention to our customers," said Kim Scott Heinle, an assistant manager at the authority's customer service division.

In 2008, the Philadelphia system undertook an ambitious response to complaints, under the watch of newly appointed general manager Joseph Casey, who took the helm in February of that year.

He implemented changes that included creating a new division devoted entirely to customer service — the department that Heinle now works for.

"We needed to treat our customers as any type of retail," Casey told CBC News. "We needed to improve [service] to meet [customers'] needs."

The customer service division, which accounts for $6.3 million of the transit authority's $1.1-billion operating budget, introduced additional changes, including:

• Providing all employees with customer service training.
• Giving employees more power to handle sticky situations with riders.
• Installing dedicated customer service counters at stations.
• Rewarding employees for good customer service.

Kiosks, employee rewards lauded

Toronto Coun. Ron Moeser told CBC News that having dedicated customer service kiosks at stations was "a great idea."

Coun. Bill Saundercook liked Philadelphia's program of rewarding good employees with gift cards obtained from advertisers, adding management can't focus only on bad workers.

He has challenged TTC's manager Gary Webster and other senior managers to "come up with ways to reward the ones that were doing exemplary service," he said.

Coun. Peter Milczyn, meanwhile, said he is interested in finding out more about Philadelphia's changes.

The three councillors all sit on the Toronto Transit Commission board. All three will be among those who will meet Friday to discuss a proposed blue-ribbon panel that is to review every aspect of how the agency conducts itself.

The panel is charged with producing a report by June 30 on how to raise the level of customer service that chair Adam Giambrone has said "does not live up to expectations."

The TTC has come under fire recently after videos and pictures surfaced of employees who appeared to be taking breaks or sleeping while on the job.

In 2009, the TTC received 31,000 complaints between Jan.1 and Nov. 30, up 15 per cent over 2008.

Anger on all sides

The rhetoric between the union representing TTC employees and management, meanwhile, has heated up as public scrutiny has intensified. Webster, the general manager, issued a stern message to all employees over the weekend, admonishing them for their service.

Bob Kinnear, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, told reporters in Toronto on Tuesday that TTC employees can do things to help improve customer service. (CBC)

Bob Kinnear, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, called Webster's memo a "whiny rant."

"He takes absolutely no responsibility for operating decisions that anger customers," Kinnear said Tuesday.

"For example, he takes no responsibility for the recent token fiasco. It's our members who take all the flak for that."

Kinnear acknowledged, however, "there are things we can do as workers to improve the customer experience."

Milczyn said Thursday that he thinks the culture at the TTC "has to change on all levels."

"It's unfortunately come to a crisis point now but I believe now [customer service issues] are finally going to be addressed, he said.

Changing an organization's culture from top to bottom isn't easy, but it's not impossible, Heinle said.

"Patience, commitment [and] transparency [are] important, and the ability to listen and engage people," he told CBC News.

Colin Weir, who runs the transit blog septawatch.com praised many of Philadelphia's changes, particularly the introduction of an online route planner similar to the one unveiled by the TTC last week. He also lauded Philadelphia's enthusiastic use of Twitter to give customers service updates.

But he said Philadelphia still needs a lot of work.

"They really need to work on the cleanliness of the system. [That's] what I would say my biggest gripe with them is."

With files from Steven D'Souza