PRTC blew it during ice storm
Marvin Iavecchia
2008-02-13 15:38:47
I am in the Army working at the Pentagon and a regular Omni Bus/PRTC customer riding every weekday twice a day over the last two years. I have noticed a steady decline in customer care. The bus drivers do not tell customers what is going on when there are delays.
Yesterday’s ice storm was a perfect example. PRTC not only failed to check the weather and plan for the forecasted icing conditions that caused my five-hour ride home last night, but the driver didn’t make a single announcement to passengers to let them know what was going on. Dispatch failed to keep him informed what was going on and the passengers had to help him find his way to the I-95 - Route 123 commuter lot due to the normal Woodbridge ramp being closed.
Through the entire five-hour trip (normally 30 minutes), the driver did not make a single announcement to the passengers. Also, he let one passenger off the bus in the middle of the interstate so he could urinate. He almost let another pregnant passenger off the bus while on the interstate to transfer to a Metro bus but the other bus driver refused to allow her on the bus (due to the obvious danger).The bottom line is that PRTC and VDOT failed its customers and the Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. communities. You did not pay attention to the weather warnings and forecasted conditions and you did not warn passengers boarding at the Pentagon of the delays. We could have taken the Metro home and saved four hours!
If I had a public transportation option I would never ride PRTC again but unfortunately it is my only option at this time. Shape up PRTC!
Marvin Iavecchia
Woodbridge