This is what I will do next time I get shit service

OUTRAGE – Did you know train fares increase next week on the Connex Network?

This is an absolute scandal.

Did you know that next week Connex is increasing the train fares?

Currently the train network in Melbourne is, frankly, in pretty poor form. Overcrowded trains, late arrivals and cancellations are the norm. I use the train network regularly and the overcrowding on the trains (specifically Broadmeadows line) is particularly unsafe and uncomfortable. Just last week I witnessed a fight break out on the train at Flagstaff station in the evening due to people’s frustration of the poor service that Connex offers.

To make matters more scandalous, Connex is increasing the fees next week. Seriously. This is not a joke. New prices as of 3rd June are as below…

Zone 1

2 hour – Was $3.20 Now $3.30.

Daily – Was $6.10 Now $6.30

10 x 2hr, 5 x Daily, Weekly – Was $26.70 Now $27.60

Monthly – Was $98.90 Now $102.40

Zone 2

2 hour – Was $2.40 Now $2.50

Daily – Was $4.30 Now $4.40

10 x 2hr, 5 x Daily, Weekly – Was $18.40 Now $19.00

Monthly – Was $66.30 Now $68.60

Zone 1 & 2

2 hour – Was $5.20 Now $5.30

Daily – Was $9.70 Now $9.90

10 x 2hr, 5 x Daily, Weekly – Was $45.20 Now $46.60

How can Connex justify this price increase?

Outraged at the paying more of my hard-earned money for less service, I rang Veolia Transport (http://www.veoliatransport.com.au/), the owners of Connex to ask how they can justify the price increase when the public transport network is in shambles.

In short I was told that Connex doesn’t set the prices for the network, the Victorian State Government does. When pressed on what department that was, I was informed, uncertainly may I add, it was the Department of Infrastructure.

So, it’s the Government’s fault is it?

I went here to find out the contact details for the Department of Infrastructure, so I gave them a call – and spoke to a very professional, courteous and helpful gentleman named Scott Martin.

Scott explained that the train fare increases are matched to the Consumer Price Index for Melbourne, with those statistics being supplied by The Australian Bureau of Statistics. The Minister for Transport, Lynne Kosky signs off on the fare increases.

Traditionally, train fares increase yearly in November, with the timing based on the financial year. As you recall, one of Bracks’ promises was to remove Zone 3 from the public transport system, which, to their credit, they did. In order to appear coherent to their constituents and election promises, the price increase which was slated for November 2006 was delayed until March 2007.  In March, Connex was rocked by an issues with faulty brakes on their Siemens fleet of trains. In order to appease public outcry over the disrupted services, the government delayed, yet again, the fare increase until 3rd June 2007.

With that coming into effect in a few days time, one interesting question remains.

Will the Victorian Government increase fares again in November 2007, or will they hold off until March 2008?

I, for one, would be happy to pay fare increases if the level of quality and service increased. Sadly, it does not.

Signed,

Pissed off commuter.

Beware of people who handle your food!

I’m not burdened with obsessive-compulsive disorders nor am I “clean-freak”, yet something untoward occurred at the KFC store, in Bourke St, Melbourne on 25th April around 730pm.

After a fair few beers at The Imperial Hotel beforehand, Chris and I wandered down to KFC for a bite to eat.

The first thing I noticed was that most of the tables were littered with bones, off-white, scrunched greasy napkins, plastic carry trays smeared with oily residue and half full plastic soft drink containers. There were a handful of people sitting with their heads down, gnawing at their meals grunting intermediately with satisfaction.

As we queued, there was only one small young lady, not more than 19 years of age taking orders and payment from diners. She was also packing their requested meals and serving them too.

As I waited, I noticed another young lady of similar age to the cashier emptying a standard sized bin that you find in fast food places. She dragged the plastic bag filled with refuse out of the bin and re-lined it accordingly. She then left the bloated bag next to the bin and fluttered over the a storage cupboard nearby.

A diner noticed her movement and sprung into action, “Excuse me, could you please wipe this bench down? It’s all greasy”, she asked politely.

“Sure, no problem” came the reply. The young worker reached around her back and pulled from her belt a suspiciously dirty looking cloth. With a touch of flair she wiped the bench down to the diners standard.

Returning to the cupboard, the worker flung open the door to reveal to my astonishment, a very large sign with very large letters stating that at all times when emptying bins or wiping tables that gloves are to be used. Without exception.

As I tried to get Chris’ attention to this development, she shut the cupboard, trotted to a door near the register, punched in an access code and entered the cashier area. With a close eye I noticed her starting to pack customers foods into bags, shovel chips into boxes and dispense drinks.

I was flabbergasted. This lady, after handling god-knows-what in the deep, dark recesses of a filthy bin and then wiping a bench top down with a cloth worthy of examination by the Center For Disease Control, was serving food. Without washing her hands.

The couple in front grabbed their meal and sat down. The cashier asked in a somewhat robotic tone, “May I take your order?”.

I raised my voice so that a few other people around me could also hear what I was about to say. I pointed my finger at the offending employee and blasted, “First, I don’t want you touching my food. You emptied the bin, wiped down a bench with a filthy rag and didn’t wash your hands. That is disgraceful.”

Both their reaction at first was jaw-dropping amazement. This would not have been the response they had expected in the slightest and it had threw them off guard. I wasn’t rude or creating too much of a scene.

As soon as I finished my tirade, the girl who knew she was clearly in the wrong, shot out the back like a bullet. As I was placing my order, out of the corner of my eye I saw her scrubbing her hands feverishly with soap lather ballooning over her hands.

I got my meal and sat down, waited for Chris who described it, “That’s gold!”. We both agreed I was very much in my right to point out this horrendous breach of hygiene. As we were finishing my meal, they young girl was out on the floor clearing tables and wiping them like her life depended on it.

This time with gloves on.