Transport for London's customer service

Transport for London's customer service, by Val Shawcross AM on behalf of our Transport Committee, welcomes improvements Transport for London (TfL) has already made, but calls on it to do more to improve the experience of passengers who get in touch.

TfL has now responded to the report in a very positive way, including agreeing to adopt the four key principles of good service we identified as the framework for its customer service activity. See TfL's response of June 2012.

TfL has billions of passengers a year and receives around 10,000 calls and almost half a million visits to its website a day. Some passengers are unclear about who to contact or why decisions have been made, or thwarted by confusing online information.

As it continues to develop its customer service, the report sets out four key principles for TfL:

1. It should be clear to passengers who they should contact and what they should expect in response.
2. TfL should set itself challenging customer service targets which reflect what matters to passengers and publish performance against them.
3. There should be a one stop shop for TfL customer information.
4. Passenger complaints should be viewed as an opportunity and not a threat.

Watch a short video about the report’s key findings:

The report calls on TfL to simplify its phone system; make online information more straightforward; consult passengers on a new single Customer Charter that clearly sets out what passengers can expect; and investigate the possibility of enabling people to track their enquiries online.

TfL is also asked to look at offering a dedicated free phoneline for Freedom Pass holders, who can require complex travel advice.

Read the report and the submissions we received: