Name of Process:

Location status of the bus

Process Owner:

Ajay Sharma

Created By:

Anurag

Last Updated By:

Anurag

Date Created:

2/16/2023

Last Revision Date:

3/20/2023

Process Purpose:

The purpose of this document is to define the process that an advisor can refer to if we have a customer enquiring about location status of the bus

Process Scope:

This process pertains to Rally OurBus customers reaching out to the customer experience team regarding the current location of the bus

Process Input:

The location status of the bus typically requires the following input:

Customer contact via call, chat, email, social channel

Trip information

Process Boundaries:

The activities immediately following the process input and immediately preceding the process output define the boundaries for the Location station Process. Therefore, the Location status of the bus process starting boundary is defined by the customer requesting the location status of the bus.  The process’s ending boundary is defined by the resolution provided by the customer experience team.

Process Flow:

1. Rally OurBus customer reaches the customer experience team enquiring about the current location of the bus.

2. The customer experience team member needs to probe and capture basic details from the customer like the route and departure time of the bus

If it is the first stop, then the below steps are to be followed

3. If the customer reaches the customer experience way before the spotting time (more than 15 minutes prior to the departure time) then the expected spot time needs to be informed to the customer and the bus should reach the location in about 5 to 10 minutes. Parallely, the customer experience team member will also check the slack “now_dispatch” channel using trip ID for any update on the trip that needs to be conveyed to the customer. 

4. If the customer reaches customer experience 5-10 mins before the departure of the bus, then the live location of the bus will have to be checked in the admin panel to verify if the bus has reached the stop. 

5. If the customer cannot find the bus, then tell the customer about how the bus looks, the logo on the dashboard, and the fact that it has already reached the pick-up location. Also, double-check the location of the customer to ensure that they’re standing at the correct pickup stop.

6. If the bus is not at the stop yet, then check with dispatch or look for any message from them informing them about the delay in spot time. Notify the dispatch team on slack if there’s no information available regarding the bus.

If it is an intermediate stop, then the below steps are to be followed:

3. Customer experience team member to check the scheduled departure time 

4. If the customer is contacting before the departure time then check the ETA of the bus by tracking it and also share the tracking link (www.ourbus.com/track/confirmationnumber - instead of "confirmation number", type in the 6 character ticket reference code on the ticket.) with the customer. Also, share steps on how can the customer track the bus himself/herself using the app/tracking link

5. If the customer is contacting after the bus has departed, check if the bus went past that stop, using the admin panel under “See Trip History” in Full Schedule

1. If the bus has already departed the stop, then communicate the same to the customer and follow the SOP for missed bus

2. If the bus is delayed and is expected to reach the stop, then inform the customer about the ETA

6. If the tracking (trip history) shows that the driver passed by the stop but didn’t stop to pick up the passengers, then inform the dispatch and follow SOP for code_red (skip stop). File an incident for this situation using this form.

7. “I just received a text/message that my bus is delayed. Could you tell me the ETA?”

3. Check the current status of the bus

4. Inform the customer about the ETA

5. Educate the customer on how they can track the bus through the app/ticket/the link sent in the text

6. Share the tracking link of the bus with the customer through text so that they can track the bus directly from their end

If it is a delayed arrival, then the below steps are to be followed:

4. Check the slack channel(s) using the trip ID to Identify the reason for the delay. If no such information is available, ask the customer to understand the reason for the delay. Depending on the cause of the delay, action will be taken accordingly

   1. Uncontrollable factor (Traffic):

      1. Confirm that the bus is/was delayed due to traffic 

         1. If the trip is live then use Google Maps

         2. If the trip has ended, then check arrival time using “see trip history” on the admin panel

      2. Inform the customer that We do our best to be on time and factor in traffic patterns at the time of deciding the arrival time. With that said, it seems that today’s situation is unprecedented. We apologize for the inconvenience, but it’s something we cannot control.

         1. If the customer asks for credit/refund, etc. then tell the customer we won’t be able to process it as the reason causing the delay is beyond our control

         2. If the customer still persists, reach out to your manager

   2. Bus stopping at an intermediate stop

      1. The customer says that the bus got delayed because it stopped in between pick-up/drop-off passengers

      2. Inform the customer that
         Several of our trips have pre-scheduled intermediate stops and this was one of those. You can also find this information in the “route details” at the time of purchasing your ticket. 
         We try to hold true to the arrival time committed to you but due to uncontrollable factors in some situations, we’re not able to. Having said that, our planning team is constantly evaluating the schedule to ensure that trips arrive on time and I’ll pass on this feedback to them. Apologies for the inconvenience but I sincerely hope you’ll give us an opportunity to serve you again in the future

         1. Drop a note on slack “general_report-a-planning-issue” channel as fyi if the arrival was delayed by more than 30 minutes

      3. If the customer is still adamant then reach out to your manager

   3. Emergency Situations - Breakdown, flat tire, accident, a medical emergency with a passenger, the driver being stopped by cops, skipped stop, etc. Follow the SOP for code_red handling

Process Output:

The output for this process is to inform the customer of reaching out to the customer experience team about the correct location and the ETA to the stop.

Exceptions to Normal Process Flow:

1. The customer does not possess a valid OurBus ticket

2. The customer contacted Rally OurBus but is booked with some other bus company

Control Points and Measurements:

The process owner will continuously measure the number of qualified connections and how they have validated this information.  If these numbers are low or a significant number of team members are deviating, then steps will need to be taken to improve the quality and detail of the interaction via coaching and feedback.