Complaint Letter 19/08/13

19th August 2013

Customer Services

Metrolink House

Queens Road

Manchester

M8 0RY

Dear Sir / Madam,

I would like to share my appalling travel experience on 18/08/13. I purchased a ticket to the “City Zone” wanting to get from Bury to Manchester Piccadilly train station. Whilst I was fully aware this would require a replacement bus journey the actual events are not what was expected and are not acceptable.

The website and iPhone App stated that my journey would proceed to Crumpsall via a tram with a replacement bus journey to Piccadilly on a bus that went “via Victoria”. Upon arrival at Victoria and after a few minutes wait the bus driver got out of his cab and instructed us that “trams are now running from Victoria so we won’t be going to Piccadilly”.

All passengers remaining got off the bus to proceed to Victoria with a tram having just left where we were shouted at by Metrolink staff asking us where we were going. I replied Piccadilly to which I was told the trams were not going from Victoria to Piccadilly and would have to get a service to Market Street and walk to Piccadilly Gardens. I asked why this was different to the information given by the bus driver and I was told to “take it up with him”.

So after over a 6 minute wait I boarded an East Didsbury service and as it approached Market Street informed us via an automated announcement that we needed to change at Market Street for services to Piccadilly, no mention that in fact you had to walk to Piccadilly Gardens. Another example of poor planning and even worse communication.

So after a walk to Piccadilly Gardens I eventually boarded a service to my final destination. I had been on 3 different trams and 1 bus for a journey that is quoted as taking 28 minutes and should have involved 1 tram and 1 bus. I purchased my ticket at 14:21 and didn’t arrive at Piccadilly Station until 15:45. Whilst I was fully aware it would add some additional time to my journey I wasn’t expecting it to take 1 hour and 24 minutes, exactly 3 times longer than you quote.

The poor communication, poor attitude of the people I interacted with are not something I will accept and combined with the ridiculous time take to complete my journey I enclose my ticket for a full refund and look forward to a complete explanation as to why something that seemed so simple was made so hard.

Yours faithfully,

Ryan Hayes