Why does it take so long to get things fixed at Britomart. For about the last three weeks one of three escalators down to the platforms has been out of action.
This isn’t the first time we have seen such length periods and I am yet to hear an explanation as to why it takes so long. The second issue also has been around for a similar length of time, the tunnel that runs from Britomart under Queen St emerges on the edge of QEII square. Half of the stairs have been cordoned off due to some idiot having broken the glass above the stairs.
Come on Auckland Transport, lets get this stuff fixed, surely 3 weeks is long enough to get these issues sorted.
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Either sheer incompetence from Auckland Transport or they just don’t care. I suspect a bit of both.
It could be that the supplier of the escalators is the problem as well. Cut AT some slack they can’t fix the escalator themselves and have to rely on an independent company.
Can you imagine the main escalator at a shopping centre being closed for three weeks? I don’t think so. So incompetence is justified.
Actually, yes, I can see the main escalator at a shopping mall being out of action for weeks, especially if it’s one of several and there are adjacent stairs. Also, unlike a shopping centre, people at Britomart generally aren’t carrying much more than a briefcase or backpack. You have no idea what’s going on. Surface shipping from Europe takes over a month, and if there’s a full replacement coming that’s the only way for it to come other than horrendously-expensive air freight; which would be unjustified when the sole “need” is to save passengers from having to *gasp* walk.
Matt, don’t forget the elderly and mobility-challenged. Although I am sure there will alternative wheelchair access at Britomart, this is not always straightforward to use (I don’t know the exact layout there). Therefore a persistently non-operational escalator can be a real annoyance for people with certain conditions.
There’s an elevator right next to the escalators. If you’re really mobility-challenged, you’ll use that. There are also multiple escalators. This is not a complete loss of any access except stairs, despite the hysterical responses within this thread. It’s one escalator out of three.
Actually, the Westfield mall close to Britomart has had a non-functioning “upstairs” escalator to the food court for at least three weeks (maybe four).
I agree Peter. James, I hear what you are saying but 3 weeks is far too long. If the escalator maintainence company can’t commit to the repair promptly, then AT need to play hardball and consider consulting other repairers who can. I would think that there is some kind of service level agreement as part of the maintanence contracts that AT need to exercise.
I just think incompetence is such a strong word considering we don’t know the facts. I work in IT for a high profile company. We are often told that we are incompetent when we don’t fix something within minutes despite the fact that we are working our arses off trying to get it fixed.
Can’t help feeling that it’s symptomatic of the city’s attitude toward public transport. I go through twice a day, five days a week. I can’t count how many times the information boards don’t work. Every other train I catch is behind schedule, and there is always a bunch of MAXX staff with clipboards who don’t seem to do anything at all.
It’s all just so sub par.
Well I doubt anyone is blind to the fact that NZ doesn’t pay more than lip service to PT. Until that changes and it’s properly resourced it’s never going to feel like a slick operation. That said, repairing some glass and buying new elevators if need be isn’t rocket science or expensive.
Or waiting for the part from Germany…
It can be quite expensive for, I assume you mean escalators, they are expensive in terms of the benefits that arise from them.
Given the frequency with which the escalator has broken down, it’s possible they’re waiting for a replacement. That would be a lengthy process since they’re fully constructed by the manufacturer and then shipped to the destination by sea. If you’re replacing it, repair would be fiscally pointless.
The glass, though, is just slack. It’s not like glass is particularly special.
Just walked past the Britomart bus stops and HELLO, the glass is being repaired. I wonder if the post on the blog today had anything to do with that?
I was less troubled by the walk upstairs this morning than by being crammed into a packed SA car from Morningside to town – not just no seats, almost no handholds; when we went over bumps in the track everyone standing up was supported by everyone else, swaying like branches in the breeze and trying to pretend they weren’t being forced into body contact with total strangers. Yet for some reason they couldn’t open the fourth car of the set?
What’s that thing Japanese do on the subway?
A sub-culture that happens when cars are that packed…
Sam, before I came to the last sentence of your post I was thinking, “yes, good point, a shame that quality in NZ’s public transport is so lacking,…etc”. But your final point summed up the disdain that PT users have sadly come to expect to be treated with. Maybe there was a “good” reason for the car being locked out of use in this case, but my suspicion is that it would not have been something passengers themselves would have considered as justification for being cram-loaded into the remaining cars. I suspect this was done primarily to suit the operator, and the passengers expected to lump it.
Whatever the reason for the delay in getting these escalator and stair problems fixed, the real issue here is the complete lack of customer communication from AT / Veolia. If this was Japan, such a lack of communication with the public over even a 2 day period, would result in a dressing down from city officials to the managers concerned, due to a deluge of complaints from the commuting public.
In this case, AT should have at least posted an explanation on their or the MAXX website, explaining the problem with the escalator / stairs, how long it will take to fix etc. There should have been posters put up near the escalators and the stairs explaining the situation in similar detail.
Raising the image of public transport is all about attention to detail and there is certainly no attention here. AT, given that they outsource so many of their functions, really do need to employ people who’s sole job is to physically site visit check every few days on the performance / service level of contractors. You’d be surprised just how well contractors perform when they see their corporate client on-site-inspect every few days – clipboard in hand and issuing reprimands for any service error discovered. Certainly a good way of enforcing a contract.
Matt – my concern is not the escalator itself as I always use the stairs anyway but the perception issue of just having it closed off and broken with no explanation about it which makes it appear that we don’t really value our PT infrastructure. If there had of been a sign saying “Sorry we are waiting on a part from Germany” then I would not have worried about it.
The other concern I have is the frequency at which these escalators break down. It seems we have a similar issue every 6 months or so.
Again, customer communication is paramount. As you say Matt, if you’d seen a sign or communique that explained the situation better, you would be more accepting of the inconvenience caused. No communication is bad communication. Come on AT, wake up and engage with your ‘customers’ more, lest your brand and your reputation be permanently mud.
It could be worse? http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/8415/metro-escalator-repairs-are-unlikely-to-work-part-1-we-still-dont-know-why-theyre-breaking/
One escalator wasn’t working in the Downtown Shopping Centre today. Last week two weren’t working. So it’s not just Britomart.
Maybe ‘escalator breakdown disease’ is contagious in the area?
Sure, some signage would be helpful and dispel the impression that nothing was being done.
But cut the guys some slack, escalators are a specialist item, and generally made to order. If a part’s not available locally then it may have to be found and freighted in from somewhere like Germany and then get fitted, which is going to take a while, airfreight or otherwise, and that’s assuming that it’s in stock. If it needs fabrication, you’ve got lead times and everything else.
Likewise, that piece of glass isn’t something you just pick up in a hardware store. You’re talking about something made to order that’s got to be shipped and installed by a specialist team.
Yes, but tell the public that through signage and communiques and things become easier to manage as a result.
The waterfalls broke years ago, and they never bothered fixing them either. Such a shame, as they were a great feature that people enjoyed. They even provided income for Britomart, as people would toss coins into the top of the waterfalls.
Totally agree Geoff. I loved the waterfalls. They were just such an original part of the station. I’ve never seen a waterfall at a rail station anywhere else on the planet! I thought they also lent the place a more relaxed, peaceful atmosphere as well. But I guess with limited funding to spend on a mountain of things they’re not a priority. Maybe one day…
The STOP sign at the end of my road has been knocked over for a week.
Nothing special about it that has to be shipped from overseas.
I’m wondering how much longer it will take before it is fixed.
In the case of knocked over STOP signs it’s the jerks that keep knocking them over that p*** me off not the council struggling to keep up with running repairs. Chances are it was two days before anyone told them it had been knocked over.
Probably to do with the tax year coming to an end
The glass has been replaced but whoever did the job left quite a mess on the bricks and pavers. I wonder if they will bother to clean up their mess?