What can we do to fix the mess known as QR?

[Shane-o]

Everyone,

Im sick of the train. Why? Easy. Delays! I get the train from Morayfield to Central each day. At least twice a week their is a major delay. This costs me time and money. If the train is 15 mintues late in the morning. Thats 15 minutes pay i lose at no fault of my own. Thats over $10 wasted in lost earnings. Sadly it is not uncommon for delays of a lot more then that including 90 minutes a few weeks ago. Their is always errors with express trains changing to all stations trains with no warning, guards making errors over the PA, broken seats on trains etc. The most frustrating thing is my travel each week costs almost $50. Good money for poor service!

What can we do to fix this?

Why are QR and translink so hopeless?

I often email translink giving them feedback. They take weeks and weeks to reply and the reply is basically a copy and pasted template refusing to do anything.

Thoughts?

[ozbob]

Welcome Shane-o, thanks for sharing your recent experiences.

TransLink is renowned for inappropriate and poor feedback. QR Passenger is moving forwards and we expect some major improvements over the next year.  I understand your frustration, on the receiving end myself at times.  We are finally starting to see some relief in terms of more trains and this will mean less cancellations and delays.  There has been some issues with the power and track these past weeks, but hopefully that is behind us.

Please check out QR Passenger web site contact information here --> http://www.citytrain.com.au/Citytrain/Contact_Us/ContactUsList.asp

Contact QR direct, they would like to hear from you.

Regards
Bob

[mufreight]

Shane-O
Well no one can claim that QR does not have problems but as to what can be done to resolve them is as it always has been in the hands of the government.
QR does a pretty good job with the resources that it has but is and has been for years woefully under resourced.
QR has to work under the constraints imposed by a bus centric and innefectual Translink, is constrained in its expansion of infrastructure by the needs of funding from government through SEQEP designed infrastructure which it would seem is more to cater for the needs of motorists and disuade commuters from the use of rail than the actual needs of the community with a passenger friendly public transport operation.
What can be done, a starting point will be remove the present government and pass the balance of power to independents who will be more atuned to the needs of their constituents than party policy.
As an individual, give QR the support that it needs, raise the subject with your local member and all other candiates so as to give the current government and their potential replacements the message.

[mufreight]

The problems of this morning (12-3-09) were greatly exacerbated by QR Passenger being hamstrung by the constraints and failures of others, namely QR network and Translink
QR passenger is the operator for rail passenger services which they provide for Translink which is a less than desirable situation in itself that inhibits the services that QR passenger can provide, and the remedies that they can provide when problems occour.
Another constraint in providing services when problems do occour is that QR Passenger does not control the lines over which it operates which are under the control of QR network so that when failures occour QR passenger has no control over the rearranging train paths and services and is at the mercy of other parties who set the schedules, control the maintainence of the tracks and powersupply which at the present time it would appear to be on a do nothing until something breaks basis rather than preventitive maintainence.
When such failures do occour QR Passenger then has to enter into a somewhat convoluted and drawn out process to try to provide a service.
One recent power failure saw passengers off loaded from trains and wait for in excess of two hours for buses organised by Translink that never showed up then be returned to the train to continue their journey.
The solution is that Cityrail network at the bare minimum bounded by Caboolture, Airport, Shorncliffe,Doomben, Cleveland and Rosewood should be under the control of its primary user QR Passenger so as to reduce delays and reaction times to failures when they do occour and control of the infrastructure so that preventitive maintainence can be scheduled so as to minimise any disruption to passengers.

[Arnz]

The solution is that Cityrail network at the bare minimum bounded by Caboolture, Airport, Shorncliffe,Doomben, Cleveland and Rosewood should be under the control of its primary user QR Passenger so as to reduce delays and reaction times to failures when they do occour and control of the infrastructure so that preventitive maintainence can be scheduled so as to minimise any disruption to passengers.

Its Citytrain 

[Shane-o]

Another train nightmare this morning. The express train from Morayfield to city changed to an all stations train mid journey (before any stations were skipped). I honestly cant see how they can charge us for a product which is different to what was advertised on the timetable. i missed 20 minutes worth of pay this morning thanks to QR

[mufreight]

A minor detail, it shows that you are awake so many thanks but while it might be Citytrain it is the Cityrail network, ask your local politician.