CCT ADVISORY COUNCILS ASSIST, INFORM CUSTOMERS

(Editor Note: From time to time, CCT Connection will include a “guest column”. This issue features the chairpersons of SEPTA’s Shared Ride Program Advisory Council (SRPAC), and the SEPTA Advisory Committee for Accessible Transportation (SAC).

[SAC] and [SRPAC] have partnered with SEPTA to work on issues and concerns that directly affect the communities they serve…Our first project is Late Cancellation…CCT’s cancellation policy [allows riders] to cancel a trip without penalty up to two hours before the confirmed pick up time.

A late cancellation [occurs] when a trip is cancelled less than two hours from the confirmed pick up time. Some of the effects of late cancellations include empty seats on the buses, [lost] slots that someone else could have used, and waste of fuel and time… Eleven percent of all cancellations under the SRP program are late cancels; while 15% of all cancellations under the ADA program are late cancels.

When you cancel early [one to two days in advance of travel] someone else can use your spot. When you cancel late, however, the vehicle is often [enroute] to your home. Each late cancellation is an empty seat someone else potentially could have used [or] a more convenient ride someone else [could have scheduled] and didn’t receive.

We [want] to remind and educate the riders in the communities we represent of the late cancellation policy. We encourage everyone to be sure to cancel a trip as soon as you know of a change in your schedule……Cancellations can be called in through Reservations (215-580-7700) the day BEFORE your trip, or Dispatch (215-580-7720) the day of the trip.

Sinclair Jefferson, SRPAC Chairperson
Patricia Russell, SAC Chairperson