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PT officer complaints increase

The number of complaints raised by Victorian public transport users about the behaviour and conduct of Authorised Officers is on the increase

Victorian Public Transport Ombudsman (PTO) Treasure Jennings says while myki related complaints have decreased, she is concerned about the number of complainsts made against Authorised Officers (AOs).

“The majority of complaints to the PTO on this issue were from commuters who viewed the AOs behaviour during their interaction as unwarranted,” she says.

“Several complainants said they felt intimidated. More work needs to be done in this area to ensure AOs have adequate support and the right skills to interact with the community in an effective and fair way.”

Overall complaints to the PTO in the last financial year have fallen by 16 per cent.

“We believe this is partly attributed to our members making improvements to their internal dispute resolution systems.”

The ombudsman remains concerned that this is also due to low levels of community awareness of the PTO.

“It is important people understand that the PTO is the only truly independent umpire and we are here to help resolve consumer concerns or complaints about public transport,” Jennings says.

The top five issues identified by consumers were – myki, matters involving transport staff, the issuing of infringement notices, service delivery, infrastructure and rolling stock, according to the PTO annual report that was released this week.

Although myki remains the main reason why people contact the PTO, overall complaint numbers in this area have decreased by 36 per cent in the last financial year.

“We experienced a significant decrease in the number of myki refund investigations and we believe this is due to improvements put in place by Public Transport Victoria.”

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