Original message, sent via online submission form (https://www.halifax.ca/contactus/) 2/15/2012 10:56 am:
Thank you so much for the parking ticket I got for being parked too long in a 2-hour spot near Saint Mary's. It's such a joy to know that even when transit operators are on strike, other HRM employees are still hard at work. On a day on which buses are not operating, so I drove 1 employee and 1 student, both stranded by the strike, TO campus, and 2 other students home, and during a time when it is virtually impossible to find paid parking on campus, again because of the strike. It's really wonderful that you are continuing to be so vigilant about parking enforcement during this difficult time. Thank you.
Becca B--
Auto-reply from HRM, 2/15/2012 10:59 am (sent to my email):
Thank you for contacting Halifax Regional Municipality.
During snow events, HRM asks that residents please allow 12 hours after the end of the snowfall for crews to plow main roads and bus routes and allow 24 hours after the end of the snowfall for crews to plow residential and rural streets. For more information on HRM’s snow clearing operations please visit our website at: http://www.halifax.ca/snow/index.html
Once the snow service standards have expired, please phone in your snow clearing requests to the HRM Corporate Call Centre directly at (902)490-4000 or 1-800-835-6428 Toll Free (Nova Scotia only). Email requests may take up to 1 business day for review.
If you require immediate assistance, please contact the HRM Corporate Call Centre directly at (902)490-4000 or 1-800-835-6428 Toll Free (Nova Scotia only). Call Centre hours of operation are 7:00AM to 11:00PM seven days a week.
Thank you,
HRM Call Centre
My reply, sent 11:31 am:
Why on earth would I care about snow events? What relevance does this have on the message I sent you? Perhaps I'm a little slow on the uptake, but I fail to understand the connection. Please explain,using small words, and, if possible, helpful diagrams drawn in crayon.
Reply from HRM, sent 11:39 am:
Dear Becca,
Thank you for your concern with HRM. Unfortunately, parking regulations and enforcement are continuing to operate as normal during the strike. There was a proposal to change bus stops into temporary parking spots, to alleviate some of the parking stress, but this was recently rejected by Council. If you have any further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre
490-4000
A further reply, sent 11:50 am:
Dear Rebecca,
The response you received is an auto-response that is generated during the Winter due to the large volume of inquiries in regards to snow removal. It has been temporarily removed until the next snow event. We apologize if this has caused you any confusion.
If you have any further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre490-4000
My reply, sent 11:58 am:
Marc:
Congratulations on the budgetary savings of $1,000,000 to date (source: http://www.cbc.ca/ns/insidethenews/2012/02/the-transit-strike-lottery.html), while persuading citizens to offer transit services at our personal cost, and enforcing parking regulations so assiduously.
When will transit pass holders (including students, who pay for their transit passes as part of their tuition) be reimbursed for the portions of their passes that they could not use during the strike?
Regards, Becca B--
P.S. I am disappointed that you did not include the crayon diagram explaining the relevance of snow removal policies to my inquiry, which I requested in my last message.
HRM's auto-reply, sent 11:58 am (notice that it no longer contains a reference to snow events!):
Thank you for contacting Halifax Regional Municipality.
E-mails are responded to from 8:30AM to 4:30PM, Monday to Friday (excluding Holidays).
If you require immediate assistance, please contact the HRM Corporate Call Centre directly at (902)490-4000 or 1-800-835-6428 Toll Free (Nova Scotia only).
Call Centre hours of operation are 7:00AM to 11:00PM seven days a week.
Thank you,
HRM Call Centre
Marc from HRM's response, sent 12:10 pm:
Dear Becca,
Thank you for prompt response. Your concern with the cost savings, in lieu of Metro Transit service, has been sent to Metro Transit for review. Your reference number for this is 5174488. Unfortunately, we will not be entertaining your request for a crayon diagram of the relevance of snow removal policies. If you would like more information on snow removal polices, please feel free to check out the following link : http://www.halifax.ca/snow/index.html . Metro Transit will decide how they will be reimburse pass holders once the work stoppage is over, including compensation in regards to the U-Pass. If you have any further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre
490-4000
My response, sent 12:34 pm:
Dear Marc,
Thank you also for your very prompt response. While I am still lagging in understanding the connection between my inquiry, and HRM's initial response with information on snow removal, I thank you for considering my request for a crayon drawing, even though this document is sadly not available.
It is regrettable that HRM is unable to reconsider enforcing my parking ticket at this time; however, I certainly understand that one must hold fast to one's business practices, even in time of crisis. In that spirit, I am attaching an invoice for the transit services that I have provided since the beginning of the strike, and have arranged to provide for the remainder of the week. As you can see from the attached document, I have provided/will be providing 12 rides. At a rate of $2.25/ride (current Metro Transit fares), I am invoicing for a gross total of $27.00; less the $25.00 (the amount of the parking ticket in question), I am now owed $2.00. Please pay this amount within 30 days. I will, of course, submit a hard copy of this invoice, with the original parking ticket.
Warm regards,
Becca B--
Their response, sent 12:57 pm
Dear Becca,
Thank you for your response. Unfortunately, HRM/Metro Transit will not reimburse you for the invoice you have provided. If you have any further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre
490-4000
My response, sent 1:02 pm:
Dear Marc,
That is very understandable. I too, prefer not to write cheques for under $10. I will continue to log the rides I provide to Metro Transit patrons during the strike, and will re-submit this invoice once the total owing is in excess of $10.
Warmly,
Becca
Another response from Marc @ HRM, sent 2:05 pm:
Dear Becca,
Thank you again for your response. Unfortunately, HRM/Metro Transit is not reimbursing patrons for alternative transportation during the work stoppage. We hope this provides you with some clarification on the matter. We understand the frustration that people are facing during the work stoppage and hope that a resolve can be reached in the near future.
If you have any further inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time.
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre
490-4000
Sincerely,
Marc
HRM Corporate Call Centre
490-4000
My reply, sent at 3:57 pm:
Dear Marc,
Thank you also for your response. I see your point perfectly; it would be unseemly for private citizens to attempt to follow the example provided by the HRM (which is saving $89,000 per day during the strike, in addition to the $2000 per day in increased parking ticket revenues) and attempt to profit from the strike. Instead of invoicing the city for the rides that I am providing to stranded HRM patrons, I will continue to log these rides at $2.25 each (the Metro Transit rate) against this, and any future parking tickets that I incur as a result of the strike. Please be advised that I herewith withdraw my request that you pay the outstanding $2.00 within 30 days.
Thank you so much for your helpful advice.
Affectionately yours,
Becca
Thus far, I am triply disappointed: they will not reconsider the parking ticket, will not pay my invoice, and have refused my request for a crayon diagram. HRM: 1, Becca 0.
24 comments:
Becca, you are being a bitch. They are trying to be professional with you and you are acting like a kid. On behalf of everyone that needs to smile while they deal with difficult people like you... Fuck right off!
Becca, I think you're being awesome. Until people, such as yourself, point out the flawed practices within the system, those practices will never change.
Keep up the good work!
Shannon
I should comment that I think Marc is amazing. I really hope that he has a sense of humour, and that he's been enjoying this exchange as much as I have. I'd also like to point out that at no point have I been at all disrespectful to him. My beef is with HRM's policies, not their staff. (And why do people always call other people bitches anonymously? At least when I'm being a cunt, I'm not hiding behind internet anonymity. I have also refrained from name calling or overtly offensive behaviour. Anonymous, this is me, Becca, saying that I think you're a humourless coward.)
Hi Becca,
I don't know you, I live in Sudbury ON, I stumbled across your blog through the wonders on the internet. My name is Steve Kemp, I posted as 'Anonymous' because I don't want to sign up for an account to tell you how childish you are behaving, not because I'm cowardly... Marc has been given the impossible task of trying to make sure everyone has their issues resolved. You are raising issues just for the fun of it. What about the disabled person that is actually trying to contact Marc about mobility issues, or the other real world issues that he is paid, probably poorly, to deal with. All that you have done is add one more piece of shit to his pile. Letting them know that you are displeased with getting a ticket, and their policies are one thing, repeatedly asking for a crayon diagram to understand why a computer sent you an auto reply on a different topic is just plain ignorant. Why don't you let Marc know that you are having fun at his career expense? Similar to bullying, on side is just having fun and the other side wants to go home and shoot themselves. Think of how your actions affect others! And really that is just my opinion!
Thanks
Steve
Becca, I disagree with Anonymous - I think that is a very well-thought out and reasonalble exchange. Poor Mark - of course it's not his fault. If he does have a sense of humour maybe this will help him realize that he has chosen the wrong career path, working for a money-grubbing city council that dares to ticket peole who are doing their best to manage during the strike. Best of luck with getting your reimbursement. :)
Steve, good on you for posting your name. I friggin hate people who hide behind internet anonymity to fuel hate. For the record, although I admit that the exchange was pretty fun for me, I didn't undertake this exchange just for the fun of it. I want to cast a light on the intransigence of a bureaucracy that has been utterly unwilling to make any concessions for its stranded transit users, many of whom are under-employed, disabled, and dependent on transit. The strike is unfortunate, but HRM's unwillingness to accommodate its citizens in any way is unconscionable. Also, considering the rapidity of his replies, I really can't believe that the 5 brief emails Marc sent me in any way impacted or disrupted Call Centre service. And, for the record, despite my obviously facetious requests (made to highlight a serious problem), I was never rude or disrespectful to Marc, whose professionalism I admire tremendously. And, having worked with the public for a long time, I have to say, were I in Marc's position, I would have had a lot of fun with this exchange. (Sorry about living in Sudbury, BTW. That's gotta suck.)
A quick search of steve kemp brought up this profile, I wonder if this is the same Steve Kemp.
Becca as someone who has worked for you as a min wage monkey when you yourself were working as a min wage monkey manager, Ive sene you deal with some explicitly stupid human beings, and youve always done so in a reasonable way. I dont see these exchanges as anything but clearly pointing out a flaw in the system, something the city council should have considered before the strike.
I maybe should have started with a rudimentary terminological definition.
Satire: the rhetorical strategy of expressing a serious opinion in a facetious or ironic manner. See: Jonathan Swift, Bobby Henderson.
(Note: ad hominem attacks are pretty well universally considered to be extremely weak rhetorical strategies.)
You say you haven't been rude... Then we clearly have a different understanding how polite people communicate in society. I stand by the sentiment that while you are having fun with this complaint you have not thought about the other side. I'm sure if you ran into Marc on the street he would joke about a crayon diagram explaining how an auto response works. Repeatedly making "facetious requests" is rude and childish. Similar to me calling you a bitch on your blog... The difference is I know how rude and inconsiderate I'm being right now. Where you seem to think you have the right to treat people as you feel.
If you are trying to have your opinion heard you should try not being a bitch and see what that gets you. (There is an expression you catch more bees with honey...)
And BTW don't feel sorry for me in Sudbury our buses are running on time!
Yes, good point, had I sent one email politely asking not to pay the parking ticket, I am absolutely certain that not only would HRM have reversed the ticket, they would immediately have reconsidered their policies on INCREASING (yes, increasing) parking enforcement during this strike.
(Editor's note: Sarcasm--definition: verbal irony in which that which is stated is explicitly the opposite of the intended meaning.)
Also, I'm pretty sure that, were Marc not enjoying himself, he would NOT have brought up the crayon diagram at all--a request that was transparently made in jest.
Of course they are increasing parking enforcement! There are more people parking, more people parking illegally, and slowing the flow of traffic. Which is even more important to be running smoothly now that there aren't buses on the road. Honestly, cause and effect!
Common sense is defined by Merriam-Webster as, "sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts."
PS - No that is not my LinkedIn Profile. Kinda funny that someone with the same name as me works in the transportation department of another city!
Also causal: no buses means more drivers. There is inadequate parking for increased volume of vehiclular traffic. (I am unable to obtain daily parking at either of my places of emplyment.) Parking for 4 hours in a 2-hour spot does not increase congestion. By all means, ticket some douche who's parked in a driving lane. But increasing parking enforcement in limited-time, LEGAL street parking, and at expired meters is just a dick move.
Actually it would create congestion... There is a time limit on spaces to ensure that people just arriving can find a parking space, and don't need to circle the block 10 times. I'm no traffic expert, but that would create congestion... Cause and Effect!
Not giving the people that start work later then you an opportunity to find one of the few available spots seems like a dick move from my end. I'm not saying that I wouldn't do it, but I wouldn't bitch that someone called me on it and ticketed me.
There are no other options that I'm aware of, than parking illegally right now. I am already providing free rides to several people whom I'd never met before this week--I can't afford daily parking tickets. Increasing ticketing exacerbates, rather than helps, the cascading transit problems caused by the strike.
Keep posting, by the way. Not only are your opinions monotonously unimaginative and blindly pro-bureaucracy, you've clearly given no thought to rhetorical strategy. I knew exactly how people (including HRM Mark) were likely to react to the tone of my posts. You opened by anonymously calling me a bitch and telling me to fuck right off. You do realize that, even if your opinions were at all enlightened or reasonable, I'm extremely unlikely to be persuaded to adopt your point of view after that spectacularly offensive opener?
Sorry Becca clearly we have the same level of respect for each other. I never thought that someone like you could ever see another point of view. Every now and then I like calling people bitches when I get the opportunity. So often I would have this same situation where I would see someone being a bitch and have to bite my tongue and politely smile at them giving them the same type of response that Marc gave you. But today I'm not posting as "Customer Service" Steve, I'm posting as "Fed Up With Sarcastic People Not Letting Me Do My Job" Steve.
If I wanted you to actually change your opinion I would have taken my own advice and used a bit of honey... Personally, I don't care that you will always be a bitch, I just wanted this chance to let you know that while Marc (that's right with a 'c') may not be able to say it, we are all thinking it!
Thank you for the very flew entertaining moments I have experienced during the transit strike.
Steve, here's what I hear when you write: "Always follow the rules! The rules are never wrong! Never question authority! If I see you questioning authority, I am entitled to malign your character by calling you offensive names! I use offensive languages in public forums as a way of establishing the ternal and unwavering rightness of bureaucratic systems!" Also, when you're saying these things, I imagine you as a short, portly, balding little cartoon man in my head, voiced by Wallace Shawn.
Hey Steve,
Are you the Paraplegic Curler Steve Kemp I found on the Internet when I googled Steve Kemp Sudbury Ontario?
Please say yes. That would be awesome.
Hahahaha!! Because having a disability is so funny... Oh wait it isn't...
Becca,
I was just wondering if the people you are so kindly driving everyday, have offered to pay for gas or help pay for the parking ticket. Even the $2.25 per trip?
P.S.
I am not Steve.... I'm Ro, even though I'm not calling you nasty names.
*edited for grammar*
I see you've acquired a parking ticket. Perhaps you can pay it with this:
http://www.27bslash6.com/images/spiderdrawing.gif
Becca, you are my favorite person. This blog is the funniest thing I have ever read in my life. No, this is not Steve Kemp. I am an anonymous fan of yours :)
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