Better Assisting Riders
Find Station Agents Make Switch Work

By GINGER ADAMS OTIS

A survey of subway riders conducted by the New York Public Interest Research Group's Straphangers' Campaign shows many passengers approve of the work that out-of-booth Station Agents are doing, while an Internet opinion poll found riders divided about the program.

GENE RUSSIANOFF: Outside role paying off.

"Roving" clerks were introduced to subway stations in May 2005, when New York City Transit announced plans to close 164 station booths and deploy Station Agents at turnstiles and on platforms.

Spurred by Technology

NYC Transit said the program made better use of Station Agents' customer service skills, since the MetroCard program reduced the need for them to sell tokens.

Between Jan. 17 and Oct. 19 last year, NYPIRG sent 19 people into subway stations to observe roving clerks in action. The observation period was 30 minutes per station, with a total of 71 separate observations.

Observations were made either in the late morning, midday or afternoon. Surveyors were told not to inform the agents of their presence.

The Straphangers' Campaign found that roving agents answered a rider's questions at least once during 94 percent of the observations.

Agents gave riders directions at least once during 84 percent of observations; assisted a rider using a MetroCard vending machine at least once during 56 percent of the observations; buzzed riders onto the platform at least once during 44 percent of the observations; performed turnstile or MetroCard vending machine maintenance at least once during 20 percent of the observations; and handed out maps at least once during 20 percent of the observations.

'Help Riders Get Around'

Gene Russianoff, staff attorney for the Straphangers' Campaign, said the results showed that "roving Station Agents are helping riders to navigate subways."

NYPIRG's survey also found that roving Station Agents encountered threatening situations in less than 10 percent of the situations in which they were evaluated.

Agents dealt with an angry customer at least once during 9 percent of observations. They also assisted a rider with a disability at least once during 7 percent of observations. But the survey noted that the "latter two observations may reflect the infrequent number of times the roving clerks encountered these situations."

Andreeva Pinder, Transport Workers' Union Local 100's vice president of Stations, said she was glad to see the clerks recognized for their hard work, but added that "too many female Station Agents have been attacked while working on barren platforms late at night to ignore the fact that there is a safety issue that needs to be addressed with this program."

Job 'Evolved'

NYC Transit applauded the Straphangers' Campaign for taking the initiative to conduct a survey. It said the program came about after the agency recognized "that the role of Station Agent has evolved over time - a direct reflection of the popularity of MetroCards."

But a larger Internet poll conducted by NYPIRG about roving Station Agents turned up a divided response.

The campaign asked: "Do you think the program of 'roving' Station Customer Agents is great? good? fair? poor?"

More than 28 percent of respondents rated the program as great or good; 22 percent rated it fair; 35 percent rated the program poor; and 15 percent had no opinion.

More than 925 riders responded to an e-mail sent out to subscribers to the Straphangers' Web site. The poll was also posted on the Web site.