The MTA is about to pay tens of millions extra to the corporate that developed the brand new OMNY fare cost system — which has been suffering from a spotty rollout and complaints over customer support.
The transit authority’s board on Wednesday authorised an almost $3 million modification to its current contract with Cubic Transportation Techniques for a man-made intelligence chatbot designed to extra shortly reply widespread rider questions on the OMNY web site.
Cubic initially supplied using the “OMNY Digital Assistant” for gratis to the MTA as a part of a seven-month trial run in 2022, with an settlement that the authority would pay the corporate for AI companies after the top of the pilot program. The approval features a practically $13 million five-year possibility for chatbot companies.
Annoyed commuters say OMNY’s chatbot has not been a lot assist. Could 28, 2025. Credit score: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
“The goal of the chatbot is to reduce the number of calls to the OMNY call center about general information or OMNY account details by [redirecting] inquiries to the chatbot,” in keeping with a abstract of the contract within the paperwork for the Could assembly.
The faucet-and-go fare-payment system is now utilized by two-thirds of all subway and bus riders, in keeping with the MTA, and is on monitor to completely exchange the MetroCard by the top of 2025.
In 2017, the MTA awarded Cubic a $570 million base contract to develop a substitute for the plastic fare card that riders have used to board trains and buses for 3 a long time.
MTA officers advised THE CITY final week that software program upgrades to OMNY are accountable for complaints from clients who haven’t been capable of faucet their well past the turnstiles or have had journey expenses present up days late on financial institution statements.
“We’re now through that, Cubic has cleared the backlog,” Jamie Torres-Springer, president of MTA Building & Growth, stated in the course of the Wednesday board assembly. “We would have liked them to be more effective at doing that, we are not happy with their performance on that.”
Buyer Disservice
Riders have additionally complained about extreme wait occasions and dropped calls whereas making an attempt to attach with the client name heart to deal with points with the contactless fare-payment system.
Mark Winiarski, a 76-year-old retiree, stated he referred to as for assist after being charged the complete $2.90 fare on what was imagined to be a decreased trip for seniors. However he shortly gave up after being knowledgeable what number of calls had been forward of his.
“They said there were 164 calls ahead of me, and I hung up, believing that my problem would never get fixed,” he advised THE CITY Wednesday.
Francine Smilen, 76, stated she was advised on three separate cellphone calls that she had 25 to 40 callers forward of her, including that she by no means acquired calls in return, even after requesting them.
“I didn’t wait on the line because I imagined that it would have been hours each time,” she stated. “The only time I was successful was on a Sunday morning, but that person gave me the wrong information.”
An OMNY machine at Metropolis Corridor-Brooklyn Bridge affords help. Could 28, 2025. Credit score: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
She added that she has doubts concerning the capability of the AI chatbot to assist past fundamental questions.
“If the people in the customer service centers gave me the wrong information each time, and then told me to call OMNY and then hand them the phone so that they could ask them my questions, why would I trust a chatbot?” Smilen stated.
Kara Gurl, advocacy supervisor for the Everlasting Residents Advisory Committee to the MTA, cited THE CITY’s current reporting whereas saying rider unhappiness should not be ignored.
“Riders need to be able to trust OMNY before the MetroCard is fully phased out,” she stated. “And these bumps in the road are unfortunately making the transition more painful than it should be.”
MTA officers advised THE CITY that decision heart staffing is being elevated as extra riders shift to OMNY. A Cubic spokesperson stated there are at present 55 brokers on the aim heart, with plans to spice up that determine considerably.
“Our goal is to double the number of agents to address the higher volume,” the spokesperson stated. “We will reevaluate on an ongoing basis and will add agents as needed.”
“We’ve expanded call center hours, we have maintained the option to receive a callback so you don’t actually have to wait on line,” stated Jessie Lazarus, the transit company’s deputy chief of business ventures.
She added that the AI characteristic is marked for upgrades that may reply greater than common questions.
“We’re adding features to unlock some of those trip and charge questions customers may have,” Lazarus stated.
However a number of reluctant OMNY converts advised THE CITY that they’re sad with the method to interchange the MetroCard, which itself started taking up for the token in 1994.
“The system has some issues,” stated Percy Suarez, a 45-year-old Jackson Heights resident who stated he has had hassle switching his Truthful Fares advantages for low-income riders to OMNY. “It makes me miss the MetroCard.”
Winiarski stated he’s come to phrases paying the complete $2.90 fare as a result of he’s grown pissed off with making an attempt to get solutions about OMNY.
“The burden is on us,” he stated. “Then when we try to resolve the issue, we run into a morass of non-responsiveness.”
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