And now it's Tuesday.

On my way home today, I was confronted with yet another of the CTA's shortcomings. My bus driver was talking on her cellphone the entire 40 minute way home. This isn't the first time it has happened. I had a similar experience last week. Both times I called the CTA customer service line ( 1-888-YOUR-CTA), and both times the agent was really nice. However, on neither occasion did I get the feeling that anything was going to happen to the driver. I asked today's agent what exactly happened when a driver is repremanded, and she told me that she couldn't give me that information.

It's confidential you see.

So I asked her if she could tell me what the general procedure for when a customer calls in to complain is, and she couldn't tell me that either. Although I pay taxes that go to the CTA and pay the damned fare to take public transportation every single day, I don't get to know how they handle customer complaints. Somehow I think this should be more transparent.

When I was almost done with the call, the agent asked me my name. I know how easy it is for people to get information like telephone numbers and addresses these days, so I asked her why she needed the information. She told me that my complaint would hold more weight if it had a name attached to it. That makes no sense to me at all. I should be able to lodge a complaint without having to resort to putting yourself at risk. She disagreed with me. So I asked for HER name, which of course, she wasn't at liberty to give me.

And they want to raise the rates! They want me to pay more for putting my life in the hands of someone who is driving a vehicle they aren't even paying attention to. Somehow I've got to believe it is a crime to drive a bus and talk on the phone at the same time. I've got to find that out so I can throw it at the agent next time I have to call about the dangerous drivers. Somehow I doubt that will make a difference.