LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The tolling service responsible for collecting fees in Louisville and southern Indiana says customers are seeing shorter wait times when calling for assistance.
RiverLink said Thursday customers are seeing "significant improvements" when reaching out by phone for service. The average wait time for the week of May 20 was just over two minutes, and just over one minute for the week of May 13.
Callers had no wait times last Thursday.
“We are continuing to move in the right direction,” said Amanda Spencer, assistant state highway engineer with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. “Improving the system and the customer experience remains a top priority for both Kentucky and Indiana to ensure customer needs and expectations are being met since transitioning to a new provider. As we make those improvements, it’s important for customers to know the help they need is available.”
In February, WHAS11 published and aired a series of stories on persistent RiverLink issues since a toll service provider change was made in September 2023. According to the agency, customer service calls topped 100,000 in January alone, with hour-long wait times RiverLink itself called unacceptable.
Many drivers told WHAS11 they received delayed bills, or bills that were incorrect. On Thursday, those frustrations were again acknowledged.
“Challenges are expected when transitioning to a new provider, but the timeframe and scope surpassed the expectations of the states and customers,” said Matt Fulkerson, tolling operations director for the Indiana Department of Transportation. “We know customers have been frustrated by this process. We appreciate the patience of customers during this time, and we are committed to continued improvements.”
Kentucky and Indiana invested $3.3 million this year to add more customer service representatives and improve compensation for workers. The average speed to answer a call has improved each month.
Calls received in April were down to 54,423 -- down from 86,404 in January. The average speed to answer was just over seven minutes in April -- down from 27 minutes in January, according to RiverLink.
There are an average of 80 agents answering calls every day.
“We’re encouraged by the improvements and want customers to know help is more readily available than it was weeks ago,” Spencer said. “We continue to strive for even more progress.”
RiverLink also said Thursday it does not plan to start registration holds for unpaid bills prior to late 2024. No timetable has been set, but "significant notice" will be provided to customers.
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