A chatbot powered by artificial intelligence is now on hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to help Travel South Yorkshire customers with queries about travel pass applications.
The chatbot, called Sonya, has been developed to chat online with Travel South Yorkshire customers, providing quick, accurate responses to questions about travel pass applications. Sonya will be available to answer questions round the clock and will continue to learn with every question it is asked, improving the range of answers it can provide over time.
Tim Taylor, Director of Customer Services for South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), says: “We are always looking for new ways to help our customers find the information they need to travel easily, safely and affordably on public transport around South Yorkshire. People can still pick up the phone and speak to our friendly Traveline team, but if you need a quick answer at any time of day or night Sonya will be there to help.
“Chatbot technology has been used successfully to help people travel in cities like London and Manchester and we want people across South Yorkshire to have the chance to try it. By adopting the next generation in customer service technology, we are making it even easier for customers to get the information they need when they need it.”
Sonya will help with general queries and signpost more complex questions on disruptions, journey planning, timetables and ticketing information to customer service advisors at Traveline or Travel South Yorkshire website. In the future, the chatbot will be developed to answer a wider range of customer enquiries.
Chatbots are digital assistants, powered by artificial intelligence, that can chat to customers online and provide instant information.
