Denver resident provides day-and-night support to customers after misprint

When Fred Wolf answered his phone one evening in early January, he expected the unknown number to be a telemarketer. The retired, fourth-generation Denver native was used to telemarketers calling his home, and he expected this call to be no different. However, Wolf was a little surprised when the person on the other end asked for RTD’s police dispatch center.

Assuming that his telephone number had been mistakenly dialed, Wolf told the caller that they had the wrong number before hanging up. The next day, his phone rang again with a similar request from a different caller, and then it happened a third time.

“After taking a few of these calls, I asked how the person got my phone number,” he said.

Wolf and his wife, Barbara, have had the same phone number since 1972, so he was alarmed to learn from the caller that his number was printed on RTD’s schedule.

“When the person told me that my phone number was at a bus stop, I didn’t believe it,” Wolf said. “I’ve had this same number for more than 50 years.”

After realizing that his number had been mistakenly listed on RTD’s shelter boards following the January service change, Wolf called the Telephone Information Center to let the agency know. He was hoping for a quick resolution, but it wasn’t until later that both RTD and Wolf realized the phone number had been accidentally posted at nearly 750 bus stops, rail stations and Park-n-Rides across the Denver metro area. Correcting the typo was going to take time and wouldn’t be easy.

While a plan to correct the phone number was being collaboratively developed between Communications and Engagement and the Sign Shop, Wolf’s phone continued to ring. Instead of unplugging it from the wall, he took action.

Wolf said, “These were real people who needed help, and I couldn’t just ignore their calls.”

For nearly six weeks, he stayed busy taking calls day and night from people at different stops and stations around the metro area. In most cases, Wolf provided the correct phone number to the callers. At other times, he called RTD’s police dispatch himself to relay messages and provide real-time updates. He not only became familiar with many of RTD’s employees, but he also provided helpful information to callers.

“When I first learned about the typo and called Fred, I could hear the frustration in his voice,” Stuart Summers, RTD’s Chief Communications and Engagement Officer, said. “He was answering about a half dozen calls a day from customers in need of assistance, and he wanted to make sure the calls did not go unanswered. His willingness to immediately step up, especially when RTD accidentally posted his phone number, says a lot about who Fred is as a person.”

With support from the Sign Shop, new sticker-like decals were created and printed to cover the incorrect phone number at each shelter board location. However, after recognizing that placing the decals at approximately 750 locations was taking longer than anticipated, RTD’s distribution clerks received additional support. Under the leadership of Michelle Sims, Supervisor of Bus Stop Programs, employees in the Sign Shop jumped into action. The team leaned into the moment and quickly spread out across the metro area. In less than a week, updated decals were successfully placed at all locations.

Wolf said the calls have stopped, and he is now able to smile and laugh a little about the entire fiasco that put him on the frontlines of answering calls. To thank Fred and Barbara Wolf for their patience and support, RTD provided the two with a gift basket. Fred indicated that he appreciated the gesture and recognizes that mistakes happen. The two are now looking forward to once again focusing on retirement and a phone that doesn’t ring day and night.

RTD would like to thank and recognize a number of employees who provided help over the last month.

Sign Shop

  • Michelle Sims
  • Patrick Ortega Jr.
  • Carolyn Roberson
  • Candice Gurule
  • Javier Rodriguez
  • Billy (William) Martinez
  • Anthony Frazzini
  • Jorge Alvarado
  • Joani Barron
  • Nicanor Garcia

Communications and Engagement

  • Amerie Gagliardi
  • Will Adams
  • Victor Bustamante
  • Jordan Almanza-Bowyer
  • James Ray
  • Robert Padilla
  • Steven Brier
  • Steve Reilly
  • Josh Opat
  • Ross Hoekman

Transit Police

  • Kelsey Loebe