Travelocity picking up the slack

Again, I find myself writing about the airline industry. You're probably expecting me to once again draw deeply from the well of negativity and cynicism that the airlines have tapped within me. But today I can spread a little bit of guarded optimism.

While the airline industry has exercised unparalleled creativity in recent months to come up with new fees for just about everything, it's been status quo when it comes to service. So big kudos to Travelocity, who has been equally creative—and proactive—in finding ways to pick up the airlines' slack.

When people book through the online travel site and encounter the air travel problems that seem so commonplace these days, Travelocity often takes the fall for the airlines' failings. To preserve their customer relationships, they're trying to find creative ways to mitigate such problems. What a concept. I wonder if any of the airlines are listening? Probably not... they seem to be expending all of their creativity coming up with new fees.