Grievances Spike After MetroAccess Transition

Metro officials say that complaints have dropped and that on-time performance is improving. MV provides about 4,500 trips most weekdays.

But some riders said in interviews that they have been unable to log complaints and don't trust MV's statistics. Their experiences suggest that inadequate training and operational errors might be playing more of a role than officials acknowledge.

Some of the poor service is a result of the way the new contractor is doing business. Under the MV contract, drivers are no longer permitted to directly contact riders; drivers must radio a central dispatcher, who handles about 25 drivers. A Metro manager said the system is designed to keep address information up to date and in one place.

But it also means a driver having trouble finding the address of a passenger cannot get directions from the passenger, creating confusion and misinformation, according to interviews with several riders.

Frances Oreb's inability to speak directly with drivers meant that she and a driver spent nearly two hours looking for each other on a trip last week. Oreb, 27, has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. She uses MetroAccess for trips between her Clinton home and classes at the University of Maryland in College Park.

On Tuesday, Oreb expected a 12:30 p.m. ride from school to her home. The driver arrived at 12:10 p.m., and Oreb soon got a call on her cell phone from the MetroAccess dispatcher, saying the driver couldn't find her. Oreb wheeled to the spot where she was told the driver was waiting, only to see the MetroAccess van a healthy distance away.

She called MetroAccess and was connected to a second dispatcher. She said she saw the van and gave directions to relay to the driver. But to her dismay, the van went around a nearby building three times, never approaching where Oreb was waiting.

A third dispatcher called, and Oreb asked the dispatcher to tell the driver not to leave. The dispatcher said the driver could not wait any longer because the driver had been looking for Oreb for an hour. Oreb, who said she was upset by the thought that the van was going to drive away, said the dispatcher started screaming at her on the telephone and at the driver on the radio. Oreb hung up and wheeled over to the van. By the time she boarded, it was nearly two hours after the driver had arrived.

Oreb said she had similar problems for two weeks and tried to file a complaint with MetroAccess but insisted on speaking with a supervisor. She was told someone would call back, but no one did, she said. After Tuesday's fiasco, she called a Metro board member, the office of Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and MetroAccess director Christian Kent. On Thursday, MetroAccess sent two vans -- one to pick her up, and one with a supervisor. The pickup was smooth, Oreb said.

But riders should not have to "call everybody under the sun" to get a problem fixed, she said.

In interviews and public forums, several riders said the issue is drivers.

In some instances, drivers are arriving too early for pickups -- outside the scheduled time -- and then notifying dispatchers to send automated telephone recordings that inform riders the vehicle is outside and will leave shortly. Riders say they panic because they fear being stranded or penalized as no-shows.