Focus on Cutting Costs Is Decried
By Lyndsey Layton and Lena H. Sun
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
The first comprehensive study of MetroAccess found the transportation system for the disabled does not meet the needs of its riders, is focused on cutting costs at the expense of good service, fails to adequately communicate with passengers and compares poorly with similar services in other major cities.
The study, to be released today by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board, identifies shortcomings in the way MetroAccess is designed, managed and operated by Metro. Across the region, 16,000 disabled riders who are physically unable to ride the subway or regular bus depend on MetroAccess. They tend to be female, African American, older than 60 and poor.
And they are not well served by MetroAccess, according to the 109-page study. Takoma Park Mayor Kathy Porter -- who chaired the study panel of elected leaders, transportation providers, Metro staff members and disabled riders -- said the region can do better.
"It is difficult to run any kind of transit system in a very urbanized area," Porter said. "But there are examples around the country where transit systems have done a better job than MetroAccess. . . . MetroAccess has a lot of improvements to make."
The study makes 20 recommendations for improving MetroAccess, including five high-priority changes that are relatively simple and inexpensive and could be done within six months, said Wendy Klancher, a transportation planner and co-author of the study.
The high-priority items are: giving out better information to riders, improving the complaint process, creating a user group to advise Metro officials on policy and practice, providing same-day service and submitting to an independent review of MetroAccess by January 2007.
MetroAccess service has long been the target of complaints, and a group of disabled riders filed a lawsuit last year contending that the service is so poor it violates federal law. But when Metro switched service providers Jan. 15, the transition from Logisticare Inc. to MV Transportation made previous service problems pale in comparison.
In the first three weeks under the new contractor, Metro received record numbers of complaints from riders, thousands of whom said they were stranded, picked up late or mistreated by drivers or reservationists. MV executives have blamed poor data from Logisticare, the learning curve of new drivers and reservationists and telephone problems.
The study being released today identifies structural problems that persist despite the change in contractors, Porter said. "We were looking at long-term structural problems," she said. "The transition has exacerbated underlying problems in the system."
The study found that MetroAccess was inferior to similar services provided in Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York.
One of Metro's most-expensive programs, MetroAccess costs taxpayers about $50 million a year. The authors of the study suggest that MetroAccess is an inflexible system that fails to meet the needs of users in part because Metro managers are focused on cutting costs. MV Transportation was the low bidder for the current contract, undercutting the next-highest bidder by about 20 percent.
For example, Metro's contract with MV Transportation calls for curb-to-curb service, which means MV is responsible only for picking up passengers at the curb and delivering them to the curb outside a doctor's office, place of employment or other destination.
The problem with the policy is that many riders need assistance to get from their doors to the MetroAccess vehicle. In the weeks since MV started providing MetroAccess service, blind riders have complained that they would have no idea that a van had arrived because the driver would not get out. The van would idle for the required 10-minute wait and leave, stranding the unsuspecting passenger. Other riders have said they need assistance to reach the curb.
In recent days, Metro initiated a telephone system that sends an automated call to riders when a van approaches. Metro managers said a door-to-door policy would add to the program's cost.
The study also found reliability problems, noting that MetroAccess riders are often picked up late and their trips last too long. There is no same-day service. Passengers have to reserve a ride at least a day in advance, which robs disabled riders of the flexibility that most travelers enjoy, the study says.
Communication is another problem area, Porter said. MetroAccess officials need to speak with and listen to riders, investigate complaints and report findings of those investigations to the riders, she said.
Nikki Frenney, a spokeswoman for MV Transportation, has said repeatedly that the company has been frustrated by weak communication between MetroAccess and its riders.
When the company was awarded the contract last fall, executives asked Metro how the agency was going to prepare riders for changes in service, she said. "That never really happened," Frenney said.
In response to the huge number of complaints, Metro set up a weekly telephone conference to enable riders to speak directly with MetroAccess officials.
But Metro has not publicized the telephone number because managers are worried that the phone system would be overwhelmed, Metro spokeswoman Candace Smith said.
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