The Roving Activist’s Blog

On Friday, I attended a transportation seminar of sorts that was put on by the Dc Center for Independent Living (DCCIL). The seminar was mainly about the right of people with disabilities to use public transportation, with an emphasis on Metro. There were presenters from Metro Access, the office of ADA Programs (ADAP), and the Department of Transportation. I was asked to speak briefly about the Public Bus Forum that the Elderly and Disabled Committee would like to sponser.

Overall, the seminar was pretty good, and the attendance was good as well. Participants were able to ask questions and voice concerns about all aspects of transportation in the metro area. Of course, the main topic was the concerns about Metro Access. That is still a sore spot with many folks. Some of the folks wanted to know about getting orientation training so that they could use the fixed route system.

I wanted to know about any sensitivity training that Metro bus operators receive. My main concern is that the training is ineffective, and the bus operators are not retaining it. The operators, for the most part, are a polite bunch, but there are a significant number whose actions make it bad for all of their peers in the eyes of the disability community. I am also concerned that the operators are not retaining the training that they receive regarding the operation of the lifts and other accessibilty features. Another problem according to the seminar participants is that drivers are so scared of passengers that they will not ask them to give up the seats to elderly or disabled, particularly, folks who use wheelchairs. 

My frustration is that the community has no choice but to go to Metro for answers, but Metro, of course, will protect their employees, or defend their practices. I would like to attend a training to see for myself what these operators are learning. It would be interesting to see what kind of attitude the operators have about the subject matter, as well as the questions that they ask, or don’t ask.

Finally, I have a major frustration with Metro’s practice of not keeping their buses clean or working properly. I regularly ride the L2, which operates of of the garage known as Western. That garage is notorious for getting all of the old trash from Metro that goes out on the street. The bus sytem is nothing but the stepchild of Metro, full of poor and powerless people, while most of the money and resources are spent on the rail, which is chock full of affluent folks with lots of money and power. What ends up happening is that the buses are broken down and dirty, and according to bus operators, Metro doesn’t have the funds for bus upkeep. Metro says that the problem is with Maintainance; they aren’t making sure that the buses are functioning properly, or that they have the proper maps and schedules, and they sure aren’t making sure that the buses are clean.

Friday’s seminar brought to the surface a number of frustrations and issues, and in the coming months, I will be checking into some stuff, and having some deep conversations with Metro folks. The more I hear from Metro customers with disabilities, the more I am convinced that we need a Bus Forum to get things out into the open, and sort them out.

Today’s (by now, yesterday’s) meeting at Metro headquarters was fairly brief. Pat Sheehan, Scott Vining, and I got together with Glenn Millis to determine exactly who we need to interface with to make the Bus Forum a success. I will send Glenn an e-mail containing the Bus Forum proposal that the E&D Committee members received. He will be responsible for sending it on to the folks whom we want to meet with, and getting them into a meeting with us. If all goes well, the meeting will include the public relations department, RAC personnel, including the Bus Subcommittee Chair, folks at the Director level at Metro, and those with access to the Interim General Manager, and to members of the WMATA Board of Directors. At that meeting, we’ll hash out an agenda, as well as an actual date for the Forum.

I’m a bit frustrated with myself because of my inexperience in setting up something like this. I am used to setting up actions, meetings, and other events for ADAPT. Though it is every bit as complex, if not more so than this, it is still a totally different situation. For one thing, I have a lot more standing in ADAPT than in this situation. Right now, I’m feeling like a tiny baby guppie lost in the Pacific Ocean. I have so much to learn, and so many pitfalls to avoid! My colleagues, Glenn included, have told me not to worry, and not to be so hard on myself. They feel that I am doing, and will do, just fine. Perhaps they’re right.

Yesterday, I attended a meeting of the Riders Advisory Council’s (RAC) Bus Subcommittee. Dennis Jaffe, the RAC Committee Chair was there, and he came up and talked with me for a few minutes before the meeting began. Their Bus Subcommittee is larger than ours (the E&D), with ten members. Pat Sheehan, the Chair of the E&D Committee is on this subcommittee.

I must say that the atmosphere was different here than at our meetings. For one, I was the only one present for the public comment period. These folks were, in my opinion, not friendly at all. When I first began attending the E&D meetings as a spectator, I was made to feel welcome. Committee members came up, and spoke to me, and encouraged me to come back. The new subcommittee Chair, Dr. Sharon Conn, wouldn’t even address me personally, when the time came for public comments. She asked the room if she (meaning me) wanted to make a public comment. I briefly introduced myself, and announced that the E&D Committee had just given me the authority to set up a Public Bus Forum, and asked for their assistance and participation. I was asked when this would be, and replied that since I was given the go-ahead to proceed only two days before, I did not know when it would be, but hoped that it would be in early or mid October. The committe members informed me that this would conflict with the Regional Bus Conference that Metro was putting on, but I informed them that Ed Thomas, who was heading this effort, told the E&D Committee that the conference would take place on November 30th. Pat Sheehan added that Mr. Thomas felt that the Bus Forum would be an excellent lead-in to the Bus Conference.

I then returned to my place in the “audience”. Though this was the new Chair’s first meeting, and she was new at the task, their meetings were more formal than ours. I was amazed at the fact that they had access to the bus operator’s training manuals, and seemed to have input into what goes into them. They were also planning to visit a bus garage to see how it operated.

What really got to me was the (what I deemed) inordinate amount of time that they spent grilling Murray Bond, a representative of the Marketing department, about the seeming inability of Metro personnel to keep buses stocked with system maps, and the correct bus timetables. Though I understood the validity of their concerns, I marvelled that they had the luxury to spend so much time (almost an hour) on that subject that they didn’t have enough time to spend on other matters of equal, if not greater, importance.

Overall, I felt that this committe has more power in some ways than even the E&D Committee. The committe members, themselves, seem to be professionals, mostly from Virginia. I didn’t recall that there were any representatives from the District. These folks didn’t seem to be anywhere near as down to earth as the E&D Committee members, and I know that I would feel uncomfortable dealing with them. I have a problem with the fact that the new Chair, Dr. Conn, is addressed by most of the subcommittee members by her honorific, yet, she chooses to address them by their first names. I’m not used to that. There are several medical doctors and professors, as well as PhD’s in ADAPT, yet everyone addresses each other by their first name. This business of addressing a colleague by an honorific while they address me by my first name is demeaning to me. It’s one thing if the person is a supervisor, or my doctor, or professor, but colleagues should address one another equally, either formally, or informally.

Sadly, I have to say that if it were not for Dennis and Pat, this experience would have been completely demoralizing, as I felt unwelcome, unwanted, and intimidated. Thank goodness for them that I was able to salvage something positive from it.

On a positive note, I was able to confim the details of a meeting tomorrow to set up a rough agenda for the Bus Forum. I will let you know how it goes.

The Elderly and Disabled Transit Advisory Committee voted overwhelmingly in support of the Public Bus Forum yesterday evening!

The proposal that I posted here was e-mailed to the committee members last week, and we had a lively discussion during our meeting last night. I presented the proposal, and fielded questions. When it came down to a vote, two of the nine Committee members abstained, but the other seven voted unanimously.

Some Committee members, thinking that the Forum would be complaint-driven, wanted to get statistics on numbers and types of complaints registered before proceeding. My response was, based on my, and other people’s experience, most people with disabilities either don’t know where to complain to, or won’t complain because they feel that the complaint won’t be addressed. I reminded the Committe that a major problem with the Customer Service department, is that complaints often go unrecorded. I cited my experience upon moving to the District. In my first month here, I lodged more than 30 complaints, yet, Customer Service only had record of 3, and those were instances where I had spoken with street supervisors, or superintendants. It was for this reason that I began keeping a log, and making my complaints directly to supervisors, Metro Central, Metro officials, and the E&D Committee. Therefore, I explained, data based on the number of complaints will be inaccurate. I further explained that the Forum will not be merely complaint-driven, but cover a variety of subjects.

Some Committee members wondered if passengers with disabilities won’t bother to make complaints, what made me think that they would come to a forum? I explained that they would be more likely to come to a forum because Metro officials would be there, and they could make their complaints directly to them and hold them accountable. There would also be training on effective documentation, and the complaint process for those who don’t know how to register a complaint. Also, customers could learn firsthand from Metro about new, and upcoming programs, and present questions, comments, and suggestions to Metro staff and officials.

The lively discussion and debate continued for more than the allotted ten minutes, but when the dust cleared, I was left with the realization that my colleagues had given me the authority to proceed with this momentous task. I thank them for their support and trust.

Now, the really hard work begins!  

I was checking the Washington Post, and came across a blog called Get There. It’s a blog mainly about public transit — buses, trains, highways, etc., that’s put out there by a Washington Post columnist. It’s chock full of all kinds of useful information, so I know that I’ll find myself checking it out a lot.

Anyway, while going through it, I found a post regarding the rail cars that Metro is testing, and rolling out. The post described the new features such as bench seating, and seat-to-ceiling poles. Unfortunately, judging from the comments, most folks don’t like the idea of the floor-to-ceiling poles being done away with. Though they raise some valid concerns, I hope that those poles stay gone because they interfere with my access, and while folks may think that I’m being selfish, they’ll sing a different tune when they trip over me, or hurt themselves trying to squeeze by me because I’m stuck out in the aisles. It’s much safer for me to be in the access area than blocking other people’s access, and creating an unsafe situation for other passengers. Those floor-to-ceiling poles makes it very difficult for me to get into the access area, and I live in fear of the day when someone will get hurt tripping over me, and want to sue. Don’t laugh–it could happen! We Americans are an angry lot these days. I must say that I’m glad that Metro took passengers with disabilities into consideration with this project, and I hope that it continues to do so.

The Metro Board of Directors voted 3-2 yesterday to proceed with a nationwide search for a permanent General Manager, and paid $90,000 to a New York firm to do the job. This was done despite a last minute effort by Councilmember Jim Graham, a board member from the District, to appoint Interin General Manager Dan Tangherlini to the permanent position.

However, board members from Virginia, concerned by the circumstances of the departure of the previous General Manger, Richard White, as well as their perception that Tangherlini is ignoring Virginia in favor of the District in improvement measures, along with what they consider to be “gamesmanship” by Councilmember Graham, voted against the measure.

Board Chairman Gladys Mack joined the two Virginia members in voting to keep the search process on track. “This is a way not only to look at the candidates around the country but also a way to confirm Tangherlini’s appropriateness for the job,” Mack said.

Though I am nervous about the nationwide search, I do agree that it would be fairer to conduct it, rather than simply appointing Tangherlini. However, I wonder why the Board did not instruct Metro’s Human Resources department to conduct the search, rather than shell out $90,000 that it can ill afford to spend? I am dumbfounded!

Having said that, I will say out loud that I cast my vote with Tangherlini. Things have been so much better at Metro since he came aboard in February. He is approachable and accessible, unlike his predecessor, Mr. White. He listens to his staff, and the community. Metro folks say that morale is much higher, and I can feel this not only when I go into the Jackson Graham Building, but I feel the vibes from bus operators, train station managers, and other Metro personnel. within a few months, Tangherlini has made the Metro experience a more positive one for passengers with disabilities. The bus fleet is now 100% accessible. Accessible trains are being rolled out. Metro Access department heads report directly to him. Tangherlini has been at every Metro event highlighting accessiblity for passengers with disabilities, whether the media was present, or not. Dealing with him strongly reminds me of my work with the head of Denver’s Regional Transportation District, which was very fruitful and positive. I sincerely hope that he comes out on top in this nationwide search, because I hate to see all of his good work go for naught if the next general Manager is like Mr. White. Good luck Mr. Tangherlini! I’ll keep my fingers crossed, and send some words out to the Universe in your behalf.

I am Chair of the Bus Subcommittee of the Elderly and Disabled Transportation Advisory Committee for the Washington Metro Area Transportation Authority (WMATA), also known as Metro. For the past month, I have been advocating for a Public Bus Forum where passengers with disabilities can address their concerns and issues to Metro staff and officials. To that end, I have written a proposal to the E&D Committee, which is to be voted on Monday.

Proposal for Public Bus Forum

Is there a need for a Public Bus Forum?

Yes! Although the Metro bus fleet is now 100% accessible, there are still ongoing issues that affect passengers with disabilities. The most common issues are broken lifts, nonworking annunciators, bus signage issues, and rude or insensitive operators. Since many passengers with disabilities are not sure how to report these issues, or worse yet, have given up on reporting them, a Public Bus Forum would afford them the opportunity to air their concerns directly to Metro staff and officials, who can then address them. The Forum would also be an opportunity for Metro to announce new and upcoming programs to the community.

Is there support for a Public Bus Forum?

Yes! I have spoken with several Metro staff, and have spoken before the Metro Board of Directors. I have also discussed this with the Chair of the Riders Advisory Committee, as well as a couple of the members of the E&D Committee. I have received nothing but positive feedback from those with whom I have spoken. I have told Metro Staff that I do not want, nor intend, to use the Forum to beat up on Metro, because Metro has made many strides in its service to passengers with disabilities. I believe that Metro, the E&D Committee, and the disability community can work together to make Metro the best system in the nation. As recorded in the Minutes, I spoke of the idea of a Public Bus Forum before the Committee last month, but since some of our members were not present, I wanted to put this before the full Committee, and obtain official support and authority to proceed.

When would the Forum take place?  What would be its format?

It is hoped that the Forum will be in the first or second week of October at the Jackson Graham Building in the large meeting room. The format would be similar to some of the Metro Access meetings, i.e., a two-hour session in the late afternoon/early evening, a one-hour session where passengers with particular concerns and problems can meet personally with Metro staff, and another two-hour session for those who could not attend the earlier session. The sessions would involve a question/comment and answer period, and a short “training” period where I would teach community members the importance of consistent documentation of incidents and problems, and give examples of how to do this. Metro staff will also be on hand to give out phone numbers for customers to call. Metro staff would then discuss new and upcoming programs and take questions and comments on these.

Who is expected to attend the Forum?

On the Community side, it is hoped that individuals with disabilities who use (or would like to use) the fixed route buses, representatives from disability organizations, advocacy groups, and Independent Living Centers will attend the forum. On the Metro side, I hope to have Metro staff, supervisors, and directors who deal with bus issues, as well as representatives from the Office of ADA Programs, the Metro Is Accessible program, members of the E&D Committee, Customer Service, the Interim General Manager, and members of the Board of Directors on hand. I would also like to see District officials, staff, and jurisdictional officials who would address the environmental issues related to bus usage, such as access (or lack thereof) to bus stops, and the practice of dumping snow at or near bus stops, and on curb cuts.

Who will sponsor the Forum?

The E&D Committee would sponsor the Forum. I would like to partner with the Riders Advisory Committee, and have participation from them, and their Bus Subcommittee Chair. However, the E&D Committee would take the lead on the sponsorship, preparation, implementation, and facilitation of the Forum.

What will happen next?

After approval by the Committee, I will then sit down with the E&D Committee Chair, the RAC Chair, as well as the Chair of their Bus Subcommittee, and at least two other Metro staff, and draw up an agenda. The office of Public Affairs will be contacted for their assistance as well. I will provide regular reports to the Committee, and will be available via e-mail for comments and ideas.

Metro had an exhibit of its new, more accessible rail cars today, so I went down to take a peek. I must admit that I liked them a lot! These redesigned cars (series 3000 and 6000) have an access area at every door, instead of only in the middle of the car, and gone are the floor-to-ceiling poles that a wheelchair-using passenger had to navigate in order to reach the access areas. Removal of the poles also means unimpeded access throughout the train, so that if one access area is taken, I can now go down the length of the train until I come to an empty access area. Sweet! I now feel like a real Metro passenger, instead of a mere inconvenience. I was interviewed by a number of media outlets, and came home to see my mug on Channel 5, DC’s local Fox station. I must admit, they did a good job.

I stayed for almost the entire event, talking with Metro officials and board members, and asking about issues such a gaps between the rail cars and the station platform, as well as some minor difficulties that I was having with boarding the 3000 series cars. Fortunately, the 6000 series cars are easier to board, as the threshold is more level. I also asked about clampdowns. Though I don’t need them, some members of the disability community who use wheelchairs feel safer with them. I was told by interim General Manager, Dan Tangherlini, that they may consider adding them to the next round of rail cars that come online.

Some of the 3000 series trains will go into service tomorrow, while the 6000 series will be added throughout the rest of the year. The 3000 series cars will be equipped with cameras for a time so that Metro can study usage patterns on these cars.

Most of my energy these days has been spent on a new campaign. I have been working on getting support from various Metro entities for a public bus forum for people with disabilities. I first brought this up at the E&D meeting that was held on the 10th of July. The proposal was met with positive statements, and though Pat Sheehan, our Chair, was out of town, and I would have to get approval from him, I decided to seek support from other Metro departments, and have this information for when I talked with Pat.

Everyone that I have spoken to at WMATA has been supportive of a bus forum. I placed a call to Wendy Klancher, of the Washington Metro Area Council of Governments, and Steve Yaffe, of Metro, and received support for the forum form them. I spoke before the WMATA Board of Directors, and afterward, one of the board members, Kathy Hutchinson, came up, and offered her support. I asked that she speak to her colleagues about this. I then sat down with Glenn Millis, and Jack Requa. They were extremely supportive, and Mr. Requa, though he offered no guarantees, promised to send out letters to the interim General Manager, and several other Metro officials. We even went over the possible dates, times, and District officials who would be invited! I have been trying to catch up with Pat, but I also want to speak with Dennis Jaffee, Chair of the Riders Advisory Committee. I feel that he would be a good ally, and I want to work closely with him on this. 

The forum is not intended to put down Metro or its employees, but to air the concerns of passengers with disabilities despite the fact that Metro’s buses are now 100% accessible. My hope is that the E&D Committe, the RAC, and Metro will work together to address the concerns of its passenger with disabilities, and to offer solutions to these problems. I hope that the forum will not be an end, but a beginning in the effort to make Metro the best transportation system in the nation. It will not be easy, but based on the reception and support that I have received at Metro I feel pretty good, so far. I will keep you abreast of my progress.

Yesterday, Metro celebrated an achievement of 100% accessibilty on all of its buses. No longer will passengers who use wheelchairs have to experience the utter frustration of being left at the bus stop because they couldn’t get on an inaccessible bus!

Metro’s next step will be to move away from the hydraulic lift buses, which commonly have mechanical problems, to an entire fleet of low ramp buses. These have the advantage of being able to be operated manually in case the automatic mechanism fails. The driver merely has to lift the ramp, and let it down. The process takes seconds, and the ramp, itself, it quite light.

The event was attended by most of the WMATA bigwigs and managers. A new low ramp bus was there so that people could check it out. I was able to speak at length with Metro’s interim General Manager, Dan Tangherlini, and WMATA Board President, Gladys Mack. My friends, Jack Requa, head of Bus Operations, and Glenn Millis, with the Office of ADA Programs were there, and I spoke with them as well. Glenn reminded me that he had not forgotten our meeting.

Unfortunately, I must admit that I was disappointed with the turnout, and the way that this was put on. Perhaps, I am spoiled by being from Denver, where an event like this would have been a huge deal. Had this been in Denver, the event would have lasted several hours, and practically every employee from RTA would have been there. The mayor, or his representative, as well as several politicians would have been there, and there would have been food up the yin-yang! There would have been dozens of speakers, mostly from the disability community, but the RTA bigwigs, and local politicians would have had their say as well. The media would have been out in force, and attendance by the disability community would have been in the hundreds, at least, because we would have known about this several weeks in advance. Last, but not least, the event would have been held downtown, in a very public place. The entire city would have known that this celebration was taking place!

Although I appreciate the efforts, the DC event was dismal, at best. The largest number of attendees were from Metro. The event started at a bit past 9:00 am, a tad early, in my opinion, and took place at The Ft. Totten rail station, an out-of-the-way train station, and bus transfer point. The entire celebration lasted less than 20 minutes, no one from the general public was there, and because of the DC media’s policy of “if it don’t bleed, it don’t lead”, no one from the media was there. Someone was taking pictures, but I’m sure that he was an employee of Metro. Interestingly enough, there was a two-sentence blurb on NPR later in the afternoon. I guess we should be grateful, eh?

The most disappointing thing for me, however, was the turnout of the disability community. There were exactly three of us. There was a woman from Metro, whose name I cannot remember, my colleague on the E&D Committe, Doris Matchett, and yours truely. Doris was the only speaker representing the disability community. I find it hard to believe that the leaders in the disability commuinty throughout the region would have dissed Metro like this, so I can only surmise that the reason for the nonexistent turnout was due to the poor outreach on the part of Metro. Yes, there were e-invites, but not every person with a disability has access to the Internet. Invitations and flyers should have been sent out to every independent living center, and every organization that had anything to do with disability.

It also would have been good to have invited a couple of politicians, especially, the two city council members who serve on the WMATA Board of Directors. At least, if they, themselves could not have come, they could have sent their representatives with some kind of statement. I have an idea that one big reason for the press not showing up was that no one thought to send out any press releases. I’m going to check and see if there are any mentions in the various papers today, but somehow I doubt if I’ll find any.

As I said earlier, I do appreciate Metro’s attempt, puny though it was, to put on a token event for us, but there simply wasn’t much thought put into this. I’m sorry to say, but I could have done a better job. Not to toot my own horn, but I have done a better job when it comes to planning events. Maybe the next time Metro wants to put on a shindig for the disability community, I’ll offer my services, and we’ll have a real party going on!