GREATER HARTFORD TRANSIT DISTRICT
ADA PARTICIPATION GROUP FORUM
Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Attendees: Antonita Dunbar, Beverly Jackson, Michelle Johnson, Peggy Johnson, Yvonne Loteczka, Lydia Mele, Paula Neal, Bill Saloman, Abram Aviles-GHTD, Barbara Bellott-CTTRANSIT, Linda DeLallo-FT, DJ Gonzalez-GHTD, Erik Rousseau–FT, Pat Williams-GHTD, Valerie Ellis-GHTD, George Cruz-FT, Vicki Shotland-GHTD.

The forum began at 5:07pm.

Noted below are the statistics for March and April

Operations:
Total passengers trips for the month of March were 26,775, No Shows 1,394 (5%), cancellations 5,978 (22%). April passenger’s trips were 25,089, No shows 1,309 (5%), cancellations 5,908 (24%)

Assessments:
In March 126 ADA applications were received; 83 were new, 43 recertified and 99 ADA eligibilities were completed. Out of the 99 completed ADA eligibilities, 39 unconditional, 11 conditional, 12 temporary, 4 denied and 33 were withdrawn. In April 130 ADA applications were received; 89 were new, 41 recertified and 94 ADA eligibilities were completed. Out of the 94 completed ADA eligibilities, 34 unconditional, 17 conditional 15 temporary, 4 denied and 24 were withdrawn.

Customer Service:
In March 61 comments were received from passengers; 30% were compliments, 66% were driver, dispatch, reservationists and/or scheduling complaints, 3% was mechanical and/or related to safety, 1% other. In April 45, comments were received from passengers; 16% were compliments, 76% were driver, dispatch, reservationists and/or scheduling complaints, 0% was mechanical and/or related to safety, 8% other.

GHTD/CTTRANSIT Comments:
Pat Williams made the following announcements

Lydia Mele informed the group about a CT state statue that will become effective October 1st. Builders will have to meet specific regulations when performing construction on new and remodeling homes for people with disabilities.

DJ Gonzalez informed the group that all 45 new vehicles have been received, and all but a few are on the road and have to be fitted with the MDT software. Total vehicle fleets are 113. The MDT has been a useful tool to assist with policy and procedures.

DJ Gonzalez also advised the group that the District and First Transit are working closely to revise the “no show policy.” No shows, late cancels and cancel at the door trips, continue to be costly. We have to establish an equitable way to control these trips. The policy is geared towards riders who repeatedly abuse the service. The revised policy will address no shows based on percentage of trips vs. the actual number of no shows. For example: Ms. Smith booked 350 trips for the month of December, and out of that total ten (10) were no show. This equates to 3%. However; valid “no shows” will be discounted from the totals.

DJ Gonzalez shared with the group that First Transit was awarded the ADA Paratransit contract once again. DJ also noted that First Transit will be installing an IVR (interactive voice response) software feature to complement our current dispatching process. This feature will call the rider when the ADA Paratransit vehicle is a specific amount of time away from its pick up location.

Barbara Bellott noted no immediate changes with the CTTransit service.

Participant Comments:
Comment:	Lydia Mele Ms. Mele requested her no show trip be adjusted because she was in the hospital and this is a legitimate excuse. The new vehicles do not allow enough room for two mobility devices due to the positioning of where the spokes are located. In addition, when securing Ms. Mele, drivers should be cautious about how they position the wheelchair strap around her joy stick on her mobility device. Ms. Mele commented that drivers should have the proper information of where a rider should be picked up and dropped off at. Ms. Mele also noted the forum notices should be in a bigger font and darker. Also all notices should be in the front and back of the vehicle. Ms. Mele also experienced a long hold time on the telephone.
Response:	The service will review and adjust the no show trip. First Transit will send Safety Manager, Manny Gonzalez, to investigate Ms. Mele’s mobility securement on the vehicle. DJ Gonzalez noted that all the new vehicles have met the federal regulation which refers to securement. Ms. Williams commented all specific pickup and drop-off information is on the driver’s manifest as well as on the MDTs. Mr. Aviles spot checks all vehicles to ensure that the forum notices are posted on the front and back of all vehicles. First Transit will investigate the long hold time on the telephone.
Comment:	Beverly Jackson Ms. Jackson called First Transit on 5/26 at approximately 9:00am-9:30am and was on hold for ten (10) minutes. Ms. Jackson would like to know why the forum doesn’t meet every month. If there is a concern with the service, the wait is too long between forums.
Response:	First Transit will investigate the long hold time. Ms. Williams commented that holding more frequent ADA Participation Group Forums has produced low attendance and that every other month appears to be more productive. DJ Gonzalez said riders should not wait until the forum to bring forth their concerns. Riders should address their issues to the Customer Service Department immediately.
Comment:	Antonita Dunbar The service has improved and Ms. Dunbar thanked Linda DeLallo for a job well done. Ms. Dunbar also noted that vehicle number 796 does not have handles on the seats for Ms. Dunbar to hold onto once she is inside the vehicle walking down the aisle.
Response:	First Transit will investigate why there are no handles on this vehicle.
Response:	Paula Neal Ms. Neal is a dialysis rider and she wanted to know if drivers have the ability to adjust their manifest to transport dialysis rider’s home before other riders. She felt that there should be a special ruling or cost associated with this request. Ms. Neal also experienced waiting a long time for dispatch to pick up the telephone on 5/25.
Comment:	DJ Gonzalez commented that the ADA Paratransit service is a publicly shared service and by law we cannot provide preferential service to one rider over another rider. However, the contractor will review the driver’s run to see if there is a more efficient way to schedule the trips. First Transit will investigate the long hold time.
Comment:	Yvonne Loteczka Ms. Loteczka has recently experienced long hold time on the telephone. What is the cell phone policy?
Response:	First Transit will investigate the long hold time. Drivers are not supposed to have their cell phone visible. The cell phone should be inside a bag. If the driver needs to use his cell phone, he would have to pull over to the side of the road. If the driver is caught using the cell phone, corrective action is taken immediately.
Comment:	Peggy Johnson and Michelle Johnson They had not experienced any issues with the service.
Comment:	Bill Salomon Mr. Salomon was transported home in a new vehicle without air conditioning.
Response:	Abe Aviles explained that the vehicle Mr. Salomon was on was used on a split shift The am driver did not experience a problem with the air conditioner, but the pm driver did. At the end of the pm driver’s shift, he notified maintenance of the problem.

The next ADA forum is scheduled for Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 5:00 pm at Union Station. You must make a reservation for transportation to and from the meeting by calling (860) 724-5340 and select #1. All riders are required to pay the standard ADA Paratransit rate of $2.50 each way.

As time is limited; all attendees are required to sign up to discuss issues at the forum with Pat Williams, and provide the topic for discussion at least 48-hours in advance with the last opportunity to register fifteen (15) minutes prior to the start of the forum.

Please remember that in order for everyone to have a chance to participate you need to keep your initial questions and discussions to five (5) minutes a piece so that we can accommodate all other participants. Follow-up comments should also be kept to five (5) minutes also.