They drive some of the most vulnerable in our community. Hazel Williams says she needs the Regional Transportation Commission's Paratransit bus service to transport her special needs daughter, Ashley, around town.
Williams says she had a real scare when her adult daughter took more than 3 hours to get home.
"I was really worried, and they kept saying she was 3 miles awa," said Williams.
Williams said her daughter was on her way home from Opportunity Village around 2 p.m., on November 3, but the trip took much longer than normal. She called the RTC, and the clock kept ticking.
"I called at 4:05 p.m., they said she was be home at 4:25 p.m., I called at 4:25 p.m., they said she was 3 miles away." said Williams.
The panic set in when the street lights came on and Ashley was still not home.
Williams said the 9 mile drive from Opportunity Village to her home, usually takes about an hour, with stops and traffic.
At 5:05 p.m., Williams said the bus finally arrived.
"The driver showed up, and the driver had one shoe on, and she said her feet hurt. She said there was a lot of traffic," explained Williams.
Contact 13 asked about the travel troubles. A spokesperson gave an explanation:
"We recognize that it was an operator error. The driver failed to follow the manifest that lists the order of passenger drop-off, and proper corrective action will be taken."
Andy Mayberry
RTC, Supervisor of Marketing and Media
Williams was given some free coupons to ride the bus, and since the incident, the Williams said the bus has been on-time, even ahead of schedule. Contact 13 asked the contracted paratransit transportation company, Transdev, to review the video from inside Ashley's bus.
As of Monday evening, Contact 13's request had not been acknowledged.
