Before we dive into this, I have to share an aside. Yes, I know, that’s strange, considering how focused I usually am… Prior to writing each post, I go back to review the previous one. Today, I went back to the first and read all the way through, and I have to say, I find this entire thing completely ridiculous. Out of a total of 15 attempted rides (not counting four more, which were cancelled due to snow) I have only had about three which went off without a hitch. Not great odds, those.
In any case, we should get back to the gripe of the day, which is the PM ride for the 26th. This is honestly the most ludicrous of all my rides to date. As usual, I was ready well within my pick up window, which was between 4:02 and 4:32. WMATA is nothing if not randomly specific! At 4:23, I received a call from the WMATA dispatcher – not the driver, and yes, this is relevant. I looked out the window and saw them a little bit down the street, so I hurried up and “scooted” out the door on my Knee Scooter. As I’m getting onto the sidewalk, I see my MetroAccess van driving away! I wave, they stop, then drive a little, then stop again. Now, it is also important to note that there is about a 30 ft patch of sidewalk that is covered in ice. Not just ice, but that ice that USED to be snow, and people walked in it, and then it turned into ice, so it’s all bumpy and footprint-ey. And yes, you guessed it, they were stopped at the end of the that patch of ice. Naturally, the end that was 30 ft away from me, not the end BEFORE the ice patch. Luckily, ice happens to be my favorite thing! It’s not like I do things like slip, fall, and break as many bones as possible.
The driver disembarks, and instantly has an attitude. He tells me how he was just leaving, and how he’d been waiting, etc. I told him that I only JUST received a call from the dispatch office… he didn’t say anything but mentioned again that he was waiting for me. Yes, thank you, I got that the first time. My new friend starts walking to the van, and doesn’t offer to help me. So I get to roll across bumpy ice, and hope I don’t bust another limb. As I am waiting for him to lower the ramp, I actually pull out my cell phone to show him what time I received the call. It is now 4:27. He again refuses to directly acknowledge the lack of phone call.
Once I’m all loaded in the van, the driver starts off, towards my apartment. When we are about three blocks away, he tells me “oh, by the way, we have to pick up two other people.” So we drive all over Silver Spring, and pick up two more people before coming all the way back to my apartment. I get off the van, and up the stairs to the apartment, and the guy helps me lug my scooter into the entry way. As he’s dropping the scooter off, he says to me, “oh, by the way, I got you here (captain obvious…) but just FYI, WMATA thinks you were a no show. Don’t worry, it’s not a big deal, but you will be getting a letter from them telling you that you were a no show.” I just told him, ok, that there isn’t an issue, I’d just call them to sort it out. He instantly says “no, don’t tell them anything, because then I’ll get in trouble. Just don’t worry about it, it’s only one no-show.”
I was honestly speechless. THAT is rare! I honestly couldn’t believe that I was asked to risk my access, in order to make sure he didn’t get in trouble. And I will be honest, I really struggled with it, because the last thing I want to do is risk someone losing their job – I know how strict the rules are for drivers. At the same time, I know that I am quite fortunate. I have a job that is flexible and allows me to work form home if needed, I am able to get around in a taxi if I have to, I have a husband to wait on me and friends who come over at a moments notice. What bothers me is that there are so many customers who truly DEPEND on this service. They depend on it for grocery shopping, getting to work (which is often fairly inflexible,) who perhaps don’t have a support system like mine. If I don’t say anything about these issues, I’m not the only one who is suffering, there are many who are far less fortunate than I, and I think that it’s important for WMATA to be made fully aware, and reevaluate their operations procedure. We are paying for a service, but are often not receiving said service.
This was a far more serious post than those prior, but it’s important to recognize that this is ACTUALLY a fairly serious issue! More later!
Cheers!