Howdy ComradesA Fume of Buses: Part One
Howdy Comrades!
Recently, Capital Metro has decided to go after “a lot of fraud” which they allege is being perpetrated by blind Special Transit users who have taxi vouchers here in Austin. I’ve been involved with disability transportation issues since the late 1970’s, and I can’t understand why the management at Cap Metro is bloviating about voucher fraud within the blind community. Their definition of what fraud means has changed over the years. Nowadays, fraud means using a voucher to take taxi rides to or from a destination that hasn’t been preauthorized. This is a big change.
In the past, blind STS riders have been able to get vouchers for trips with the taxi companies to help defray costs associated with traveling to medical, work and grocery shopping appointments. The transit authority saves up to thirty bucks per trip by using taxi service over sending one of their vehicles with union drivers. Many blind passengers Qualified for permanent vouchers for these types of trips made on a routine basis. Officials with Cap Metro told us that they had no problem when we needed to “edit” our vouchers; as long as the MtA was not charged more than the original voucher. The voucher system worked very well for almost two decades, particularly for the blind people who were able to find reliable, honest drivers who became familiar with their transportation needs.
Of course, not all cab drivers are reliable or honest, and a few years ago, Cap Metro discovered that four drivers had been fabricating vouchers for trips they never made for passengers that didn’t even exist. My sources have confirmed, and Cap metro officials will not deny, that the four drivers in question defrauded the taxpayers to the tune of about $15,000.00 each week. The total fraud may exceed a quarter million dollars. So, one might think these drivers are now serving jail terms and are repaying the monies they scammed in the name of serving blind passengers, right? Well, not so much, as we say here in the Lone Star State. The drivers were fired but have never been prosecuted. How could this be the case? Could there be some hanky panky within the MTA bureaucracy? I smell more than a whiff of bullshit here.
Now, in classic fashion, Cap metro has changed what fraud means, and blames the true victims of the fraud, the tax paying blind passengers themselves. Metro officials seem more concerned with hiding what has happened from their Board and the media than finding methods to make the program work in a transparent and fiscally sound manner. Stay tuned to the Little-Red-Book for further developments. We will not allow Cap Metro to throw the baby out with the bath water.
Regards, Chairman Mal: Power to the Peeps!
Recently, Capital Metro has decided to go after “a lot of fraud” which they allege is being perpetrated by blind Special Transit users who have taxi vouchers here in Austin. I’ve been involved with disability transportation issues since the late 1970’s, and I can’t understand why the management at Cap Metro is bloviating about voucher fraud within the blind community. Their definition of what fraud means has changed over the years. Nowadays, fraud means using a voucher to take taxi rides to or from a destination that hasn’t been preauthorized. This is a big change.
In the past, blind STS riders have been able to get vouchers for trips with the taxi companies to help defray costs associated with traveling to medical, work and grocery shopping appointments. The transit authority saves up to thirty bucks per trip by using taxi service over sending one of their vehicles with union drivers. Many blind passengers Qualified for permanent vouchers for these types of trips made on a routine basis. Officials with Cap Metro told us that they had no problem when we needed to “edit” our vouchers; as long as the MtA was not charged more than the original voucher. The voucher system worked very well for almost two decades, particularly for the blind people who were able to find reliable, honest drivers who became familiar with their transportation needs.
Of course, not all cab drivers are reliable or honest, and a few years ago, Cap Metro discovered that four drivers had been fabricating vouchers for trips they never made for passengers that didn’t even exist. My sources have confirmed, and Cap metro officials will not deny, that the four drivers in question defrauded the taxpayers to the tune of about $15,000.00 each week. The total fraud may exceed a quarter million dollars. So, one might think these drivers are now serving jail terms and are repaying the monies they scammed in the name of serving blind passengers, right? Well, not so much, as we say here in the Lone Star State. The drivers were fired but have never been prosecuted. How could this be the case? Could there be some hanky panky within the MTA bureaucracy? I smell more than a whiff of bullshit here.
Now, in classic fashion, Cap metro has changed what fraud means, and blames the true victims of the fraud, the tax paying blind passengers themselves. Metro officials seem more concerned with hiding what has happened from their Board and the media than finding methods to make the program work in a transparent and fiscally sound manner. Stay tuned to the Little-Red-Book for further developments. We will not allow Cap Metro to throw the baby out with the bath water.
Regards, Chairman Mal: Power to the Peeps!
posted by Chairman Mal at
11:48 AM
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