Fiscal Year 2009-2010 Safer journeys, every day. Access Services Annual Report Access Services Mission and Vision Statement Executive Director’s Message Mission Vision In 2009 and 2010, the Access team achieved a number of notable milestones. It all started with a project to evaluate Access Services promotes Access Services serves alternatives to manage the increasing cost of liability access to all modes of the community as the insurance. By the end of the year, Access had developed and implemented an entirely new insurance structure and transportation and provides leader in promoting put into place a top notch safety program that provided quality and safe ADA accessible and innovative incentives to our providers and their drivers to operate as paratransit service on behalf transportation solutions. safely as possible. As you will read throughout this report, these initiatives have provided greater fi nancial protection of public transit agencies in to the agency and, most importantly, have led to a safer Los Angeles County. We accomplish this vision by: system for our customers. > Providing quality, effi cient, Some people have asked me safe and dependable ADA how we could accomplish all this paratransit service. in such a short period of time. > Leading the national dialogue The answer is teamwork, focus, as an advocate for universal and determination by every access to transportation. person on the Access team. > Partnering with other Every person working with Access is aware of and entities to secure alternate committed to safety. The Board of Directors, the Advisory funding sources and Committees, the Access staff, the Eligibility Evaluator staff, the providers and their drivers are committed to a safe legislation that expands Access system. Together we are a formidable team and transportation options. we are making a difference. Our goal is to provide safer journeys with Access. Shelly Lyons Verrinder Executive Director 2 3 Access Services’ Safety Focus During this fi scal year, Access Services made enormous strides to make the system safer for our customers. Here are just some of the things we implemented this year: > Operations Steering Committee > Accident Tracking and Reporting > Driver Incentive Program > Driver Safety Pledge Access has historically conducted monthly Now that Access is self-insured, it is imperative The Driver Incentive Program recognizes The Driver Safety Pledge serves two purposes. Service Provider Meetings where Access staff that Access closely study the trends in drivers who are providing safe and courteous First, it provides customers with an easily and service providers discuss issues that affect accidents and incidents. service to customers. Access drivers that visible identifi cation of who their driver is service delivery. reach the established milestones without a each time they travel on Access. It is affi xed Each region presents its own unique single preventable accident/incident and to the dashboard of each vehicle in a plastic To foster a greater awareness of safety, Access challenges, and accident and incident trends zero valid customer complaints will qualify case (developed from scratch by our Fleet transformed the Provider Meeting into the differ between service regions. As a result, for the incentive program. Driver awards Administrator Rick Streiff) and provides the Safety Steering Committee meeting. While Access must focus on not only what will make become progressively more elaborate at each customer with a picture of the driver as well as operational issues will always be part of these the service safer systemwide, but also identify 10,000 mile increment. A grand prize will be their name and driver number. meetings, the agenda items are primarily and correct trends specifi c to each region. awarded to drivers who reach 100,000 miles The second purpose of the Driver Safety focused on developing and implementing best Access’ Operations and Risk Management without a preventable accident/incident and Pledge is just that, a pledge which reads,”My practices that will contribute to a reduction departments meet weekly to review accidents, zero safety-related complaints. The prize for goal is to provide you with a safe, secure, in accidents and incidents. As a self insured incidents and claims to identify causes and this achievement is four tickets to Disneyland and courteous trip.” Access believes that it’s agency, Access can help reduce risks and potential corrective actions which are then and recognition at the Access Services important to make customers feel safe and subsequently, claims, through the joint efforts communicated to the service providers. Membership Meeting in March 2011. of Access and the service providers. secure from the moment they enter the vehicle. Each month Access’ Executive Management > Accident Incident Review and Operations staff show up bright and > Safety Backpacks Access’ Operations Department has adopted early at the service providers’ facilities to In order to increase driver awareness of an “Accident Incident Review” (AIR) process, hand-deliver the prizes and shake the hands safety and provide more consistency among a hands-on approach to post–accident and of those individuals who work the hardest: the different service providers with respect incident investigations. Under this process, Access drivers. As of November 2010, 805 to accident investigation, Access rolled out high-risk events trigger an on-site visit by drivers reached 10,000 miles without a single Safety Backpacks that were distributed to all Operations staff to discuss the event directly preventable accident/incident, 451 drivers service providers to be placed in Access with the driver involved and identify the root reached the 20,000 mile mark, 60 drivers owned vehicles. cause and possible improvements in training reached the 30,000 mile mark, 12 drivers and best practices. reached the 40,000 mile mark, and one driver The backpacks include an accident reporting achieved the 50,000 mile mark! There is no kit, disposable camera, wheelchair tethers, doubt these numbers will continue to grow in and other materials that will allow the drivers the months to come. to appropriately respond to and document an accident. 4 5 Access Services Board of Directors Transportation Professionals Advisory Committee (TPAC) Fiscal Year 2009 - 2010 Fiscal Year 2009 - 2010 Dolores Nason Kurt Hagen Jesse Valdez Shirley Hsiao Jose Medrano Chair Los Angeles County Chair Long Beach Transit Montebello Bus Lines Los Angeles County Board Commission on Disabilities Eastern Los Angeles Joyce Rooney Graham Ridley of Supervisors Regional Center Michael Williams City of West Hollywood Norwalk Transit Jano Baghdanian Ex-Officio Kathryn Engel Matthew Gleason George L. Sparks Vice Chair Chair, Access Services Vice Chair Southern California Pomona Valley Los Angeles Local Fixed Community Advisory City of Glendale Association of Governments Transportation Authority Route Operators Committee (CAC) Gracie A. Davis Diane Amaya Wayne Wassell Joseph Stitcher Jesse Valdez Orange County City of Redondo Beach Los Angeles County Treasurer Ex-Officio Transportation Authority Metropolitan Transportation Los Angeles Chair, Access Services Dennis Kobata John Fong Authority (Metro) Municipal Operators Transportation Professionals Torrance Transit City of Los Angeles, Advisory Committee (TPAC) Ernie Crespo Theresa De Vera Department of Kevin McDonald Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus Secretary James Jones Transportation Foothill Transit City of Los Angeles Access Services Mayor’s Office Legal Counsel Jones & Lester, LLP Doran J. Barnes Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Foothill Transit, Los Angeles Fiscal Year 2009 - 2010 Municipal Operators Michael Williams Michael Anthony Arrigo Veronica Martinez Marlen Garcia Chair Kurt Baldwin Ray Louis McKeever City Selection Committee Corridor Transportation Reps. Gloria Broderick Michael Conrad Angela Nwokike Vice Chair Tina Foa Foa Gay Parrish Sandy Varga Los Angeles County Tommy Johnson Hugh J. Hallenberg Jesse Padilla Independent Living Centers Second Vice Chair James Hogan Ken Schwartz Michael Greenwood Gary Jansen Shawn Solomon Los Angeles County Frances Kitrell Tonni Yee-Hemphill Metropolitan Transportation Terri Lantz Authority (Metro) In memory of Ray Louis McKeever and Shawn Solomon. 6 7 Access Services Member Agencies Superior Service Award Recipients Fiscal Year 2009 - 2010 Fiscal Year 2009 - 2010 1. Antelope Valley 29. City of Sierra Madre July 2009 November 2009 April 2010 Transit Authority 30. City of West Covina Francisco Lucas Ramon Mary Volio Hamidullah “Hamid” Zamani 2. Beach Cities Transit Road Supervisor Driver Driver 31. City of West Hollywood California Transit, Inc. Southland Transit, Inc. MV Transportation, Inc. 3. City of Alhambra 32. City of Westlake Village 4. City of Baldwin Park 33. Culver CityBus August 2009 December 2009 May 2010 Denise “Didi” Johnson Ricky Bachan Paresh Patel 5. City of Bell Gardens 34. Foothill Transit Customer Service Driver Driver 6. City of Bellflower 35. Gardena Municipal Representative Santa Clarita Transit MV Transportation, Inc. 7. City of Burbank Bus Lines Care Evaluators 8. City of Calabasas 36. Long Beach Transit January 2010 June 2010 September 2009 Joy Paez Beatriz Gonzalez 9. City of Carson 37. Los Angeles City Department Carol Bravo Driver Behind the Wheel Trainer of Transportation 10. City of Cerritos Customer Service Southland Transit, Inc. California Transit, Inc. 11. City of Commerce 38. Los Angeles County Representative Department