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T.O. Cab may take on dial-a-ride service
County to weigh ending deal with Agoura Hills
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More from TravelVentura County expects to lower the cost of its dial-a-ride paratransit service in unincorporated Oak Park by ending a 20-year-old arrangement with the city of Agoura Hills, officials said.
Today, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors will be asked to approve giving a 60-day notice to Agoura Hills to stop providing the service to Oak Park.
The Agoura Hills dial-a-ride service is operated by the city through a contract with First Transit, formerly Laidlaw Transit, officials said.
Ventura County plans to have Thousand Oaks Cab Co. begin providing the service in Oak Park.
"Paratransit service is basically for people who are not able to use normal transportation because they are physically disadvantaged or older persons who can't stand the rigors of regular bus rides," said county transportation director Butch Britt. "We are mandated by the federal government to provide these services."
There are about 1,600 rides per month from the Oak Park area for which the county pays Agoura Hills about $275,000 per year, Britt wrote in a report to the Board of Supervisors.
Britt estimated a $90,000 annual savings by terminating the contract with the city and expanding the county's current contracts with Thousand Oaks Cab Co., which already provides service to senior and disabled residents in the unincorporated areas of Newbury Park, Lynn Ranch, Ventu Park and Rolling Oaks.
Recently the city of Agoura Hills purchased its own vehicles for the service, and the city has requested $28,500 from Ventura County as the county's share of the cost, according to Britt.
"We're not proposing a change in service. We recommend choosing a different provider. In doing so we're trying to save the county some money," Britt said. "There is no anger. It's just a business decision."
He said he does not expect a gap in service. Dial-a-ride transit service is individually dispatched rather than a scheduled bus route.
Posted by Comtransman on April 22, 2008 at 12:58 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I did the math, and a savings of 90,000 a year would mean an average trip cost of 9.63 per trip. I don't believe that a cab service can operate a wheelchair van or a regular cab for this average fee per trip.
Something is missing! I don't know of any transportation contracts with this low of an average trip cost.
Another thing to consider is if the consumers are going to be pressured to give a tip to a cabbie.
I have no affiliation to either company and I don't think we are hearing the whole story.
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