Morning Roundup: Goodbye, Abe Edition
D.C. Police Seek Suspect in Series of Bank Robberies
Suspect in 9-Year-Old's Murder Found Dead in D.C. Jail
Photo of the Day: November 25, 2009
Ballou HS Rocks the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
WMATA offers this update on the fate of three Metrobus drivers who have been under investigation recently. Two bus operators have been fired this week, according to Metro. The first is the driver who was arrested and charged with kidnapping after refusing to let a passenger off the bus during a verbal dispute. The second fired driver had been driving with a suspended license, which Metro only discovered after the operator got into an accident with another vehicle on July 30. And finally, the bus driver photographed by a passenger while talking on her cell phone, made public by the local blog Unsuck DC Metro, will in fact keep her job, after an investigation determined she had used her personal cell phone to report a mechanical problem with her bus. "The internal Metro investigation revealed that the bus was stopped and secured when the operator communicated with Central Control and she did not operate the bus while on the phone. She has been re-instructed regarding operating procedures and returned to service." Metro General Manager John Catoe originally said that the driver would likely be fired.
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How is it possible that they found that the 3rd driver was not on the phone while operating the bus when there is a picture of her doing it?!
A still photograph proves neither that:
A) the vehicle was in motion at the instance the photo was taken
B) that the phone was actually in use, not merely in the driver's hands.
Also, it has been reported elsewhere that the person who took the photograph has admitted they were asleep except for the few moments when they used their phone to take the photo and were unaware of any of the urgent circumstances under which the driver was needing to communicate with the control center.
So let me get this straight: the witness was cognizant enough to operate the phone and take a picture, but lacked the self-awareness to figure out whether this rolling brick with acres of glass and a giant diesel engine was, in fact moving?
I'd prosecute that case...
Separately, it's douchebags like this witness that makes agencies decline to comment until the "investigation" is complete. Catoe now has egg on his face because he misspoke earlier. Now that the operator has been vindicated, it's apparent that he spoke too soon. Joy!
She was "returned to service"
Wow.
Yes, Wizzy has been in continuous service since the Reagan administration.
It's not a job, it's an adventure. Line up, boys!!
The bus driver was actually on the phone with central control because of a malfunctioning sign on the front of the bus. After a passenger informed her of the problem, she tried to fix the sign, but to no avail. She then attempted to contact central control by radio but her radio was malfunctioning. So, she stepped out of the bus and called HQ to apprise them of the situation. She was never driving the bus while talking on the phone.
She actually did the right thing. Get your facts straight, people.
Hi. You must be new. There have been a half a dozen or so posts on this subject, and we're very aware now of this. OK? Thanks. Bye!
Ok, so what happened to the guy apparently sleeping while operating a Metrorail train?
Or the guy that was reading a novel while operating a Metrobus? (He was given a warning - so are we changing this policy, or is a warning OK for reading while operating a vehicle?)
Or the guy who decided to stop a fully loaded 60-foot articulated bus to go grab some KFC?
Or the station manager that flipped off a customer and "fronted" him? (WMATA to follow up)
These are examples of terrible customer service at Metro, and we should demand follow-up from both Metro management and from the union.