Council Unanimously Rescinds Eastside Dial-a-Ride Contract

The Los Angeles City Council unanimously rescinded its approval of a $722,500 Eastside dial-a-ride contract Wednesday, a day after learning that the firm that won the contract had recently lost its certificate for charter bus service because its vehicles were defective.

The turnabout marked the second time that the Eastside transit service contract has been embroiled in controversy. Another firm earlier given tentative approval for the pact withdrew its bid after complaints that its selection was politically motivated.

The council’s action Wednesday came after council members learned that Pacific Busing, to which it had awarded the contract on Tuesday, had its charter bus certificate suspended by the Public Utilities Commission.

The PUC based the Sept. 24 suspension on a California Highway Patrol report that it had pulled nine of the firm’s 29 buses from service because of violations ranging from defective steering and bad brakes to fuel leaks and suspension problems.

Brian Navis, president of Pacific Busing, blamed the suspension on the firm’s aging charter bus fleet and said that it would not affect the dial-a-ride program, for which new 12-passenger vans were to be used.

But council members nonetheless rescinded their approval and sent the entire matter back to the council’s Transportation Committee. In reopening the contract, Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky also asked that the committee determine why the city Department of Transportation was unaware of Pacific Busing’s suspension until informed of it by reporters.